Everything you need to know about your puppy vomiting

When you sign up for puppy parenthood, you’re probably excited for all the playtimes and cuddles and countless cute photo opportunities. You’re probably less excited about the day-to-day realities of puppy ownership, like picking up poo and dealing with vomit. Here’s everything you need to know about your puppy vomiting, including what causes it and how to treat it.

Is vomiting in puppies serious?

It's pretty common for puppies to vomit, especially if they’ve eaten something they shouldn’t have or they’ve eaten their breakfast too quickly and then hooned around. The very occasional vomit is nothing to worry about.

There are some signs that could suggest the vomiting is more serious. It’s good to get your puppy checked out by the vet if:

• They vomit more than once a day or on consecutive days.
• There’s bright blood in the vomit.
• There’s dark blood in their poo (it looks like coffee grounds).
• There’s nothing left in their stomach so only mucus and bile is coming up.
• They projectile vomit, which is when a puppy vomits with more force than usual.
• They seem to be in pain or discomfort or they’re tired or weak.
• They’ve got diarrhoea as well as vomiting.
• Their stomach is visibly bloated.
• Your puppy is 6 months or younger. Younger puppies are smaller with less mature immune systems and can easily become weak and dehydrated.

Causes of puppy vomiting

There are lots of reasons why your puppy is vomiting, and most of them are common and easy to spot. Your puppy might vomit for these reasons:

• Something’s upset their stomach, including a new dog food or a human food or they’ve accidentally eaten something poisonous.
• Eating too quickly.
• An allergic reaction to a particular food.
• Stress or anxiety.
• Bloat
• Heat stroke.
• Parasites and worms.
• Medical reasons, including a bacterial or viral infection; a tumour; or a disease of their vital organs, including their liver or kidneys.

Is it regurgitation or vomiting?

You might think your puppy is vomiting, but they might actually be regurgitating. Regurgitation happens when your puppy’s stomach contents move backwards up their oesophagus and into their mouth. Symptoms of regurgitation include:

• Bringing up undigested food shortly after eating.
• Fever.
• Weight loss even though they seem to be really hungry.
• Difficulty swallowing.
• Throat swelling.
• Problems with breathing, including noisy breathing.

Regurgitation can be caused by many medical conditions, including those they’re born with (like megaesophagus or a narrow oesophagus) or cancer. If you think your puppy might be regurgitating their food, take them to the vet who can confirm it. It can be treated through diet changes and medications.

Kennel Cough

Your puppy might be regurgitating and coughing because of kennel cough. This is a really contagious respiratory disease that causes dogs’ throats and lungs to get inflamed. Kennel cough is most common in young dogs and dogs that spend a lot of time with other dogs, especially in kennels.

Signs of kennel cough include a loud, frequent cough and the spitting up of foamy liquid (which isn’t vomit). If you spot these symptoms, take your puppy to the vet. It can be easily treated and there’s a vaccine for it too.  

Understanding puppy vomit

Your puppy’s vomit can tell you, and the vet, a lot about what’s causing the vomiting. If you can, take a sample of the vomit with you to the vet’s - it can be helpful in diagnosing them. Here’s what your puppy’s vomit might mean:

• Yellow vomit suggests nausea, an empty stomach, acid reflux or bile.
• White and foamy vomit suggests nausea, inflammation, an empty stomach or acid reflux.
• Chunky food pieces suggest undigested food.
• Green vomit suggests your puppy has eaten grass (look for plant pieces) or bile.
• Red or red-streaked vomit suggests your puppy has eaten food with red food colouring or has an ulcerated stomach.
• Black vomit suggests your puppy has eaten soil or, if it looks like coffee grounds, it could be digested blood.
• Clear liquid suggests an empty stomach.
• Brown vomit or vomit that smells like poo suggests your puppy has been eating poo.
• An object or piece of an object in their vomit suggests they’ve eaten something they shouldn’t, like a toy or a sock.

Whatever your puppy’s vomit looks like, it’s worth taking them to the vet so they can investigate further.

Treatment for vomiting in puppies

Depending on what’s causing the vomiting in your puppy, your vet might recommend:

• Supervised short-term fasting to give their digestive system a rest.
• Feeding a bland diet or hypoallergenic food.
• Medication, antibiotics, probiotics or steroids.
• Surgery to remove stuck items or tumours or to biopsy their stomach and intestines.

It’s really important you follow your vet’s treatment instructions. If your puppy doesn’t improve, be sure to take them back.

Looking after your puppy at home

If your puppy only vomits once and then seems their normal, happy self afterwards, you don’t need to do anything. But if there are more serious signs of vomiting, like what we covered at the start of this article, you’ll want to take them to the vet. Your vet might recommend some at-home treatments, like:

• Feeding them plain foods, little and often. These include things like boiled and skinless chicken and plain rice, with no seasonings, oils or butter.
• If you’re changing foods, transition them slowly over a few days by mixing small amounts of the new food with their old food.
• Feeding them multiple small meals a day to stop them eating their food too quickly. You can also try a slow feeder or feeding puppies in separate areas if they’re competing with each other to see who can eat the quickest!

There’s your complete guide to what might be causing your puppy to vomit - hopefully it’s answered all your questions. If you need any further help or have a question we haven’t answered, contact our friendly Pet Direct Customer Care team on 0800 200 240 or email support@petdirect.co.nz.

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