Tummy troubles happen to everyone including our best friends. Here’s what to look for when your dog is feeling sick and what you can do to help.
Symptoms
Many common symptoms will be easy to spot as they’re noticeable physical changes, but keep a look out for signs of behavioural distress as well.
- Vomiting and/or diarrhea/soft stool
- Blood in vomit or stool
- Eating grass
- Coughing/dry heaving
- Excess gas
- Excess thirst
- Dehydration (check elasticity by gently pinching a small section of skin together – skin that flattens quickly again is good, but skin that moves slowly or does not reform indicates dehydration)
- Refusal to eat
Causes
There are a few different reasons your pup might have an upset tummy: changes in weather or season, aging, allergies, eating too much, or eating too quickly are a few examples. However, the most common cause for stomach distress is likely because your dog ate something unfamiliar or unhealthy. It’s important to keep track of what’s been ingested by your pup as this can help with treatment.
Take a look at some of our previous blog posts to get a better idea of common toxic household items and foods:
Vet Visits
An occasional sick stomach is usually nothing to be worried about. That being said, it’s important to be able to distinguish if your pup’s illness is serious or not. If your dog has been sick for a prolonged amount of time (more than a couple of days) or if their symptoms worsen, then it’s time for professional help. Look for unusual behaviour beyond the symptoms listed above such as anxious pacing or panting, lethargy, excess drooling, dehydration, and inability to vomit. It can be tricky evaluating whether or not the symptoms are severe, so better safe than sorry! Help from your vet can never hurt.
Remedies
If you’ve determined that your dog’s ailment is mild, then there are a few home remedies to try.
Fasting: It sounds harsh, but cleansing your pooch’s system is usually the first and best option. Restrict all food for 12 to 24 hours, and allow access only to fresh water. Hopefully this will flush out whatever is upsetting their tummy. After the allotted amount of time has passed, slowly reintroduce their food in small amounts. If they fall back into discomfort, this is a pretty good indicator that their food is causing some problems.
Food additions: Rice, pumpkin, sweet potato, oatmeal, and banana are some gentle foods that can help calm a sore stomach. It’s a good idea to either feed these ingredients by themselves or mix them in with a small portions of their regular food.
Re-hydrate: Not exactly a cure, but it is essential that you keep your pup hydrated. If they’ve been throwing up or if they have the runs, they’re going to be losing important fluids, and dehydration can creep up faster than you think. Allow access to fresh water at all times. You can also try giving them ice cubes, or watered down, low sodium beef or chicken broth.
When our dogs have upset tummies, it can seem like the scariest thing. They don’t always know how to tell us they’re hurting, and they don’t know how to tell us why. However, with the proper observation and consideration, it’s easy to make sure your dog gets the best treatment possible.
Image source 1: http://deepwoodveterinaryclinic.com/dogs-and-cats/sick-pet-services/
Image source 2: http://www.bestelkantlers.com/causes-of-a-dogs-upset-stomach
Image source 3: http://weruletheinternet.com/2011/03/02/21-pictures-of-dogs-tucked-in-for-bed/