Poop isn’t the most pleasant topic; however, your fur baby’s poop can tell a lot about its health. As a pet owner, your dog’s poop and bowel habits may suddenly change and can be cause for concern. As unpleasant as monitoring your dog’s poop is, it is essential to your pet’s care.
English Springer Spaniels have sensitive stomachs and are susceptible to digestive and colon conditions that you can detect in their poop. Color change in bowel movements or blood and mucus in your pet’s stool can indicate health problems that need medical attention or a diet change.
As with any dog breed, English Springer Spaniels have their traits, and a sensitive digestive system is one of these. Keeping your pet’s gut healthy is vitally important. You’ll need to be aware of changes in poop and bowel movements that could point to health problems.
Keep An Eye On Your Pet’s Poop To Make Sure Its Normal
There are various reasons why your dog’s fecal matter may change from normal consistency and form. These changes can alert you to health problems your pet has.
Your pet’s food gets broken down by bile that is a greenish-yellow color. Various enzymes change the color to brown as it passes through the digestive tract. Normal poop is brown. If your pet has eaten something colored, this could change the color of its poop; however, it is best not to make this assumption.
Healthy stools should be in a log shape, firm, and not dry. You should easily be able to clean the poop off the lawn. If you can’t do this, it may indicate that something is irritating your dog’s colon.
The size of your animal’s fecal matter should be consistent with the size of your pet and the quantity of food it is eating. It is usual for your Spaniel to have bowel movements between once and five times a day. Anything more or less than this could signify constipation, or a stomach upset. Your pet’s stomach should work in a similar routine each day.
The smell of your pet’s poop indicates digestive or other problems. Normal poop will have a mild odor. Seek medical attention if the smell strengthens or starts smelling offensive or strange.
Diet can also be related to changes in smells. A change in diet may cause a more stinky poop, and this will be accompanied by bloating and other digestive symptoms such as burping or gas. Various viruses, such as Parvovirus, give poop a distinct smell. Visit a vet if you notice this.
English Springer Spaniels Have Digestive Problems
Springer Spaniels have sensitive stomachs, and their stools need constant monitoring to ensure that nothing is amiss in their digestive tracts. Your Spaniel does not do well with dairy, carbohydrates, and fats and struggles to digest these. Their poop may be affected by this.
A healthy diet should be protein-rich and include beef, chicken, lamb, and turkey, and your pet should never be given human food or treats from your dinner table. If your Spaniel has frequent loose stools, try changing to a very bland diet for a couple of days and then gradually introduce kibble in small quantities.
There are many advocates for feeding your dog raw dog or mixing the raw food with kibble. Raw food is easier to digest and retain nutrients. This results in less frequent, smaller bowel movements as much of the goodness is absorbed. Poop is also less smelly.
Pets also eat their poop on occasion, and while this appears to be a nasty habit, it is normal for dogs. Your Springer Spaniel may not have digested its food correctly and wants to take more nutrients out of its poop. Eating poop does not put your dog at risk, but bacteria may pass from your dog’s mouth to other dogs and yourself.
The Color Of Poop Can Alert You To Health Problems
Keeping an eye on your dog’s poop includes monitoring the color of its stools and knowing which color poops need urgent attention. Changes in the color of poop can indicate various health problems:
- Grey, green, or purple stools – something may be wrong with your pet’s digestive system, or worse, they may have ingested something poisonous.
- Fresh red streaks of blood – your dog may be bleeding from its colon or anus. Parasites and worms also cause blood in stools, as do constipation, ulcers, tumors, and some forms of cancer.
- Black, tarry-colored poop – blood has passed through your pet’s digestive system, pointing to possible bleeding in the upper gastrointestinal tract.
- Green poop – could indicate a gallbladder problem.
- Pale or gray stools – can result from the pancreas or biliary duct disease, or your dog’s system has too much fat or protein.
- White specks in poop – your pet may have worms.
- Pink or purple stools – must be treated as an emergency as this often points to severe gastric distress, which requires urgent medical attention.
Mucus And Blood In Dog Poop Is A Cause For Concern
Mucus is naturally produced in your pet’s intestinal tract to keep the colon moist and assist in passing your dog’s fecal matter. However, if the mucus has blood in it, this is a warning sign that your pet has a severe health issue such as:
- Tapeworms, roundworms, hookworms, or whipworms
- Irritable bowel syndrome because of a stressful event. Irritable bowel syndrome manifests as diarrhea alternating with constipation.
- English Springer Spaniels are susceptible to viruses like Parvovirus, rabies, Canine Corona Virus, and distemper, all needing urgent medical intervention.
- Various types of cancer and tumors, and your vet will need to diagnose this.
- Intestinal blockages when your pet eats and swallows a foreign object or sharp bones.
- Long-term diarrhea accompanied by mucus and bloody stools that indicates more severe diseases such as viruses, parasites, cancer, infections or intestinal blockages.
Vets will require you to bring a sample of your dog’s poop for analysis. Fresh poop is best to use as bacteria, viruses, and parasites will still be present.
Conclusion
Your pet’s poop can tell you a lot about its general health. It can alert you to more severe diseases and illnesses such as problems with the pancreas, bile ducts, viruses, cancer, tumors, colon inflammation, and parasites. Changes to the color and form of stools and bowel movement patterns will require a visit to the vet for examination. English Springer Spaniels have sensitive digestive systems and require proper nutrition to maintain good gut health. Signs that something is amiss will often show up as diarrhea or constipation. Adjusting your Spaniel’s diet will go a long way to alleviating poop problems and clearing up irritated colon issues.
