Avoid These Dog Breeds If You’re Worried About Diarrhea

If you’ve ever had the misfortune of watching your dog transform your living room into a modern art masterpiece using only their diarrhea and their keen eye for composition, you’re not alone.

According to a new study from the Royal Veterinary College in the U.K., it may not be as big a deal as you think it is. Researchers sifted through the anonymized vet records of over two million dogs, focusing on nearly 2,000 confirmed cases of doggy diarrhea from 2019. Turns out, your dog’s breed, age, and love of scavenging for snacks on the street might be setting them up for a bout of diarrhea.

Breeds like the Maltese, Mini Poodle, Cavapoo, German Shepherd, and Yorkie were more likely to suffer. Jack Russell Terriers and Chihuahuas, on the other hand, are apparently built like tanks. Also, dogs younger than three and older than nine had higher risks. Basically, if your dog is a toddler or a retiree, prepare for some liquid shits.

These Dog Breeds Are Most Likely to Have Digestive Issues Like Diarrhea

Vomiting accompanied half of the diarrhea cases analyzed, and about a third involved blood. That’s bad, but not usually a catastrophe. Most dogs recovered after a single vet visit, often without major intervention. That’s the good news. The bad news is that the researchers noticed that vets have an itchy trigger finger when it comes to dishing out antibiotics when they hear about a dog with diarrhea.

The researchers say that about 40 percent of the cases in the study resulted in antibiotics being prescribed, even though they should not be prescribed unless it’s actually necessary. Just dishing out antibiotics all willy-nilly when there isn’t anything for an antibiotic to kill could eventually lead to antibiotic resistance.

From my experience with my own recently passed pup that made it to 15 ½ years old despite several illnesses, one cause for recurrent violent and bloody diarrhea could be a chronic but ultimately manageable illness like pancreatitis.

If you’re noticing that your dog can’t go a week without their guts getting turned inside out, it could be that their pancreas isn’t able to properly handle all the fat in their food. Choosing low-fat food specifically designed for dogs with pancreatitis could drastically cut back on their instances of explosive diarrhea.

The researchers conclude that unless there’s blood and dehydration along with their diarrhea, antibiotics might not be necessary. A little bland food and water will usually do the trick.