Poorly pup

[Joolly2]

18 week beagle puppy has had loose stools for 2 days. For the first time ever he woke in the night to go out to did a very runny poo with windy sound affects and then was a little sick. I remembered reading that feeding rice and chicken may help settle an upset tummy so that is what he has had today. He seems reasonable ok not showing any signs of pain. My worry is, he is not drinking very much and I don't want him to get dehydrated. Any suggestions/help would be very much appreciated.

How long have you had him? where did you get him from?

I'd he up to date with vaccinations?

when you lift the skin on his scruff. does it return straight away or does it go slowly. If he's dehydrated the skin will return slowly

meant to ask, it's Xmas obviously. is there any chance he's got hold of chocolate or mince pies etc? as those are poisonous to dogs.

any signs he's got into somewhere he shouldn't?

Giles, thank you for your quick response. We have had him since he was 8 weeks old. He is from a very good breeder, he is up to date with all his vaccinations. He is sleeping peacefully at the moment but as soon as he wakes I will do the skin on his scruff test. He drank normally yesterday, but today he has taken in very little. I tried putting my hand in the water and letting him lick my fingers, he was happy to do this for a while but then got bored and stopped.

Just seen your other questions Giles. No he has not got hold of any Christmas food or chocolate. When out walking he does tend to snaffle grass/leaves and other natural items. He has not been any where he shouldn't ie bins etc. I am wondering if I have fed him too many treats, we have also increased his food this week as he is old enough for a slightly bigger portion (royal canin). Could it just be too much.

Yes it could well be too much.

puppies have very sensitive stomachs.

has he been wormed too?

Our cat didn't drink very much. The vet told us to mix some water in to the food but that only works with wet food.

what kind of bowl do you use? vet also told us that metal bowls can make the water taste funny so we switched to a ceramic bowl.

obviously this advice was for cats but sure it could apply to dogs too.

I would stick to the chicken and rice for a couple of days and lay off the treats.

are yiu using the same food the breeder did?

We were advised to give our puppy ice cubes when he was unwell

Giles - he has plastic bowls. I have never considered that bowls might make the water taste funny, I will bear this in mind when I buy new bowls. He has been on this food (royal canin) for 10 weeks. Up to date with flea/worming.
Gruff - Thank you that is something we can easily try.

When you check his skin just check his gums too. They should be nice and pink and colour should return quickly when pressed.

depending on how he is tomorrow I'd think. about getting a check up at the vets as with the Xmas they may only be open restricted hours and emergency call outs the rest of the time.

sounds like he's probably just eaten something on a walk or has over done treats

If he's no better today I'd suggest going to the vet - you don't really want to be going on Christmas Day if things get worse. Hope he's better soon.

Most pups get an upset tum at some point - it's to be expected really.

As long as he is happy in himself - ie not lethargic, miserable or sleeping all the time, I wouldn't bother with the vet yet. Check his scruff to see if he is dehydrated though, and if he is it's urgent you see the vet.

Assuming he is his normal cheery self, miss out breakfast to allow his gut time to rest, and offer a dollop of active low fat or goats yoghurt.

At lunchtime, give him a scrambled egg with nothing added to scramble it, and another dollop of yoghurt.

See how he goes, and make an appointment for tomorrow which you can cancel if you need to.

Thank you everyone for your advice. Puppy would not drink this morning and the scruff test indicated he was dehydrated. We went to the vet and she agreed. She gave him an injection - of what I'm not sure. She also gave me some drink to make up and a syringe of Pro-Kolin. He has been very happy all day. He loves the drink and was happy to take the Pro-Kolin. I have kept him on a diet of rice and chicken. Apart from his early morning poo which was very runny he has not been again yet. However he has been weeing for Britain. As he seems to be quite happy I am more relaxed about him now. He thinks the ice cubes are great fun and has been chasing them round the kitchen floor.

Glad he's doing ok.