Staying on top of your beloved dog’s health can be a full time job. You will have to pay attention to many things, including monitoring their bowel movements, and you may even wonder how many times your pet should poop a day.
A German Shepherd should poop one to five times a day, or eight to twelve hours after every meal. Four factors will indicate healthy stool, including color, consistency, content, and coating. If your German Shepherd has abnormal stool more than two times, consult the vet.
There are so many factors you can analyze when making sure your German Shepherd’s poop is healthy. This article will describe what healthy stool looks like, how many times your dog should poop a day, and when to consult a veterinarian regarding abnormal poop.
What Should My Dog’s Poop Look Like?
There are a few things that you should consider when assessing the health of your dog’s bowel movements. Let’s take a look at some of the most important factors.
There are four different things we can look at when analyzing the health of your dog’s stool. These are color, consistency, content, and coating.
What Color Should My Dog’s Poop Be?
A normal and healthy stool should be a chocolate brown color. However, a few things can affect the color like diet, dehydration, and any dyes in their food. If you notice a slightly abnormal color in your dog’s poop, don’t panic. It is quite normal for dogs to have streaks of color. For instance, if your furry friend eats carrots that day, you may see orange in their stool.
More serious colors include black, red, and yellow or grey. Black stool could mean bleeding in the upper digestive tract, while red stool could indicate bleeding in the lower digestive tract. Lastly, yellow or grey stool can indicate issues with the liver, pancreas, or gallbladder. A general rule of thumb is to visit your veterinarian if your dog’s poop is an abnormal color for more than two poops.
What Consistency Should My Dog’s Poop Be?
Your dog’s stool should be log-shaped. It should be quite firm but also malleable, similar to the consistency of play-dough. If your German Shepherd’s poop is very runny, this may indicate that their intestines are not properly absorbing water. However, if the stool is very hard, this could mean that your dog is dehydrated. If your furry-friend has unhealthy consistency for more than two poops, contact your vet.
What Should The Content Of My Dog’s Poop Be?
The content of your German Shepherd’s stool may be trickier to analyze compared to color and consistency. For this step, you will have to dissect the stool. While veterinarians usually do this, there are some things to look for if you decide to do it yourself.
When dissecting the stool, make sure there are no worms. These can either be long and skinny or short and small. Something else to look for is any foreign objects such as glass, rubber, or clothing materials. Lastly, a healthy sample will have no fur. Fur in your dog’s poop indicates over-grooming, which could be a sign of anxiety or boredom.
Should My Dog’s Stool Have a Coating?
A healthy bowel movement should not have any sort of coating on it. Coatings could include random red streaks or coatings of mucus. Both of these instances are fine if they don’t occur more than once. A coating of mucus could indicate the inflammation of your dog’s large bowel.
Reading about all of the different factors of a healthy poop can be confusing. If you want a more visual example that is easy to follow, check out this educational video from Mercola Healthy Pets regarding what normal poop should look like:
Should My German Shepherd Poop More Than Once A Day?
Even though German Shepherds have a lot in common, each dog will have different bowel movements. It is usual for a dog to poop one to five times a day. However, this is only true if your German Shepherd’s stool is a healthy consistency and color. If your furry friend has constipation, diarrhea, or any other signs of abnormal stool, consult a veterinarian.
Typically, fully mature German Shepherds will poop eight to twelve hours after their meal. So if you feed your dog at similar times each day, their bowel movements should be pretty consistent, time-wise.
What Does Unhealthy Stool Look Like?
Several things can indicate unhealthy stool. Let’s take a look at a few.
- Abnormal color: Black, red, yellow, or grey colored stools are abnormal and could mean your German Shepherd is experiencing serious health issues.
- Abnormal consistency: This could be a stool that is very runny or very hard.
- Unusual content: This could be worms, foreign objects, fur, or any other abnormal content.
- Abnormal frequency: If you find that your furry friend is going more than five times a day or hasn’t gone in over 24 hours, you should contact a veterinarian since this is very unhealthy.
It is usual for symptoms of unhealthy stool to go away in 24 hours. So when you first spot one of the above symptoms, it is okay to wait for a day. If the symptoms continue, then you can call and make an appointment with your veterinarian.
What Can I Do If My German Shepherd Has Unhealthy Stool?
It can be alarming when your beloved canine has an abnormal poop. When you first analyze your pet’s stool, make sure to check the four factors of a healthy poop: color, consistency, content, and coating. If you find something unusual, wait about 24 hours, as mentioned earlier, and then take them to the vet if symptoms continue.
It is worth noting that if your dog has unusual poop and has other physical symptoms, it might be worth calling the vet the first time you notice unhealthy stool. Physical symptoms could include lethargy, nausea, vomiting, or acting unusual in any other way. Lastly, black poop should cause more concern since this can indicate bleeding in the upper digestive tract.
Often, a dog’s poop is an indication of the dog’s overall health. If your German Shepherd has unhealthy bowel movements, it could be representative of underlying health issues. Maintaining the health of your dog can be challenging. If you want a comprehensive resource, check out The Complete Healthy Dog Handbook: The Definitive Guide to Keeping Your Pet Happy, Healthy & Active.
Abnormal Stool Could Be Representative Of An Unhealthy Diet
If your pet is not on a proper diet, it could translate to abnormal poops. German Shepherds are large dogs, which means they need a lot of protein. To ensure your dog has a healthy diet, make sure they are on a high-protein, vitamin-rich diet that includes fats, minerals, and carbohydrates.
It is essential to invest in high-quality dog food brands to ensure your German Shepherd stays healthy.
Final Thoughts
It is very common for a German Shepherd to poop one to five times a day. However, dogs can differ substantially regarding their bowel movements, even between the same breeds.
If your dog’s frequency is consistent, you should still check for the color, consistency, content, and stool coating. Healthy poop should be a chocolate brown color and firm to the touch but also malleable. It should also not contain any foreign objects or have a coating, such as mucus.