Help! My dog is puking his guts out, why?

[Timefortruth]

He is healthy 4 year old mutt, and spends about half of his time outside. All of his shots and pills are up to date. What’s the problem? It is very disgusting since he came inside to throw up, three times. His puke is light in color, not the same color as his food, he is also very thirsty.

There don’t seem to be any good links on the topic.

[Kolesar]

Our dog was developing kidney disease when she started vomiting

It was a result of nausea that she had been experiencing. 8 months later and we have her on Phoslo medication and she is doing ok for a 12 year old (just had a birthday).

[Booberdawg]

1. Very thirsty??

What kind of pills is he taking? Mine had a delayed reaction to allergy pills I was giving him earlier this year. Was almost 2 weeks after I started giving them to him. Puking and excessive thirst.

[Timefortruth]

8. Just heartworm.

He had his last one three weeks ago.

[Booberdawg]

13. He might have gotten into something poisonous outside

I'd call your regular vet, and see what he says. If necessary go to an emergency vet clinic.

[Military Brat]

2. Is he eating a lot of grass?

Dogs will eat grass to clear their stomachs. The vomit will usually be light green. He's thirsty because vomiting causes dehydration. Keep an eye on him. I'm going to a possible web site and will post you the link in a minute.

Comfort him. He can't help it.

Edit: Web site no longer available. You're right, lots of links and nothing specific. Sorry I couldn't get you any better info.

Call a vet in a larger city, one that will be open on Saturday in the evening. Most vets are extremely helpful. Good luck.

[Timefortruth]

34. There was no grass in the puke.

But who knows, maybe.

[cally]

3. Call a vet

He might have ate snail bait or some other pesticide. Maybe he found some chocolate.

edit: Spelling

[Booberdawg]

4. Well, first - I'd call your regular vet. There are places

open on the weekend

[Timefortruth]

10. We live a long way from a weekend vet.

It really isn't a possibility.

[Booberdawg]

14. Well then - maybe the regular vet would take a call then

just throwing out some options here. Good luck.

[Timefortruth]

19. OK

I have never tried but I guess it's worth a shot.

[DS1]

5. Get to a vet

and hope he wasn't poisoned. These things happen, I'd get it checked out quick.

[La_Serpiente]

6. My dog also pukes sometimes

Is your dog very attatched to you? Does he have anxiety attacks sometimes? If you leave him alone sometimes, does he get scared? Our family dog is extremely attatched to my mom and he has anxiety attacks if she is gone for awhile. He doesn't take prozac, but there is prozac for dogs.

Have you washed out his water bowl? Do you wash it out and clean it? Is his dog food spoiled? Sorry, I am just raising questions here.

[Timefortruth]

11. I cleaned the bowl this am.

I rinsed it well so I doubt that's the problem.

[Robb]

7. Sounds like he had a salad, but

...probably wouldn't be a terrible idea to hit the vet if they're open Sunday.

Dogs "graze" from time to time, and it will make them throw up. No one's sure why they graze; the more anthropomorphic folks say they know they "needed" to barf.

It's also (as I mentioned in another thread) anti-freeze season, in addition to salts and all manner of other, less lethal, interesting things for a wanderin' dog to ingest.

He'll naturally be thirsty after a good barf; look for grass-like stuff in the puke. If you don't see any, it could still be something more serious, and again see if the vet is open Sundays.

[Timefortruth]

15. He isn't near antifreeze, so that's not a possibility (thankfully).

No weekend vets at the end of the earth.

We humans face huge problems getting medical care for ourselves on weekends.

[Robb]

25. Do you feed twice a day?

I'd go with the time-honored doggy barf project.

Feed him dinner. If he barfs it up, no breakfast.

If he continues to barf on an empty stomach (I wouldn't kill the water until day two), you've really got to get to a place than can run samples.

[HuckleB]

26. They graze for the same reason we do...

ruffage. In the wild, they learn what to graze on and what not to graze on. They're around older dogs who teach them such things. Pets don't get to learn such lessons, unfortunately, and they often eat vegetation that upsets their stomachs or is outright poisonous.

[Robb]

31. Interesting,

except that in the "wild" (I assume you mean like, wolves) the only grazing is on berries. :)

[HuckleB]

36. Not just berries.

They eat grasses and greens as well...

[Madrone]

9. Has he had access to antifreeze?

Or COULD he have? If so - Vet! YESTERDAY!

If not - he likely got into something that doesn't agree with him. Had something like this with my dog a few months back. Mine DID have access to antifreeze (I wasn't aware of it at the time, saw it, removed him from the area, never SAW him take a drink or anything like it, but he was near where it was) - and started puking over and over again approx 24-48 hours later.

I got mine to the vet right away - where they blew off the antifreeze thing and said to remove all food and water from him for 24 hours. Sure enough, he perked up after that and the puking stopped.

Basically, they say that if you continue to let them eat and drink their system can't get a rest and recouperate from whatever is ailing them, so you must take them off the food and water or it won't get better.

I was very reluctant to take food and drink away from my poor, sick, sad and lethargic puppy even for a few hours - but it's what did the trick!

[Timefortruth]

17. No, that is impossible.

He can go in the back yard or the house. We have a radio fence and he is well trained to stay within its limits.

[Madrone]

18. Okay - no more food and water!

Take it away for the night.

[Timefortruth]

22. Won't he dehydrate?

I'm taking it away now, and letting him back in the house. I put him out because the mess was incredible. It sounds like from all of you that this might be something serious so I'll watch him more carefully.

Don't know what I'll do if he gets worse.

[Madrone]

28. I was worried about that too - but the vet

was unconcerned. I guess a little time without water won't kill him.

And when you think about it - if he continues barfing it up he's not getting any water anyway, while continuing the barfing cycle for even longer.

I wouldn't take him off water for 24 hours probably - but overnight wouldn't hurt. If you see him start to do better, give him a little and see how he does.

Introduce food back to him slowly - if he holds water down, try a little food. Here's a good clip about that:

Do not feed your dog for twelve to twenty-four hours following vomiting. At the end of twelve hours , you can offer a very small amount of soft, bland food such as cooked rice and skinless chicken breast, pasta, or potatoes mixed with low-fat cottage cheese (9-to1 ratio). If your dog keeps this small meal down for about four hours, another small meal can be offered, then another about four hours later. If no further vomiting occurs, the next day's meals can be normal-sized portion of bland food and the following day you can return your dog to a regular diet. Water should be offered only in small amounts but frequently in order to combat the tendency to dehydrate that accompanies vomiting. Large amount of food or water distend the already irritated stomach and usually cause vomiting to recur. An easy way to have water available in small portions is to place ice cubes in the water bowl and allow the dog to drink the liquid that accumulates as the cubes melt.

Withholding food for 24 hours from very small dogs or puppies may lead to hypoglycemia (low blood sugar) and is dangerous. In this instance, withhold food for several hours and administer small amounts of honey, Karo syrup, or sugar water frequently during the period of food withdrawal.


According to this info from *somewhere* on the net it says the opposite of my vet and suggests you give them a little water - but portion it out and don't let them drink their fill. This sounds more agreeable to me :) I didn't keep my pup off it for the full 24 either (against vet orders) - but he perked up before then and seemed to feel better.

You know your animal - so based on what you see, use your judgement.

My opinion would be very limited water - no food til he stops puking.

[BigBadDaddy-O]

12. Is a picture pf Lora Bush near it?

Well we all thought it right?

[Myra]

16. :)

Good one

[Timefortruth]

24. I turn the screen if it is something horrible.

The SPCA might come for both of us.

[Padraig18]

20. Anti-freeze, maybe?

Get him to a vet.

[Hogarth]

21. My basset hound did that recently ...

... but she got over it. Maybe it's just a canine flu. She's twelve years old, and the sickness lasted for about three days.

I wish you the best, and hope it just runs its course in due time.

[HuckleB]

23. Where do you live?

Do you have any unknown berry plants growing in your yard? Does your dog eat other forms of vegetation? Is there any sitting water in the yard? It could be a number of things.

[Timefortruth]

29. Oklahoma

No berry plants anywhere in the yard. I have never seen him eat anything that did not contain meat, he hates vegetables. No standing water in the yard, there are occasional mushrooms but he won't even knock them down, in fact if he is offered human food that contains mushrooms he just won't eat it.

He is a terrier mix and loves to run and hunt prey. We don't understand hunting, but it is clear that that is what he was bred to do. He can catch birds, but seems very confused about death. He will throw them up in the air over and over as if he wants them to fly again. He never eats his prey. I yell at him when he kills the birds so he doesn't put them on the porch anymore, but his other accomplishments he still shows off. Squirrels, moles, mice and God knows what else.

He must have caught something,

[HuckleB]

32. Sounds like it...

or perhaps found or re-found something that had been dead for a while -- our lab mutt is the same way with birds (plays with them and appears depressed when they die) and sometimes one sits out in the yard for a while before we find it -- nasty!... Some liquid charcoal or MOM wouldn't hurt him, if you've got some. But I'd try to get a local vet on the phone for advice. Good luck. I hope everything turns out all right.

[nuxvomica]

27. Another possibility is pancreatitis

The condition can occur if the dog gets too many carbs. Not worrisome if you restrict his diet. Does he like pizza crust and bagels?

[Timefortruth]

33. No he is on dog food only,

he was getting fat so we couldn't give him leftovers anymore.

[TNDemo]

30. Our dog did this with liver disease.

It was very advanced (she was old) by the time she started throwing up this light colored stuff and she died shortly thereafter. Hopefully there is nothing this serious and odds are it is a passing thing but I would definitely call the vet and get advice. Other possibilities are bowel obstruction and pancreatitis, which I think have been mentioned.

[FlaGranny]

35. In addition to all the other suggestions,

watch him for diarrhea. If he has gotten into something that made him sick, diarrhea may follow.

My last dog got really sick once. I woke up in the morning to find not a place to step anywhere on the bedroom floor, vomit and diarrhea everywhere. She spent a couple of days at the hospital on IVs. I was told it could have been a viral infection. She did recover and was fine afterward.

Watch for dehydration. Take a pinch of skin on his back and pull up and then let go. If he is dehydrated, the skin will hold a "peak" for a second or two. If he gets dehydrated and is still vomiting, you will need to get him to the hospital for an IV to save his life. But, hopefully, this won't happen and he'll be fine.

Good luck.

Edit: My present 7-year-old girl regularly throws up either once or twice every week or two. She has done it since she was a puppy and it happens more often if she gets excited. Otherwise, she is completely healthy.

[henslee]

37. If it persists, see a vet, pronto esp. small dog. (did she eat cat shit?)

I bet she ate some rancid cat shit. Just a hunch. Either way, it may cost a few hundred bucks but if you got it, go for it... Don take a chance... she's your best friend! And don't waste time.

1.THings can go from bad to worse quickly. Pets can't communicate.

2. Don't be fooled into thinking that if your dog is eating, she is okay. Not neccessarily true.

3. A trip to the vet is not that bad. They often spot something else wrong with your dog that you didnt even know. Waiting can cost you more in the long run.

This same thing happened to my scotty and he became dehydrated. (DO NOT withold water as someone posted earlier) I learned that scotties have weird viruses that can bring them near death but not kill them.... their kidneys get attacked. And then the virus just goes away by themselves.

[Timefortruth]

38. Tell me more about cat shit.

There was a stray that for some reason picked my front porch to sit on and cry for a couple days. I couldn’t stand it anymore and started to feed it, I’m severely allergic so keeping it was out of the question. It would let my daughter pet it if it was in the mood but could not tolerate being picked up or held. Since it seemed to be feral or mostly feral I took it to the SPCA about a week ago, maybe a rancher will adopt it. It wouldn’t have been possible for us to keep it because I would have no idea how to transport it to the vet or find its stools for testing (but I do feel guilty). As it was I borrowed a carrier and baited it so the cat would go into it, and then the cat went insane in the carrier. The SPCA folks had quite a chore transferring it…..but I digress…

Does no good deed go unpunished?

I have nothing against vets, the dog goes for his check up once a year and when he gets a rash or something. The problem is that they aren't around tonight, I called.

[TNDemo]

39. Does your city have an emergency pet clinic?

Ours has one and on the weekends or late it's pretty much the only resource.

[MissMarple]

40. Have you called the vet, yet?

.

[lumpy]

41. Has he gotten hold of any raw fish?

This can cause severe vomiting & diarrhia.