Helping constipation?

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Directorthiang

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Is there anything I can give my chin to help alleviate constipation while waiting out a day before our vet appointment?
 
If it is bad constipation a vet is needed.
a dry comfry leaf will help. a couple of raisins may also. My first concern is what is causing constipation that will have great importance as to what you do?
 
I'm not particularly sure what's causing it. He's a new chin; I've had him only a week. He is still pooping, just not often and not much. Last night he passed about 8 poops in 30 minutes. They were decent sized, good color, and slightly moist, but the night previously, the few poops he passed were small, hard, and dry.

He has an appointment with a chin vet on Thursday, as she doesn't work Monday-Wednesday. I'm just curious if there's something I can give him in the interim to possibly encourage more bowel movement. I've heard mixed things about the raisins...
 
>Last night he passed about 8 poops in 30 minutes. They were decent sized, good color, and slightly moist, but the night previously, the few poops he passed were small, hard, and dry.

That does not sound like constipation. If it was, it is evidently over.
 
Well, then should I not be concerned with the small amount of pooping happening? Also, his poops aren't consistent. Tonight, for example, he pooped at the same low level, but his poops were almost balls they were so small, very hard and dry.

And then... out of nowhere... a moderately decent poop appears.

He may not have a blockage in there, since he's been defecating, but something is up with his diet, GI tract, or emotional well being for him to be pooping so little and inconsistently, yes?
 
How long have you had the chin? If he is new to you then it might be worth adding some probiotics to his diet for a few days to see if that helps re-balance the GI tract flora.
Does he eat plenty of hay and good quality pellets? Is he drinking ok?
 
He seems to be drinking fine--saw him at the water bottle last night. He will also eat hay when I hand him a piece or when I put a fresh handful into the cage. The pellets are a bit of a mystery--he's still on the food that they were giving him at the rescue; I don't think it's a poor quality feed, but I've ordered some PANR online and am waiting for it to arrive so I can start blending him out o this old food and into a PANR and Oxbow mixture.

I've had him for a week and a day and tried giving him some probiotics yesterday, but he won't eat the Benebac, not from my finger or on a treat. Suggestions?
 
He won't eat Bene-bac gel? Then you will need to get another type and mix it with pellets.

Poo size and production varies by time of day and day to day. If he is new, I wouldn't worry too much.

The rescue he came from is likely the most knowledgable source of info about him.

>He seems to be drinking fine--saw him at the water bottle last night

Mark the bottle to see how much he drinks. This should be somewhere between 15 - 60 ml. Look for consistancy over several days. Deal with the simple stuff first before switching to mixtures of pellets and things. Keep him on as similar regime as possible to what he was used to at the rescue. Do this for a month or so.

If one of my clients had the same problem I would hope they would contact me before getting random advice elsewhere. We don't know your chin or you or your perception of the situation. As much as those here would like to help, it is difficult. If you are that worried, have an x-ray done. It will indicate if there is a blockage. IMO, that is a bit extreme for what you describe. If the situation you describe has continued this long with no other symptoms, it is hard for me to see constipation.

Control and measure what goes in, monitor what comes out. Look for correlations between the two.
 
How does his stomach feel like?
If it feels taut, he might be bloated & constipated.
 
I was only so concerned because a previous chin I'd had for only 6 days had some of the same symptoms, wound up going into GI stasis, and died the most horrific death I have ever been witness to. So, after having lived through that torture, I'm probably much more paranoid whenever my chins don't exhibit the right sized poop.

He was constipated; the vet confirmed it this morning. But she didn't feel a blockage or any gas. I stopped feeding him pellets free range and limited him to only hay. I also held him in my lap last night for twenty minutes with a back massager on his stomach (he liked it!), and that seems to have gotten things moving more quickly.

His poop is still small, but much more moist and coming MUCH more often, now, so I think we're on the track to normalcy.

NOLA--I understand your desire to have your clients come to you in the event of a problem; the lady at the rescue I went to heard from the grapevine about my visit to the vet clinic and called to check up on Dash. We had a great conversation and I don't think I hurt her feelings by seeking help. If I had thought it was a pre-existing condition, I would have contacted her, but I think the constipation developed since I became his owner.
 
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