Cures for Dog's Soft Stool

A dog with soft or loose stools can suffer from lethargy, dehydration, weight loss or poor hair coat as a result of the poor absorption of nutrients from its food. A change in diet, intestinal parasites, or an infection can all cause loose stools in dogs. Depending on the cause of the diarrhea, you need to treat your dog to improve its digestion and health.

  1. Parasites

    • Gastrointestinal parasites can cause a soft or loose stool in your dog. To treat soft stools caused by an internal parasite, such as tapeworms, hookworms, giardia, roundworms, whipworms or coccidia, you need to take your dog to a veterinarian for a proper diagnosis. Once the veterinarian determines which kind of gastrointestinal parasite your dog suffers from, he can give your dog a deworming medication which specifically targets that type of organism. Possible medications your vet may give you to kill internal worms include pyrantel pamoate to kill roundworms and hookworms; febendazole to kill whipworms; and praziquantel to kill tapeworms, according to PetPlace.com. Protozoal parasites require drugs such as metronidazole to kill giardia, and various sulfa drugs to treat coccidia. Once you eliminate the parasites from your dog's system, the soft stools should subside.

    Infections and Other Medical Causes

    • After running a series of tests on your dog's feces, including fecal cultures, a veterinarian may then perform a blood test, urinalysis, abdominal X-rays or a series of other medical tests to determine the cause of your dog's loose stool. If your dog suffers from a bacterial or fungal infection, your veterinarian will give you either antibiotics or antifungal drugs to treat and eliminate the infection, specific to its type. Dogs that suffer from inflammatory bowel disease may require treatment with cortecosteroids to calm the inflammation, thus firming the stool. Conditions such as colitis, short bowel syndrome or irritable bowel syndrome may require a change in your dog's food to a hypoallergenic or high-fiber diet to firm its soft stool.

    Dietary Changes

    • If, after visiting a veterinarian, you determine your dog does not have a parasitic infection or other medical cause for its soft stool, look at its diet. Sudden changes in your dog's diet, such as changing the brand or flavor of its food, can cause your dog gastrointestinal upset, resulting in soft or loose stools. Your dog may also have a food allergy or intolerance to the main protein contained in the diet that you feed it. Switch your dog to a hypoallergenic food to eliminate any loose stools caused by food allergies. Change your dog's diet to one higher in fiber to improve your dog's colon health and bulk up its stool. Purchase a high fiber food from a veterinarian or look for foods with a high fiber content.

    Considerations

    • A dog who suffers from soft or loose stools for a prolonged period of time can become weak and lethargic, leading to further health complications. When transitioning your dog from one food to another, do so slowly, mixing in the new food with your dog's old one in increasing portions over about one week to prevent gastrointestinal distress. If a dog suddenly suffers from loose stool, it may have eaten spoiled food or ingested other foreign matter. Initially treat the dog by withholding food for 12 to 24 hours, but providing fresh water for it, according to the American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals. Bring your dog to a veterinarian if the loose stools last more than a day. Take puppies with loose stools to a veterinarian immediately, since this can indicate serious illness in young dogs.