Abstract: Background - Diarrhea is a common clinical presentation, representing approximately 5% of all cases presenting to first opinion veterinary clinics. No clear consensus exists to guide clinicians in either diagnostic or therapeutic strategies, resulting in an array of recommendations regarding how acute diarrhea is managed.Hypothesis/Objectives - To determine current management practices for acute diarrhea in dogs and determine differences in management strategies between disciplines, caseloads, and geographic location.Animals - None.Methods - Prospective anonymous online questionnaire of United States veterinarians. Respondents were asked about their diagnostic and treatment strategies for acute diarrhea (large and small bowel).Descriptive statistics and conditional logistic regression were used to analyze collected data.Results - There were 386 responses. All geographic regions were represented. The highest percentage of respondents was from the northeast (133/386, 34.4%). Localization of diarrhea did not affect diagnostic or therapeutic recommendations for 39.9% (154/386) of respondents. The most frequently utilized diagnostic tools were fecal floatation and/or sedimentation (341/385, 88.3%), followed by complete blood count and/or chemistry (325/384, 84.6%). The most common therapeutic intervention was dietary management (317/374, 84.8%). Seventy percent (263/375, 70.1%) of respondents prescribed antibiotics. Metronidazole was the most common antibiotic prescribed (227/261, 86.9%). Sixty-five percent (169/261, 64/8%) of respondents reported resolution of diarrhea within 7 days in > 75% of cases.Conclusion and Clinical Importance - Regardless of strategy, complete resolution of acute diarrhea was reported in the majority of cases, consistent with previous studies. Currently, antibiotics are commonly used in the treatment of acute diarrhea
