Throwing up

[Silverwind]

For the last week or so, I have noticed my senior dog, Echo, throwing up. She throws up almost every time she eats her kibble. She is not throwing up treats or water, and aside from being old and tired and sore (she is 12 and arthritic and it is getting colder out) She seems in good spirits. Is it because she isn't chewing it as well? Should I switch her to something else?

[Mikeincalgary]

Maybe she is eating too fast? Or maybe try hand feeding. Our old boy bad arthritis and kidneys on the way out, has been switched to renal wet and dry. We are trying him on 4cyte for the arthritis ans so far after 3 weeks there seems to be a slight improvement.

[Winston]

Have you tried putting a little warm water or chicken broth in to soften it up a bit? maybe that's all she needs if she is a senior doggie?

[Barkingdog]

My last dog started vomiting right as he ate and it turned he had cancer.

[Silverwind]

I usually just pour the food in the bowls and let the dogs eat when they want. But I am willing to change that for Echo's well being. I will try feeding them in the morning and at night rather then keeping their food dishes full. I'll put some broth in Echo's and see if that helps her keep it down.

Barkingdog, you have answered many, many of my questions and I thank you and value your input. Echo has a history of nasal tumor, slow growing, non cancerous. She had most of it removed when she was 10, but they couldn't get it all without removing a portion of her upper jaw. So I chose to keep her whole and keep the rest of the tumor. If they removed her jaw, the recovery would have been much harder, and she would have had to relearn eating and drinking etc. So I know she has a history of tumors, and cancer is my biggest fear for her.

[Barkingdog]

I can understand how you feel about this. I was not able to remove my dog cancer as it was too advance. You could try feeding your dog small meals through out the day and see if that help.

[growler~GateKeeper]

Is the food digested or are whole kibbles coming out in the vomit?

Originally Posted by Silverwind

I will try feeding them in the morning and at night rather then keeping their food dishes full. I'll put some broth in Echo's and see if that helps her keep it down.

Don't leave the broth/water soaked dry food out for more than 20mins, it could lead to mold/bacterial growth in the food.

[Marty11]

At this age I would try home cooking, simple protein bit of rice or sweet potato and some vegies.

[Silverwind]

Barkingdog, I'm very sorry about your dog I will do small meals throughout the day with her

Growler-Some are digested but most are still hard kibbles. Don't worry, as I have children and another dog, the wet food would be put away as soon as Echo is finished eating. I'm sure either the other dog would eat it or my toddler would enjoy mashing around in it if it were left out lol!

Marty, I think I like the idea of home cooking much better then giving her more kibble.

[hazelrunpack]

is she on any meds for the arthritis? some of the nsaids can be hard on the stomach and cause vomiting...

[Silverwind]

She takes metacam off and on, when needed but she has been off it for the past month, so that can't be the cause. She is just starting to get sore again and we were going to get her more today

[lindapalm]

Is it possible she has one or more bad teeth and is not chewing up the food, but swallowing it whole, which makes it irritate her stomach?

[Silverwind]

She did have a medical exam a couple months ago and her teeth were fine, but I will check inside her mouth tomorrow. Maybe she has a sore inside or something.

[Longblades]

Is it a new bag of food? Did you check for recalls? Check for a change of ingredients used? It bugs the heck out of a lot of us that manufacturers sometimes change an ingredient and they don't change the labelling. Or the ingredient is the same but sourced from a different place. Such a thing can affect a dog with sensitivities and as we all age, dogs and humans, we can develop sensitivities to foods that never bothered us before. It wouldn't hurt to contact the company.

Personally I'd be inclined to Vet. I see you were at the Vet's a couple of months ago but things can change in a short time and when you see a change in your dog it's a clue, something is different.

[Barkingdog]

Yeah some company are getting their dog food ingredients from China as it's cheaper . Nutro is going this now, I buy my dog food from a farmer co op and they stopped selling Nutro pets food for this reason.