We have a 15 week old Giant Schnauzer Dexter who has had diarrhea problems since we got him. At 8 weeks he had a spell of diarrhea and vomiting, and when he became a bit lethargic we took him to the vet, who gave us nux 30 and amoxacillin, he got better with that. he was also tested for parvo and it was negative. We had been feeding him purina pro plan, mostly because thats what the breeder was feeding and of course the vet wanted a food with low protein and fat.

Two weeks ago we decided to switch to Acana, and we introduced it over nine days, the last day it was all Acana and his stool was awesome, very hard and small. The following day he had brown liquid diarrhea, so we didnt feed for a day and gave some cottage cheese followed by incorporating the purina again, thinking the Acana was too rich etc....once again he got better for a day or two, then the explosive diarrhea started...and it was bad, projectile, watery, yellowish but almost clear diarrhea, every thirty minutes or so, and he started to vomit, so off to the vet again.

Vet told me that he thought it was giardia, as Dexter was still responsive and not too lethargic. He gave us metronidazole (looks like he wrote Metropidazone on the label though) and stated to use the nux 30 after he eats to help calm his stomach. Dexter also had what seems like a chest cold for the past two weeks, somewhat of a wheezing sound at times and some mucus from his nose, but that had gotten better over time and the vet did not say anything after listening to his lungs.

Since coming home and starting the medication yesterday he has shown a decreased interest in eating. He still is drinking water and has times where he will play but he is more lethargic then usual. My question is...would the medication make him lethargic or should I take him back to the vet. I was at the vets yesterday. Also he still has watery diarrhea, but it is only once every few hours, where as before the vet it was every thirty minutes. And he has vomited once. He doesnt seem to be dehydrated, skin goes back into place like normal and he is still drinking.

I am considering doing the boiled chicken and white rice diet for bit...(the vet wanted me to feed medical), or just giving him the acana and the nux 30 afterwards. How long should I give it to see if the medication is working or if he has coccidea rather then giardia......any help or thoughts would be appreciated as we are very worried and want our little guy to get better. sorry for the long post.

Brian

Just googled Metronidazole and it does list an upset stomach as an adverse reaction as well as lethargy as a secondary reaction, hopefully that is what he is going through and if we give it a day or two he will get better.....any thoughts on this...

and loss of appetite.....

I'd get a different vet's opinion.

This is too much diarrhea for a puppy.

What has been done at the vet's?

Fecal? Bloodwork?

 Quote: Michael_Wise

I'd get a different vet's opinion.

This is too much diarrhea for a puppy.

Ditto. And I would switch to boiled chicken and rice until you have multiple consecutive days of good poops again. Switching around his food while he's simultaneously fighting some as yet undetermined bug, AND being medicated, is not a great idea - while I completely support your desire to get off the Pro Plan, give his tummy a nice bland rest while his system works things out.

Best of luck to the little guy - Dexter is a fabulous name for a Bouv, BTW.

~Natalya

Wow, thanks for the quick replies....I am going to go get some chicken now so I can do the chicken and rice....the vet hasnt asked for fecal or blood work...This would be the only way to say for sure what he has probably...I think the vet is going off of the symptoms only...I am going to give it a day and see if the diarrhea slows down, if it does not slow down or turn back into some resemblance of poop...i will return and if no blood or fecal test is done at that point I will go see a different vet....thanks, any other ideas shoot them my way....

 Quote: Michael_Wise

I'd get a different vet's opinion.

This is too much diarrhea for a puppy.

HUGE ditto.

IMO, there should have been immediate request for a fecal (and probably blood). Certainly a fecal right away. JMO. But I would call and ask why no tests were deemed necessary. (You are the paying client, don't forget; if you have questions, the vet is supposed to answer them.)

Boil that white rice to death, by the way: you are aiming for a soupy gruel. And don't let this little guy get dehydrated, even if you have to make baited water.

 Quote: Brian Villers

...I am going to give it a day and see if the diarrhea slows down, if it does not slow down or turn back into some resemblance of poop...i will return and if no blood or fecal test is done at that point I will go see a different vet....thanks, any other ideas shoot them my way....

Sounds OK to me. You want to see some, any, improvement in the poop.

The rice is the big priority because of its binding properties. The skinless white chicken will make it taste better and give some protein, but is not the main ingredient here.

Agreed. I would look into getting a different vet for continued care - the one you are using now doesn't seem very attentive. This is a puppy who sounds seriously sick and I don't think he is getting the attention he needs from the vet. You can't mess around with these things - they can turn deadly very fast.