Dark Stools with Blood

[Columbine]

With probiotics for people, a 12 week course is often recommended to repopulate the gut with good bacteria. Sometimes a reduced dose can be helpful for maintenance - especially if you're dealing with chronic allergy or digestive disorders.

This article has easy ideas to ensure hydration http://www.thecatsite.com/a/tips-to-increase-your-cat-s-water-intake

 

[bijouandrocky]

UPDATE: Rocky has been passing actual stools! Not very firm ones, but at least they have some shape! I've been giving Rocky pumpkin for 2 days now, and finally there is improvement.

However, they are VERY soft and mushy, not very normal. Is this good enough? I am not sure. Is it safe to continue giving Rocky the pumpkin for an extended period? I'm not sure what to do if I stop giving him pumpkin and he goes back to having diarrhea. Maybe I could give him maintenance doses of pumpkin? I'd be open to hear anyone's thoughts on this. Should I still consider the probiotics? It seems like the probiotics could be a more long term fix, while the pumpkin is more of a short term thing? I don't really know.

The vet phoned this week saying we could bring Rocky in to weigh him and check his progress (Rocky had lost 2 pounds on the s/d food This was because he disliked the taste and would only eat 1/2 at most of the 3/4 of a can he was supposed to eat) My parents agreed since we won't have to pay for it.. maybe I can ask the vet when we take Rocky for her thoughts? We had actually gotten pet insurance for Rocky before to cover anything that might come up, but because he had allergies to food before, they refuse to pay for anything related.

Thanks everyone for all the replies!

 

[catpack]

Yea, you can continue with the pumpkin. This can be used longterm. It also would be worth trying the probiotic as well. Hopefully you will see some additional improvement with the Culturelle.

 

[goholistic]

UPDATE: Rocky has been passing actual stools! Not very firm ones, but at least they have some shape! I've been giving Rocky pumpkin for 2 days now, and finally there is improvement.

However, they are VERY soft and mushy, not very normal. Is this good enough? I am not sure. Is it safe to continue giving Rocky the pumpkin for an extended period? I'm not sure what to do if I stop giving him pumpkin and he goes back to having diarrhea. Maybe I could give him maintenance doses of pumpkin? I'd be open to hear anyone's thoughts on this. Should I still consider the probiotics? It seems like the probiotics could be a more long term fix, while the pumpkin is more of a short term thing? I don't really know.

The vet phoned this week saying we could bring Rocky in to weigh him and check his progress (Rocky had lost 2 pounds on the s/d food

This was because he disliked the taste and would only eat 1/2 at most of the 3/4 of a can he was supposed to eat) My parents agreed since we won't have to pay for it.. maybe I can ask the vet when we take Rocky for her thoughts? We had actually gotten pet insurance for Rocky before to cover anything that might come up, but because he had allergies to food before, they refuse to pay for anything related.

Thanks everyone for all the replies!

I'm glad Rocky is improving somewhat. Although, I still wouldn't be happy with soft and mushy.  

  Having lost two pounds is kind of concerning, too.

What kind of pet stores are near you? Chains? Or privately owned ones?

You could tell the vet that Rocky developed diarrhea shortly after starting the new prescribed dry food and metronidazole, and ask if they have anything gentle that could help normalize his gut. My vet carries Nutramax Proviable Kit and Proviable DC capsules. Maybe your vet would have these on hand, or perhaps they could order it for you. Although, your parents will have to pay for this. Here are links to those two products:

www.chewy.com/dog/nutramax-proviable-kp-dog-cat/dp/101466

www.chewy.com/dog/nutramax-proviable-dc-capsules-dog/dp/101469

 

[bijouandrocky]

UPDATE:

After using NaturVet Digestive Enzymes Plus Probiotic Cat Chews Rocky's poops had returned to normal.. until as of today. Out of the blue he had diarrhea with blood, and he was in the litter box for quite the while. There was only a bit of blood, but still scary stuff  

 

I will watch him to see if this happens again, but I have no clue what may have caused it. He had been doing great for the past month... it's so weird. On the bright side he has gained 1 lb.