Ok, so I posted about Liz on the elderly dog area of our BB here, but now I have a different problem. Her nerve problem has taken it to the point where she now just leaks poop and urine. She has no anal tone and it appears that there is constant poop coming out. Now, about 4 days ago I was worried about her because she wasn't pooping at all and the vet had me give her a metamucil supplement. Well, that fixed the constipation issue but now we've got the opposite problem. She's on prednisone right now and pepcid. I just don't know what to do. Of course, her poop isn't firm right now so it's a HUGE mess!
Should I possibly add white rice to her diet? I just don't want to end up in a back and forth see saw between constipation and loose bowels. How do I do this? This has become so time consuming, we are just at our wit's end!
Thanks,
Bonnie
Liz is now leaking poop
Re: Liz is now leaking poop
When Pete gets the runs I take him off all his food for a day or two and just give him white rice and pure pumpkin. Both of these are easy for him to digest and easy on the bowels. You may want to look into digestive enzymes for his food. They just help him digest his food.
Re: Liz is now leaking poop
Well, that's no fun. 
You definitely have my sympathy on that. Personally I never use metamucil for my incontinent dogs (have had 4 so far)...? I use a dry kibble that produces firm stools every time, always predictable. 3 of them have been on Science Diet w/d, which has a lot of fiber without causing this problem. The other one does not have a problem and does OK on Royal Canin kibble.
Prednisone can also cause gastric distress, even to the point of bleeding ulcers. They recommend giving a stomach protectant like pepcid a/c with prednisone. You cannot discontinue prednisone cold turkey, you have to taper it (as you know) so I would call the vet this morning and let him/her know what is going on. It's probably just the metamucil but I would call them anyway. Pepcid a/c is over the counter but you would need to know the dose. Hang in there!
Generally even a dog with no tone will move the bowels when needed, it is not like the bladder which may require assistance, it is more automatic. I agree you don't want to feed them something so they will be truly constipated, but things do not generally just stop. Another option is lactulose syrup, a stool softener that is safe to use long term and you can adjust the dose easily.
You definitely have my sympathy on that. Personally I never use metamucil for my incontinent dogs (have had 4 so far)...? I use a dry kibble that produces firm stools every time, always predictable. 3 of them have been on Science Diet w/d, which has a lot of fiber without causing this problem. The other one does not have a problem and does OK on Royal Canin kibble. Prednisone can also cause gastric distress, even to the point of bleeding ulcers. They recommend giving a stomach protectant like pepcid a/c with prednisone. You cannot discontinue prednisone cold turkey, you have to taper it (as you know) so I would call the vet this morning and let him/her know what is going on. It's probably just the metamucil but I would call them anyway. Pepcid a/c is over the counter but you would need to know the dose. Hang in there!
Generally even a dog with no tone will move the bowels when needed, it is not like the bladder which may require assistance, it is more automatic. I agree you don't want to feed them something so they will be truly constipated, but things do not generally just stop. Another option is lactulose syrup, a stool softener that is safe to use long term and you can adjust the dose easily.
Re: Liz is now leaking poop
Thank you Carol for the advice. We do have her on Pepcid A/C 10 mg a day for the gastric distress. And, yes, her bowels will move but they just sort of brown cap(know what I mean?) before they fall out and leak on their own. They are firmer today since I haven't given her the metamucil. Right now she's on a mix of dog food: Purina Beneful Incredibites and the Rachel Ray chicken and rice. I had them on Trader Joe's senior dog food for 6 years and then TJ's discontinued the food out of the blue so I had to find replacement food quick. I'm not so sure I should be changing their food again after we just switched a few months ago, I'm afraid it might disrupt her system too much again. PS: What is Science Diet w/d??? Not sure what the w/d stands for?
I have her in a diaper tonight even though she just pooped quite a bit outside while laying on the patio. We decided to leave the dogs outside for an hour or so to see if something would happen. We don't like leaving them outside often because we live in Phoenix and it can get pretty hot out there for them. So, after she went, I cleaned up her rear and then put the diaper on. She's handling it pretty well considering it's a new thing for her, LOL!
I have her in a diaper tonight even though she just pooped quite a bit outside while laying on the patio. We decided to leave the dogs outside for an hour or so to see if something would happen. We don't like leaving them outside often because we live in Phoenix and it can get pretty hot out there for them. So, after she went, I cleaned up her rear and then put the diaper on. She's handling it pretty well considering it's a new thing for her, LOL!
