Constipation and Obstipation

SIGNS/OBSERVED CHANGES IN THE PET • Straining to defecate with small or no fecal volume • Hard, dry bowel movement (feces) • Infrequent defecation • Small amount of liquid stool with mucus in it—sometimes with blood present, produced after prolonged straining to defecate (known as “tenesmus”) • Occasional vomiting, lack of appetite, and/or depression • Large bowel (colon) filled with hard bowel movement (feces) • Other signs depend on cause • Rectal examination may reveal a mass in the rectum or large intestine (colon); narrowing of the colon (known as a “colonic stricture”); perineal hernia, which develops when the muscles supporting the rectum weaken and separate, allowing the rectum and/or bladder to slide under the skin and causing swelling in the area of the anus; anal sac disease; presence of a foreign body or material; enlarged prostate; or narrowed pelvic canal