What food is she on? Have you changed her food at all?
Cronic long term vomiting. Please help.
We became proud parents of a 1-yr old 4-pound chihuahua about 3-months ago, and named her Prissey Baby. Shes now been to the local vet office 5-times, and still vomits 2 to 3 times a night (sometimes during day time). There is 3-Veterinarians at the local Vet Office, all 3 of which have examined Prissey, and come up with different diagnosis-es each time. Prissey seems to have normal bowel movements (actually seems big to me considering her size), mostly once a day, but sometimes once every 2-days. After a night of vomiting, she loves to eat grass, which one vet says is fine.
I've tried to search Internet for possible causes. These vets have done blood work each time, and took about 4-xrays. Each time it is basically a "guess" as to the cause, and then possible treatment for that guess. Antibotics about every visit. Liquid tagament. Several changes to diet, and supplements. Nothing has made any difference in these daily vomiting episodes.
We tried to find out her history. But the original owners have not returned any phone calls. The story is a woman bought Prissey (a fully registered Chi with papers) and then met a man she later married, who is allergic to Prissey, so this woman gave Prissey to another lady for adoption. This lady gave Prissey to my wife's daughter, who gave her to my wife and I, allegedly with registration papers to be faxed. But original owner refuses to make contact. This makes me believe Prissey had this vomiting problem all along.
She is a little loving bundle of joy that has stolen our hearts, especially my wife's, who recently lost her almost 14 year old lap cat. Prissey loves to sleep with us, and we love having her close at night. But then she goes into her episodes of gurggerling, trying to fight back throwing up. In the morning, we find vomit on the floor and in the bed, about every single time.
When Prissey does vomit, it can sometimes be clear fluids, and sometimes it can be undigested food she just ate. And, at times it appears to be food that has partially digested. At times she does seem to walk funny, as if her hind legs are tucked up under her stomach. I thought this was a sign of being stopped up. But I recently read about pancreas problems and stomach pain. Those symptoms seem to fit, yet, a blood test is supposed to show this.
Does anyone have any suggestions? Please help us help Prissey.
I've tried to search Internet for possible causes. These vets have done blood work each time, and took about 4-xrays. Each time it is basically a "guess" as to the cause, and then possible treatment for that guess. Antibotics about every visit. Liquid tagament. Several changes to diet, and supplements. Nothing has made any difference in these daily vomiting episodes.
We tried to find out her history. But the original owners have not returned any phone calls. The story is a woman bought Prissey (a fully registered Chi with papers) and then met a man she later married, who is allergic to Prissey, so this woman gave Prissey to another lady for adoption. This lady gave Prissey to my wife's daughter, who gave her to my wife and I, allegedly with registration papers to be faxed. But original owner refuses to make contact. This makes me believe Prissey had this vomiting problem all along.
She is a little loving bundle of joy that has stolen our hearts, especially my wife's, who recently lost her almost 14 year old lap cat. Prissey loves to sleep with us, and we love having her close at night. But then she goes into her episodes of gurggerling, trying to fight back throwing up. In the morning, we find vomit on the floor and in the bed, about every single time.
When Prissey does vomit, it can sometimes be clear fluids, and sometimes it can be undigested food she just ate. And, at times it appears to be food that has partially digested. At times she does seem to walk funny, as if her hind legs are tucked up under her stomach. I thought this was a sign of being stopped up. But I recently read about pancreas problems and stomach pain. Those symptoms seem to fit, yet, a blood test is supposed to show this.
Does anyone have any suggestions? Please help us help Prissey.
1 - 20 of 34 Posts
Yep that would be my question. First & foremost I'd put her on a dehydrated food as its easier for them to digest. But knowing what she's eating will give us a better idea on what may be causing her digestion problems.
At present it is Pedigree small pouches of Chicken flavor moist meals. She seems to love chicken flavor anything. These are moist meaty meals in a pouch. Thanks for such quick responses. We have two, big, outdoor dogs that we feed in our kitchen, eating Kibbles and Bits original. Prissey tries to get in the kitchen and also loves the hard Kibbles and Bits. But we keep a gate up so that Prissey stays out in living room/dining room area. When Prissey did eat the hard food, she seemed to throw this up more quickly.
Please keep any suggestions and questions coming. Thanks.
Please keep any suggestions and questions coming. Thanks.
You know, it's killing me to not be able to help Prissey. Just now, as I sit on couch and lean forward to coffee table to type on laptop, she is laying by my leg with her head propped up on leg, under my arm elbow propped on knee. So heart warming. (Wife comes home in little while, and then Prissey will be all hers.)
Earlier, I fed her Predigree soft pouch of Chicken, about half pouch. She ate, then wanted out side, in front yard. Hooked her to long leash and watched her run around till she peed, and wanted back in.
Then, in bedroom, I open window, and have perch mounted at inside of window. Then I have a ramp about 6-foot long, covered in carpet, that Prissey goes down and into a small dog pin in back yard, where she runs around about 5 or 10 minutes, and then comes back in when she is ready. She can go and come as she pleases into this dog pen by way of the ramp leading down from window. Pretty neat to see.
She did eat a little grass, but not to much. And seems energetic and happy for a while. And now it's nap time on daddy's leg. (It makes me want to sit here all day, so as to not disturb her. ha ha Happy Thanksgiving Everybody)
Earlier, I fed her Predigree soft pouch of Chicken, about half pouch. She ate, then wanted out side, in front yard. Hooked her to long leash and watched her run around till she peed, and wanted back in.
Then, in bedroom, I open window, and have perch mounted at inside of window. Then I have a ramp about 6-foot long, covered in carpet, that Prissey goes down and into a small dog pin in back yard, where she runs around about 5 or 10 minutes, and then comes back in when she is ready. She can go and come as she pleases into this dog pen by way of the ramp leading down from window. Pretty neat to see.
She did eat a little grass, but not to much. And seems energetic and happy for a while. And now it's nap time on daddy's leg. (It makes me want to sit here all day, so as to not disturb her. ha ha Happy Thanksgiving Everybody)
It sounds as if you have been the regular vet route. Now maybe, it is time for a specialist in gastroenterology (stomach and gut). As this is usually at bed time, what time do you last feed her? If she is on a one meal a day am feeding, that could be the problem. Feed her 2x a day. As to food, have you tried canned vs the kibble? Some dogs do better on a moist canned food. Whatever, do the switch slowly! Add a spoonful , then 2 spoonfuls if she tolerates that. Good luck. Sue
There is another post on here about Mega esophagus. I purchased a little chi a couple months ago. 18 mo old. After her being here for 2 weeks she started spitting up. She could eat dry food, but not wet. If she ate wet food she would 'spit up' , not heave like throwing up, just SPLAT and it was out on the floor. I took her to my vet and he said it could be lots of things, minor or serious, but to diagnose it would be several hundred dollars and since I had just purchased her his suggestion would be to take her back to her family (breeder), and thats what I did. I have not heard back how the little girl is doing. But I feel she developed ME and she needed to be with her people she was raised with. They loved her and sold her because she was trying to reduce her numbers and this little girl was too small to breed.
My answers seemed delayed due to me being a newbie here. We tried the hard dried food (Small bits by Aims) and Kibbles and Bits small bits. And then went to moist Pedigree pouches, and also canned dog food (Chicken flavor).
As to feeding times, yes we do small amounts throughout the day, trying to stop about 6pm and going to bed between 8 and 9pm.
For example, yesterday, what she ate in the morning came back up about 5pm. She ate again, and this came back up about 1am in the morning.
She ate fine this morning about 10am, and has been active since. It is 2pm almost, and so far it has stayed down.
Looked up this Mega-esophagus and will be asking Vet next visit, along with any other suggestions any one has for us.
As to feeding times, yes we do small amounts throughout the day, trying to stop about 6pm and going to bed between 8 and 9pm.
For example, yesterday, what she ate in the morning came back up about 5pm. She ate again, and this came back up about 1am in the morning.
She ate fine this morning about 10am, and has been active since. It is 2pm almost, and so far it has stayed down.
Looked up this Mega-esophagus and will be asking Vet next visit, along with any other suggestions any one has for us.
Pedigree ,is a NO NO in this house all 3 of my dogs would get the runs.Have you tried Ziwi peak ????? freeze dried so the next best thing to raw,no probs at all on this food.Are you in uk ????
Definitely switch her food.Try a high quality grain free food, such as Acana(kibble) or ZiwiPeak (pre-made raw).
when you take your chi into the vet just mention megaesophagus ....it might be worth looking into..the specialist told us it is usually misdiagnosed for a long time...as was the case with Bella...feel free to pm me and I would be glad to try and answer any questions you might have..
I agree with everyone else. The food you are feeding is not good quality and with her always getting sick I would highly recommend at least Ziwi or a high quality grain free food.
Some dogs cannot process grain and I find in so many dogs it comes out in different ways.
I would also try a different vet if after the next visit you don't get any results and ask for copies of her blood work and a write up of everything you have tried. That way no more tests are needed. if they still can't help you I agree with everyone else you need a referral to a gastro' she will have specialities in this that will help her.
You are doing the right thing she is lucky to have you. Keep trying your answer is out there!
Some dogs cannot process grain and I find in so many dogs it comes out in different ways.
I would also try a different vet if after the next visit you don't get any results and ask for copies of her blood work and a write up of everything you have tried. That way no more tests are needed. if they still can't help you I agree with everyone else you need a referral to a gastro' she will have specialities in this that will help her.
You are doing the right thing she is lucky to have you. Keep trying your answer is out there!
Do you have a Petsmart nearby...and if you do...there are several foods you could try...I had a chihuahua do what you're saying and we found out it was the food. We changed to California Natural lamb and rice, but since they've been bought out..we switched to Wellness small breed and the girls seem to be doing well on it. Stay away from corn and wheat they're big time allergy inducers in furbabies.
A lot of Chihuahua have food allergies. The food you are using is not a good food. You should look up what you are feeding all your dogs at this site, you will be shocked at the rating they get. You need to feed a 5 to 6 star food. We've all been there, believed all the hype about the commercial food that is mostly fillers and can cause the vomting you speak of. I have a bunch of dogs and have been through so many foods trying to find one that all my dogs can eat. I finally went to grain free and all my dogs are doing great. Also a lot of people feed raw and have had great success, too.
Dog Food Analysis - Reviews of kibble
Dog Food Analysis - Reviews of kibble
Definitely check out the dog food review site!! I am going to bet with a new food you'll have a new dog. 
You could try a grain free kibble but if it were me I'd go with a moist dehydrated raw like Honest Kitchen or Stella & Chewy's. ZiwiPeak is good (that's what we're feeding currently) & you can add water to it like we do but the other 2 foods I mentioned are pretty much broken down & will be easiest to digest. ZiwiPeak is all meat as opposed to having *some* fruits & veggies as the other 2 (Stella & Chewy's much less than Honest Kitchen) but the Ziwipeak still has to be broken down a bit as they're dehydrated to a dry form & take a bit longer to digest.
Raws are SOOO much gentler on dogs digestive systems. I would definitely give it a try & I think you'll see a big difference. It's definitely a starting point from getting her off the Pedigree. I used to feed Pedigree kibble before I knew how bad the ingredients were & the difference is AMAZING.
Good luck!!
You could try a grain free kibble but if it were me I'd go with a moist dehydrated raw like Honest Kitchen or Stella & Chewy's. ZiwiPeak is good (that's what we're feeding currently) & you can add water to it like we do but the other 2 foods I mentioned are pretty much broken down & will be easiest to digest. ZiwiPeak is all meat as opposed to having *some* fruits & veggies as the other 2 (Stella & Chewy's much less than Honest Kitchen) but the Ziwipeak still has to be broken down a bit as they're dehydrated to a dry form & take a bit longer to digest. Raws are SOOO much gentler on dogs digestive systems. I would definitely give it a try & I think you'll see a big difference. It's definitely a starting point from getting her off the Pedigree. I used to feed Pedigree kibble before I knew how bad the ingredients were & the difference is AMAZING.
Good luck!!
Not always but most of the time an indicator of long term Pancreas or esophagus issues would be loss of muscle mass from not digesting and getting the nutrients from the food. I wouldn't recommend Pedigree or any other "typical" dog food. I would go with a good quality dehydrated food, holistic food made for digestive issues or even home cooked for a while and see how Prissey does on that. Keep in mind the vomiting might continue for a couple of days because obviously your dog already has a sensitive tummy and any change over in food can cause minor issues. As for eating grass...yes lots of dogs do it, but it can also indicate a dog/cat has an upset tummy or is sick in some other way. (Grass isn't good for dogs anyway)
Personally, I would seek a specialist and in them mean time try some home cooking....chicken breast w/ brown rice or sweet potatoe , salmon, or scrambled eggs....mix a bit of cheese with every meal ....small portions twice a day and see how she does in the mean time. Good luck and please let us know how Prissy makes out.
Personally, I would seek a specialist and in them mean time try some home cooking....chicken breast w/ brown rice or sweet potatoe , salmon, or scrambled eggs....mix a bit of cheese with every meal ....small portions twice a day and see how she does in the mean time. Good luck and please let us know how Prissy makes out.
It's the grass. As harmless as it is, and as much as animals love it for some reason...They can't processit and they will always vomit it up when their body's try too digest it.
I too would suggest a change in diet. Some dogs will do well on any food, an others with more sensitive digestive systems will not do well on foods that are highly processed or use fillers like corn and similar grains that offer little nutritional value. One of my three has a very sensitive stomach and he can't digest even the best kibbles. I would check out the dog food analysis site others have mentioned, and try switching her onto either a high quality canned food (the food analysis site will give you a great idea of what to look for and avoid on dog food labels) or perhaps a premade raw if you're comfortable trying that. I give my three Stella and Chewys, which are a premade raw patty, and super gentle on my sensative guys tummy. I buy the frozen, they're also available in freeze dried but these are more pricey. You thaw them in the fridge overnight and mash them up with some warm water and feed. Your girl would probably only need 1 or 1.5 patties/ day, which would cost you about 40 cents a day to give you some idea of cost. I was worried before we tried it that the cost would be too high, but it works out cheaper than kibble for us. I'd give her a few weeks on the new diet and if you still see no improvement I'd try a new vets office or specialist. Good luck!
Wow, all the answers, alone, make me feel so much better, that sooner or later, Prissey will be well. As to the food, we only went to the Pedigree pouch about 2-weeks ago, mostly because she loves it so much. Before that, we tried plain rice, and also human canned chicken, and many other things. However, I'm going to a large chain pet store this morning and will ask for some of these mentioned here.
Most times, my wife gives Prissey liquid tagament before meals. Last night, she forgot, and thought it was to late to do so after Prissey had eaten. I suggested we try it anyways, which she did. And, as usual, Prissey started her gagging and gurgling at about 2am, trying her best to not throw up. I took her out to couch, wrapped in a towel and petted her, till she wore herself out and seemed to collapse in my hands. After a minute or so, of being still and catching her breath, she hopped up and wagged her tail as she went back to bedroom and waited for me to pick her up and put on top of the mattress. A few more minutes, she started again. This time, wife took her out to recliner, talking softly to her and cradling her in her arms, as they both fell back to sleep in the recliner.
This morn, when I asked if she threw up, my wife said it was only a little bit of clear fluid. This is a BIG improvement! I just knew it would be like night before when there was 3 places to clean up.
As to better Vets, yes, I strongly agree. Before next visit, I'm making a list of suggestions from here, and I'm going to tell them, first, "There is 3 of you working here, and you-all need to get together to see if you can figure this out, and if not, then go back to your books and Internet and find the right answer." "Between 3 Vets, working together, there's got to be a better answer than all those guesses you've been doing individually."
Happy Thanksgiving everyone. Any more info and suggestions greatly welcomed. Thanks
Most times, my wife gives Prissey liquid tagament before meals. Last night, she forgot, and thought it was to late to do so after Prissey had eaten. I suggested we try it anyways, which she did. And, as usual, Prissey started her gagging and gurgling at about 2am, trying her best to not throw up. I took her out to couch, wrapped in a towel and petted her, till she wore herself out and seemed to collapse in my hands. After a minute or so, of being still and catching her breath, she hopped up and wagged her tail as she went back to bedroom and waited for me to pick her up and put on top of the mattress. A few more minutes, she started again. This time, wife took her out to recliner, talking softly to her and cradling her in her arms, as they both fell back to sleep in the recliner.
This morn, when I asked if she threw up, my wife said it was only a little bit of clear fluid. This is a BIG improvement! I just knew it would be like night before when there was 3 places to clean up.
As to better Vets, yes, I strongly agree. Before next visit, I'm making a list of suggestions from here, and I'm going to tell them, first, "There is 3 of you working here, and you-all need to get together to see if you can figure this out, and if not, then go back to your books and Internet and find the right answer." "Between 3 Vets, working together, there's got to be a better answer than all those guesses you've been doing individually."
Happy Thanksgiving everyone. Any more info and suggestions greatly welcomed. Thanks
OK, everyone, you make me feel as if there is a bright light at the end of the tunnel. I've wrote a list of all the recommended foods and am heading to big box pet store (can't remember the name) along with some Black Friday shopping.
Usually give liquid tagament before meals. Last night, forgot, and decided to try giving it after meal (about hour later). At 2am, Prissey started her gurgling and gagging , trying her best to not throw up. She became exhausted in my hands as I held her and petted her till the episode stopped. After a minute or two, she hopped up, wagging her tail, and off to the bedroom she went again, waiting for me to pick up and put her on top of the mattress. A few minutes later, she started again, and this time wife took her out to recliner, where they both spent rest of night. By morning, Prissey had only thrown up a little bit of clear fluid. This is a BIG improvement.
And, just now, about 7am, Prissey had another bout with the clear fluid, fighting to not let it out, to the point it comes out her nose. Still not full blown throw up.
Month or so ago, when fighting back this clear fluid and it coming out her nose, I took her straight to Vet without appointment and thought it was mucus in her lungs from sever sinus problems. This is where the 5mg benadryl came from. But as time goes by, now realize it must be stomach acid, like terrible heart burn/indigestion. She tries so hard to not let it out. I tell her to go ahead, while holding towel under her, so she will feel better. It gets to me when a dog will throw up and then lick it back up. Yuck!!
Happy Thanksgiving everyone. Thank you for helping, and for any other info. God bless.
Usually give liquid tagament before meals. Last night, forgot, and decided to try giving it after meal (about hour later). At 2am, Prissey started her gurgling and gagging , trying her best to not throw up. She became exhausted in my hands as I held her and petted her till the episode stopped. After a minute or two, she hopped up, wagging her tail, and off to the bedroom she went again, waiting for me to pick up and put her on top of the mattress. A few minutes later, she started again, and this time wife took her out to recliner, where they both spent rest of night. By morning, Prissey had only thrown up a little bit of clear fluid. This is a BIG improvement.
And, just now, about 7am, Prissey had another bout with the clear fluid, fighting to not let it out, to the point it comes out her nose. Still not full blown throw up.
Month or so ago, when fighting back this clear fluid and it coming out her nose, I took her straight to Vet without appointment and thought it was mucus in her lungs from sever sinus problems. This is where the 5mg benadryl came from. But as time goes by, now realize it must be stomach acid, like terrible heart burn/indigestion. She tries so hard to not let it out. I tell her to go ahead, while holding towel under her, so she will feel better. It gets to me when a dog will throw up and then lick it back up. Yuck!!
Happy Thanksgiving everyone. Thank you for helping, and for any other info. God bless.
1 - 20 of 34 Posts
- This is an older thread, you may not receive a response, and could be reviving an old thread. Please consider creating a new thread.
Chihuahua People Forum
A forum community dedicated to Chihuahua owners and enthusiasts. Come join the discussion about breeding, health, behavior, housing, adopting, care, classifieds, and more!
Full Forum Listing
Explore Our Forums
Recommended Communities
