BARFING several times today = blockage?

[HappyPuppy]

Geez - I don't want to go to the e-vet!!! I'm worried about a blockage??????

Ruby puked this morning about 6am - would have been dinner which was a beef rib + beef kidney and a piece of duck jerkey. (she never used to 'eat' the ribs and the last one she ate 2/3 of - so I took this one away early like hardly the end cracked. No real dent in bone quantity.

This morning a few hours after breakfast, I gave her the rest of the rib to gnaw on -- I LLEFT IT OUT ON THE COUNTER OVERNIGHT..... <<<<
I set the timer for 30 mins while checking on her at 20 mins. She had eaten a lot of it so I traded her another piece of DUCK JERKEY and threw the rest of the bone away = which was about a quarter of it.

I've lost count now - several hours ago she puked up kibble == hours after breakfast. Then she puked brown liquid. Then she puked more kibble + 2 more times on my lawn (I found one by stepping in it). she just puked again brown liquid.

She's been alert watching birds but seems very uncomfortable -- does not seem like bloat as she is not distended or hard.'

I'm watching - she has been drinking water. Might feed no dinner or just boiled rice?

The 2 common denominators are the beef rib and the duck jerkey that says made in china but tested in us.....

She's pawing at the back door right now to come in (= good sign( but I want the puking outside for now.

What does this sound like?

[AllisonPibbleLvr]

It could be something simple like dietary indiscretion, it could be something scary like foreign body, perforation (could the bone have splintered), or pancreatitis.

If it were my dog, and there were signs of pain/discomfort, I'd err on the side of caution and go to an emerg vet. If its nothing, you've spent the money for peace of mind. If its scary, it's better to catch it early.

[HappyPuppy]

So, we did not go to the e-vet and ended up with a barfing dog ALL nite long..... (several rugs to clean today). Just got back from reg vet and x-rays.... NO BLOCKAGE! They are keeping Ruby all day to put her on IV fluids (her gums were dry-ish) and doing bloodwork and testing specifically for pancreatitis. She's always had an iron gut, so this is worrisome. I think it was the beef rib moreso than the jerky but we'll see what the tests say. Ruby is still less energy than her usual self - drank a ton of water overnite and she never drinks after bedtime but at least twice, maybe 3 times, she immediately vomited the water back up. I'm glad it is not a blockage - that's a real worry and there have been a lot of scary blockage stories lately. I dont' like going to the vet and coming home without my dog...... it sure is quiet around here right now! Vet (not our usual vet) did respectfully give me an anti-raw lecture this morning - said regarding germs she thinks it's as dangerous as the chinese food contamination issues.... Dunno if I totally agree with her on that - and that is why we use the vet we have now at their practice, she supports me on that.

X-rays ALSO shows worsening of Ruby's hip dysplasia and a change (new osteoarthritis) in her spine (I think near the hip area). This vet also wants me to start on adequan (sp?) shots. Ruby has been pretty asymptomatic so far and not showing obvious pain or stiffness so I've been holding off on the big stuff......but vet thinks the shots might be good to start now. I currently give glucosamine/chond./msm, vit-c and 2 fish oil gels daily.

[AllisonPibbleLvr]

HGE and pancreatitis can be just as scary as a blockage. I hope you get good news and that she is back to normal ASAP!

Hugs to you and your girl!

[HappyPuppy]

What is 'HGE' ???

HGE and pancreatitis can be just as scary as a blockage. I hope you get good news and that she is back to normal ASAP!

Hugs to you and your girl!

[AllisonPibbleLvr]

Sorry, Hemmorhagic GastroEnteritis. When my Buddy was sick back in May, those were the three rule outs and all three were super scary so I know how you're feeling!

[Misskiwi67]

What is 'HGE' ???

Hemorrhagic gastroenteritis. Its severe diarrhea, often bloody, and can result in loss of protein into the GI tract so fast that it causes shock. You can also see septic shock from bacteria getting into the bloodstream through the gut and bacterial toxins released into the GI tract.

Severe cases, like pancreatits, can result in death. When treated early the prognosis is excellent and most dogs make a full recovery with no long-term changes to overall health.

[HappyPuppy]

We got lucky with a mild case and were able to bring Ruby home just now. That is a relief. They left the IV catheter in and we go back in the morning for another round of fluids. Sent me home with tramadol and an esophagus/stomach coating pill and 12 cans of HIlls low fat i/d. She is perkier but still kind of tired and not fully herself yet. Damn pancreatitis!!! I was surprised to see how many cases are 'around' when I did a search on this forum = 19 pages! Maybe we should make a sticky!!

[Nickdawg]

glad she is ok- Nick had 3 rounds of pancretitis or similar gastro... yikes ! I was greatful for my pet insurance!

[Ilovethepits]

I am glad that your Ruby is home but so sorry she is suffering from pancreatitis. I will keep you in my healing thoughts.

[Leslie H]

Keep on getting better Ruby.

[mtlu]

Aww, I hope Ruby bounces back to her old self super fast!

[HappyPuppy]

Thanks everyone for your good thoughts. She thinks she is well now - kept bringing me her tennis ball last nite when I refused to play with her. She is demanding breakfast now and I think we can stop the tramadol (gave her a morning one and one at dinner yesterday). We skipped our normal morning walk again this morning but will likely go again tomorrow. A poop last nite and one this morning - that were perfect! Vet said we can return to regular food after the 12 cans of i/d -- I have a third of a bag left of Nature's Domain salmon and sweet potato (kirkland/diamond @ 14% fat) but when that is gone, I'm going to upgrade back to something better.... She's had bad eye boogers on this stuff.

I thought we were immune to pancreatitis with ol' iron gut here -- I'm still not sure how a bone with no marrow caused that...... Pigs ear on Fri, bully stick Sat and rib bone/kidney/piece of duck jerky on Sat nite and then puke Sunday morning with rest of bone later on Sun and downhill and puking after that.... I think I'll stop the rib bones altogether (or take them away as soon as the meat is gone) - I hadn't really been buying them anyway because they're so hard but a 'sale' got to me -- you would not (or maybe you would) believe the splintering of toothpicks from the rib bone in her barfings..... How could that NOT have upset her system?!?

[jamielvsaustin]

Poor honey, glad to hear she's on the mend.

[Misskiwi67]

Thanks everyone for your good thoughts. She thinks she is well now - kept bringing me her tennis ball last nite when I refused to play with her. She is demanding breakfast now and I think we can stop the tramadol (gave her a morning one and one at dinner yesterday). We skipped our normal morning walk again this morning but will likely go again tomorrow. A poop last nite and one this morning - that were perfect! Vet said we can return to regular food after the 12 cans of i/d -- I have a third of a bag left of Nature's Domain salmon and sweet potato (kirkland/diamond @ 14% fat) but when that is gone, I'm going to upgrade back to something better.... She's had bad eye boogers on this stuff.

I thought we were immune to pancreatitis with ol' iron gut here -- I'm still not sure how a bone with no marrow caused that...... Pigs ear on Fri, bully stick Sat and rib bone/kidney/piece of duck jerky on Sat nite and then puke Sunday morning with rest of bone later on Sun and downhill and puking after that.... I think I'll stop the rib bones altogether (or take them away as soon as the meat is gone) - I hadn't really been buying them anyway because they're so hard but a 'sale' got to me -- you would not (or maybe you would) believe the splintering of toothpicks from the rib bone in her barfings..... How could that NOT have upset her system?!?

If you are doing a home prepared diet, I would recommend working with a nutritionist to formulate a diet.

If you are doing a dry diet, dogs with pancreatitis should have VERY low fat foods. Prescription diets have 8% fat, and you should aim for as close to 10% as possible. Once a dog has pancreatitis, it will be at risk for recurrence for life, and the next episode won't necessarily be as easy to get your dog through...