Puppy issues...

[mykee]

Ok guys, here goes: I'm having issues with my puppy. Seems every five days or so almost like clockwork, she vomits. Nothing much more than that, and she eats it almost immediately but it's usually between 3-5 am in the morning. Ocassionally it's been during the day, but very rarely.
Originally, her vets and I thought that because she's had a stubborn bladder infection (and puppy vaginitis) for the last six weeks that that, added to the three courses of antibiotics shes been on have destroyed the flora in her belly, causing her to be sick. So we had her on an acidophilus powder for two weeks, and the vomiting persisted.
She's now been off the antibiotics for 10 days and still every 5 days or so, pukey.

Anyone have any suggestions? I'm at wits end here, it's very stressful to be awoken at 5 am to a heaving puppy.
I'll try to give you all some more detail as to avoid some questions you might have:
She is eating five meals a day (soaked for 10 mins.) under the assumption that the easier it is for her belly to digest the food, the less stress on her system.
She is being fed at the same time every day; first meal at 8 am last meal at 6 pm. and every 2.5 hours in between.
She is eating a vet formula food: Medi-Cal Puppy Gastro.

[jarich]

Does your puppy have access to food overnight? Ive heard with certain types of dogs that if they have an empty stomach for too long that they vomit up the bile in their stomach. Just a thought as it usually happens in the early morning you said.

[mykee]

No, just her set meals. The vet suggested making her last meal hard so that it takes longer to digest, so that when she does throw up, it's not just bile; it's food.
That is the case now. The middle of the night puke is always food that gets eaten almost the moment it's brought up.
I will add that the only being this is stressing out is me; Gracie (who is a 14 week old chocolate lab by the way) is unfazed by this behavior; pukes, eats it, and continues on with her sleep or play (if its daytime).
She is neither lethargic, lazy or slow. She's a happy go lucky, energetic puppy.

[jarich]

That is a little weird. The only other thing I could think of was Parvo, but then it would be showing other signs like lethargy and what not. Allergy maybe? The regularity of every five days would have to make it something that is only available in those intervals. Is that maybe your garbage day or the day you give her a special treat or something?

Labs usually have such good stomachs too. My neighbours had two labs, and when my freezer gave out while I was on holidays once, he fed all the rotten meat to the labs. I could barely stand the smell of it, but those dogs sucked it back like candy. I thought for sure they would be puking all over the yard, but werent even fazed by it.

[mykee]

She was tested against Parvo (she had Giardia when we got her; since treated).
As well, she has never been offered a treat, she has only ever eaten her own food and nothing else. I have been very adamant about that, trying to eliminate anything other than her own food for allergy reasons.
My 10 year old chocolate can also eat anything, so I am bit confused as to Gracies tummy issues.

[SpOoKy]

I have a lab/boxer mix who is now 2 years old but had the same issue when he was young. His was more a problem of eating too quickly. I ended up feeding him on a cookie sheet so it slows him down. I also cooked up a little bit of rice to give him, always seemed to settle his stomach fine.

[Pareeeee]

I've seen this happen with puppies who are given a chew toy on an empty stomach. They swallow so much air that they end up vomiting.

[mykee]

Good points both of you, but Gracie is fed in a dish with three hard balls in it so it literally takes her three minutes to finish her meal (trust me, a LOOOONG time for a lab).
Also, would the swallowing too much air take 7 or 8 hours to work up a puke? Seems like a long time..
Spooky, did your pup vomit in the middle of the night as well?

[Terranaut]

I would suggest splitting you pups meals up. So same total amount but divide it in 1/2. Give one meal in the am and the other 12hrs later. This will keep the pup from having an empty stomach. Typicaly people use pumpkin pie filling to help with soft poops but it can help some minnor stomach issues as well.
A couple questions.
When he throws up does he salivate just before?
Does he drink imediately after the yak?
A little regurge of food is usually nothing and pups do it quite often but a full on vomit with drool first can indicate puppy distemper and needs a vet visit. Typically the dog would not be very active if its illness.
Undigested food that long after eating is strange. Maybe you should try a semi hard food or soft to help it through the stomach. Sounds like this pup has been though quite a bit so far. I am sure you will resolve it.
Good luck. Hope it fixes itself asap.

[mykee]

Terranaut; she is already getting five small meals a day.
Soaked in warm water for 10 mins prior to her eating.
No salivating prior to vomiting.
I know; confusing.
Thanks for your suggestions.

[Terranaut]

Originally Posted by mykee

Terranaut; she is already getting five small meals a day.
Soaked in warm water for 10 mins prior to her eating.
No salivating prior to vomiting.
I know; confusing.
Thanks for your suggestions.

Sorry I missed that. I skimmed through it pretty quick.
Ok I will try this as if it were a snake question
Lab pup right?
Humidity?(lol just kidding)
Have you taken the dogs temp?
Honnestly if no fever (nothing over 103) no drool no loss of weight = no worries.
I am not big on messing with stomach bacterias and would not give any but thats just me. Double check that your total food is the right amount by weight of the pup. 5 meals seems excessive to me I personaly think 2 is fine but again thats just my opinion.
Pups can do wierd things like this and it may go away without any explanation at all. I would not be worried unless the pup losses weight, fever,liquid stool,lethargic or if there was blood in either the puke or stool.
Can u post a side shot of the pooch standing from about the height of his spine?

[mykee]

No worries.
Yes, lab pup. 14 weeks old.
I'm currently giving her (at the vets recommendation) 5 small meals of 3 cups total.
Been to the vet 6 times in as many weeks and her temp is one of the first things they always check; always dead on normal.
No drool.
No weight loss; to the contrary: (8 weeks - 12.4 lbs, and at 14 weeks - 25.6 lbs.)
No blood in stool or vomit.
No diarrhea.
Always playful and alert, never lethargic or lazy.

[SpOoKy]

He did vomit in the night for a while, but then he stopped.
I did start giving him some rice to help with it. Not sure if that is what did it or not or if it was something he just got over on his own. From what I remember, i think he was younger than yours though.

[mykee]

That's good to know Spooky, thanks. She's currently almost 14 weeks old and she's been puking since we got her at 8 weeks of age.
It's good to hear someone else who's kinda been through the same thing offering advice. Gives me hope that everything will turn out ok.

[alessia55]

My Miko had a very similar issue; sometimes it was 2 days in row, then 5 days later again. He was also eating up the vomited food immediately after and going on with his day as if nothing had happened. I'm not sure why your vet is so concerned... this is pretty common for puppies. Sometimes playing too much can rile up the stomach, they vomit, eat it, and go on playing. Even if it's in the middle of the night, which is what Miko used to do (I'd wake up to the heaving sound, put him down, he'd vomit, eat it, and return to sleeping as if nothing had happened), I still wouldn't worry. My vet said it was normal, I had a second vet tell me it's normal, and I've seen puppies of all ages have this issue. It will eventually resolve itself. Miko is now 5mos (he had the issue from 8wks to 4mos old). Baloo, our second pup, is having a similar issue too (though not as constant). If she's eating, pooping, playing, and sleeping well, there's not much to worry about. Just chalk it up to puppy-ness, IMO.

I will say, however, that 5 meals a day is probably too frequent. I was giving Miko 6 meals a day when he was younger, and when I switched to 3, the problem got MUCH better. Has she been on Medi-Cal Gastro Puppy since you got her? Or is she typically on something else? The kind of food can also matter. Some dogs can be allergic to a certain ingredient in their kibble (for example, Miko is allergic to grains, so he eats grain-free kibble now). So maybe switching to a new food might help figure out if it's an allergy of some sort. If you do this (and it's not a bad idea if you want to rule out allergies!), remember to switch over slowly... 3/4 regular food, 1/4 new food, then 1/2 regular, 1/2 new, etc. over the course of 2 weeks so as to not upset the stomach even more. I'm not familiar with Medi-Cal, but here is a good way to rate the quality of your kibble:

Start with a grade of 100 points

For every listing of "by-product", subtract 10 points
For every non-specific animal source reference, such as "meat" or "poultry", meat, meal or fat, (not to be confused with actual protein source stated such as chicken, lamb, turkey etc), subtract 10 points
If the food contains BHA, BHT, or ethoxyquin, subtract 10 points for each
For every grain "mill run" or non-specific grain source subtract 5 points
If the same grain ingredient is used 2 or more times in the first five ingredients (i.e. "ground brown rice", "brewer's rice", "rice flour" are all the same grain), subtract 5 points
If the protein sources are not meat meal and there are less than 2 meats in the top 3 ingredients, subtract 3 points
If it contains any artificial colorants or preservatives, subtract 3 points for each
If it contains corn (ground corn, corn gluten, whole grain corn etc) subtract 3points
If corn is listed in the top 5 ingredients, subtract 2 more points
If the food contains any added animal fat other than fish or flaxseed oil, subtract 2 points
If lamb is the only animal protein source, subtract 2 points
If it contains soy or soybeans, subtract 2 points
If it contains wheat, or components of wheat such as gluten, subtract 2 points
If it contains "digest", subtract 5 points
If it contains salt, subtract 1 point

Extra Credit Bonus Points:

If any of the meat sources are organic, add 5 points
If the protein source is meal vs meat, add 5 points
If the food is baked not extruded, add 5 points
If the food contains probiotics or prebiotics, add 3 points
If the food contains fruit, add 3 points
If the food contains vegetables (NOT corn or other grains), add 3 points
If the animal sources are hormone-free and antibiotic-free, add 2 points
If the food contains barley, add 2 points
If the food contains flax seed oil (not just the seeds), add 2 points
If the food contains oats or oatmeal, add 1 point
If the food contains sunflower oil, add 1 point
For every different specific animal protein source (other than the first one; count "chicken" and "chicken meal" as only one protein source, but "chicken" and "fish" as 2 different sources), add 1 point
If it contains glucosamine and chondroitin, add 1 point
If the vegetables have been tested for pesticides and are pesticide-free, add 1 point
Bonus credit - If the food contains NO grains, add 10 points

Kibble's Quality Score:

100 + = A+ (Excellent Kibble Quality!)
94-100 = A
86-93 = B
78-85 = C
70-77 = D
69-below = F (FAILED - Very Poor Kibble Quality)

Grade A+ (Excellent Kibble Quality!)

Timberwolf Organics Lamb and Venison / Score 136 A+
Innova Evo / Score 129 A+
Solid Gold Bison / Score 123 A+
**** Van Patten's Natural Balance Ultra Premium / Score 122 A+
Eagle Pack Holistic / Score 119 A+
Canidae / Score 117 A+
Wellness Just for Puppy / Score 117 A+
Authority Harvest Baked / Score 116 A+
Chicken Soup Senior / Score 115 A+
Eagle Pack Holistic Chicken / Score 114 A+
Innova Dog / Score 114 A+
Natural Balance Duck and Potato / Score 114 A+
Foundations / Score 111 A+
Kirkland Signature (Diamond Super Premium) Chicken, Rice, and Vegetables / Score 110 A+
Wellness Super5 Mix Chicken / Score 110 A+
Kirkland Signature Puppy (Diamond Super Premium) Chicken, Rice and Vegetable / Score 108 A+
**** Van Patten's Duck and Potato / Score 106 A+
Royal Canin Natural Blend Adult / Score 106 A+
ProPlan Natural Turkey & Barley / Score 103 A+
Flint River Ranch / Score 102 A+
Wolfking Adult Dog (bison) by Solid Gold / Score 102 A+

Grade A

Hund-n-Flocken Adult Dog (lamb) by Solid Gold / Score 100 A
Royal Canin Bulldog / Score 100 A
Diamond Large Breed 60+ Formula / Score 99 A
Royal Canin Dachshund 28 Formula / Score 97 A
Sensible Choice Chicken and Rice / Score 97 A
Eagle Pack Large and Giant Breed Puppy / Score 94 A
Eagle Pack Natural / Score 94 A

Do you take her out a lot? At 14 weeks she's probably had her first 3 sets of DHPP vaccines (including parvo), but isn't considered fully vaccinated until her 4th set (usually at 4mos, at which time they usually give the rabies vaccine too). She might be eating little things outside that might be upsetting her stomach (some pups just have sensitive tracts). If my Miko eats just a few cat food kibbles, he'll have diarrhea shortly after.

Some other things to consider... has she been dewormed? Sometimes puppies who have worms or who are undergoing the deworming process, might vomit often. This sounds gross, but you might want to consider looking through her vomit (before she eats it up again) to see if you can find any worms. It may be as little as 1 or 2 in there. It's worth checking (I know I did!!).

Even though she's been off the antibiotics for some days now, it can take a while for the body to readjust, and vomiting every few days in this process is also typical.

Best of luck, keep us posted