Almost anything can cause diarrhea in a family pet:

• Parasites
• Irritated digestive tract
• New food
• Spicy/sugary food
• Dietary indiscretion
• Antibiotic use
• Illness
• Certain diseases

In many cases, you can treat mild diarrhea (and some parasites) at home. However, please provide vet care for any pet that has repeated bouts of diarrhea or diarrhea that is bloody. Runny diarrhea in young puppies is also a sign of Parvo, which is life-threatening. So, puppies with diarrhea need immediate treatment from their vet.

What medications are safe to give for diarrhea at home?

Probiotics:

Probiotics are a supplement that contains colonies of healthy gut bacteria. Adding them to your pet’s food will help restore the natural balance of your pet’s gut. Probiotics also help with diarrhea caused by food changes or antibiotic therapy. Dogs and cats have different species of bacteria in their gut than humans (and each other). Consequently, they need species-specific probiotics. Purina FortiFlora is a well-trusted and effective probiotic for diarrhea for both cats and dogs.

• Fortiflora for cats
  
  • Find FortiFlora on Chewy (no prescription needed)
    
  • Find FortiFlora on Amazon (no prescription needed)
    
• Fortiflora for dogs
  
  • Find FortiFlora for dogs on Chewy (no prescription needed)
    
  • Find FortiFlora for dogs on Amazon (no prescription needed)
    
    

Anti-diarrhea medications:

Kaolin and pectate have long been treatments for diarrhea. However, the popular medication “Kaopectate” has changed its formula over the years. It now contains an aspirin derivative, thus making it dangerous for use in cats and dogs. Luckily, other options are now available for pets:

• Propectalin for cats and dogs – this is a pet-safe version of kaolin and pectate for both dogs and cats!
  
  • Find Propectalin on Chewy (no prescription needed)
    
  • Find Propectalin on Amazon (no prescription needed)
    
  • Or do you prefer Propectalin treats or tablets? (On Amazon | On Chewy)

Deworming medications:

Dewormers are specific medications that kill certain types of intestinal worms. The best way to diagnose an intestinal worm is to have your vet identify the ova in a stool sample and prescribe medication. But, there are some dewormers that are available over-the-counter for owners to purchase.

Hookworms and Roundworms:

• Fenbendazole – this covers all of the basic worms, and some tapeworms as well. This is only available for dogs over the counter. However, the average 10-pound cat gets the same dose as a 10-pound dog, so over-the-counter doses for dogs are often given to cats (off-label). It can also treat some cases of Giardia.
  
  • Find fenbendazole for dogs on Chewy (no prescription needed) – sized for cats here
    
  • Find fenbendazole for dogs on Amazon (no prescription needed) – sized for cats here
    
  • Single dose fenbendazole for cats and dogs on Chewy (prescription from local vet required)
    
• Pyrantel pamoate – this will also kill the basic worms. Clinics give this to puppies and kittens every 3-4 weeks with their first vaccines to help treat any existing parasites.
  
  • Find Pyrantel in bulk for dogs and cats on Amazon (no prescription needed)
    

Tapeworms:

• Praziquantel – used in both cats and dogs to treat tapeworms. Always use this in combination with flea medication, because pets infect themselves with tapeworms by eating fleas. So, medication to get rid of fleas is necessary to stop them from reinfecting themselves.
  
  • Find praziquantel for cats on Chewy (no prescription needed)
    
  • Find praziquantel for cats on Amazon (no prescription required)
    
  • Praziquantel and pyrantel combo drug for cats and dogs on Chewy (prescription from local vet clinic required)
    
  • Find praziquantel for dogs on Chewy (no prescription required)
    
  • Find praziquantel for dogs on Amazon (no prescription required)
    

Giardia:

• Metronidazole – often used with fenbendazole to treat Giardia in dogs and cats. It may also be effective for treating bacterial diarrhea like E. coli overgrowth.
  
  • Find metronidazole on Chewy (prescription from local vet clinic required)

Coccidia:

• Sulfadimethoxine (Albon) – used mainly to treat Coccidia in puppies and kittens.
  
  • Find Albon on Chewy (prescription from local vet clinic required)
    

Disclaimer: Some links in this post are affiliate links. I am sometimes compensated with a small commission for purchases made from these links to help cover the cost of upkeep. However, I only link products that are deemed safe, and I will never recommend any product purely for profit.