This week, Dr. Manley answers a question about why a reader's dog's stomach is making gurgling noises.

This week's question:
Dear Dr. Manley,
My husband and I adopted a 5 month old Dachshund 4 days ago. He was eating well. Then the evening of the 3rd day his stomach was making a lot of digestive, gurgling noises. On the 4th day he wasn't very hungry and stomach continued to make gurgling noises. He hasn't thrown up nor has he tried to. What causes a gurgling tummy and is there anything we can do to help settle his tummy? Our other dog (also a Dachshund) has never had this problem.

Thank you,
Angela

Dr. Manley's Reply:
Hi Angela,
The noises are caused by gas, and digestive secretions churning in the digestive tract. I wouldn't worry about the noise if you haven't seen any signs of illness such as diarrhea, vomiting, decreased appetite or decreased activity. If it bothers you, make sure your puppy is fed small meals three times daily (decrease to twice daily when he is 1 year old), try a diet that is more digestible (make the switch gradually) such as a chicken and rice formula.

Thanks for the question....Dr. Manley

UPDATE: The puppy continued with his decreased appetite and then became constipated and very irritable. The reader and her husband took the puppy to their veterinarian who ran additional tests and discovered the dog had whipworms. I asked Dr. Manley about this condition, since I'd never heard of it before. Here is his response:

Hi Yvonne,
The whipworm is a parasite that infects the cecum (like the appendix). They attach to the walls of the cecum and suck blood. They are usually undetectable in pets less than 3 months old and will not lay eggs in every stool sample, which makes the disease hard to diagnose. The parasite is contagious to other dogs. Interceptor and Sentinel heartworm preventives will prevent infection of whipworms.

Thanks for the follow up,
Dr. Manley

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Dr. Cleveland Manley, Jr. is one of the wonderful veterinarians at VCA Pet Doctor in Richardson, TX. He is a graduate of Texas A&M University - College of Veterinary Medicine.

DallasDogLife wants to remind our readers that Dr. Manley does his best to answer your questions with the information that he is given, but cannot always provide the best diagnosis for your dog without an office visit. If your dog ever appears to be in pain or shows signs of serious illness, take him or her to your vet IMMEDIATELY.