Soft poos from a new rescue

[Shalista]

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So most of you know Freddie's story from the other posts I've made about him. new rescue. got him Monday may 20. so almost exactly a week ago.

when I got him the rescue recommended switching him immediately to Hill Science Diet Sensitive Stomach Chicken Flavor. I do not know what they were feeding him at the kennel, this is what I was told to feed him so this is what he has been eating.

He also gets a considerable number of milk bones as treats throughout the day.

He also gets one or two collagen chew sticks a day as an extra special treat.

He has had soft serve poos since I got him. initially they were very muscusy but the mucus almost immediately dried up. no blood ever. my problem is that I am yet to get a single firm BM from him. he does not have urgency. he has no problem with his house training. he's eating and drinking fine. but he's extremely lethargic. sleeping 22 hours a day and would probably sleep the full 24 if I let him (I take him on walks around the neighborhood regularly to potty him fully).

i tried to get him into the vet ASAP when I picked him up but the closest appointment they could get him in was June 7.

I asked the rescue if this was normal and she said "yeah for a couple of days" and then went completely radio silent on me.

is a week of soft serve and a ton of lethargy common for a new rescue? I've never rescued an adult dog before so I'm a bit in the dark as to what to expect. is there something better than hills that I could give him for his gut? i offered to do boiled chicken and rice when she first recommended hills and she said "oh that wont be necessary" but now I'm tempted. the poor lil guy is obviously uncomfortable when he poops and it cant be good for him to have soft poos for this long. tips? help?

 

[JoanneF]

It's possible the combination of stress from the move and the change of food could cause this - normally people are advised to not change the food so it's odd that the rescue didn't tell you what they were feeding.

Anyway, yes there probably are better alternatives to Hills, I think you are in the US so have a look at www.dogfoodadviser.com.

You could also add a small amount of cooked pumpkin to his meals.

 

[excuseme]

Too much grain of any description can cause nasty soft smelly poo's. Even the "Hills Sience"diet could be causing the problem.
Our vets are not qualified to prescribe which food our dogs should eat.

 

[Hemlock]

As with us (and most animals) stress can cause changes in bowel habits. It's a good idea to try some chicken and vegetables (dogs don't get on well with cereals, but these are added to dog food because they are cheap and plentiful) but otherwise, just let his gut settle in its own time. You could try adding some live yoghurt to his food to support the gut biome. It won't do any harm whether it works or not.

 

[Shalista]

I want to switch him to Sundays for dogs because I’ve heard good things. A. Does this look like a good switch? And B. Should I wait for his poops to stabilize before transitioning him?

 

[sme4969]

cut down on the milk bones.
The problem of overfeeding can be compounded in dogs who are allergic to whatever they're eating. Milk-Bones have milk as one of the main ingredients, along with an expansive list of others, such as flour, wheat and bone meal. If Fido is allergic to any of the ingredients in Milk-Bones, you may see no reaction from feeding one or two, but feeding him several may cause symptoms such as diarrhea, vomiting and itchy skin. If you're feeding way over the recommended amount, then allergies or not, diarrhea is a possibility.
try your dog on some raw meat? as already stated stress and cereal don't help..