Dog poop – What it reveals about your dog’s health
For many dog owners, dog feces is not only a daily occurrence when walking their dog, but also a valuable source of information about their four-legged friend's health. The color, consistency, and frequency of feces provide clues about feeding, digestion, and possible illnesses. In this article, you'll learn everything you need to know about dog feces.
---
What is dog poop actually?
Dog feces consist of indigestible food components, intestinal bacteria, and endogenous substances such as intestinal mucosal cells and digestive secretions. The typical brown color is caused by the breakdown of bile pigments (bilirubin and biliverdin), while the odor is caused by putrefaction and fermentation products such as skatole and indole.
The odor can vary greatly depending on the diet and digestion. High-protein or low-quality food sources often lead to foul-smelling feces.
---
Exciting news from science
Studies analyzing wolf feces show that berries, plant matter, and even small stones are also present in the excrement. These presumably help cleanse the intestines of hair or parasites or trigger a gag reflex. Dog feces can also contain such clues to their eating habits.
---
How often should a dog defecate?
The frequency of bowel movements depends on the diet. Highly digestible foods such as BARF lead to fewer bowel movements, while foods with a lot of fillers (e.g., dry food) produce larger amounts. Healthy dogs defecate one to three times a day, depending on their diet. If bowel movements are absent for more than 48 hours, a veterinarian should be consulted.
Dry food dog: up to 3 piles per day
BARF dog: 1 poop a day, sometimes only every 2 days
---
Shape and consistency – The Bristol Stool Shape Scale for dogs
The consistency of the stool ranges from solid and sausage-like to liquid. The following scale helps classify it:
- Individual, solid, dry globules: difficult to excrete, no residue when ingested.
- Firm, sausage-like, lumpy: hardly any residue when picked up.
- Sausage shape with cracked surface: Moist, no segments, leaves residue, retains shape.
- Sausage shape with smooth surface: Very moist, leaves residue but does not lose its shape.
- Soft piles, no clear sausage shape: Very moist, leaves residue, loses shape.
- Mushy, soft lumps: Irregular edge, noticeable texture, leaves residue.
- Liquid or aqueous: Without solid components.
Image source:
Bristol Stool Scale
Source: Wikimedia Commons
Author: User “Wikibooks”
License: CC BY-SA 3.0
License link: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/deed.de
---
Diarrhea – what to do?
Occasional mushy stools are usually harmless as long as they don't occur frequently. Diarrhea is only considered to be severe if the dog produces loose to watery stools (type 7) several times a day.
Measures for diarrhea
- 24-hour bland diet
- Moro's carrot soup
- Psyllium husks
- Light food (chicken, rice, pumpkin)
---
Firming stools – tips for soft stools
Feeding can influence stool consistency:
- Psyllium husks: Bind water and make stools firmer.
-
Long-cooked carrots or pumpkin : Support intestinal health.
- Bones: In small amounts they help to firm up the stool.
- Blueberries: beneficial
If soft stools persist, feeding should be checked or a stool sample should be examined.
---
Colors and their meaning
The color of the feces varies greatly depending on the food and health status:
-
Brown: Normal.
-
Red: Blood or beetroot.
-
Green: Lots of grass or vegetables.
- White: Too many bones.
- Black: Bleeding in the gastrointestinal tract.
- Gray: Problems with pancreas or gallbladder.
-
Orange/Yellow: Carrots or liver problems.
-
White dots/threads: worms.
- Mucus: Inflammation or parasitic infestation.
---
Conclusion
Dog feces are an important indicator of your dog's health. Changes in color, consistency, or frequency should always be taken seriously. If you are unsure or notice any unusual symptoms, a fecal examination by a veterinarian is recommended.
---
Further information
You can find out more about digestion and how changing food can affect stools in the article: Diarrhea when changing food – causes and solutions.