My dog has vomited twice in the last two days, but does not seem sick. What should I do?

Question

My sweet Border Collie/Jack Russell mix has vomited twice in the past two days. The amount has been small and mostly liquid with just a small amount of food. His behavior has not changed though, he acts just as active as he usually is and does not seem to be in any pain. We have taken his temperature and it is normal, but we are still very concerned. At what point do we rush him to the vet? Any thoughts on what might be causing him to vomit whould be appreciated. We have not changed his diet recently or made any changes to our habits or routines that might be causing him to be vomit, so we're stumped.

I just called my vet's emergency line and they were of no help. I just can't think of anything that would be causing him to vomit. I should also add that the vomit is only a very small amount, only about 1/4 cup. He is acting completely normal outside of the vomiting which happened yesterday evening and this. We are considering putting his crate in our room for the night so that we can hear him if he is trying to let us know that he is in pain and will take him to our regular vet first thing in the morning. I just hope that it is the right choice.

Answer 1

#1- probably nothing to worry about. if it's mainly clear, it could just be that he ate or drank too fast. my puppy does that too.

#2- watch him closely. if the vomit is white, and he seems to whine a lot or be in pain, you need to atke him into the vet ASAP. my puppy threw up 4 times in 1 hr, and whined in pain. it turned out to be pancreaitis, and neede to be treated ASAP.

i don't think you have anything to worry about, just watch him, and make sure his condidtion doesn't change. feed him a little at a time, split his food up into smaller meals, and see if that helps. don't worry, just keep an eye on him. i hope he feels better.

ps.- no bones or rawhides! limit his treats.

Answer 2

Did they send out a fecal to a lab to test for giardia? We've seen a lot of giardia lately in the clinics. If she's 100% negative for parasites, I would look into food allergies. I have a cat that showed similar symptoms, and after treating her several times for GI upset, I met a vet that recommended switching her to a raw food medallion. I was always against raw food diets, but I gave it a try and my kitty hasn't had a problem since. Your vet can find good recommendations on VIN. You should ask them to do some research for you or find a vet that will. That being said, it sounds like your vet took the right course of action up to this point. Next, you need to see if there's an underlying cause to all this vomiting and diarrhea. Good luck!

Answer 3

It could be a variety of issues. If he isn't being feed in a certain amount of time dogs can get upset stomachs and puke bile before and even after they eat. If he is getting fed on a regular schedule or has access to food at all time it could be a variety of other reasons. He might have gotten into something, might have chewed on a plant, grass or come into contact with something that has upset his stomach. Also, if there is stress in the household or something new that can stress him can cause this issue. I would just watch his behavior, weight and if he can keep most of his food down, if it continues more then a week then take him to a vet. Otherwise, he should be fine. Dogs get acid reflux just like humans do.

Answer 4

Read about addison disease.
Encyclopedia of Canine Veterinary Medical Information

Addison's disease (Hypoadrenocorticism)

Addison's disease is also known as hypoadrenocorticism. It is an insufficient production of adrenal hormones by the adrenal gland. Since these hormones are essential for life, this is an extremely serious disease and it must be treated as such.

Adrenal insufficiency can be primary or secondary. Primary adrenocorticism affects salt/potassium balance in the body and glucorticoid as well. Secondary adrenocorticism usually only affects the glucocorticoids. It is not known why primary adrenocorticism occurs but it may be an immune mediated process. Secondary adrenocorticism probably occurs most often when prednisone or other cortisone being administered for medical reasons are suddenly withdrawn. It can occur as a result of pituitary cancer or some other process that interferes with production of hormones that stimulate the adrenal glands.

Most dogs with Addison's disease initially have gastrointestinal disturbances like vomiting. Lethargy it also a common early sign. Poor appetite can occur as well. These are pretty vague signs and it is extremely easy to miss this disease. More severe signs occur when a dog with hypoadrenocorticism is stressed or when potassium levels get high enough to interfere with heart function. Dogs with this problem will sometimes suffer severe shock symptoms when stressed, which can lead to a rapid death. When potassium levels get high heart arrythmias occur or even heart stoppage which also is fatal. In some cases, especially secondary Addison's disease, there are no detectable electrolyte changes.

This disease can be picked up by changes in the ratio between sodium or potassium by accident at times. When this happens it is still extremely important to treat for it. It is confirmed by an ACTH response test -- administration of this hormone should stimulate production of adrenal hormones. If this does not occur then hypoadrenocorticism is present. In cases in which the electrolyte levels are normal this is the only test for the problem and it will be missed unless it is looked for specifically. At times this disease can be hard to differentiate from renal failure because the symptoms and even the bloodwork can be similar ---- so the ACTH response test may be necessary to differentiate them.

Treatment for this disease is usually done by oral administration of fludrocortisone acetate (Flurinaf), salting the food, and administration of corticosteroids like prednisone. In a crisis situation this disorder must be treated more aggressively with intravenous fluids, IV glucocorticoids and correction of acid/base balances.

You have to pay close attention to a dog with this problem. Don't ignore any changes in appetite, GI disturbances or anything else that makes you think your dog is ill. If you work with your vet and are careful about following his or her directions this disease has a good prognosis when it is discovered before a crisis occurs.

My 11 year old Westie was diagnosed with this 3 years ago. He is doing well with daily and monthly treatments. We thought he has an intestinal problem and then after cancer surgery it was discovered he had addisons. It is a hidden disease and can go undiagnosed.

Answer 5

Don't act like it's an emergency so just call the vet and ask what you should do. That is what I would do. If it was a female dog I might say she's pregnant but thats not possible.

Answer 6

You may not need to RUSH him to the vet..........but you may want to take,him.
He may have some kind of intestinal blockage which will require surgery.
Or.........he may just have a bug.
It's hard to tell........could he have gotten into something in the yard??
When I worked for a vet we had a bull terrier come in for constipation and after a full workup and barium X-ray, did exploratory surgery and found that the dog had eaten the owner's leather vest. (could have taken it to the dry cleaner, it wasn't even mouthed)
I'm assuming he is up on his vaccines?
An office visit, if nothing else is wrong, will run you less than $30, at least in my area, and may help to ease your mind.

Answer 7

If you're concerned and it sounds like you are, then I would suggest that you give your vet a call. They don't mind phone calls and I think you'll be more reassured by your vets response than by anything anyone writes on this answer board...not to put down our answers...but it does sound as if you are worried and the one person that can lessen your fears is your vet...:)

Answer 8

when my puppy vomits i go to petco or another animal store and buy the grass the comes in a pot. it's good for there intestines, and helps him with tummy problems, this is good for mine, you may want to take him/her to the vets.

what does his feces look like, maybe he's getting too much water.