First Things First—What Does Healthy Dog Poop Look Like?
This isn’t a trick question. Healthy poop remarkably resembles that little poop emoji we see all over the place. It’s typically brown, which is the result of bile and food being broken down in the intestines. Bile is important to digestion because it helps break food down. Bile is typically reabsorbed as food continues through the digestion process, but sometimes, some will be leftover and eventually change to a brown (as seen in healthy poop). Of course, color can be affected by the dyes or colors in food or treats, but usually, it’s a nice shade of chocolate. It’s tubular in shape because intestines are also like tubes and believe it or not, it often comes out swirly because your dog’s rectum acts almost like an icing tip delicately decorating the grass.
What if I See Yellow Dog Poop?
The good news is that if you see yellow dog poop when your dog does his duty, it’s not an immediate red flag. It can be a sign that you need to monitor your dog, though, because it may end up a more serious situation.
What Are the Causes of Yellow Dog Poop?
If your furbaby has yellow dog poop, there are several possible reasons. Usually, seeing yellow dog poop means your dog may be having a tolerance issue to his food. Did you change food? Give him new treats? Feed him something from the table? More often than not, yellow dog poop will resolve itself and get back to that beautiful brown within a few days, as he adjusts. But if your dog has yellow poop for more than a few days, or you start seeing diarrhea too, it’s likely that there is something continuing to irritate his digestive system. The gut is an amazing place, and is often called the second brain. This is because it knows how to rid itself of irritants that may cause yellow dog poop. In fact, it tries to do so in such a quick way, it may push food through before there is enough time for proper absorption and there’s no leftover bile to help it appear more brown in color. This could happen because he ate pieces of your kid’s toy, or some yellow chalk or a crayon or your favorite yellow sock. If his stomach is irritated, you’ll know it. If you haven’t given your dog any new foods or treats, and you don’t think he’s gotten into something he shouldn’t have but you still see yellow dog poop after a few days, that may be a sign he has a parasitic or bacterial infection. In this case, if the yellow dog poop persists for several days, you’ll likely want him to see a vet to be sure there’s not something more serious.
Should I Consider Yellow Dog Poop an Emergency?
Typically, no. Medical emergencies are ones that require immediate vet attention, and while yellow dog poop that continues to happen might warrant a vet visit, unless you know or think you know your dog has gotten into something that could be poisonous or dangerous, it’s probably not an emergency. It’s more likely something that his digestive system is trying to work out, and usually will in a few days. The best way to ensure your dog has healthy dog poop is to make sure his gut is healthy. Luckily, the easiest and best way to do that is to make sure he has the perfect amount of premium fiber, digestive enzymes, prebiotics and probiotics. That’s why we made Bernie’s Perfect Poop–to give our dogs that exact combination and in turn, give them the perfect, scoopable poops. Perfect Poop will help your dog absorb food at the perfect rate, optimizing nutrition and encouraging the best gut health he can have. It also means that if he should come across something that upsets his stomach, he’ll be able to battle it better with a flourishing gut. Give your dog Perfect Poop every day and welcome the brown back into town!
