Ask The Doc: Parasites

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We have had our yellow lab approximately 4 weeks she is 12 weeks old. Since day one her stool has had blood in it. The stool is sometimes runny. We have had her to the vet since the first sign. The vet mentioned testing the stool and see what that shows. I feel the vet should of done that from the beginning instead of guessing. Have you ever come across this before and any idea what it is. Thank you in advance for your response.

Dr. DeMichael: Without an examination of your pup, I can only provide my best estimate regarding her condition, so here goes.

While numerous conditions can cause blood in the stool, for a pup the age of yours, the most likely rule out for loose stool/bloody diarrhea would be intestinal parasitism. Further, based on your information, it would not surprise me if coccidia were the culprit, but others could also be at fault.

The history of having been treated with a deworming agent (of which type I do not know) and still having the problem persist would reinforce my "best guess" idea that coccidia might be found.

If diagnosed (via fecal examination) the treatment for coccidia would require an oral regimen of 7-10 days duration. It is not going to clear up with just one dose as might be expected when treating for some of the other common intestinal parasites. Although I have a "favorite formulation" that I use for this situation, several products could be used and your veterinarian would be able to prescribe a medication suitable for the purpose.

I hope this may provide some further insight for you.