Soft stools are a common problem in dogs. Many cases of soft stools are not serious and can heal quickly. However, if your dog is having trouble compacting his poop, you may need to help him. By paying attention to the food you are giving your dog and making sure that the environment around them is not stressful, you can help your dog's poop solidify again.
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Method 1 of 3: Studying the Dog's Digestive System
Step 1. Understand the difference between diarrhea and soft stools
There is little difference between diarrhea and soft stools. Soft stools are still in the form of piles and can be picked up for disposal. Dog droppings that have diarrhea are more watery and runny so they don't form and can't be picked up. Diarrhea is usually a sign of poor health or the dog is trying to remove toxins from the food in his intestines. On the other hand, soft stools are usually not the result of disease or infection, but the result of a poor or poor diet, lack of fiber, or food that triggers a dog's intolerance.
Step 2. Understand what to do if your dog has diarrhea
Dogs with diarrhea should be watched closely, which means you will need to follow the dog outside to find out what's causing the upset stomach. If the stool is bloody, the diarrhea is very watery, or the dog seems unwell, take him to the vet for a check-up.
- If your dog is healthy but has diarrhea, do not feed for 24 hours, but make sure clean drinking water is always available. After a day of hunger, give a bland diet such as cooked chicken and steamed white rice (⅓ chicken and rice) for 2-3 days until the feces solidify. Read this article for more information.
- All dogs that have diarrhea for more than 2 days should be taken to the doctor.
Step 3. Understand your dog's dietary needs
If your dog has soft stools, you will need to compact them to make them easier to pick up when walking your dog and to keep your dog healthy. Dogs need a diet consisting of protein and easily digestible fiber to stay healthy and pass stool smoothly.
Meat based diets are best for dogs. Dogs can eat a vegetarian or meat-based diet. However, these animals require high protein content and a vegetarian diet usually consists of beans and nuts. Both tend to cause flatulence/bloating and soft stools. So, if your dog is on a vegetarian diet, it's best to switch to a diet of good quality meat
Method 2 of 3: Improving the Dog's Diet
Step 1. Choose a balanced diet
A balanced diet doesn't mean you have to give your dog expensive food all the time. For example, a pâté (pasta)-type diet can be so rich in nutrients and minerals (such as salt) that picky dogs still prefer food (like chocolate cake is more appealing than chickpea lettuce; delicious and healthy don't always go hand in hand). Instead, look for foods that include meat in the ingredient list. Food must contain real meat and not “meat derivatives”, “meat offal”, or “meat by-products”.
- Choose white (low-fat) meats such as chicken, turkey, rabbit, or white fish. Look for foods that don't use a lot of ingredients because they usually don't use processed ingredients and preservatives, and the ingredients are close to real food.
- Give carbohydrates in the form of rice, wheat, or jali instead of soybeans or processed products.
- While price does not guarantee quality, high-quality food is usually more expensive than regular cereal products because the ingredients are also of higher quality.
Step 2. Give your dog a lactose-free diet
The only milk suitable for dogs is dog milk. For puppies who are still weaning, you can use Lactol instead, which is water-based. If your puppy is very young and you've recently switched to a milk replacement diet, it's best to choose a lactose-free product if your puppy's poop is soft. Some puppies are born with a deficiency in an enzyme called lactase. This enzyme breaks down the primary sugar component in milk, namely lactose. As a result, puppies that lack this enzyme are unable to break down lactose into sugar for digestion and absorption. Because sugar draws water from the intestines, the result is that the puppy's poop becomes soft.
Step 3. Replace wet food with dry food
Don't forget that the wet diet (canned or sachet) contains 75% water, while the dry diet contains only 10% water. The higher the water content, the softer and wet the puppy's poop will be. This will have a major impact on the volume (reducing it) and water content (denser and harder) in the dirt.
- Take time to get your dog used to his new diet. Schedule for a minimum of 4-5 days, and add a new diet to the dog's current diet and gradually reduce some of the original food. The step gives the dog's digestive system a chance to adapt.
- High protein foods, such as beef, chicken, and dog foods are high in protein. It can also soften dirt. The byproducts of protein digestion also draw water from the intestines.
- Wheat-based dog food, or foods rich in wheat, can also soften stools.
Step 4. Avoid giving your dog fatty foods
You should also stay away from fats that are easily rancid. Do not give fried ready-to-eat food to dogs. Commercial fried foods are usually cooked in palm oil, which is difficult to digest and easy to spoil. Bad fats can form a layer in the intestines so that dog poop is runny.
Step 5. Feed the dog a bland diet if the stool continues to be soft
A bland diet consists of mushy cooked rice and low-fat ground pork or mutton. Give a mixture of the two foods for at least five days and check to see if the dog's poop has solidified. Keep in mind that most commercial dog foods made for compaction of feces are usually rice-based because they are low in protein and salt, and are easily digestible starches.
Some dogs that can compact their feces include: Hill's Prescription Diet i/d, Royal Canin Intestinal, Eukanuba, Royal Canin Digestive Low Fat, and Hill's Science Diet
Method 3 of 3: Trying Other Solutions for Soft Stool
Step 1. Give your dog probiotics
The intestines rely on millions of bacteria to aid digestion. If during this time the dog's diet is not good and the feces are softened, it is likely that his intestines are inhabited by too many "useless" bacteria, and the number of good and bad bacteria in the intestines is balanced. Helping good bacteria can overcome this imbalance, improve digestion, and compact soft stools. The good bacteria in the gut is called Enterococcus faecium and it contains a non-prescription probiotic powder called Fortiflora. This probiotic is specifically for dogs, and is usually available in a sachet and mixed one per day into dog food, for about five days.
- Dogs don't have the same gut guts as humans, so giving dogs a human probiotic won't help, and worst of all, lactose in a human diet can trigger diarrhea.
- Fortiflora can be purchased without a prescription via the internet or from a veterinarian.
- In general, give large breed dogs at least one small bottle per day for five days, or half a bottle for five days for small breed dogs.
Step 2. Add fiber to your dog's diet
Some dogs with soft stools will be helped by a diet rich in fiber. Fiber helps absorb fluids like a sponge and helps to normalize stools/feces, drain diarrhea, and compact soft stools. Fiber is also thought to reduce the risk of colon/colon cancer, and is a compacting agent that helps dogs feel full longer and reduces their calorie intake if they are overweight.
- However, too much of a good food isn't good either, so look at the dog food label and make sure it's around 10% fiber.
- You can add fiber to your diet by mixing in oats or wheat bran. Start with 1 teaspoon of fiber per 10 kg of body weight.
- Also, consider giving your dog raw fruit and vegetables. However, you should not give canned vegetables because they usually contain a lot of salt.
Step 3. Make sure clean dog drinking water is always available
Dogs suffering from soft stools lose a lot of fluids as the fluid content of their feces increases so clean drinking water should always be available. Wash and clean the dog's drinking bowl at least every few days and make sure clean drinking water is always available.
Step 4. Try not to do strenuous activities with the dog every day
If your dog is too stressed to take a bath, delay it for a few days and see if the poop has solidified. In some dogs, there is a close link between stress and indigestion. If that's the case, you'll need to reduce your dog's stress to get the litter to solidify.
- Stress causes the gut physiology to become more alkaline (an acidic environment is ideal for good bacteria) making it difficult for dogs to digest food.
- In this case, reduce the burden on the dog's intestines by providing bland, easy-to-digest foods, such as chicken and white rice.
Step 5. Take the dog to the vet if the soft stools don't improve
Although often soft stools can be cured simply by changing your diet, it can be a sign of other health problems. If your dog continues to have soft stools, even after you've changed his diet, take him to the vet for a check-up.
