Sick Puppy ( Giant Alaskan Malamute ) Please help

[schinobi]

I am frusterated I have a beautiful 7 month old 102lb Giant Alaskan Malamute he has had chronic diarrhea since we have had him since 6 weeks of age , he was found to have Coccidia we were informed that he probably was not weaned long enough as he was supposed to stay with mother until 8 weeks.  We dealt with it but the diarrhea cont.. They did more extensive testing and found that he had a High Folate level and then Giardia which after numerous medications this cleared up but he still has the Diarrhea between my vet and a critical care specialist  one feels he may have a malabsorbtion disorder and needs exploratory surgery  the other stated that its prob SIBO ( small intestinal bacterial overgrowth and either learn to live with it or they could scope ands do biopsies. Ant suggestions  Thank You

[patrick]

He certainly is a very good weight for his age so I would be reluctant to rush into surgery too. He seems to be tolerating his diarrhea better than you are I definitely would change his food to a non allergenic adult food with NO GRAINS (like duck and potatoes or fish and potatoes)and LOW FAT and add yogurt and pumpkin to his diet  Yogurt will correct the bacterial overgrowth and pumpkin will help to add bulk to his stools.  Also it is not that uncommon for a dog to have whip worm which is not detected by stool samples  We always worm with Panacur for 3 days in a row or Drontal to eliminate this as a possible cause as a first step.

[LuvmyMal]

Honestly, sounds like it could be SIBO, but I would say IBD, my Tonka had the same issues when she was a pup. I would try yogurt and a singe carb/single protein diet first. The exploratory surger is pretty intensive and it takes a while to recover from it. Try no lamb, chicken, or beef also try to go away from rice and try cooked red potatos. I have learned a lot from our experience and now have both of my mals on duck and potato food with peanut butter treats.