What's So Interesting About My Pet's Poop?!

Written by Dr. Gloria Ku

Do you ever wonder what makes a stool sample so special?  When animals don’t tell us how they feel, it is often very important for care givers to know what their eating habits are, and what their elimination habits and appearances are.  When working with wildlife for example, this could be the only additional information we might have, besides a visual look at our patient. 

Stool color often reflects closely the type of food animals are eating.  Sometimes, stool will turn darker on the outside where it is exposed to air and remain a lighter color on the inside depending on how long it has been exposed.  If there is blood present with a bowel movement, it is helpful to know if the blood is strictly on the surface or blended throughout the sample.  This can tell us more about where the blood may be coming from along the GI tract.  Very black stool throughout the sample can be associated with blood loss in the stomach which will look black by the time it passes.   Blood loss from the colon tends to be a brighter red and often associated with mucus on the surface of the bowel movement.  

Stool consistency has more to do with how an animal is absorbing moisture from its stool and can give us information about how well its GI tract is working to absorb both fluid and nutrients.  Very soft pudding like stool may be the result of poor absorption of fluid and nutrients from the small intestine, whereas watery stool can reflect rapid transit time associated with more acute conditions, such as when they have eaten something that is spoiled or their body is rejecting.  Hard dry stool may indicate dehydration and constipation.  

Mucus surrounding a bowel movement can often reflect issues associated with colitis, or inflammation in the colon.  This could be stress related and only associated with excitement or anxiety.  When it persists, it could represent inflammation due to food intolerance, allergy, or colonic problems.

All of this information helps us to determine a lot about our pet’s GI tract that may be hard to glean from other tests or physical exams alone.   The gastrointestinal tract has its own separate “plumbing.”

And lastly, although by no means the least important, we can test a stool sample for parasites.  Intestinal parasites can be most frequently acquired from fecal oral contamination, which is exactly what it sounds like.  Parasites can also be contracted from eating prey or undercooked meat, or in some cases from contaminated water sources including rain and irrigation run-off.   Because our pets don’t use a sanitation sewer system, this puts our pets at more risk than most people.  This also puts pet owners at sightly higher risk of acquiring a parasite from their furry friend. 

So please, pick up after your pet, dispose of waste appropriately, and wash your hands before eating!  😉