A dog’s digestive system is very similar to humans. Like us, throwing food infrequently isn’t a problem to be worried about. It happens. But if your pooch is throwing up the undigested food regularly, it must ring some bell in your ears.
Your dog doesn’t need to have any problem, but you should notice the eating habits and look for the changes in the diet before taking it too seriously.
Before you panic further, let us tell you that you shouldn’t confuse vomiting with regurgitation. Regurgitation is a lot more common than vomiting and can be the result of the following reasons:
- Fast eating
- Stricture or inflammation of the esophagus
- Excitement
- Tumor
- Narrowing of the esophagus
In regurgitation, the food or natural pet treats never reach the stomach for digestion. It is in the undigested raw form, and you can even identify it by just looking at it because the stomach juices and bile wouldn’t have changed its outlook.
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Your dog would regurgitate passively, meaning that there will be no signs of muscle contraction or tensing of the body. They’ll lower their head and cough out the food. In some cases, the dogs can even eat the same food again. So, this isn’t much problematic.
However, vomiting is a considerably active act where body muscles will get tensed, as you’ll notice apprehension in the doggie’s behavior before she will gag and vomit the undigested food.
The mixture of green and yellow liquid could indicate that the food has reached the stomach and was up for digesting, but the muscles have pushed it back to the mouth.
Vomiting can probably be the result of the following reasons:
- Fast eating
- Changes in diet
- Inedible food
- Blockage in the digestive tract
- Food allergy
- Indulgence in the physical activity soon after eating
- Kidney or liver problems
- Gastric Hypomotility
- Stress (yeah, in dogs too)
As discussed earlier, occasional throw-ups are a normal part of a canine’s life, but if they are frequent, then you must consult your vet. However, if your dog experiences the following, then you must consult the doctor immediately:
- Presence of blood in vomit
- Frequent vomiting
- Manifestation of other problems like seizures
- Changes in the behavior
How to treat this problem?
If you sense a serious problem with your pooch, you should rush to your vet immediately. But if you are looking for the general treatment of throwing up the issue, you can try the following. These activities might identify the actual cause and ultimately the solution to your dog’s vomiting issue.
Withhold food:
When your dog has vomited, it indicates that there is some issue with the digestive system. Even if it is not the major one, you should give the gut time to repair itself. So, withholding food for a few hours could be an option.
But be very careful about it, and it would be better to get advice from a professional vet before you exercise this option.
Change the diet:
The diet could be one of the major reasons for the issues in the gut, as not every commercial product is suitable for every dog. Thus, try changing the brand of dog food and check if it makes a difference.
Introduce your pooch to a bland diet:
This low-fat diet can help your canine’s digestive system gain strength while working lower than normal. However, introducing a bland diet should be a short-term activity, as the diet isn’t balanced. So it can deprive your dog of some major nutrients.
Use Puzzle feeder:
If the issues with your dog’s digestive system are just because of fast eating, then you can introduce the puzzle feeder to them to help them lower their pace. Once a routine is set, you can remove it.
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Include probiotics in your dog’s diet:
The inclusion of probiotics in your dog’s diet can improve the immune system, thus helping with the vomiting issue.
Summing Up:
We understand that your pooch’s health is crucial. But you don’t have to panic over general throwing up or vomiting. If you see signs like frequent vomiting coupled with physical or behavioral change or blood in the vomit, then you must take the necessary precaution and take your pet to the vet.