Another medical question!! puppy convalescence - Page 1

 Hi Oso,

Glad to hear the older female recovered. 

It would make things easier, of course, if a definitive diagnosis of what caused this condition in the pups was known, but, in the meantime, you must treat the signs, as you are doing, . Based on what you describe, the intestinal lining probably is damaged. It can take several weeks to heal, depending on severity. I would retest stool and look again for parasites. A virus could have done this or a bacterial infection. Has the pup been on any antibiotic? If not, strongly suggest considering it.

Also, I would try to give the pup something like metronidazole, even if there is no giardia found. It is very useful for its' anti-inflammatory properties and may well help. Do you have any yogurt there or any product with acidophilus cultures to help restore normal gut bacteria? If so, try giving it in small amounts over the course of several days to see if that helps. Normally, with diarrhea one wants to rest the gut as much as possible. I would not feed the RC, unless the pup will eat nothing else and if I fed a kibble, would try their baby puppy formula if you can get it. I might also consider using a pancreatic enzyme supplement, but you would have to just experiment with that to see if pre-digesting food would help for now.

Can you feed some boiled rice moistened with chicken or beef broth without the fat? I would not give her meat until the diarrhea clears up.  Also, loperamide (Imodium for humans in the right prep; there are several) can be useful, depending on the cause of the diarrhea. The vitamin B complex is a good idea.

Keep us posted. And good luck.

what popped into my head was possible vaccinosis so i ran a search for "vaccinosis diarrhea puppies" and here are a few links that popped up - hth
http://www.drpitcairn.com/talks/looking_at_vaccines.html
http://www.charlesloopsdvm.com/vaccinosis.htm
http://www.dogsandhorses.net/vaccinations.html
http://www.shirleys-wellness-cafe.com/petvacc.htm
http://leerburg.com/vaccinosis.htm

if you feel it might be vaccinosis these sites might be helpful to look at
http://wolfcreekranch1.tripod.com/vaccination_wormer_detox.html
http://www.onlynaturalpet.com/products/Newton-Homeopathics-Thuja/161016.aspx

i feed raw so can't address the kibbles question but this site might be helpful. it has all sort of links to various illnesses but here's the one for "diet for dogs with diarrhea"
http://www.gopetsamerica.com/dog-health/dog-diarrhea-diet.aspx

i feel so sorry for your pups & you.  i hope you find what you need. one more thing you might want to think about a 2nd opinion - not to slight your vet in any way - it's just sometimes 2 heads are better than one - just a thought - best of luck

After a long illness I like to use baby food chicken with the rice.  Warm it up just a touch

 Diphenoxylate for the Diarrhea or order Dibac out of a catolog that is for Diarrhea. I have used both products and they have worked good. But again ask your vet first

EK

If the linings of her intestines are damaged, probably so is the lining of her stomach.  When we had a similar problem with a bitch an alternative therapist recommended doing an arrowroot and skimmed milk mix, letting it cool down and then feeding 1/2 an hour before feed.  This gives some kind of lining to the stomach and prevents the digestive enzymes from causing more problems.

Use 1 teaspoon of arrowroot to 1/4 pint skimm milk.    mix a bit of the milk into the arrowroot to form a paste then add in the rest of the milk, bring to the boil and then simmer for a few minutes, transfer to a feeding bowl and leave to cool.  We used to make it up at night so it was ready for 1st thing in the morning.  We used to find it made a big difference to our girl.