Edie is Poorly

[Schnauzer Sam]

Edie's been a bit off colour for the last week to 10 days. She's wanting to walk and play and she's drinking and eating as normal but she regurgitates or vomits up her food and sometimes will have a second poo within a few minutes of the first. The first one is what I'd expect from a raw fed dog but the second is impossible to pick up as it's the consistency of whipped cream.

I took her to the vet yesterday and they ran some blood tests and gave me one week course of Omeprazole (£206) but everything came back in range. This morning, she ate as normal and had a normal poo.

Tea time tonight, within 2 minutes of eating she regurgitated her dinner, bringing up a sausage shaped mound of food including a raw treat she'd been given a few hours earlier suggesting that it didn't even get in to her stomach. She was still interested in food and about 30 mins later I gave her a small amount of food which came back up about 30 minutes later but this time she heaved and it was obvious that this had been in her stomach.

I'm at a loss as to what the problem is. I intend to take her back to the vet tomorrow and wonder whether there's an obstruction in her oesophagus causing this problem.

Has anyone ever had a problem like this?

Thanks

[zeta1454]

Hi Sam - sorry to hear about Edie regurgitating her food. We did actually have something a bit similar with Magic about a month ago although her poo was fine but she just kept throwing up her food shortly after eating. As she was absolutely fine in herself in every other way, I decided to just monitor the situation and reduced the amount I gave her to just under 50% of normal amount, made sure that it wasn't too cold (raw straight out of the fridge can be quite cold) and mixed in some YuDigest and Tree Barks powder. I did not give her any other food /treats. With Magic it did improve after a few days, then the regurgitation returned again, but after repeating the reduced food etc. she was back to normal. I could not say what it might have been - a bug going round or something she ate which she shouldn't have ..? I did also give her homeopathic Nux Vomica which is a stand-by in our house for any kind of digestive issue.

I couldn't say if this is the same as Edie's problem but I did go through the worry that Magic had a blockage and it was a bit strange in that she was not ill in any way other than the regurgitation (similar to Edie?) it was just to let you know that it may be something which is not determined in the end but which Edie may just come through so don't worry too much and hope the vet can also reassure you. My feeling re a blockage was that she would not be passing any food through her system and, with Magic she did poo regularly as normal despite not seeming to be keeping much food down.
Let us know how she progresses.

[Schnauzer Sam]

Leigh,

Many thanks for your prompt response. I had considered whether the food straight out of the fridge may be causing the problem as it doesn't seem to happen when the food is being used for the first time after thawing when it's been left overnight to thaw.

Yes, apart from the regurgitation, Edie is not at all unwell. Temperature is normal, still playful and mischievous and is wanting to go out for walks and is enjoying them. Rosie is in the pink of health and is not showing any signs of anything similar.

I think I'll continue to monitor rather than go back to the vet and see how things progress.

[zeta1454]

Sam - fingers crossed that it will resolve of itself. Magic is the only one of all our dogs to really experience digestive issues every so often and always has been but it never seems to progress into a serious condition just that periodically she has bouts of soft poo and / or vomiting her food. This last bout did continue longer than usual even for her and was regurgitation - if she hadn't been so bright in herself I would have considered taking her to the vet but she was fine.
Another thought I had last night which I know seems to have an effect on Magic is hormonal. Although she was spayed some years ago now (she is nearly 10 years old), as with all our girls who are spayed, she does still go through some kind of hormonal change a couple of times a year which although she clearly could not be mated or produce pups is enough to provoke the interest of our male dogs and also can trigger her occasionally being sick after eating (which can also happen with entire bitches at their season). I just thought it worth mentioning too although I don't think with Magic that was necessarily the cause of her last regurgitation issue.

All dogs do also naturally have a strong regurgitation reflex due to their scavenging origins (still hard wired of course) and it can be triggered by a number of causes which are not serious as well as those that may be. I do hope Edie comes through this quickly and no cause for alarm but do take her back to the vet if you are concerned that her behaviour has changed or if there is any likelihood of her becoming dehydrated.

[Oscar 12345]

So sorry to hear Edie is unwell. Hope she recovers quickly Sam. All I can say is that when Oscar had a blockage he wouldn't eat anything and his demeanour told you something wasn't right. I feed Otto by dropping a handful into his bowl at a time to stop him gulping it in one second so perhaps feeding smaller amounts and slower until this has passed???? I always feed at room temperature. I don't think there is less taste/smell when it is fridge cold.... I know that from eating sausage rolls straight from the fridge yuck.

[Oscar 12345]

Sorry that should have said I do think that there is less taste/smell when fridge cold.

[Dawnspell]

Poor Edie. Have you tried not feeding her for 24 hours and just giving her bone broth and probiotics ? Just to give her digestive system a rest and balance itself. It could be something inflammatory causing discomfort when she eats rather than a bug as such.

[mikegoodson1]

Hi Sam, nothing I can add to the previous comments other than wishing Edie a speedy recovery - Mike.

[Schnauzer Sam]

Update:

I didn't take Edie back to the vet, decideing instead to keep a watching brief. I've been preparing their breakfast before going out for our walk in the morning so that the food is at room temperature when they eat it and so far I've had no regurgitation and poos are back to the usual raw fed nuggets

Thanks for your comments and support.

[zeta1454]

Great news
Fingers and paws crossed that Edie is fully recovered now.

[Dawnspell]

That's good to hear

[Oscar 12345]

Excellent, hopefully get the house back to normal now.