A dog’s poop can tell you a lot about what’s going on inside their body, both by its texture and color. For example, red or black droppings can indicate that your dog is bleeding somewhere in their gastrointestinal tract. But what does yellow dog poop mean?
Yellow dog poop – is it serious?
Uh-oh – is that yellow dog poop you see? Photography © gemredding | iStock / Getty Images Plus.
Seeing yellow dog poop can be a little surprising. Sometimes it happens because of something your dog ate, like yellow crayons or chalk, that is just going through. An indication that your dog may have eaten something that contains yellow dye is when the yellow color in the poop appears in spots or just parts of the poop.
However, if the dog poop is evenly colored in yellow, the reason may be more worrying. “This is bile pigment that has not been absorbed and gets through the faeces and turns it yellow,” says Tracey Jensen, DVM, Dipl.-Ing. ABVP, medical director at Wellington Veterinary Hospital in Wellington, Colorado. “It’s not normal. Basically, this means that the transit time in the GI tract will be extended.”
What does GI transit time have to do with dog poop color?
“GI transit time” refers to the time it takes for food to travel through the entire gastrointestinal tract as it is digested and ultimately eliminated from the body as waste. “The intestinal tract is constantly digesting and reabsorbing things for reuse, from liquid to bile pigment,” explains Dr. Jensen. “If this transit time is too fast, you get liquid feces and see these yellow bile pigments. When the transit time is extended and the patient is dehydrated, we see constipation. “
GI transit time can increase for a variety of reasons, including parasites, cancer, inflammatory bowel disease, liver, gallbladder, or pancreas problems. For this reason, if you notice yellow dog poop, it’s best to make an appointment with your veterinarian.
Is Yellow Dog Poo a Medical Emergency?
So is yellow dog poop a cause for concern? Photography © NUKUL2533 | iStock / Getty Images Plus.
“It’s not necessarily an emergency as long as the pet is okay and there aren’t any other symptoms, but it’s urgent enough that you need a veterinary examination,” advises Dr. Jensen. “If [your dog is] If you are unwell or have other gastrointestinal symptoms, such as vomiting or other changes in the color of the feces, a call to the emergency room is required. “
When you go to the vet, bring a stool sample so the vet can examine it under a microscope for any signs of parasites. If the fecal test doesn’t reveal parasites, your vet will likely want to do your dog’s blood count and may want to do some imaging tests like x-rays or ultrasound to look for abnormalities in the gastrointestinal tract.
The final result
If you don’t think your dog has just chewed up a few yellow colored pencils, don’t ignore the yellow dog poop. If you see this color in your dog’s poop, have him checked to make sure nothing serious is going on.
Thumbnail: Photography © MachineHeadz | iStock / Getty Images Plus.
This piece was originally released in 2018.
