Ask Dr Claire
My 7 week old pup ate this morning but has just vomited 4-5 times and I’m worried.
Vomiting is really just a symptom and can be the result of many underlying causes.
In this case, we really need to find the cause of the vomiting so that we can treat your puppy’s problem (not just the symptom). This will help us reach the best treatment plan too.
Some of the underlying causes of vomiting might be:
- Infectious disease (bacteria, viruses, parasites)
- Gut problems (inflammatory bowel disease, tumours, obstructions, food intolerance or food allergies)
- Abdominal or metabolic problems (kidney, liver, pancreatitis, spleen, electrolyte abnormalities, diabetes)
- Direct irritation of the stomach
- A reaction to toxins or other drugs
- Dietary indiscretion (aka what many puppy owners knows all too well – they will eat anything and everything!)
If your pup is continuing to vomit, they are at very real risk of dehydration and they really need a hands-on examination from your local vet to treat the symptoms, but also get to the bottom of the problem. They may even recommend a blood test as a great way to assess your pup’s base health.
Your pups’s diet is important to consider in vomiting cases. Sometimes eliminating the problem part of the diet that is causing or caused the vomiting, is all that’s needed. Sometimes they need a short term (1 week) bland home-cooked or commercial food, and then be slowly transitioned to a longer term, balanced one.
If you’d like to chat in person, you can book a live video call or start a chat to discuss in more detail, as soon as possible.
We’re here to help!
Chat soon,
Dr Claire