My Dog Has Rubbery Stool

[Millz1422]

Hello

I took my dog out yesterday to do her business, I realised her stool was 1 long piece, maybe 15cm-20cm. she didnt seem in pain when defecating. It was a brown colour, no mucous, I poked it and it was very rubbery spongy consistancy, it didnt break when i poked it with the stick,

Does anyone know what is the cause of this?

she is a 4yr old staffy. diet is minced meat, some celery and occasional carrot and pumpkin, i generally give her 1-2tsp of coconut oil in her food a day, 1tsp of psyllium husk, a dose of multi-v and some probiotics.

she eats well,plays well drinks etc.

Edited February 1, 2015 by Millz1422

[sheena]

Maybe something she had swallowed a couple of days before :)

[Roova]

When you say minced meat do you mean pet mince which has bone mixed through?

If not is she getting edible bone/calcium another way? This might affect the consistency of her stools too.

[Erny]

Without full detail, my first thought was insufficient roughage with each meal. Grated veggies (or better still, pureed veggies) can be added to the mince meat. Veggies such as broccoli, carrots and a bit of beetroot and zucchini, just for an example.

ETA : Although I don't think as good as pureed veggies, they can be grated, frozen and then allowed to defrost. This helps begin to break down the cells of the veggies to make it easier for the dog's system to digest and absorb, so I've read.

Edited February 1, 2015 by Erny

[Millz1422]

I feed her human grade beef mince, i give her 3-4 chicken necks for bones 1- 2 times a week, i grate her celery and carrot, steamed pumpkin. i give her psyllium husk for fibre.

currently not giving her carbs like sweet potato etc as i believe she has yeast infection in her paws judging from the smell and the paw licking

although disgusting i did check her stool today and even though it has rained it is still one long connected piece

Edited February 1, 2015 by Millz1422

[megan_]

Could she have swallowed something like a stocking? My dog has swallowed stocking footlets before and she did a long, spongey poo.

Also, her diet seems low in bones if she's only getting mince and a few chicken necks. Human grade mince contains no bones.

[Erny]

One of the highest calcium sources in veggies is broccoli (just for your info).

You say you grate celery, and "occasional carrot and pumpkin". To me this reads that her diet is predominantly human grade beef mince plus grated celery and psyllium husk. I'm not an expert, but as far as a daily diet is concerned (even taking into account the chicken necks provided per week), I don't think this represents a good balance of meat protein and fibre. Raw feeding experts - please correct me if you think I'm wrong.

I'm not a fan of feeding beef - so many dogs these days seem to have trouble with it. I guess if it suits your dog, that's ok. But I wonder if this is one (of other) component that could afford a change. Perhaps lamb and/or roo mince?

Also, some probiotic may assist. Yeast issues usually come from digestive issues, where the digestive system is not sufficiently breaking down the food and allowing it to pass through the digestive tract as efficiently as it ought to. Digestive issues usually relate to the dietary components, so a good balance is necessary for the system to function at its optimum.

Also, I believe that pumpkin can either loosen or firm up stool - I think it depends on the quantity.

Perhaps this problem does relate to an incident where your dog has eaten something she shouldn't have, but the fact that you've mentioned your dog has a problem with yeast overgrowth makes me think there is a digestive issue.

You could look into Augustine Approved's "SuperBoost". I feed this to my dog using what I term the "full-blown" diet recommended on its website. However I understand many people have had really good success in a variety of improvements and solutions to their dog's various issues (skin/digestive) by simply adding the powder to their dogs' usual food as a supplement. The latter way is cheaper.

One other thing you might want to look into (first by reading and if you feel it is possible, then by blood test) is your girl's thyroid levels. Check out Dr Jean Dodd's website "Hemopet/Hemolife" and scroll the tabs for "thyroid". The symptoms for hypothyroidism are diverse but also can show up common traits if the thyroid condition is a bit more advanced. If you do go ahead with testing, I wouldn't bother with testing through our Aussie laboratories. Instead I'd recommend you use Dr Jean Dodd's laboratory in the USA. A little more inconvenient but their testing and analysis is more sensitive and advanced than ours.

[brightstar123]

Psyllium husk can be notorious for forming bulky, ropey stools. It's often combined with bentonite clay by advocates of the "colon cleanse" just for that effect. It forms a gelatinous, spongy texture in the gut and one teaspoon of psyllium can create up to a cup of stool! So my best guess would be it might be something to do with that, could you have accidentally given a bit more than normal?

Also I agree, I would increase the bone content of the diet. Has your dog had wet/damp feet more than usual? Sometimes simple things like that increase yeast between the toes. You can use a commercial product like Malaseb or a water/apple cider vinegar soak and then keep those feet as dry as possible!

[Erny]

Psyllium husk can be notorious for forming bulky, ropey stools. It's often combined with bentonite clay by advocates of the "colon cleanse" just for that effect. It forms a gelatinous, spongy texture in the gut and one teaspoon of psyllium can create up to a cup of stool!

Thank you, Brightstar. I wasn't aware of that myself - good to know!

[persephone]

psyllium forms a thick gel which is indigestible ..so , imagine a gel /mince sausage ..... ;)

Mince & celery is an odd diet :)

Unless your dog has no teeth , staffies in particular LOVE getting their meat /bone as a meal ..like a whole turkey wing /neck , or beef brisket bone, oxtail, chicken frame... hewing is what dogs are meant to do ..and they love it!!