Vomiting is a fairly common problem in puppies, in dogs that eat too much or too quickly, and in those that tend to eat things off the ground. Normally, vomiting that is not worrying usually stops between 24 hours and 3 days and, above all, if you know the reason and you know that it has been due to something that will not cause more damage (such as a sudden change in diet or excess of food at one time). However, if you notice that your dog is listless, he does not want to eat and vomits frequently, you may be facing a more serious problem.
If you ask yourself: my dog does not want to eat and vomits, why and what do I do? , keep reading this OneHOWTO article in which we answer these questions, since it is essential to recognize the signs of illness in order to detect it as soon as possible and prevent it from causing serious damage to the health of your faithful canine companion.
You may also be interested in: Why does my dog vomit green?
Index
- Why does my dog not want to eat and vomits – main causes
- Intestinal parasites
- Poisoning
- stomach torsion in dogs
- My dog does not want to eat and vomits: infectious diseases
- gastroenteritis in dogs
- pancreatitis in dogs
- My dog does not want to eat and vomits: foreign bodies
- My dog does not want to eat and vomits: other problems in the internal organs
- My dog does not want to eat and vomits, what do I do?
Why does my dog not want to eat and vomits – main causes
Vomiting is a common symptom in many conditions in dogs, and although it should not be overlooked, in most cases it is usually nothing serious and the vomiting disappears within a few hours or days. You have to worry more in cases where your dog vomits frequently and the vomiting persists for more than three days and if you also find your furry dog listless and not wanting to eat, or if other symptoms appear. These are the most frequent reasons why a dog vomits, does not want to eat and is sad :
- Intestinal parasites.
- gastric torsion.
- Infectious diseases.
- Ingestion of foreign bodies.
- Other internal organ problems: liver or kidney problems and stomach ulcer.
All these problems must be treated by a veterinarian , since, in most cases, they will not be resolved by themselves and, therefore, the dog will continue to vomit, get worse and have more problems, until they seriously endanger their health because, for example, some infectious diseases and gastric torsion are very dangerous if they are not treated and can lead to the death of the dog in a short time.
In addition, if you continue reading, we recommend that you consult these other OneHOWTO articles on these symptoms in dogs for further information:
- Why does my dog not want to eat?
- Why is my dog vomiting white foam?
- Why does my dog vomit yellow?
- My dog has diarrhea and vomiting.
- How do I know if my dog is sad?
Intestinal parasites
One of the possible causes of a dog not wanting to eat and vomiting and being sad is intestinal parasites, commonly called worms, although not all of them are.
Carrying out the deworming guideline that your veterinarian indicates is very important, since otherwise your dog will be unprotected against parasite plagues. If your dog has intestinal parasites, he will show, in addition to the vomiting already mentioned, also diarrhea, abdominal swelling, loss of appetite, apathy and pain in the gut. Also, in some cases you will be able to observe the parasites as worms in the stool.
If you suspect that your dog might have intestinal parasites, it is best to go quickly to the veterinarian so that he can make the diagnosis, which will be based on an analysis of your dog’s feces to find out what type of parasite is causing these problems and can apply the appropriate antiparasitic and dose depending on the type of parasite to be eliminated. To prevent this problem, it is recommended to deworm your dog internally every 3 months and externally every four or eight months, depending on the brand of product used.
We recommend you also read this other post on How to eliminate intestinal worms in dogs .
Poisoning
Another reason why your dog could be vomiting, listless and not wanting to eat anything is poisoning or intoxication. In this situation, continuous vomiting is observed, especially as the intoxication progresses, this happens because your dog has ingested some type of substance that is harmful or toxic to him. In addition to vomiting, you will be able to observe diarrhea repeatedly, which may be vomiting and diarrhea with or without blood. Other symptoms of poisoning in dogs are the following:
- weakness and apathy
- Fever
- excessive salivation
- Dilated pupils
- dizziness
- Respiratory problems
In this situation, it is especially important to go quickly to your veterinarian , since the life of your dog can be in serious danger, depending on the type of intoxication or poisoning. If you notice that your dog has any of these symptoms and you suspect or know that he has been poisoned, since you have seen or know the substance that has been put in his mouth, you can make him vomit if no more than 2 hours have passed since have ingested the substance. The first thing you can do if you cannot go to the vet before those two hours is to induce vomiting yourself in order to prevent the substance from being absorbed, as long as you are sure that the ingested substance is not corrosive.
To make a dog vomit you can use hydrogen peroxide, giving it the right and necessary dose, which is usually 1 ml for each kg of the dog , so a 10 kg dog will need 10 ml. Make sure the dog is conscious, otherwise you can cause further damage, and administer the hydrogen peroxide diluted in equal parts with water and give it orally. After this, it is convenient for the dog to walk so that it finally vomits and expels a large part of the toxic substance. Notwithstanding this, if your dog is already vomiting as much as if not, you should take it to the vet so that they can examine it and eliminate all the toxin through a stomach lavage and the treatment that they consider appropriate.
In this other post you can learn more about How to know if my dog is poisoned .
stomach torsion in dogs
Stomach torsion or gastric torsion means that the stomach turns on itself and strangles the input and output parts of the food, causing a series of very serious problems that require urgent veterinary attention.
It is quite common in large adult dogs, usually after heavy meals and followed by exercise, play, running or jumping. The stomach full of food produces few muscular movements for proper digestion due to its excessive filling, it weighs a lot and hangs more in the abdomen and more gas begins to be generated by the fermentation of the food. At a given moment, favored by the dog’s movement, it turns on itself. At this time the vessels that irrigated it are strangulated and the stomach stops receiving blood or receives much less. However, the amount of gases inside continues to increase. This problem is diagnosed with an ultrasound or x-ray and it must be taken into account that this situation ends the life of the animal if it is not performed.surgery quickly .
Faced with this situation you will be able to see your dog trying to vomit and surely only stomach content will come out during the first phase of the torsion, as it progresses you will see that the dog gags unsuccessfully, since this problem causes the vomit not to be able to come out Exterior. In addition, you will see that he has abdominal pain, a swollen abdomen, drooling and nervousness. Of course, he will stop eating and be sad or in pain . We leave you here more information on How to know if my dog has stomach or gastric torsion .
My dog does not want to eat and vomits: infectious diseases
There are various infectious diseases that can cause vomiting, stop eating and make the dog sad or listless and that must be treated urgently by your veterinarian. These diseases include distemper, parvovirus and coronavirus .
Moquillo canino
It is a viral disease that puppies and older dogs are more susceptible to . This virus affects the epithelia and the nervous system, which is why it can produce a wide variety of symptoms: fever, diarrhea (frequently hemorrhagic), vomiting, dehydration, apathy, loss of appetite, cough, dyspnea, conjunctivitis…
It is important to go to the veterinarian as soon as possible so that he can carry out tests and apply an appropriate treatment. Although there is no specific treatment, support can be given with fluid therapy and symptomatic treatment, in addition to antibiotics to prevent secondary infections. To avoid this there is a specific vaccine. We recommend this other article from OneHOWTO to learn more about the topic How to know if my dog has distemper .
Parvovirus canino
Canine parvovirus is a virus that causes hemorrhagic diarrhea with a strong foul odor in dogs. It also presents with fever, vomiting and apathy. Faced with this, it is important to go to the veterinarian as soon as possible, since without support treatment they usually die quickly. Learn more about this disease here: How to cure canine parvovirus .
Coronavirus canino
Canine coronavirus is another viral disease with symptoms similar to parvovirus (not as hemorrhagic), but its prognosis is better. There are combined diagnostic tests for parvovirus and coronavirus, useful to provide a prognosis. The treatment, as in the previous case, is supportive, symptomatic and antibiotic. There are also vaccines to prevent these two diseases. We advise you to also read these other articles on What are the symptoms of canine coronavirus and How to treat canine coronavirus .
gastroenteritis in dogs
It is the inflammation of the stomach, intestine or both . It can come from food causes: food in poor condition, allergies and intolerances, indigestion, garbage consumption, sudden change of food, etc., or from causes of infectious origin: viruses, bacteria and other pathogens. It can also be due to the presence of toxins, medications or metabolic causes. The symptoms in addition to vomiting are: diarrhea, abdominal pain, loss of appetite, stop eating, decay, etc. We offer you more information about these warning signs in this other article about What are the symptoms of gastroenteritis in dogs .
To solve this problem, you will have to go to the vet to find out where it comes from. It is likely that, in addition to a physical examination, an X-ray will be done to see if there is any foreign body that could cause gastroenteritis and a blood test to check the severity of the problem.
The treatment of gastroenteritis in dogs will depend on the case but, surely, it will be the administration of gastric protectors, antiemetics to prevent vomiting, antidiarrheals if there is a risk of dehydration, probiotics and, if necessary due to seriousness, also fluid therapy. If the animal still has the slightest appetite, it is advisable to offer it a very easy to digest diet and water, always making sure that it does not drink it too quickly or too much at once.
As you can see, depending on the cause that is producing gastroenteritis, one treatment or another will be applied. The prognosis is good if the cause is alimentary (improves with a change in diet), bacterial (it usually improves with probiotics and diet or, if necessary, with antibiotics) and parasitic (it is cured with antiparasitics) and, on the other hand, the prognosis it will be serious to very serious if it is of viral origin.
pancreatitis in dogs
Pancreatitis in dogs is characterized by excessive production of pancreatic enzymes, due to dietary, toxic, traumatic, metabolic or infectious causes. It is more common in older and obese dogs . The symptoms are decay, vomiting and stop eating , as well as diarrhea and severe abdominal pain. It is diagnosed by investigating the symptoms, ultrasound and blood TLI.
The treatment, as in gastritis, is symptomatic, antibiotics and analgesics, it is also very important to carry out a diet that is easy to digest, low in proteins and fats so as not to stimulate the secretion of enzymes. Check out more here on How to Treat Pancreatitis in Dogs .
My dog does not want to eat and vomits: foreign bodies
If your dog has eaten any object and it has gotten stuck in his digestive system, he will try to vomit it up and may or may not be able to expel it. Due to general discomfort, fatigue from trying to expel the object, vomiting and even because it feels pain, if a foreign body has been eaten you will see that your dog does not want to eat, vomits and is sad or listless .
You should take it to the vet as soon as possible, who will do a physical examination and an X-ray, in case surgery has to be performed to remove the foreign body and prevent it from causing further damage to your dog, as it can perforate an intestine or stomach, produce a hemorrhage, etc., among other serious problems.
My dog does not want to eat and vomits: other problems in the internal organs
If the above possible causes have been ruled out and you are still wondering “why is my dog down, vomiting and not wanting to eat?” , take note of these other possible causes .
- Liver or kidney problems: the dog may vomit and become weak, as well as stop eating. This happens more in the case of liver diseases, which usually present with vomiting, diarrhea, polyuria-polydipsia, anorexia, free fluid in the abdomen, and even neurological symptoms. They can occur for various reasons, so the veterinarian will be responsible for finding the cause and applying a treatment that is often symptomatic, along with the administration of a special diet. Antibiotics may be given if an infectious cause is confirmed.
- Stomach ulcer:it is common for these vomits to present with blood and with a cloudy or black color and the dog will be listless and not wanting to eat or will do so very little. The veterinarian will be in charge of examining your dog, diagnosing the problem and treating it to prevent it from getting worse.
My dog does not want to eat and vomits, what do I do?
If you notice that your dog has started to vomit, you should watch it all the time to find out if it has any other symptoms and report it to the vet. You will have to see if he vomits once or continuously, the color of the vomit, if he vomits blood or remnants of food, etc.
If your dog vomits several times , withhold food for 24 hours and give him a little water from time to time . If you notice that the vomiting stops, give him his food again, starting small and gradually increasing the amount until he gives him his usual amount. If the vomiting does not stop and is also hemorrhagic or very frequent, go to the vet without thinking, since it is surely a disease that has to be treated as soon as possible. Call your vet if you have any questions.
It is advisable to go to the veterinarian whatever the cause that is producing vomiting in your dog if you know it, and even more so if you do not know it, to prevent major problems. The reality is that all dogs vomit at some time and it is not always serious, as it happens to us people. However, if your dog does not want to eat, vomits and is sad , it is especially important to go to the vet.