Puppy with runny poo!

[toooldforthisshirt37]

Help! We have adopted a puppy and he is refusing to eat the food that came with him. He will, however, eat it if it has a little (and I mean a little) soft puppy food mixed in. But this seems to be upsetting his tummy. No solid stools at all.

Otherwise he is bright and full of beans. Advice please??

[BiteyShark]

How long have you had him as they often have a poorly tummy for a bit at first as it's a big upheaval?

If you are feeding kibble it isn't actually very exciting so people often mix a bit of puppy wet food with it or add a bit of warm water to make a gravy.

If you are concerned I would also give your vet a call incase they think it warrants a check up.

[adaline]

What food did he come with? Kibble or wet?

Ours won't really eat kibble on its' own - I don't blame him, it looks boring as anything! Can you get the wet food that goes with the dry if that's what he's on?

[yougotanygrapes]

Try not to give dogs too much wet food.

Also anything you buy in the supermarket is pretty poor quality. You can ask your vet to recommend a decent food.

We use Tribal as my dog recently became allergic to cereals in cheaper food. Bakers etc are only approx 4% meat and the rest grains. Tribal is over 50% meat and oils. They eat a lot less. But translation to it slowly as the high meat content can make them poo a lot at first!

Try roast chicken or fish with peas and broccoli for a treat 😊

[BrokenWing]

What brand / food is he on now?

[AgathaF]

yougotanygrapes - just out of interest, why do you suggest not giving dogs too much wet food?

[yougotanygrapes]

Hi Agatha,

Generally makes their poo runnier. Not so good for their teeth. In general most brands are full of rubbish.

Just in my experience. (I'm not a vet)

[BiteyShark]

You can get some good quality wet food now. I use Forthglade and Millie's wolfheart which are both rated very highly on allaboutdogfood.co.uk.

Wet food isn't great for the teeth which is why I attempt to brush my dogs everyday but saying that I have seen dogs fed exclusively on kibble still requiring dental scales.

[SlothMama]

It sounds like he is adjusting to his new surroundings, this can be a stressful time for a young pup! When changing their diet it can take a few days for their system to accept the change.

We moved our puppies biscuits to a better, higher quality and we were advised to transition her over 2 weeks. She now has a 60:40 mix of wet to dry and is thriving

[AgathaF]

yougotanygrapes thanks for replying. I think that just like with kibble, if the wet food is of a poorer quality then it will reflect in their poos. Good quality wet food, in my experience, doesn't particularly lead to runnier poos. I agree with having some kibble being better for their teeth, but I think that can be got round by mixing wet with kibble, and also by giving healthy treats that help to clean teeth, like carrots.