loose stools in healthy dog

I have a very slim, fit, healthy 7 year old lab, except for his stools often being mucus, very loose and/or yellow. I don't think it's a food intolerance as I have very carefully tried out various foods over a long period, and there is no consistancy in his condition. He is usually on a good quality wet food(chicken naturediet) plus biscuits (autarky) and does not scavenge much. Blood tests showed he had low calcium and globulin with high albumen. He does get slightly nervous occasionally (rescue dog). Because he is very fit and healthy otherwise and with a great coat I am not too concerned, but I would love to find out the cause and know whether it will do him any long-term damage/weakening of the gut or whatever, and if there's anything I can do to help. Thanks.

My Comment:

I would have a do a test for various worms and other relevant parasites (mainly coccidia and giardia) to see if that's the problem.

You have see mucus in the stool and that is often present in diseases of the colon. So, my best guess is some kind of IBD in the colon and perhaps the small intestine and the stomach.

The final diagnosis would be made by use of a endoscope or biopsy taken by an exploratory laparotomy. The last thing is a bigger procedure.

Before doing this I would check the TLI (pancreas) and his B-12 and folic acic as well. I don't know if they was included in the blood sample/test.

This could give an idea if there is any IBD or perhaps bacterial overgrowth in the intestines.

You could also try a first to give a food using a novel protein source. You might only find this in dog food from the traditional veterinary diets - Hills or Royal Canin.

It therefor might not be the same quality as you are using now. But, you have to regard it as a test you can do for about 8 weeks to see if there is any improvement.

Antibiotics for a longer period is a possible treatment too but I like to exclude all the other possibilities first before I am using this solution (being very antibiotic restrictive here in Sweden)

I hope you have got some ideas to discuss with you vet.

All the best

Per Schonbeck