My 3 month old golden retriever didn't eat much of her breakfast this morning, and then i took her outside and she had diarrhea. She's had diarrhea before, but I'm concerned about her not eating much. What could this be? Is a trip to the vet necessary?

If I'm concerned about my dog's health, I call the vet. I don't necessarily take him in. Usually just a phone call puts my mind at ease. My vet is really good about telling me things I can do at home if it's not something major, but I know some vets will tell you to bring them in no matter what.

If it were me, and my dog was acting okay otherwise, I'd wait a bit and see if things resolve at the next feeding. If you're concerned though, there's no harm in calling.

What, if anything, have you done with her as far as her diet?

Is she acting differently, like lack or less of a normal energy level? Lethargic or laying around not really doing much of anything?
What does the diarrhea look like? Is there any blood in it?

Was she vaccinated? Has she gotten into anything that could make her sick?

If you have recently changed her diet and she is acting normally, would wait a day or two and see if she snaps out of the not eating too much period.
If she is acting differently than normal since you got her, then Yes by all means I would visit (or definitely at least call) the vet.

Edited by Carol Boche (03/11/2007 11:35 AM)
Edit reason: spelling AGAIN!!! Geesh

I agree with everything that Carol said. One thing that happened to me in the past when my one shepherd had bad diarrhea, I started her on a bland diet after letting her fast for a day or 2. Just be sure to give your dog plenty of water and try to pick up a bottle of pedialite just in case the dog is starting to get dehydrated. After having her on a bland diet for about a week (rice, yogurt and cooked ground meat) she was starting to have normal stools again. After a little while I introduced her old dry kibble to her again and she automatically got diarrhea again, I switched her back to the bland diet and reintroduced her food again and the same thing happened. I think she became allergic to the food or it was a bad batch so I threw it out and switched her kibble and she was totally fine. This took about a month for me to figure out and she was acting fine besides the diarrhea.

Kimberly

Victoria,

Was your pup wormed recently? Some dewormers will give my dogs a mild stomach upset and they'll eat lightly the next day or so. If a puppy has worms, I would not be surprised to see loose stool or diarrhea with worms in it. The worms could look like white threads or strings (roundworm) or short pieces of fettucine (tapeworm).

I would take in a stool sample to eliminate the possibility that your dog has picked up a parasite (like giardia) that isn't treated by over-the-counter dewormers. It can also confirm if there is a bacterial infection of the intestine. Especially, with a puppy, it's better to be safe than sorry! If you take a stool sample to the vet, ask for a "float" and a "smear." There are two different ways of examining the stool sample. The "float" is the normal way, but if you want to rule out other concerns like giardia or an infection, a "smear" is also necessary. Some intestinal parasites can be difficult to detect - meaning they may not appear all the time, so there is a chance that a sample could give a false negative.

In the meantime, see if your puppy likes some 100% pure canned pumpkin (not pumpkin pie filling) with her kibble or meat. Most dogs love the flavor. If the diarrhea is caused by food changes, the pumpkin fiber should help regulate the stool. You can also give your puppy plain yogurt. The active cultures help regulate digestion.

If the diarrhea is or becomes watery, bring the dog to your vet immediately.

P.S. I've never been billed for a phone call to a vet. If you're concerned that the clinic is encouraging unnecessary care, call a few more vets.