Is Your Dog Vomiting? – How to Tell a Visit to the Vet is Necessary

Dogs, like humans, get sick. There are many reasons your dog could vomit, and rushing them to the vet is not always the answer. Of course, your dog cannot tell you why they are sick. It is your job as the human to determine whether they need veterinary attention, or if they can stick it out. Through many years of fostering dogs, and helping at shelters and rescues, I have seen dogs vomit from serious reasons to benign reasons. Here is how to tell if your dog needs to see a vet for vomiting. If at ANY time your dog has white foam vomit accompanied by a very foul smelling diarrhea, rush them to the vet. These are symptoms of parvo.

Greed
Some dogs eat too fast out of greed. This occurs a lot of the times before the age of 1, but it can occur at any time if you have a greedy dog. This type of greed can lead to food aggression later, so be careful and try to slow them down. Give smaller amounts, and feed them away from other pets.

Grass
If a dog’s stomach is upset, they eat grass. Sometimes this grass reappears on your carpet, and your pet feels better. This could simply mean that your dog had an upset stomach. They know how to take care of that. You will be able to tell this situation because the vomit will have a greenish tint, or it will still have blades of grass in it.

Object stuck
If your dog likes to chew, chances are at some point they will end up with an object stuck in their throat. If they do not throw it up, take them to the vet to have it removed.

Health Issues
If your dog throws up repeatedly, there could be an underlying health issue. If the vomit is recurring, make an urgent appointment with your vet. If at any time your dog begins to get dehydrated, rush them to an emergency vet near you. There are many health issues that can cause a dog to vomit. These reasons can range from simple to a hernia or birth defect (in small puppies).

Again, If your dog vomits white foam and looks depressed, lethargic or is just not acting like themselves, rush them to the vet to rule out parvo. With the parvo virus, time is of the essence. There is no time to waste!