You should seek the advice of your veterinarian if your pet is ill as only he or she can correctly advise on the diagnosis and recommend the treatment that is most appropriate for your pet.

Various infectious agents can cause acute diarrhoea

Acute infectious enteritis can be caused by :

• Bacteria
  • Campylobacter spp
  • Clostridium perfringens
  • E.coli
  • Entercoccus durans
  • Salmonella spp
  • Yersinia spp
• Viruses
  • Parvovirus
• Protozoa
  • Coccidia
  • Cryptosporidia
  • Giardia

To differentiate between these possible causes a fresh faecal sample should be examined by :

• Direct and flotation enriched microscopic examination
• Culture and sensitivity
• Testing for various enterotoxins
• Virus isolation 
  • Electronmicroscopy
  • Immunofluorescence
  • Immunocytochemistry
  • PCR

The collection and submission of samples needs to be done properly, and interpretation requires the skills of a laboratory experienced at examining samples for infectious causes of enteritis to eliminate non-pathogenic isolates.

However, some of these procedures are difficult and expensive, and most cases of acute enteritis are self-limiting so symptomatic treatment is usually sufficient :

• Fluid therapy
• Electrolyte replacement
• Antidiarrhoeal preparations
• Intestinal protectants
• Antibiotics
• Anti-inflammatory drugs 

Updated January 2016