Things You'll Need:
- Lean hamburger (85-90% lean) or chicken breast
- White rice
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Step 1
Assess your dog's physical condition. If your dog is weak, vomiting frequently, not eating or not acting himself, contact your veterinarian immediately. Remember, canine diarrhea can be mild and self-limiting, but it can also be caused by some quite serious diseases, some of which can be life-threatening. A good example of this is canine parvovirus. Don't take any chances with your dog's health. If in doubt, call your veterinarian.
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Step 2
If your dog's diarrhea is mild and your dog is normal in all other ways, fast your dog for the next 24 hours. Give your dog nothing to eat for an entire day.
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Step 3
In the meantime, go to the market and purchase lean ground beef (hamburger). 85-90% lean hamburger is best; the leaner the better. You will want to feed your dog the meat but not a lot of fat. Chicken breasts can be substituted for the hamburger if you prefer. You'll also need to purchase plenty of white rice for your dog.
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Step 4
If you are going to be using hamburger to feed your dog, the best way to prepare the hamburger is to boil it. This removes a greater percentage of the fat from the hamburger. If you are using chicken instead, you can boil the chicken breast as well.
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Step 5
Boil the white rice also.
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Step 6
Mix the hamburger or chicken together with the rice.
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Step 7
After fasting your dog for 24 hours, assuming he is still acting normally with or without diarrhea, feed your dog the hamburger and rice or chicken and rice in small quantities. Small quantities of hamburger and rice or chicken and rice fed frequently are the best way to treat your dog's diarrhea and avoid additional intestinal upset. So feed 5-6 meals small meals daily.
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Step 8
Many veterinarians advocate adding yogurt in small amounts to aid with resolution of canine diarrhea as well. Yogurt adds beneficial bacteria to your dog's intestinal tract which out-compete the "bad bacteria" and alter the intestinal flora in positive way, leading to improved digestive function.
Another option if you prefer not to use yogurt are some of the probiotic cultures now being sold. Your veterinarian can provide you with probiotic medications made specifically for pets. These medications also contain beneficial bacteria which are able to colonize the intestinal tract but pet specific probiotics contain bacteria found normally in the dog intestinal tract instead of those found in the human intestinal tract. Yogurt contains bacteria more suitable for humans. There are several of these products marketed currently. One such product is Fortiflora. It is a powder which is added to your dog's food daily. -
Step 9
Continue giving your dog the hamburger and rice or chicken and rice diet until the diarrhea is resolved and the feces have been normal for a few days.
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Step 10
Gradually transition your dog back to his regular diet by adding small amounts of his regular diet to the hamburger/chicken and rice diet. Each day increase the amount of regular food added to the diet and decrease the amount of hamburger/chicken and rice. A transition period of approximately one week is appropriate for the change in diet. This will help avoid shock to your dog's intestinal tract and recurrence of diarrhea for your dog.
