# Medical update on Willy's chronic soft stools



## WillyBilly (Jan 8, 2013)

As I informed you within previous threads, my 8 month SPOO has had chronic soft stools (cow pie looking). Also, he has between 8 & 10 stools a day. He has been quite the remarkable boy for never having ever messed in the house or in his cage. The day I took him to the Vet was a day of having an extreme bout of watery diarrhea. He had never had that before. The doctor took several blood tests. Complete blood profile was normal. There were four additionalTests to rule out diseases of the Pancreas. One test had a high reading indicating possibility of Pancreatitis. Alone, This test indicates there is a problem with the Pancreas; however, not necessarily Pancreatitis, unless the PLI test supports the same diagnosis. Willy's PLI reading was elevated but not high enough to confirm Pancreatitis, that's good. Another test did indicate he had low Cobalamin (B-12) levels. Treatment plan is one injection each week for three weeks, after which, he will have the PLI & Cobalamin tests again. If B-12 then falls within the normal ranges and his stools improve in appearance, the frequency of the injections will be determined. If the tests don't show improvement, an abdominal ultrasound is recommended looking at the size of the Pancreas and to see if there is a cyst or tumor causing the Pancreas to not function correctly. There is the possibility of having an Endoscopy to biopsy some organs. At this time, Willy is food driven, gaining weight and normal in every way except for the soft stools. I learned that diseases of the Pancreas are not good and often times turns fatal. I am praying the B-12 injections work. 


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## petitpie (Nov 16, 2011)

So unsettling with sick fur kids. Hoping for good news about Willy.


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## WillyBilly (Jan 8, 2013)

I left out that Willy finished up 5 days of Panacur and 10 days of Metronidazole and four days ago I began giving him a dab of Greek Yogurt each morning. Happy to say his stools have slowly turned into soft logs that could be picked up carefully. What I'm most excited about was the stool he had after dinner today; it was perfect!!!!!! In the 4-1/2 months having him, I have never seen that. Because he seems healthy otherwise, I feel Willy is being diagnosed early and that goes in his favor. 


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## Chagall's mom (Jan 9, 2010)

I join you in hoping with all my might the B-12 shots prove to be the remedy for Willy. What an unthinkably stressful and worry-filled time for you. I'm so sorry for how things are, but heartened to hear Willy is happy and doesn't seem to feel any distress. I know everyone here will wish and will him well. And that's a lot of poodle people power in his corner. Thanks for the update. I await good news to come, got my fingers crossed.:clover:


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## WillyBilly (Jan 8, 2013)

Thank you guys. Sharing this helps my stress level!


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## Lily's-Mom (May 31, 2012)

Good to hear Willy is doing better. I hope he continues to improve.


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## meredian (Nov 5, 2012)

Sending good thoughts and "log" vibes to you and Willy


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## MollyMuiMa (Oct 13, 2012)

Hope the B-12 works for poor Willy! Will be watching and hoping for good news!


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## schnauzerpoodle (Apr 21, 2010)

Poor Willy boy. I had experience with pancreatitis. My schnauzer suffered from that. More than one vet told me that pancreatitis is one of the most painful condition for dogs. I hope all the tests will find you some answers AND solutions.

I would suggest stop giving the greek yogurt. Instead, give him plain low-fat (not non-fat) yogurt. Greek yogurt is too rich. Fat can become a burden for pancreas and the liver. But the probiotics in the yogurt does help with the soft stool so plain yogurt would be a great option. After all these chronic soft stools, he could use some fat so I think the low-fat option would probably work best.

Has he been throwing up? The good thing is he's gaining weight and staying active. All these are good signs.

Let us know how it goes. Nickel and I are sending lots of healing vibes your way.


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## WillyBilly (Jan 8, 2013)

I am just about out of the Greek Yogurt and was going to the store today. Thanks for the word of advice. I will switch yogurts. 


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## WillyBilly (Jan 8, 2013)

He has thrown up only a few times. That was when he was in crisis. Vomiting was never severe at that time. Before I learned what I know now I didn't think anything of it. 


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## fjm (Jun 4, 2010)

Really hoping the treatment sorts Willy's problems out - as you say he is young, you have caught it early, and he is otherwise thriving and gaining weight, which are all good signs.


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## CT Girl (Nov 17, 2010)

Poor Willy. Please keep us updated on how he is doing. As FJM has pointed out he has a lot of things in his favor, most importantly you.


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## Abbe gails Mom (Nov 8, 2012)

Poor Baby, you hang in there were all with you. Hug to Willy, please keep all of us posted as to how things are going with your baby. Were pulling for him.


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## WillyBilly (Jan 8, 2013)

I misunderstood the doctor on when a second PLI blood test should be taken. It's important to draw the blood 3 weeks after drawing the 1st. The B-12 injections have no effect on this test one way or the other. A compare of both tests may identify if pancreatitis is still a factor in diagnosing his digestive issues. He has been doing well. Stools have, all but one, been logs and well formed. I only give him his BB Basis Turkey & Potato large breed adult kibble, some canned and treats of the same food. Also I believe the a dab of yogurt helps him a lot. One more change I haven't seen before, the number of stools is down to 4 per day. 


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## WillyBilly (Jan 8, 2013)

I haven't given an update on Willy's bowel problem in a while. His second PLI test, which was drawn 3 weeks after the 1st, was "normal". Since it was found he was low on B-12 additional testing was put on hold. He has had 4 weekly B-12 injections so far. His stools improved in appearance but was still fluctuating between soft and not quite hard after the third shot. I decided to transition to a grain free food. Food was BB limited ingredient Turkey & Potato; now, it's Wellness Brand, grain free, limited ingredient, Turkey & Potato. With that change 1-1/2 weeks ago, his stools are perfect. They have been consistent and now are solid brown and look like logs. They don't even stain the snow when picked up. Frequency is on average 3-4 per day. Used to be 8-10 per day. I forgot to add that I put a 250mg Fiber pill in with each meal. He gets 2 more B-12 injections. If things continue as well as they are today the frequency of injections will decrease. We don't know what caused his B-12 to be low. Further testing will not be done unless he gets bad again. From here on out, test options could be expensive. Oh, he has been gaining weight each week. He's 9.1 months and weighs 50.6#. His mother weighed 60# and father 80#. Took this picture yesterday while it was snowing.









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## Chagall's mom (Jan 9, 2010)

So glad to hear this news, and happy to see Willy doing so much better. Thanks for giving us the scoop, and here's hoping all future pooper-scooping is solidly good. He must feel _so much better _now that his system is settling down. Great that he enjoys the new food, too.:thumb:


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## Meo'smom (Jan 3, 2013)

Sooo happy things are better for Willy! You know you've been bit by the poodle bug when you can't wait to hear about another poodle's poo!


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## Rusty (Jun 13, 2012)

Thanks for the update! Glad to hear Willy's doing better. We've been working to improve some poop issues with our spoo puppy, and in addition to working with our vet, we've picked up a few useful questions from your experiences. We're facing slightly different problems, but after reading your posts we talked with our vet about B12 and pancreas issues and tested accordingly. I love it when people come back to provide updates on threads like this; I think it's so helpful for other people who may be experiencing similar problems to help learn about different causes, treatments, tests, and eventual outcomes. It's also kind of good to hear that hubby and I aren't the only ones out there who are excited about incidents of solid poodle poop! (incidentally, we've developed a rating scale ranging from F to A+) Haha.


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## Abbe gails Mom (Nov 8, 2012)

Wonderful, so happy for Willy and you. I had to put mine on a grain free foods a while ago, wellness core, Merrick befor grain and Acana wild Prairie, even in treats if they get something with a grain in it the stools will soften up, and here will come the spitting up.Only the 2 need the grain free, the others can eat what there being fed, ( keeping it simple) am happy your Willy is doing better.


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## MollyMuiMa (Oct 13, 2012)

So glad Willy's 'issues' are gone!!!! I bet poop never looked as good to you as it does now! LOL! I want to thank you though, for keeping us informed as I think it is helpful for anyone who might be having the same problem. We all learn.


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## Carley's Mom (Oct 30, 2011)

I am feeding Wellness grain free too. I think it is an excellent food. I hope he continues to do well.


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## WillyBilly (Jan 8, 2013)

I too believe in sharing experiences in hope that I can give other poodle owners options to think about. I'm still watching him like a hawk each time he squats. So many times now, I just can't get over there are no piles from the time just after dinner until about an hour after breakfast. I know the B-12 injections are necessary, but it was the limited ingredient grain free food that topped it off. I was worried about going grain free for a 8 month old; however, after talking to a local breeder of really large dogs who shows many of those dogs, she told me her prized dog experienced soft stools and as a puppy tried the grain free limited ingredient foods and fiber pill and that dog is fine today. I switched my chihuahuas to the same food also. 


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## WillyBilly (Jan 8, 2013)

Rusty, does your dog still having issues? 


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## Rusty (Jun 13, 2012)

Hi WillyBilly,

Yes, Begley's still having some issues. At his last checkup a few weeks ago we tested for pancreatic insufficiency, crypto (our original GI parasitic culprit), and B12 and folate. His pancreas is fine, but the crypto was still positive and B12 and folate were actually high (indicating an overgrowth of the negative gut bacteria). Our vet said the specialist she consulted with suggested another round of antibiotics to address the bacteria overgrowth in combination with a strong probiotic and high fibre diet. I'm pretty reluctant to do more antibiotics, though, as over December/January he spent a total of 25 days on metronidazole and then azithromycin. Personally, I think that all those antibiotics when he was only 3 - 4 months old could well be behind the gut bacteria imbalance now. The probiotic and high fibre diet (consisting of 1 tbsp pumpkin and 1 tsp inulin metamucil fibre twice a day), though, seem to be helping. No diarrhea and fairly firm (though not yet perfectly solid) stools anywhere from 3 - 5 times a day. We go in for another round of tests next week to see where we stand..... I really don't want to do more antibiotics for him, but it's so hard to know what's the right thing to do sometimes.

Hearing about your food switch success, I am wanting to switch him to a grain-free Acana regionals diet to see if that helps (he's on Acana puppy right now, which has oats), but don't want to "muddy the waters" by changing too much before his next round of tests.

Thanks for asking!


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## WillyBilly (Jan 8, 2013)

That B-12 level seems to be a useful test for learning what's going on. If there is a grain free food closest to what he is already on, the transition should be easier and quicker. Even though I had to change from BB to Wellness, the only difference was "no grain". Willy's BB food Limited ingredient food had Oatmeal in it. The omission of that made the difference. This morning, things were still great. Not even a stain on the snow. 


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## WillyBilly (Jan 8, 2013)

Final update on Willy............ He had his 6th & last B-12 injection last Monday and he is still doing great. My last conversation with the doctor explained that it's "wait and see" if he gets soft stools again. She said chronic soft stools and a bout of severe diarrhea would have caused him to lose B-12. It's a vitamin that needs to be replenished every day by food intake. Thinking back, I may have brought this on him by not transitioning food slow enough, or the food I transitioned to was too rich for him compared to the Purina Puppy Chow he was on that the breeder was feeding him. He is finishing his 1st bad of Wellness Simple Turkey & Potato. He seems to really like it, but appears hungry even though I'm giving him more than the recommended amount. He completed basic training and now we are reenforcing those commands and more. I enrolled us in a year long program where we can, but don't have to, train up to three sessions per week, each session in a different setting and each setting exposes him to different distractions (many cats, noises). When Willy is well on his way to being well trained, I then can fill my year out with training my chihuahuas. 


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