The Scoop on Poop

Hello this is Krista with Episode Number 116 on the wag out loud podcast. have you checked out all of the amazing partner products that I highly recommend? These are products that I have tried, I love them, and they will help your dog to thrive. Just go to wagoutloud.com and check out the partner Products section. And most of the items do have discounts. Check them out and see what a difference they can make in your dog's life. Here's a crazy fact. If never fixed, a female dog, her mate and her puppies could have over 66,000 dogs in six years. Isn't that crazy?

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Hello dog lovers and welcome to the Wag Out Loud pawdcast! Dr. Kimberly Khodakhah is here today to discuss a topic that all of us, And that means you too, that we can't talk enough about and she's going to cover the Scoop on Poop. Dr. Kimberly, thank you so much for being with us today. If you could just introduce yourself and share with us why you are so passionate about dogs.

Dr Kimberley Khodakhah is a veterinarian with 25 years’ experience in small animal medicine and surgery. She is passionate about helping animals and the owners who care for them. In addition to her work as a veterinarian, she directs outreach spay/neuter programs to underserved communities to help manage stray dog and cat populations and provides no cost services to people to need. Committed to the veterinary profession, Dr Khodakhah is driven to mentor and support industry personnel. Her own podcast, Time to PAWS, focuses on empowering veterinarians and technicians through common career challenges. She is the proud parent of 2 teenage children and 5 fur babies.

Oh, great. Well, Krista, first of all, thank you so much for having me on your show. It's a great honor. And I'm pleased to be able to talk with your audience. A little bit about me, I'm a small animal veterinarian on the east coast. I am very passionate about dogs and cats, but especially dogs. I do what I call outreach, which is spay neuter programs to communities in need, helping to manage the stray overpopulation problem that we have in many parts of the US as well as the world I actually go all over the place. And I also am very passionate about mentoring and supporting the veterinary community. And I also have a podcast called Time to Paws. So thank you for having me again.

Well, you bet. And thanks for all that you do. I don't know when you actually get to sleep

It feels good doing it. So it's always a pleasure.

Well, you are amazing. And thank you for covering this topic, because we all check out our dog's poop. It's just a thing. So we're always picking up after them. And therefore we're always checking out their poop. So poop is a key indication of our dog's health. So Dr. Kimberly, how can we tell if our dog's poop is healthy? What should we look for?

You know, I was going to say that we actually take poop for granted I think sometimes in that it just comes and it's only when we're having diarrhea or issues that this total collapse of, of the system. but the gastrointestinal tract is actually an intricate symbiotic relationship of a lot of different moving parts. You've got the the bowel itself, and you've got the viruses and the microbiome and the fungi and a whole bunch of things that live in there producing hormones and a whole bunch of mutually beneficial vitamins. And so the poop can actually is a window to the soul. Maybe you could say. And and when the poop is good, i.e. it’s regular, it's formed in sort of a large Tootsie Roll sausage, it's a normal, brownish type of color. I think that generally is an indication that things are working well. However, there are definitely times when that's not always the case.

Right! Well, I've heard that we should be looking for the four C's. So color, consistency, content, and coating. So do you mind if we dive into each one?

Sure, no problem.

So color, what is the ideal color of our dog's poop?

Typically, and this does depend on what ingredients or foods they're eating. But generally speaking, it's going to be a shade of light to medium brown. you can sometimes have a mustardy, orange type of color. I know that sometimes when they're eating greenies, you can even get a little bit of a green color. But there's a big range of what's acceptable in the color because it is influenced by what you're eating, or what the dogs are eating. However, there is always one color that's a problem or actually two colors. The first would be black, something that's very dark, and tarry. It is an indication of digested blood. And that needs to be evaluated by a veterinarian. that's absolutely abnormal. And then you sometimes can get actually a red. I have clients who have said their dog has red frank blood. Most often, it's a red strawberry jam type mucus on top of the poop, which we can sometimes see with colitis. But that is also an indicator that something might be going on, but not as concerning as the black tarry stool.

So that's good information. Consistency. I know that veterinarians use a consistency scale, when evaluating dog poop that runs from one to seven, do you want to talk about that?

That's a tool that we do have, I think a lot of owners in reality and and us in the office, we don't necessarily use this because it can be difficult for us to describe. But generally speaking, 1 is going to be a little bit more of a harder, round nugget type poop, usually a little bit overly dry, not necessarily totally ideal. 2 tends to be a lumpy segmented type of poop, where, where it's a little bit of a sausage, but you've got these nuggets kind of loosely compacted. you have 3 generally speaking, your ideal, which is a sausage that has substance to it is formed, but not like 5 or 6, which generally is more like a Nike sausage kind of you know, thin, watery long, and then you have 6 and 7, which tend to be a mound, or a cow paddy, we often will call it and And lastly, just a very projectile watery type stool, which obviously everybody can realize that that's not the way it's supposed to be.

Right. And while we're on the topic of runny stool, and we know that even with ourselves, if we have bouts of diarrhea, we really have to be careful of dehydration. So how long do we watch our dogs? If they have an extremely runny stool before we do bring them into the vet?

Yeah, that's a great question. And I think it actually needs to be divided in two or possibly three slightly because puppies and older animals or animals with comorbidities are going to be in a slightly different category than your three to eight year old happy go lucky dog. So puppies and the older animals are going to feel the signs of dehydration, electrolyte loss in puppies glucose much quicker, I'd say for the run of the mill. otherwise healthy dogs that who knows why we have some diarrhea, I think it's certainly okay to give it up to 48 hours, as long as the rest of the animal is not poorly, you know, they seem to be fairly alert and interactive. They are trying to drink and holding it down, then I think that as long as you're starting to see progression with some of the tools that you're using at home, I think you're okay. I think that after that 48 hour window, especially without movement in the right direction towards normalizing, then you may be needing some assistance.

Okay, cool. That's good advice.

If you don't mind me, I'm gonna mention vomiting here is still part of the gastrointestinal tract is just not poop. But the one time where one needs to be very careful about encouraging the use of liquids is with acute vomiting. Because often times, you might get some to drink a half a cup. but it solicits a cup worth of vomiting. So the net effect is a bit of dehydration with that. So one always has to be a little bit careful is actually best to rest the tummy, if there is vomiting, and not be overly concerned if they have functioning kidneys, like I said, this group of animals that are are in the non comorbidity category, because just like you and I, when we sleep, we haven't had anything to drink for, you know, six to 10 hours, depending on how much you sleep. We produce a nice, strong yellow colored urine because our body is conserving water. And a lot of the times that's exactly what's gonna happen with our animal friends as well.

That makes sense. Okay, on to content. Content. Wow, if your dog eats sticks or rocks, or has worms, maybe there's a little bit of fur. Can you think of anything else? As far as content?

Oh, yeah, hair ties, underwear. I go and get a lot of those. So yeah, I mean, owners owners certainly are going to see those things that you mentioned, mulch, leaves, maybe part of their chew toys, plastic, rubber, grass, grass, yeah, grass. And so there are definitely things that you need to be a little careful about. One of the things that I like to that I've learned over the years is to inform people that animals or dogs eating things require that item to be of a small size, so especially with toys, larger sticks, different things. In order for them to go into the mouth and be swallowed. They actually have to be small. And so the larger the item, the less worry you actually have of them swallowing it and something potentially getting stuck in theory. I mean, that's not a hard and fast rule. But the analogy I give is, if I give you a volleyball, could you choke on it? Or could it get swallowed and stuck? No, you're never gonna get that in. But if I gave you a ping pong, could you do that? or could they do that? and and you know, it kind of helps to visualize the size of things. They do tend to another question I get asked a lot is eating poop. You know, eating their own poop eating goose poop eating other’s poops. Wild Goose poop. And and there are parasites that can potentially be transmitted via poop eating. If animals that in socialized with or exposed to or otherwise healthy and well taken care of dogs. As gross as the poop eating is and as aversive as it is to us, it does not make them sick as a general rule.

Okay, so since you brought that up, why do dogs? Some of them they eat their own poop? What is going on?

Yeah. Oh, there are probably more theories than vets who make them. Some people tend to believe that it's a socializing, or an early year exposure thing because it tends to be the younger animals. First of all, most thank goodness, dogs grow out of poop eating. But sometimes it's a confusion with house training, you know, maybe they know it's wrong for it to be there. So they're getting rid of the evidence. Or it may be their stuck as youngsters stuck in small crates or cages without very much environmental or social stimulation and what they have to do. Sometimes there is some thoughts about pica, the wanting to eat abnormal stuff, because their tummy is is in fact maybe contaminated or diseased with other parasites or worms or giardia, or viruses. And nobody I don't think anybody really knows for sure, though. Okay, I do have a little trick though, a lot of the times, people have found the use of a product called For-Bid, which other veterinary colleagues have said actually has the active ingredient the same as that of accent meat tenderizer. So if you put that in the food, what the dog eats, tends to taste the same. But what comes out tastes a little bit different. And so it gives you a few minutes to be more effective in your training, and then of itself is not going to take the habit away. But it discourages it. And now you have a little bit more of a training opportunity to do that. But I always say you know, you want to make sure that there's nothing underlying in terms of parasites, gi distress, gas, dietary intolerances, etc. That might also be stimulating the craving.

Great tip. Thank you. And what about coating? coating is not good, correct?

Are you as in what's coating the stool?

If Yeah, if there's any sticky, watery mucus in the feces?

Yep. Yeah, yeah. And so that's what I was alluding to before. So there are two types actually, of diarrhea. There's a small bowel and a large bowel diarrhea. And the large bowel is the back end. And it tends to have the mucus secreting cells. And so with colitis or inflammation of the colon, you get mucus production, which is excessive. And so you tend to get this poop with any form of poop whether it be water or or actually sometimes it can come out sausage like but but the mucus you can get that slimy, clear, goopy kind of mucus, and it's also in that type of scenario, that you may see flecks of blood in the mucous if the bowel is significantly inflamed.

Okay. And is it true that if your dog is a puppy or a senior, it doesn't matter that their poop should all look the same is that right?

In terms of normal should look like, correct? Yes. Yeah, Um generally speaking. So Young dogs, because they have an immature gastrointestinal tract tend to deficate more frequently. So it wouldn't be unheard of to have an eight week old puppy. That's going three, possibly four times a day. Luckily, once they get a little bit older, it goes to twice or once even, depending on the dog and what they're eating. But yes, the color the consistency, again, they you will know perhaps whether it was table food or eating another animal’s food, you know, it can change due to various circumstances. But yes, what's normal for one is generally normal for from young to old.

Okay. And Dr. Kimberly, what is your tip, if we need to bring a stool sample into the veterinarian? Should it be in a Ziploc or a Tupperware type container? Should it be refrigerated after we collect it? What do you like to see?

That's an awesome question. Yeah. So the most important thing actually, is that it be as fresh as possible. And one of the things that I also wanted to mention while we're on to your audience is, a lot of the times we pet owners will be carefully monitoring the stool and happy that they're not seeing any parasites. What we tend to look for when we do a fecal and look at the stool for parasites are actually microscopic eggs. And so you're not really going to see those with the naked eye when you're picking up your dog's poop. And so having a fresh stool sample is really going to be the most effective way because if it's too late, i.e. over a day or more, or if it's left in a hot car, the eggs actually burst and are not the sample isn't as accurate either. And so it would be ideal to have a stool sample from that morning. You can pick it up and put it either in a deli container or ziplock bag. That doesn't matter so much. It doesn't necessarily if you're dropping it off in, you know, two hours, you can leave it on the counter, but you don't want to leave it in a hot car or in front of a window. And, but if it's going to be a little bit more than that, like, you're going to run errands and you'll do it after lunch, it certainly wouldn't be any downside to leaving it in the in the refrigerator. The one of the thing that I would say that owners do see in the poop are these, you can see with severe infections, beansprout type, thin spaghetti like worms, which are round worms, you can see those usually in either adult dogs or puppies that have are fairly older and haven't been dewormed adequately, because now that is the dying off worm coming out. And then the second one is the tape worm, which are the little rice, short rice worms, which are actually egg casings. So they're egg casings from a tapeworm that lives in the gut. And it's kind of like a train. So it's made up of all these little cars or egg cases. And then intermittently, those come out, and you see them stuck to the hair around the anus. And those are actually transmitted via fleas. And so the flea is the intermediary host.

I'm getting grossed out. But it's important to talk about I know.

Too much information. clients come in, and they want to they show us these worms, or they'll call and say, I saw a worm in my dog's poop, so I didn't want to be corrected saying that there were never ever any worms. Now, hopefully, they'll have a little more information. Or could look it up.

No we appreciate that. Well, as we're wrapping up, is it fair to say that if a dog eats a healthy diet, has a healthy gut microbiome, therefore a healthy GI tract? That they would rarely experience diarrhea?

No, I would say they would experience it less. As we all know, dogs, put their tongues on everything, you know, they're in the park, they're playing with other dogs, they're picking up a leaf or a stick. Most cases of diarrhea are what we call acute, meaning something got in wreaked havoc for, you know, anywhere for 24 hours to 48 hours, to some degree doesn't even have to be might just be a softening. And then it runs its course as it were. And so that's that's typically the presentation. And so, barring those exposures, they also sometimes can eat grass that might have been treated with a chemical or mushrooms that are growing in yards or in mulch. But yeah, as a general rule, if they're on a good food, they're not exposed to too many antibiotics and other things then, and good quality ingredients, then yeah, generally speaking, they experience much less diarrhea concerns, yes.

Okay. Are there any supplements or pro or prebiotics, that you would recommend that our dogs take as a prevention?

Well, there are in some situations, so I think if you're you're feeding, you know, a long term nutritional diet with adequate vitamins and minerals and AAFCO certified, then, you know, I think that that should have many of the basic core requirements in it. The circumstance that I think is helpful is when dogs are perhaps traveling, going to the groomers boarding and sometimes just in any case, having something at home should should they get the runs and so there's a awesome product called DoggyStat that works really well. Having probiotics, a lot of acute diarrhea is a responsive to that. But again, it's less of a preventative other than the boarding scenario. So I don't think there's too much benefit of having them on it day in day out for years if you're otherwise on a good brand of food or source of nutrition. The other thing though, that they're there, I do find depending on the dog, again, not the run of the mill everybody doing dogs doing great, but I do think just like with people, there tends to be a little low fiber content in the diet. And just like with us fiber is a very good prebiotic, it fortifies and nourishes the microbiome. And that really helps to again Keep, keep the gut in good keel and balance.

Well, thank you for all that. And I'm so glad you mentioned DoggyStat, because you were one of the people that helped develop this amazing product. Can you just tell our listeners briefly what it is? And I for one needed it once you know, Winston has very few bouts of diarrhea. But when he did, I got to use it. And he was fine. The next morning, it was great. So can you tell us about it and why everyone that owns a dog needs to have it on hand.

Yeah, I'd love to. It is an all natural food supplement. And what it does is is it helps to take the dog's intestinal tract from distress, and back to normal to normal functioning. And it's a combination of egg and colostrum products. There are numerous papers actually on the benefits of colostrum. But generally speaking, we find that this optimal, all natural combination of ingredients, just the way Mother Nature made them really has a soothing effect on the gastrointestinal tract, and sooths diarrhea within one dose. The reason why I think it's important and I think people should just keep it in their doggie cupboards, you know, we all have a drawer with the poop bags and the leash and all that. Because if there ever is an emergency in the middle of the night, or the weekends with blowout diarrhea, it can be quite expensive to run to the veterinary emergency service. And as long as like I said those other parameters your dog is otherwise, you know, alert responsive, he just has the the runs, this is a very good thing to buy you some time so that you would be able to get to your veterinary veterinarian in the morning, obviously, if there’s anything. In addition to the GI upset you should really reach out to the emergency hospital. But I think that this is for that low level of gi upset diarrhea waking up every few hours to go out. This is Mother Nature's recipe on how to calm that down.

Yes, and it is a fantastic product. And of course you guys, we are giving you a discount to try DoggyStat. So we are offering 10% off if you use the code, WAG off of your order, just go to https://doggystat.com/ And again, that code is WAG to get 10% off. Dr. Kimberly, we are running out of time. So I just want to thank you so much for shedding a light on poop. And was such good information. Oh my gosh, we can't thank you enough. Is there anything you want to leave us with?

I just want to thank you very much for for having me. I hope that your audience has found this information helpful and and maybe given a little bit of a rule of thumb on how quickly and when they should speak with their vet about the GI distress of their dog?

Well, we appreciate this awesome information. Dr. Kimberly, where can everyone find out more information about you?

Oh, well, great. Yes. I'm on Facebook. I'm on LinkedIn on there. My name, Kimberley Khodakhah. And if. anyone ever has any questions that can always message me there. I'd be happy to answer any questions or further conversation as needed. Sure.

Perfect. Well, we will put all of this information in the show notes as well. Dr. Kimberly, thank you so much and have a tail wagging day.

You too. Thank you.

We want to again thank the team at DoggyStat for sponsoring this episode. And for making such an amazing product. Why not order your DoggyStat today by going to AMAZON.COM

Thanks for listening. You'll find some helpful links in the show notes and if you enjoy the show, please be sure to follow and listen for free on your favorite podcast app. And please, please share your feedback. Visit WagOutLoud.com for great product recommendations with discounts, amazing online events and fantastic resources. that's also where to visit our bark about it page where you can suggest topics, guests or products. Be advised that this show offers health or nutritional information and is designed for educational purposes only. you're encouraged to do your own research and should not rely on this information as a substitute for nor does it replace professional medical advice, diagnosis or treatment. If you have any concerns or questions about your dog's health, you should always consult a veterinarian or a nutrition expert. Have a tail wagging day and we'll catch you next time. Hey Winston, was that another tail wagging episode?

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