Dog throwing up

Question
QUESTION: Hello Jana,

My dog is approx. 10 yrs old and is a mixed breed, lab/sheperd/? mix.  Recently I had her to the vet for urinary problems and it turned out to be "stones" in her bladder or kidney, not sure which.  Anyway, The vet put her on a diet of canned food that is specifically formulated to dissolve the stones, and it worked. Up until that time I had been feeding her nothing but dry food, i.e. Blue Buffalo Adult Formula.  

I tried to mix the dry into the canned food but after eating 2 cases of the canned food, which is what the vet ordered, she doesn't want to go back to eating her dry food now.  Incidently, the stones are gone now and she is able to urinate with no problems at all.  Just this morning she threw up in the floor, and it was yellow.  She has done this off and on in the past as well but it appears to be isolated incidents, not chronic.

I have tried giving her Dog Probiotic tabs, thinking maybe her intestinal flora is out of balance and may be leading to an upset stomach.  She will eat the tablets but sometimes she turns them down.  And earlier today she was out in the yard eating grass, which I've always heard means they have an issue with her tummy.  

So what is your assessment of what's going on?  Her vet has given her a claen bill of health since the stones are gone, and there are no intestinal/digestive tract blockage issues going on.  What is the yellow liquid she is throwing up, bile?   I would like your opinion before spending another $200+ at the vet.  

Thanks,
Gary

ANSWER: Is she getting any kind of treats or a bite here and there of people food? These little bites here and there can cause the liver to throw out more bile (yes it's bile, to answer your question) then might be needed, which is very irritating to the stomach and causes them to vomit. Eating bits and bites of fatty foods does this the most, like a little piece of bacon, ham etc. at breakfast, a bite of cat food etc.

Is she was doing well on the S/D or C/D or which ever stone diet she was on, I really doubt if that food is the culprit.

Usually it's the "surprises" as we call them, that start these episodes. So run down her TOTAL diet, including ALL treats etc. and stop everything except the food she is on.

There is nothing wrong with her eating a soft food diet now except her teeth might get dirty faster and need cleaning more than once a year. Have her teeth looked at at least twice a year for that reason.

Other than the above, I can't suggest anything else that would cause this unless she has a virus. If her vomiting doesn't stop in 24 hours you need to call the vet. Try some boiled and cooled rice in her food. That will help her settle her stomach.

At ten years old, never take vomiting bile as a passing issue. It's just too risky with the chance of her getting pancreatitis, which can become fatal very quickly.

I hope this helps. Please let me know how she does.


---------- FOLLOW-UP ----------

QUESTION: Jana,

Thanks so much for the quick reply!  I got my dog when she was 6 months old and I have never given her "people food".  I am strongly against it becuause of all the chemical preservatives they put in them.  That is why I give her Blue Buffalo because it is supposed to only have natural ingredients.  

Yes, she did well on the canned food from the vet, but not sure which formula it was (S/D or C/D).  The vet told me it was specifically formulated to dissolve stones, and supposedly it affected her pH levels. Other than that canned food I have tried to feed her only dry food to keep her teeth healthy, but once, about 5 yrs ago, I had the vet do a complete cleaning (with sedation).  And since then I have been using "Plaque Attack" occasionally to try to keep her teeth from getting that bad again.   

Since I got her in Feb 2002 the only time she was away from me was if she spent a week here and a week there in a local kennel, and occasionally with a friend while I was out of town on vacation.  So she possibly could have gotten "people" food from them, but never from me.  And in between those times I feed her only the best food I can, and I even give her doggy vitamin supplements along with the probiotics I mentioned before.   As for "treats" that is all I have ever given her.  

I also have a cat that is mainly outside, but I do let her in once in awhile and put dry catfood out for her.  My dog will get into her food sometimes when I'm not looking, but I try to keep a watch on her to make sure she doesn't.  The cat food is dry Meow Mix seafood.  

Her vomiting is not really chronic, and is not the biggest issue however, but her refusal to eat dry food is.  The vomiting only happens every once in a great while, and is slmost always the yellow bile.  But sometimes she will vomit her dry food, and the cat's food if she gets into it.  Do you have any ideas on why she may be doing this?  I'm pretty sure it isn't a virus because she has no other symptoms at all.  Just being finicky with her diet is all I'm seeing right now.  And she is a very timid dog and gets upset easily.  I think her previous owners may have been abusive, but not sure.  She is very sensitive to loud noises, and when I'm watching sports if I get loud and yell at the TV she will get upset thinking I am mad at her.  (lol )   So do you think her sensitivity may at least be part of the problem with her upset stomach?  Just a thought.  I try not to yell or get loud because I know it upsets her.  

I will try the rice idea and see how does.  I do give her Blue Buffalo canned food once in awhile and sometimes will get the kind with rice in it.  I tend to mix it up so that it seems like a treat to her.  But I have dealt with dogs and cats many times before and it seems that once they get accustomed to canned food they don't like to go back to dry food.  I sort of understand why, as the canned food is probably a lot less 'bland'.  

Thanks again for the quick reply.  

Gary

ANSWER: I have seen dogs that were given canned many times not want to go back to eating dry as well. It's not such a big deal for a 10 yr old dog, as long as the food is well balanced and can maintain a SENIOR lifestyle. Since she is over ten, you don't want her on an adult regular food or one that "meets all life stages" according to the bag, because that food by law is formulated for PUPPIES. What that means is that your dog would be eating way too much protein for her age and her kidneys.

What ever food she was on before help contribute to her bladder stones, so you do NOT want her back on that food anyway, dry or not. She would just fine on Hill's senior diet or on something like W/D that can maintain a senior. My dog was on W/D her whole 14 yrs and that was because she was allergic to the beef digest that they spray on the food to make it taste better- in the case of adult formula foods. I put her on it at the age of one because she kept breaking out when I tried her on the Adult formula of Science Diet.
So she lived a long and very healthy life on W/D. She loved the food and never got tired of eating it.

Cat food will cause stomach upsets, especially with all of the dyes etc they put into food like Meow Mix. My other dog had a very sensitive stomach too, and it didn't take much to make her urp up some foamy bile now and then either. I kept her on R/D her whole life, because she was overweight when I got her. I had to give her some tums every now and then because event though she had not eaten one thing different, just smelling cat food or who knows what, would really upset her stomach. So yes, yelling might even cause your dog to get that upset, just like people with nervous stomachs.

I would leave her on the canned food, but move her to a different prescription diet, possibly I/D or the W/D. I/D is for dogs with sensitive stomachs.

Don't give her any Blue Buffalo while she is on these other foods. It's mixing food up like that "once in a while" which is harder on their digestive tract and causes vomiting and bile overload, more than you can imagine. Dogs are just geared to eat the same thing over and over and when you give them a 'surprise' as we call them, that is what can trigger vomiting, gastritis, pancreatitis, intestinal irritation and bleeding, etc.

So stick to the one food, which ever one you settle on for her.


---------- FOLLOW-UP ----------

QUESTION: Hi Jana,

Sorry to be a bother, but I wanted to reply to your message.   Is the W/D, R/D, I/D, and foods such as this only available from the vet?  I don't think I've heard of these before.  Silly me, I never read the label on the canned food her vet gave her for the stones so I have no idea what it was called. And I have never tried Hill's Science Diet on her but if you think it is a good choice I will.  I will make sure she gets it.  

While she was on the canned food for stones the vet suggested mixing it with her dry food.  According to him it would lessen the chance of messing up her pH balance.  So I mixed them together, and she seemed to do well, as in no vomitiing.  

Since she has been refusing to eat the Blue Buffalo dry food I have been giving her Blue Buffalo canned food in various "flavors", containing meats and vegetables.  She seems to love it and licks her bowl very clean every time.  I also have been mixing the Blue Buffalo dry food in with it, and she eats it right along with the wet food.  You said mixing foods is hard on her digestive tract and can cause bile overload.  Does this go for dry and canned foods of the same brand name too?   Just wondering.  

At any rate, I will be sure and get her some Hill's Science Diet Senior right away.  I'm glad to hear your dog was with you for 14 years, which is exactly why I am trying to give my dog the most nutricious foods I can so she can live a long healthy life and be with me as long as possible.  Speaking of which, in your opinion are doggy vitamins a good or a bad thing?  I have wondered about this, as I know when humans take vitamins often it can have a tendency to cause some constipation, so I wonder if it does on dogs too?  I have been taking vitamins and other supplements since I was a teenager and at age 56 most people guess my age in the 30s or early 40s.  So at least for me I think they have worked to some extent.

Thanks for being patient with all my questions and concerns.  I really appreicate it!   

Gary

Answer
Gary, you are not being a bother at all. I appreciate it when a pet owner asks me intelligent questions and is genuinely concerned about the health of their pets. Feeding falls into being pro-active about wellness and I applaud your efforts on behalf of your sweet girl.

What I meant about the mixing of foods was that when you feed a different brand, or flavor,or food,like people food, sometimes the gut will react rather badly and bile is spilled into the gut irritating it and then the dog vomits, or gets gastritis, or even pancreatitis. I wasn't talking about just mixing in a can of now and then of something she is used to. But some dogs will get diarrhea when first eating canned food.

Yes, S/D, C/D and I/D are all prescription diets that are formulated for specific health issues, which is why they are only sold at a veterinary clinic or hospital. All of these foods can be fed for a lifetime with the exception of maybe S/D. They are formulated and more importantly, trial fed on real dogs to ascertain their benefits and life style sustainability. Hills is one of the only food companies left that maintain kennels and perform feeding trials on ALL of their foods, both the Science Diet and Prescription Diet lines.

I wouldn't feed anything else because I have seen the proof over the last 35 years of the amazing changes this food makes in pets.

See for yourself at their website:

http://www.hillspet.com/hillspet/minisite/minisite.hjsp?asst=MiniSite/jdCanine/j

My own pets ALL lived well past their expected expiration date due to this food. My Annie Mouse, who I lost in November of last year, was extremely healthy but had an old leg scar turn into a tumor that spread to her lungs. She was swimming and running until a few weeks before I lost her. Most people would have never known that she was almost 14.

I would get her on some Science Diet longevity diet and get her some canned food to go with it. This food is well tested and proven to maintain a healthy weight as well as provide precision nutrients for your dogs age.
http://www.hillspet.com/products/sd-canine-mature-adult-active-longevity-dry.htm

As for vitamins, the answer is no. Most vitamins will cause an imbalance in minerals and this can lead to bladder stones, kidney stones, joint problems and more in dogs. Most cheap foods add too many vitamins into their food as it is, to make up for the lack of real nutrients. With Hill's foods, their food will meet your dogs needs so well that she will probably cut back on the amount of food she requires to maintain her energy levels. That is for even resting energy. My dog weighed 50 lbs all of her life, which was her one year old weight. She had a shiny coat, ran like the wind,and more importantly, until the last 6 months of her life, she was never ONCE sick. I am not kidding. No vet trips for a sick dog. My other dog was the same way. I got her at 5 yrs old and she was full of heartworms as the previous owners never took care of her. She lived to be 16, and for her size that was a long time. She was NEVER sick once after I adopted her. She basically died of old age.

So no vitamins if they are on Hills and especially if they are not as the food will be full of them. If it is not, then yes because it's crummy food. But why pay for two things when you can have amazing health for your dog and it's all in one bag?

I hope that I answered all of your questions to your satisfaction Gary. Please feel free to let me know if I have not. :-)