Mud Butt

S.,
My 2 year old suffered from this very phenomenon, also having many watery poops as well. He had no other symptoms, but I was concerned enough to take him to the doc after 2 1/2 weeks. Of course, there was nothing to be done, and the doc simply thought that he had contracted a virus at some point and was still messed up from that. Anyway, the doctor told me to purchase some OTC probiotics that are in pill form. I think the brand is Culterelle. These probiotics are much like what you'll find in yogurt, only they make it all the way to the intestines rather than getting killed in your stomach (according to the doctor). You just open up the capsule and sprinkle half of it onto your child's food (applesauce, oatmeal, whatever). Then repeat procedure with the other half at a separate meal. Since I've started using it, his poops have become much more formed (I was really excited about an actual turd the other day :) and he has not struggled with any constipation.
Good luck!
Amy K

My daughter is the same way BUT she gets constipated really easily so I just let it be and I do not do anything to firm it up anymore. Before I found out that she gets constipated easily I did try to "firm things up" around the age of 2, and it is horrible because they are trying to push their faces get red and the cry.

I would be really careful to not go over board because it will be painful for the child, diaper changes can be messy that is life, unless it looks like diarrhea I would not try to "fix" it too much. Just add one item daily that the below mom suggested.

Talk to your ped, but all three of my kids went through this right before growth spurts. Ugh. I don't miss those days! :P

My mom suggested the B.R.A.T. diet to me: Bananas, Rice, Apples and Toast. Not sure if it applies to your situation, but every cold/flu we get, and every major growth spurt, this is what we give the kids.

If you suddenly find your little one constipated, give him pear juice instead of apple (waaaay tastier than prune, believe me lol) and things should set back to normal in a day. HTH. :)

One thing to keep in mind with "mud butt" is that when he is potty trained, the clean-up won't be an issue. My son's poop is the same way, and he now goes poop on the potty. Once in awhile, he will go in his diaper in the early morning, before I get him out of his crib, and yes, it is a pain to clean up. I actually use regular toilet paper first, then some wet cloth wipes.

One of my favorite books is called something like "What Life Was Like in the Year 1000", and it talks about what archaeologists have discovered about people's poop from that time period. Due to their diet of lots of raw food and no processed food, it was unformed, like "mud butt".

I had chronic constipation as a child. I had hemorrhoids when I was only 9 years old. Sorry for the TMI, but I'm just trying to say that I would not tinker too much with his diet. My son eats little dairy and lots of high fiber food everyday so we can dodge that bullet. I can handle mud butt, but I'd hate to deal with shelling out for Miralax, and ER visits that involve x-rays and enemas because my child hasn't pooped in 5 days.

Please be careful with this as you don't want it to go the other way to where he is constipated.
Bananas are filled with potasium and can be binding, also dairy products can help as well, cottage chz, yogurt, hard cheese, and of course..milk. Good luck to you. I know potty issues can be hard...I have 4 children and one of mine has issues with constipation. We have to be careful not to give him too much of these things.