New puppy has blood in stool

alamont · New member Joined: 27 Mar 2005 Posts: 2

We just got a 6 1/2 week old Shih Poo on Friday. He has been nervous and has had a few accidents on the floor however he is starting to use the paper more and more. The problem is that this morning when he went to poop on the newspaper he strained and strained for a very long time and was only able to pass a very small soft stool. He did this about a dozen times. There appears to be a small amount of blood in this stool. After he strained to poop for well over 30 minutes the puppy vomited and then started to shake. I wrapped the puppy up and cuddled him until he was done shaking. He then slept for an hour and when he woke up he seemed fine until he tried to poop. When he tried to poop again he went through the same struggle and only produced a few small "stringy" poops. After that he dragged his bum across the floor. I don't know if this is due to the stress of a new home and a long car ride to get to our home (7 hour drive) or if there is a real health problem.
The breeder is willing to take this puppy back, however, my son has become attached to him quickly. If I knew this was a quick, inexpensive fix I would gladly keep the puppy, however if this is something serious and expensive to treat I would probably return the puppy as I have paid quite a bit of money for him.
Another thing is is that he is extremely smelly.
Any help/suggestions would be appreciated.

DeLaUK · Posted: Sun Mar 27, 2005 10:07 pm Post subject:

Theres a good possibility that the stress had upset him or it might just be a case of worms (common in puppies, do you know if the breeder had him dewormed?) Constipation or diarrhea can result in blood being present in the stool, but so can a lot of other things.
I really think you should take him for a check up at your vet and if possible take in a fresh stool sample too. And he should be starting his puppy vaccines in about a week, I wouldnt wait a week though before visiting the vet, these little guys can go downhill in a matter of hours if there is a problem.

puttin510 · Super Senior Member Plus Joined: 19 Mar 2004 Posts: 2748

I agree, could be stress, also puppys chew on thing could he have swollowed something that has plugged him up slightly. Many times a new pup is given Albon(I think that what its called) to reduce stress in their system the first week. Look closely at his poop, do you see any worms. That could very well be it too. If you can't get him to the vet today, give him some canned pumpkin It is supposed to help with both the runs and constipation. Is he eating well. Don't change his food till he gets used to his surroundings, give him what his breeder fed him. Keep nutrical on hand to keep his sugar level up. If he shakes again like you said give him some nutrical, if you don't have any, give him pancake syrup, corn syrup or even plain out sugar. It will help with a seizure or whatever problem he had with the shakes.

alamont · New member Joined: 27 Mar 2005 Posts: 2

The breeder came over and looked at the puppy and offered to refund our money and take the puppy home. It was a hard decision but we decided it was the best thing to do. Today the breeder phoned and said that puppy is peeing and pooping perfectly normal. She had him to a vet and the vet said it was purely stress-related but also figured that the puppy might be too immature to have been adopted out already. So, the breeder is going to keep puppy for a few more weeks and then we can decide if we want him back.

Thanks for the info

Shineillusion · Posted: Tue Mar 29, 2005 3:38 am Post subject:

It's probably a good thing that puppy went back to hopefully spend more time with his mother and littermates. They need that time for Mom to teach them to be dogs. They also learn bite inhibition during that time, again from Mom, who will discipline them if they bite too hard or too much.

The 8-12 week age period is a difficult time for pups, psychologically. It's referred to as the fear/intimidation period. In the wild, pups of that age are starting to venture out into the world, and many of the things they encounter are dangerous. A lot of the animals they may run into would eat them. So they are naturally suspicious and easily frightened. It's a survival mechanism and one that can cause a heap of trouble if a puppy isn't handled right at that age. A puppy who is frightened or hurt by something during this period can easily imprint that fear, and become difficult to deal with in the same situation later in life.

That's why a lot of groomers won't do a complete groom on a puppy until they're at least 12 weeks old. It's also why responsible breeders don't place puppies before 12 weeks.

So give puppy some time to mature, then try again. I'd be willing to bet things will go much more smoothly.

puttin510 · Super Senior Member Plus Joined: 19 Mar 2004 Posts: 2748

Oh good. 6 1/2 weeks is way to young. I got my pup at 13 weeks, Our breeder would never let a pup go that early. Your breeder did a good thing by doing what she did. She should have known better not to let it go sooo early. Hope you can get pup back.