Has anyone heard of Clostridien Bacteria

Could also be known as clostridia or clostridium.
My dog has just been diagnosed with this and was wondering if anyone has any experience in dealing with this problem.He has just finished a course of tablets called metronidazol, does he need to be put on a special diet? at the moment he is just on chicken and rice.The problem started a while ago he started to have runny poo's sometimes with blood in them this did not happen everyday sometimes they were fine,so i gave the vet a stool sample and this bacteria was found in him,the course of tablets is now finished and yesterday the runny poo's were back with a little blood.This is really starting to upset me now.
can anyone help please

Iv never heard of this bacteria but my Boxer Saffy has the same problem if I change her food at all. Any changes and she gets runny poo and blood. My vet just advised me to stick to one food, preferably chicken and brown rice and not to change it. It worked for Saffy.

Hi. Sorry to hear you're having problems. I'm training as a nurse at the mo and we occasionally get clostridium difficile in the hospitals and treat it with antibiotics like Metronidazole to get rid of the bacteria in the intestines. Like Roxy said try and keep your dog on an easy digestible diet like chicken & rice and if the runs don't go I would go back to the vets.
Hope this helps a bit

Hi thanks for the reply's,a question for ripsnorter the 2nd once the bacteria has gone can he go back to his normal food or will he be on chicken & rice for the rest of his life,is the damage from this bacteria perminant?
Thank You

I had Metronidazole when I was in hospital, it is a good anit biotic,works well but made me seriously ill.

I hope you get sorted out soon, it is so upsetting.

Ian

Cuzbull - you are best sticking to one type of food, and not changing it, as this can upset the way the digestive system works, and it's not good for the dog to keep changing.
If you find chicken and rice works, then stick with it

On checking up on this bacteria it seems it can be found in cooked meat. But the bacteria only flourishes in vacuum packed food (it doesnt multiply in air). So maybe your dog has picked it up from something like vacuum pack dog food, or tinned dog food which is also vacuum packed.

Think this is a relative common cause of diarrhoea in dogs and will normally clear up after a short while on bland food. One of the problems with AB's is although they work against the bug causing the initial problem AB’s can in themseves cause loose stools as it kills off some of the dogs natural gut bacteria.

Hi Cuzbull, he should eventually go back to normal food but I would stick to chicken and rice until you're absolutely sure he's over the problem. Even then I would put him on food for sensitive stomachs to be on the safe side. Some of the bacteria that causes sickness and diarrhoea is found naturally in the intestines anyway and taking antibiotics, like Thordell said, destroys all bacteria - good or bad! This can start a chain reaction and give the dog (or person!) diarrhoea in the first place. Metronidazole is probably an antibiotic designed to fight this particular bacteria like the clostridium type, so it should help solve the problem. And no the damage won't be permanent, it just takes time! Some strains can be particularly nasty, believe me I had it last year. (Working in hospitals does nothing for your health!! :smt005 )

Hope this helps and as I said if in doubt go and see the vet, I'm no expert! God I can waffle can't I!!

My bullie had the same thing last year, she had antibiotics which didnt do anything. It just went away itself, after a few weeks.