Dog Vomitting & Lethargic

Question
Hi Patti,
Yesterday morning my dog woke up and vomitted. It seemed it was just some of last night's food along with some water she had just drank a couple of minutes earlier.  At lunch again she threw up again after being given a few bites of food and again before she threw up she went over and had some water (again the vomit was simply water and the few bites).  We stopped giving her food at that time and a couple of hours later again she threw up, this time it was just water.  She didn't start off lethargic yesterday but by the end of the day was lethargic. She still greeted me at the door and picked up the slipper and wagged her tail as she normally does but just not with the same enthusiasm at all.  She does not at all seem interested in food and seems to be breathing a little heavier (sort of like we do when we have a stomach ache).  Apart from this she's been relatively healthy and lately there have been no problems.
We were trying to wait it out 24 hours to see how she's doing.  In about 6 hours we will have hit that mark.  
do you think it's a problem that it's just the food that kept coming up?
I should also mention she is an 11 year old cocker spaniel.
Thanks for your help,
erica

Answer
Hi Erica,

I'm sorry to hear that your dog is feeling poorly. Hopefully, the vomiting has stopped.

It's nearly impossible to say why your dog was/is vomiting. Vomit that is high in mucus can mean that the stomach or high intestine is inflamed. Undigested food can indicate food poisoning, anxiety, or simply over eating. Bile (yellow frothy vomit)is often present when vomiting is caused by inflammatory bowel disease, or the stomach is empty. Flecks of bright blood means the stomach is lacerated. If the blood is brown the problem is farther down the intestine. Strong digestive odors suggests intestinal obstruction. Bits of aluminum foil, Christmas tree tinsel, Big Mac wrappers, etc. shows the dog something it shouldn't have! Another important clue is the relationship of vomiting to the dog's last meal. Changing a dog's diet from one brand to another too quickly often causes a few days of vomiting too.

The common home treatment for a dog that's been vomiting, is to withhold food (but not water) for 12-24 hours.

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.

At the end of twelve hours, you can offer a very small amount of soft, bland food such as cooked rice with skinless chicken breast, or jarred turkey or chicken baby food. Skinless boiled white potatoes OR cooked pasta can be used as a substitute for the cooked rice.
Mix in a 9-to-1 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.

Pepto-Bismol can be given. Give one teaspoon per 20 pounds of weight every four to six hours. Always ask your vet for dose advice.

It's time to see your veterinarian if your dog vomits more than a few times over a 48 hour period, if the vomit is ejected extremely forcefully, if there is blood in the vomit or obvious abdominal pain, or if your dog seems particularly lethargic, or depressed or weak, has a fever, or retches unproductively.

I hope I've been a  help.
Best of luck,

Patti