[rms3402]

This may be TMI ... just a warning in advance! LOL.

Anyways ... Roxy had "the runs" yesterday afternoon. I literally had to wipe her butt like a little baby, it was that disgusting. So, after I wiped her, I checked again to make sure she was clean, because I do not need poo all over the place! Ew! ukeright: When I checked again, I noticed a little bug crawling on her lower abdomen. I don't know if it was a flea or not ... but I tried getting it. I've heard you can't even see fleas. But, I'm not sure how true that is.

She has not been scratching and I literally have checked her 20 times over last night and 20 more times over today. I have yet to find anything else. I'm in the process of washing my sheets, her bedding and blankets, vacuuming, etc. I'm giving her a bath tomorrow. I even went out and bought Frontline (FOR $63 mind you! ah!) because I'm paranoid. I DO NOT WANT FLEAS.

So, do you think it could possibly be fleas, or in the beginning stages of fleas? I'm really nervous, but like I said, she has not been itching at all, and I haven't seen any more. Maybe it was just a random bug. Should I proceed and give her the Frontline? Is Frontline safe enough?

Also, she had a little bit of "the runs" again today. What could be causing this? She's been eating normally, drinking normally, etc.

Any input would be appreciated!

 

[bayoumah]

hi so sorry roxy has the runs seems like around that age my buster was cutting lots of teeth and had the runs id hold off on anything till his bm is normal

 

[rms3402]

Just took her out this morning... It's 9:30am here. She has the runs again! I'm getting worried.

 

[CHITheresa]

It is flea season, if you live where it gets cold the flea want to be warm. I have two inside cats and they both have fleas, must have came in on our clothes or shoes, Amberleah fine she had her revolution. Some animals can be allergic, and cause diarrhea. Also look for black spec look like dirt, that is their waste...

 

[mooberry]

Alright it sounds like she had a flea, go buy a flea comb and go over her. That should remove any eggs and allow you to see if you have a flea problem. I wouldn't NOT apply the frontline when she's feeling off.

Next, cook up some white rice and boil some chicken. Give her this bland diet and nothing else for 2 days or until she has solid poo's again for 24 hours.

Next water water water/ pedialite. Depending on her weight. If roxy is bellow 3 lbs I would buy some pedialite to make sure she doesn't lose any crucial electrolytes. Also make sure she drinks a lot. When it comes to the runs water loss is your #1 concern.

If it lasts more than 5 days (this may be different for everyone) or she become lethargic then my suggestion is the vet for her. Also if you see any blood in my mind the vet again, could be nothing but the fact that she's always going but if you see blood and listless I would get her to a vet asap that is the symptoms of Hemorrhagic Gastroenteritis seen in this http://www.chihuahua-people.com/chi...morrhagic-gastroenteritis-have-you-heard.html thread. I'm not trying to scare you or anything but it seems to be very quick and I just think you should be aware of everything.

Let us know how she does, hopefully everyone else will chip in with advice.

 

[20887]

I hope Roxy is okay! Lion suffered from a really bad bout of the runs when he was younger, we had to get some antibiotics from the vet to sort it out. If you are really concerned, I would call your vet and ask their opinion.

 

[susan davis]

If that 'bug' was white and wiggly, she has tape worms. Bring a stool sample over to the vet and ask them to run it. Some fleas carry worm eggs. Better be safe than sorry. Sue

 

[rms3402]

It was not white and wiggly. Thank goodness. I will try the bland diet for the next two days. If not better, I'll be taking her to the vet for sure! Thanks everyone. Anyone else that has ideas, please let me know!

 

[rms3402]

There is NO blood in her diarrhea. Should I be worried yet? I'm getting nervous, because I don't want to wait too long to take her to the vet. But, I also don't want to take her to the vet for them to just tell me to feed her a bland diet, or that it will pass in a few days. I don't want to jump to conclusions.

It's possible for a dog to just be feeling under the weather, right? She's acting normal, happy, excited, running around, etc. She doesn't seem lethargic or anything. I have two more classes for the day. It's 12:45pm here. I'll be done at 3:45pm. She has lots of time to rest and relax while I'm at class. Then, I'm going straight to the store.

I just hate this because she's so small. If it were one of my big dogs, I wouldn't be as worried.

 

[mooberry]

Yes it very possible for it to be just a small bug everyone gets the runs now and then.

I would only be concerned about blood if it is copious and followed by a very listless dog. Dog colons are much more sensitive than ours and a bit of irritation can do it sometimes. I wouldn't be too worried about it, it doesn't sound too bad right now.

Just feed her some bland diet to help bind her up and make sure she has water and she should be fine. If it was Bijoux that is what I would do for her as well.

 

[rms3402]

Thank you so much for your help. What kind of rice and chicken should I get?

 

[20887]

Thank you so much for your help. What kind of rice and chicken should I get?

I would just get white or brown rice and and chicken breast... Boil the chicken breast as that gets rid of the fat. You can also add a little canned pumpkin (not the pie filling, just plain pumpkin). I have not ever had to use pumpkin, but I hear it works well for firming them up.

 

[rms3402]

Cooking white rice and boiling her chicken right now. I'm going to give her some pedialyte soon too! Probably pumpkin for a snack tonight. I'll update! Thanks for all your help! I dont know what I'd do without you all!

 

[Reese and Miley]

Hope she is feeling better soon! I think the fact that shes still happy and active and acting like herself means its just fine to wait on the vet. If she starts acting more sleepy/lethargic/depressed or symptoms get much worse Id take her in.

In my experience, if you think you saw a flea, then you probably did! Especially since you said you tried to get it, but couldnt. They are very evasive and when you try to grab them have a real knack for disappearing into your pups fur. Flea comb is a great suggestion, often they dont act itchy at all and she may have just picked on up. I know there are a number of topical flea treatments that vets are seeing flea resistance in, I think that frontline is one of them That may not be enough to take care of it, definitely check her with a flea comb so you can rule that problem out. Theyre often on the chest/neck and around the hind legs when Ive seen them, but check her whole coat.

Hope Roxis runs clear up soon! You can also do boiled hamburger and plain yogurt for her.

 

[Lollipopsmama]

Fleas can cause worms, I'd give her a good once over, a flea bath and use the front line.
If the runs persist see your vet.

 

[rms3402]

We had a better stool this morning!!! Pretty solid! :dance: So, I'm definitely happy about that! I tried giving her pumpkin as a little snack last night ... that was a no go. She was not feeling that! I gave her more chicken and rice this morning. She loves the chicken, obviously. I think the rice is a little hard for her to eat. She eats some of it while she's trying to pick out the chicken, but when she gets just a mouthful of rice, she just opens her mouth and drops it on my floor. HAHAHA. But, I'll keep feeding her this chicken and rice for today and see how her stools go for the rest of the day today and tomorrow.

Bad news though ... :foxes15: ... I think she definitely has fleas. I noticed a few more black specs and I definitely saw a flea near her neck. I tried to get it, but it definitely just disappeared into her fur. She's so dark, so it's hard to find them. But, this one was in her white fur!

So ... do I bathe her and then give her the frontline? I know it was said that frontline may be one that may be flea resistant now ... but I bought it. So, I might as well use it, as long as it's okay to use. Should I bathe her in the regular dog shampoo I have, or should I use Dawn? I saw someone mentioned that on here before.

 

[Tanna]

I would bath her with flea soap, but i'm not sure about the frontline that stuff can be lethal, how much does she weigh? Also they can get tape worms from the fleas, the fleas carry the worms and if they swallow the fleas they get tapes, you would need to take a stool sample to the vet to find out for sure. At least her stool is better. Good luck

 

[rms3402]

She weighs about 5 pounds.

 

[MChis]

Some people say not to frontline for 2 days after a bath as the frontline needs the oils in the dogs coat to work correctly. However, when I see any signs of a flea I give a flea bath, dry & then apply frontline as well as vaccuum, wash bedding, etc. And it's always worked like a charm for us.

I'm glad her tummy is on the mend though--phew!

 

[rms3402]

Ok great! That's exactly what I'll do then. How much of a dose do you give? I got the smallest kind I could find.. For dogs under 22lbs.