Puppy stomach upset - when to call the vet?

[ArtichokeAardvark]

Puppy is 10.5 weeks - she's not my first dog but the first I've had from a puppy. She's been on Beta Puppy since weaning, and has always had fairly soft poo, Mr Whippy-style (sorry TMI!). As she has been happy and healthy otherwise, I've not been too worried. However, yesterday morning I came downstairs to a large brown puddle on the floor from where she'd clearly had an upset stomach overnight. Behaviour was completely normal and she bounced around very happy to see me. I gave her scrambled egg instead of kibble for breakfast, and have been alternating eggs and chicken with rice since then. In herself she is completely normal - alert, playful, hungry, etc, but her poo is still pretty liquid.

With an adult dog, I'd give it another couple of days treating at home before calling the vet. Where would you draw the line with a puppy though? Other than a stomach upset she's absolutely fine, but thinking I might need to take her in tomorrow? I have a feeling it may be due to eating pigeon poo - I have a large tree overhanging my garden and she is permanently snuffling around in the grass under it...

Lots of dogs are sensitive to chicken, so that might not be helping. And rice is a pointless filler. White fish and sweet potato is a better alternative.
If the puppy has always had soft poo, then I would look to change her food anyway. It obviously doesn't agree with her.
I'd phone the vet tomorrow if it was me. They may just give advice over the phone or they may want to see her. I know how I would treat an older dog, but I wouldn't take any chances with a puppy.

I agree see the vet tomorrow with a pup so young. They can give an injection that’s anti nausea and pain killer in one that will really speed up the recovery.

Is pup vaccinated I lost my 11 weel old to parvo he had upset tummy then runny poo then sick then just went silent I would get pup checked hun

Thanks all - I had made up my mind to ring the vet this morning, but she's since had a perfectly normal poo so I'm hoping we're through it! As no other symptoms or even hints that she might be unwell, I'm going to keep an eye on her and see what happens. She's had her first round of vaccinations and due the second round on Monday, so I'll chat to the vet about it then anyway, but so far all seems well again today.😊

It's like being back evaluating nappies again, except harder because I have no idea if she ate something other than what I've given her!

Am I the only one with a folder of 💩 photos on my phone? 🙈😂
Glad she seems better today. Long may it last. 🤞

It could be stress from being separated. You could try her in your room or you with her for a few weeks. Really pups need to be with their families for a good few months until they gain independence.

I agree with considering changing the food to a better quality one. We did , and it’s made a huge difference. Much nicer to pick up now!

plus, where’s the picture of your puppy? Thems the rules!

I work from home and she is spending most of the day sleeping on the sofa in the same room as me - she is definitely not stressed! 😆 She does sleep in the kitchen but we have a baby monitor so we can hear her, she's hasn't cried in the night since day 3.

She's happy and full of beans today! Obligatory pup pics follow...

What food do you use - can you recommend one? We used Oskars for our last (adult) dog but they went bust a few years back...

She's gorgeous!!!!
With a puppy that young I would take her to the vet asap. First thing tomorrow at the latest. Better to be safe.

Thank you for the pictures, from another lab owner. She’s gorgeous!

I use Butternut box mixed with kibble (50:50). It’s not the cheapest (hence mixing it with kibble) but seems to work. I use Burns kibble.

(If interested, I can send you a discount code. Or Pets at home sell it if you want to try it before committing).

My younger lab pup didn't produce a nice 💩 until we changed her food. We put her on essential large breed the beginning kibble with some forthglade 90% wet food on top.

So after a day back on her normal kibble, the upset tum returned last night... Think we need to change her food, but appointment booked with the vet this afternoon just in case. I've done a horrendous amount of googling in the last 48 hours and looks like lots of pups struggle with Beta Puppy, especially as they get older and quantity increases! She's still very cheerful and bouncing about so I don't think it's parvo or anything awful like that, just when she goes, she really goes... 😬

Encouraging news OP!
And it's really useful you could see a change from modifying the diet so that you can look at changing to a different food to suit the puppy.

It does sound like it's a food issue rather than she's poorly. I'd try her on something else and hope it suits her better.
Orijen is good, but expensive. Mine are all on Country Kibble. And I know lots of people recommend Millies Wolfheart.
It depends on your budget really. Enjoy spending hours googling foods now. 😂 I may or may not have made a spreadsheet when I was looking at switching. 🙈

Vet also thinks it's the food, so we're on a week of chicken, hardboiled eggs and rice, plus VetPro probiotics to reset her digestive system. Then gradually introduce a different food brand. Welcoming all recommendations! Budget is mid-upper range, not sure I can stretch to expensive raw food subscriptions (and I don't have the freezer space!) but can definitely afford a good quality kibble.

@SpanielsGalore fancy sharing your spreadsheet?! 😂

we’ve tried a few different brands which didn’t seem to suit our pup. Vet recommended aldi grain free (they do kibble and wet) and we’ve never looked back. His poos are solid whereas before they were slop and we had to take a bottle of water with us to rinse what we couldn’t pick up away. I weight out the daily amount of kibble which he has for breakfast and dinner then a tray of wet food for tea.