“His poop has been a bit off” is hard for a vet to work with. “Score 4 since Tuesday, one with mucus” is not. Vets describe stool with a 1–7 faecal score (the chart most practices use is Purina’s), and a household can learn it in a minute. Below is each score in plain words, the signs that mean you should call today, and how to keep a record worth bringing along. This is general information, not a diagnosis.
The seven scores
Score what you see and pick the closest description. When there are several in a day, the softest one is the one that matters.
1 · Hard: very hard and dry, separate pellets, hard to pass
2 · Ideal: firm but not hard, segmented, picks up cleanly
3 · Normal: log-shaped, smooth and moist, leaves a little residue
4 · Soft: very moist, a soggy log that loses its shape when picked up
5 · Soft: soft piles that still have some shape
6 · Diarrhoea: mushy with no real shape, piles or spots
7 · Diarrhoea: watery with no texture, flat puddles
Why 2 is ideal, not 4
There is a well-known human stool chart too (the Bristol scale), on which 4 is the healthy middle. On the dog and cat chart, 4 already counts as soft, and studies treat 4 and above as diarrhoea. Mixing the two up turns “fine” into “soggy” and back, so make sure the whole household uses the same one.
Warning signs: call your vet today
Some things matter more than the score. Note them alongside it.
blood in the stool together with a soft or shapeless one (score 5–7)
black, tarry stool, which can mean bleeding higher up in the gut
a puppy with watery or shapeless stool: puppies dehydrate much faster than adults
two or more stools at 6–7 within a day in an adult, together with vomiting, tiredness or no appetite
When to keep watching, and when to ring
For an adult dog with diarrhoea but no warning signs: keep fresh water out and log every stool. Call your vet if it lasts beyond 48 hours, or sooner with vomiting, tiredness, no appetite or blood.
No stool at all is worth noticing too. If a dog normally goes every day and nothing comes for about three days (two for a cat), call your vet, especially with straining or no appetite. A cat, especially a male, straining in the litter box with little or nothing coming out needs a vet straight away: it can be a blocked bladder rather than constipation.
A record your vet can actually use
The useful record is short: the date, the score, and anything unusual (blood, black, mucus, worms, straining). Log it when you pick it up, not from memory at the end of the day, and have everyone in the household use the same chart.
DidWeFeed shows the seven scores as pictures when you log a poop, with optional warning chips. The pet file turns them into a four-week calendar, marks food changes and dewormers on it, and says “call your vet today” when a warning sign comes up. The vet PDF includes the last 14 days as a stool diary.
Common questions
What does healthy dog poop look like?+
A score of 2 on the vets’ chart: firm but not hard, segmented, and it picks up cleanly. A 3 (a smooth, moist log that leaves a little residue) is still normal.
Is a score of 4 bad?+
It counts as soft on the dog and cat chart. One soft day, for example during a food switch, is common; keep logging and call your vet if it turns into diarrhoea lasting beyond 48 hours or comes with warning signs.
When is dog diarrhoea an emergency?+
Call today with blood in a soft stool, black tarry stool, or a puppy with watery stool. For adults, call if it lasts beyond 48 hours or sooner with vomiting, tiredness or no appetite.