What to Feed a Dog or Cat with Diarrhea?! Help!

The internet is awash with DIY remedies to feed a dog or cat with diarrhea. But if you listened to everything you’d get nowhere fast. Which begs the question: what should you feed a dog or cat with diarrhea?!

At #4 for dogs and #3 for cats, diarrhea is a top PD Pet insurance claim.

In this article PD Insurance lists some of the safest food options since dog and cat diarrhea is a common problem that needs solutions. It’s so common in fact, that it’s one of the top five issues pet owners have claimed for (making it a pet peeve).

When to worry about cat or dog diarrhea

Sometimes diarrhea is a symptom of an underlying health condition so it’s a good idea to take your sick cat or dog for a vet check-up. Either they rule out any further worries, or they can help you start a treatment plan.

If any of these symptoms are also present, it could be cause for concern:

• Blood in the diarrhea
• Your pet is very young or old
• Your pet has a known condition
• If the diarrhea looks tarry or dark grey
• Explosive diarrhea
• Pain
• Vomiting

Remember these are just some symptoms and others may only be noticeable to a trained vet. That’s why we recommend seeing your vet before heading to DIY home remedies.

Dog vomiting and diarrhea

A repeatedly emptied tummy could lead to dehydration and no one wants that to happen to their furbaby! Read more on dog vomiting to see whether it’s a case of gastro (also a top claim).

What to feed your dog or cat when they have diarrhea

If you’ve consulted your vet and they’ve ruled out any underlying conditions, you can start feeding them what we call ‘upset tummy foods’. We’ve listed the top three safest options to feed your dog or cat when they have diarrhea.

Also speak to your vet about what you normally feed your cat or dog because it could be that changing their pet food helps to settle their tummy. Remember a nutritiously well balanced diet is as good as gold in preventing health problems before they ever happen!

Read more pet food insights with Royal Canin and Purina.

Chicken and rice for diarrhea in dogs and cats

Chicken and rice is a top food source for dogs or cats with diarrhea because it’s easy to digest and still contains protein and carbs. Deboned and deskinned chicken breasts are easy since you can boil them until well-cooked then add to boiled white rice.

You’ll cook the rice in the same water that you cooked the chicken in, so the rice can soak up all the goodness. Dice or shred the chicken and mix it into the rice to combine into an upset tummy (go-away) meal.

We’ve all got a hand-me-down chicken soup recipe for when we’re sick and this is your pet’s equivalent. Nice and simple, yet tasty and nutritious! Here’s a detailed step-by-step example of how to make this recipe.

Also read ‘what bones can dogs eat‘ to find out why chicken bones are out.

Pacing your portions

Simplify this dish by giving your dog the chicken on its own, shredded. Your cat can also start on a simplified version by having the water from the meal on its own which is essentially a broth.

• Dogs. Follow your vet’s feeding instructions. They may recommend not feeding your dog for 24 hours when they have diarrhea. Once it’s safe to feed them, portion the servings so that the amount you would normally feed is broken into four or five smaller servings over a day.
• Cats. Unlike dogs, cats are never fasted when they have diarrhea because they need nutrition from the start to recover. Give your cat one tablespoon of the chicken and rice every two hours and gradually increase portion sizes. Slowly transition them to their regular food over one or two weeks while increasing gaps between feeding to every four hours.

Other good carbs

Rice is a pretty staple food in most households but you can replace it with baked, peeled and cubed sweet potato or cooked oats. Simply using one of these instead may turn your pet’s bland dish into one they like.

When feeding a cat or dog with diarrhea, avoid adding salt, sugar or oils. The keyword is ‘bland diet’. Also make sure all the ingredients are well-cooked. Feeding undercooked ingredients can make the situation much, much worse.

If you’re not keen on chicken and rice, here are more options you can feed a cat or dog with diarrhea:

Dogs	Cats
Baby food (chicken, turkey or lamb)	Baby food (chicken or turkey)
Turkey and rice (instead of chicken)	Poached fish (deboned)

NB: Ensure that the baby foods don’t contain added ingredients like onion or garlic. Read about things that can poison your pet to find out what else shouldn’t be in your pet’s diet.

Cat and dog insurance for a sore tummy

With so many pet mums and dads needing to claim when their cat or dog has diarrhea, having pet insurance just makes sense. Your pet’s plan will help pay for the unexpected trips to the vet and if they need prescription meds these are covered too.

Maybe more importantly, is that if your vet discovers a more serious underlying condition that can also be costly. The tests, treatments, hospitalisation, prescription medication and more can be covered if you’ve got a Comprehensive or Deluxe pet insurance plan.

The sooner you get cat insurance or dog insurance the better the cover can be. Get it while your pet is healthy so you won’t have to worry when they’re not. Start today and you can get one ore months of FREE pet insurance.

Click below to get a quote.