The Scoop On Your Dog's Poop With Dig Labs
Who knew poop could be so inspiring? We were pleasantly surprised to find out with Tara Zendayko and Jessica Chu co-founders of Dig Labs and certified dog poop experts. Dig labs is helping the new world of remote pet healthcare better understand your dog's daily health with pioneering, veterinarian-trusted technology in a user-friendly app. In short, they want to help dog parents get to know their dog's health through their dog's poop one pic at a time. Here are some takeaways from our chat!
💩 Why does gut health matter?
Stool is a window into your dog's overall health status and unhealthy stool is one of the first symptoms when there's an issue. 70%-80% of the immune system resides in the gut. Dogs have the shortest digestive processing time of any mammal (usually 8-10 hours). Comparatively, humans on average take 20-24 hours. Because of this short processing time, dogs need to absorb their nutrients much faster than we do. So it's important that they have a strong stomach lining and intestinal tract because of how much acid is produced during such rapid digestion.
💩 Poop can give us clues about how each organ is functioning.
The color of stool can tell us about the status of a dog's liver and stomach health. Its consistency can show if food is being properly digested. The small intestine is where the magic happens and most of the digestion takes place. The large intestine is where water gets absorbed. Based on the color, the texture, and the consistency, we can tell a lot about what's happening in the GI tract.
💩 Specifics of how we evaluate stool.
Consistency: Veterinarians use a Bristol Stool Score to rank the consistency of stool. The scale ranges from 1-2 (constipation) to 7 (watery diarrhea). There is such a thing as the perfect poop! It's easy to pick up and doesn't leave any residue on the ground.
Coating: Normal and healthy dog stool should be free of any coating. If a coating is present such as mucus or blood, this can signify intestinal distress or GI inflammation.
Color: Normal poop color varies from dog to dog. The standard can even change over time, depending on information like your dog's diet. Yellowish or green poop can indicate the food is passing through the GI tract faster than it should. Red stool is most commonly associated with blood. White stool is commonly seen in dogs on a raw diet and usually indicates there's too much calcium.
Contents: If your dog eats fresh food, like carrots, greens, or peas, they can show in your dog's poop since they're harder to break down.
💩 Benefits of Paying Attention to the Pool
Straight from the DIG Labs website. Analyizing our dog's #2 can help them:
💩 What to do if you are concerned?
If you are concerned about your dog's stool:
- You can Download the DIG Labs app for quick and easy analysis.
- Or call your vet to find out if you should make an appointment!
No one likes cleaning up dog poop but the next time you are doing this stinky task remember that it is an opportunity to check on your dog's current health!
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