Dogs and stomach flu/gastroenteritis. How long does this last?

[Mayberry Machiavelli]

We have lovely Skye Terriers. We are taking care of one, a puppy, for a friend, he is pictured below.


A day or two after we picked him up from the friend, he was puking and not eating for a couple of days. The puppy now seems to be getting better, at least he is eating some and seems to be getting a bit of his spunkiness back, but our other 2 dogs (first 2 pics below) are now puking and not eating a couple of days after the first puppy got sick. The puppy seems on the mend but the older dogs seem sicker than he got, more lethargic and listless. They've been to the vet once, and the older ones will likely have to go again in a day or so if they don't improve.

I'm assuming it's some kind of viral intestinal flu such as goes through human families sometimes, probably picked up by the puppy from his owner's house and transmitted to our dogs. A less likely possibility might be a toxin ingested in the yard.

Anyone gone through this? How long does a typical bout last?

[Leilani]

1. Your dogs are Beautiful!!!

Just beautiful!!!

It's hard to tell how long it will last, cause it depends on what caused it. Also, dogs are like people...some get sicker than others.

I've had dogs with stomach problems that lasted a day or 2, all the way up to a dog that got seriously ill, but it was a genetic problem.

But it sounds like a bug, caught from the dog you're taking care of. It should probably run the same course in your dogs. If they seem to be getting worse, see the vet.

Also, are they on a special diet? I've always used boiled rice till they get better. After they can hold the rice, add a little boiled beef & work back to regular diet gradually.

[Mayberry Machiavelli]

2. Yeah, we are doing boiled rice and other bland stuff (canned pumpkin).

If they eat it at all it mostly winds up on the floor of our shower, heh. Puppy is starting to eat meat again, the other 2 are not eating much of anything, even turning their nose away at their fave treats.

Puppy's owner breeds dogs and his house is full of puppies right now so I'm guessing it's a germ hotbed like a human day care or kindergarten.

[Leilani]

3. Well, good luck!

Cleaning up puppy poop ain't much fun.

But your dogs are really beautiful. What sort of temperments do Skyes have? Are they very active? Do they need lots of exercise?

I'm without a dog right now, & I'm having withdrawl.

[Mayberry Machiavelli]

4. They are great dogs. Fiercely loyal to their owners, but often a bit

standoffish with strangers and new people (like a lot of terrier breeds), although our older male (Halloween costume) is pretty friendly with everyone.

They are intelligent. Very frisky as pups but vary a lot as they get older. Our older female (pictured as a puppy on the table) is not into activity and doesn't need much exercise now, and neither does the older male. But our younger female (out being shown now) is still pretty frisky and aggressive though no longer a pup.

They are very intelligent and great companions. They shed a lot.

It's not a common breed in the U.S. I'm not sure if there are much more than a few hundred. The show thing is my wife's gig, I couldn't care if the dogs ever won squat and I'm quite sure they don't care either. They are great companions though!

I think there's at least a few in Honolulu, will ask my wife about this. That's where we spent our honeymoon, we loved it! We had the best sushi ever at Sasabune, sigh...

[Leilani]

5. Thanks for the info!

I'm a dog nut...when I lived in N.Y. I went to Westminster every year.

So I know Skyes are not common...but I have seen them, & they are very striking.

I've had a Boxer, Old English, & a Basset...but never had a terrier.

[s-cubed]

6. Cute dogs. Glad they are getting better. I lost a wonderful dog

to what I thought was just a stomach virus. It was a form of leptospirosis which is not in the vaccine. If your dogs have been in creeks or other such places, be careful. By the time I took hm in, he had terminal kidney failure.

Since your pup got betterm, I'm not suggesting they have this, it's only a warning of something I was ignormant of.

[Nikia]

7. Our dog has been sick a couple times

For a few days. We've taken him to the vet because the fist day was rather scary: vomitting, defecating more, and him hiding from us. Each time, the vet declared it to be some kind of virus or such. He said to take away his water until he stopped vomitting for several hours and his food for longer and then bland soft food for a couple of days. He said that most human OTC digestive drugs were safe for dogs too in children's doses and could help.