Morning Sickness....??? - Page 1

         Question,,,,This is not something that happens frequently, but the fact that it happens only in the morning is what I find peculiar.  Usually between 7-8am....a couple times a month..My 9 month old male GSD vomits up a small amount of yellow bile. I am usually getting out of bed and awake to the sound of his retching in his cage next to me. It usually ends up being two small spots...I open the cage and let him out and it's like it never happened. He is absolutely healthy in every other way. 

                            I feed him Pinnacle Trout and Sweet Potato mixed 1:1 ratio with Natural Balance, Sweet Potato and Fish. I sprinkle in TOTW Roasted Fowl and Chicken Soup for the Puppy Lovers Soul, in a  much smaller ratio amount. I soak the kibble until it is completely softened and add one small cube of fresh frozen Primal Chicken. .......He gets about a cup and a half of kibble ( measured dry ) 3 times a day...

                           Stool is perfect, coat is beautiful ....Only this morning vomiting about twice a month ...??  Anyone else have this experience..???...Any suggestions...???

                                             Thanks, Deanna.....:)

 He's hungry. Bile happens on an empty stomach. I would guess, since you're feeding him 3x a day (BTW, I would say he's plenty old enough to stop that) that his stomoach is accustomed to always having food in it, which, in actuality is NOT biologically appropriate for a carnivore. 

 Agreed.  Feed him just twice a day, and try giving him the last feed slightly later.

 One thing I missed- I would strongly consider not feeding him raw w/his kibble, and actually, there are studies that show soaking can increase bloat instances instead of decreasing, like they used to tell us to do. Who knows? But at least in terms of the raw, feed it by itself, or don't feed it. 

           jenni78..   Thanks for the feedback..

Oso...When you say slightly later, about what time do you suggest he eat his last meal?

                                                       

" He's hungry. Bile happens on an empty stomach."

Yep.

        Keith and Jenn,,, I want to be sure I understand your point. Is he hungry because he is use to eating often..? Or, are you suggesting he is not getting enough to eat  ? I assume it is the first reason, but want to be sure. ....Is it a matter of getting his body use to having an empty stomach?         

 The first reason. A dog's system is not designed to eat 3x a day. How often do you think a wolf eats? They are designed to eat a fairly large portion at once, and then not eat again for a while...sometimes days. I fast my dogs once a week, but that's controversial. At any rate, I would slowly add time in between feedings if he has a sensitive stomach; if he doesn't, then l'd just switch him to one or two meals a day, cold turkey. Or scale back- two, then one...and see how he does. He may just be one of those who needs to eat later at night or very early in the morning. My guess is that his stomach has just gotten used to food too often, and now is over-reacting when it goes several hours w/out it. 

FWIW, I had a female who did this when she was young; she outgrew it. If she threw up bile, I always fed her then, but I didn't permanently alter her feeding schedule. If I eat all day every day, I feel hungry at the times I'm used to eating, even though there is no good reason for me to eat all day, every day ;-p

Agree with Jenni78.

I also fast once a week and have a bile puker. She will only puke on the nights we fast or if she eats a mostly raw diet ( they digest raw faster)

Melissa

    I will change him over to twice daily,

          As far as the soaking goes, I soak it completely...It is like soft food. I was under the impression that the expanding of the kibble is what causes bloat. If the kibble is fully expanded then the risk of bloat is unlikely?? Also, wouldn't  the same holds true for feeding kibble with raw. Raw and kibble have different digesting times. However, if the kibble is soft, then it would have the same digesting time as the raw...???  Thoughts....

                                                                 Deanna...: )

             Where is Mudwick,,,,he always had good information....