Diarrhea/Puppy

Question: I have a 5 month old puppy. He has had some pretty bad diarrhea on and off for the past two weeks. Could this be some kind of parasite, or is this relatively normal?,

ANSWER: Diarrhea in dogs can be caused by probably 100 different problems and is NEVER normal--just like it is not normal for you and me. Diarrhea can result from anything from parasitic infections, food allergies, diet indiscretions/abrupt changes, inflammation of the bowels, cancer, metabollic problems (such as diabetes, Cushings disease, etc), stress (and any disease causing stress on the body), food storage diseases, hormonal imbalances, and you name it. Please get your animal into the vet today and bring along a sample of stool (must be 24 hours fresh) for the vet to examine under a microscope for parasites. Never give any over the counter remedies until it is prescribed by your veterinarian as some of them could be very toxic to your pet. Good luck!