Vetplanet is here to ethically handle all your Pet’s Veterinary needs during your stay at the Pearl of Africa and there after handle the entire process of International Pet Relocation.
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Gastrointestinal (GI) disorders are very common in veterinary medicine. In this blog, we are going to answer the most commonly asked questions by pet owners about symptoms of GI disorders, such as diarrhea or vomiting.
Diarrhea is when the texture of the faeces is soft or watery, can show a different texture, contain blood or undigested food particles or show a change in color and might have an off- normal smell for your pet. Often your pet will defecate more frequently, pass gas, and may show some abdominal discomfort as well.
What causes diarrhea? Acute diarrhea can be caused by several factors and most of the time, diarrheas are secondary to:
– An environmentally resistant infectious agent excreted by another animal and ingested by your pet (viruses like Parvovirus, coronavirus, parasites: giardia, coccidia; or bacterias: salmonella, E. Coli)
– A sudden dietary change
– In more critical cases, an obstruction in the digestive tract can also cause diarrhea.
Diarrhea is when the texture of the faeces is soft or watery, can show a different texture, contain blood or undigested food particles or show a change in color and might have an off- normal smell for your pet. Often your pet will defecate more frequently, pass gas, and may show some abdominal discomfort as well.
What causes diarrhea? Acute diarrhea can be caused by several factors and most of the time, diarrheas are secondary to:
– An environmentally resistant infectious agent excreted by another animal and ingested by your pet (viruses like Parvovirus, coronavirus, parasites: giardia, coccidia; or bacterias: salmonella, E. Coli)
– A sudden dietary change
– In more critical cases, an obstruction in the digestive tract can also cause diarrhea.
Chronic diarrheas (that last for more than 4 weeks) are usually caused by chronic inflammation (inflammatory bowel disease), metabolic and endocrine disease (kidneys, liver, thyroid, pancreas), and some types of tumors.
What do I do if my pet is having diarrhea? If your pet is behaving normally and only had just one episode of diarrhea it’s usually not a cause for concern. But if your pet had more than 2 episodes it is recommended to see your veterinarian. It may sound weird but the veterinarian can know a lot from the shape, the color and the aspect of the stool therefore do not hesitate to take pictures and if possible bring a sample in a plastic self sealing bag. You should also contact your veterinarian if your pet is showing other symptoms as well as diarrhea such as weakness, blood in stool, vomiting, drooling, and lack of appetite.
What are the treatment options for diarrhea? It depends on the cause, some cases need medical treatment such as antibiotics to treat bacterial infection but there are other options also:
Food: diet and diarrhea are intricately linked. Special diets are formulated to help reduce acute intestinal absorptive disorders and promote nutritional restoration and convalescence, these diets contain highly digestible ingredients, high energy levels to reduce meal volume and decrease intestinal load and have an increased palatability to satisfy decreased appetites
Pre-biotics and pro-biotics: They contain beneficial micro-organisms and natural agents that firm up the faeces, support normal and healthy gut bacterial colonies, protect stomach lining and also contain electrolytes such as potassium, sodium and magnesium which the animal can lose whilst having diarrhea, supporting faster recovery. Their role is to restore a normal and healthy intestinal function and they can be used as a first-line treatment before giving antibiotics.
Vomiting is when your pet forcefully ejects the contents of the stomach (digested or un-digested), the upper intestine, or just foam and yellow bile like fluids. A vomiting animal may also show abdominal heaving and nausea. In general they are slower than normal and feel obviously sick.
Why is my pet vomiting?
Vomiting can be caused by several factors in cats and dogs that include:
– Viral infections (e.g., Parvovirus in dogs, Feline Infectious Peritonitis in cats…)
– Dietary indiscretion
– Inflammatory disease (Chronic inflammatory bowel disease)
– Metabolic and endocrine diseases (Kidney failure, liver damage, pancreatitis…)
– Ingestion of foreign objects which is mostly seen in puppies and kittens and intake of human medicines or toxic plants.
– Gastrointestinal tumors
When is it an emergency? When your pet is vomiting several times a day. When you suspect that your pet ingested something toxic (medicines such as paracetamol, toxic plants, chocolate, maintenance products…) or could have eaten a foreign object (bones, socks,…). In these cases, the timing between the intake and the treatment plays an important role in the secondary consequences and the vital prognosis of the animal.
What will the veterinarian do? A physical examination looks for body shock signs and measures the body temperature. A blood test (biochemistry profile, complete blood count) to exclude the presence of inflammatory, metabolic and endocrine diseases. An imaging exam (X-ray, abdominal ultrasound) to exclude a foreign object, and other causes.
What are the treatment options for vomiting? First, we can help by giving anti-emetics if the vomiting hasn’t resolved. Secondly, we have to treat the underlying disease with the proper medications, for example, if we have a bacterial infection, we give antibiotics if it is a parasitic infestation (e.g., intestinal worms), we give anti-parasite treatment and less frequently, some cases such as an intestinal obstruction need emergency surgery.
Vetplanet is here to ethically handle all your Pet’s Veterinary needs during your stay at the Pearl of Africa and there after handle the entire process of International Pet Relocation.
© 2022, Vetplanet Uganda. All Rights Reserved.
© 2022, Vetplanet Uganda. All Rights Reserved.
