Bright yellow throw up?

[Bernardlover]

My dog throws up bright yellow liquid about once a week..theres never any food with it, just the yellow liquid. What causes this? I took him to the vet and he needs to get x-rays because she hears popping on one of his hips....she said throwing up like this is not normal so they want to find out what causes this.

Another question....where I live is a very bad enviroment....the people upstairs have big screaming wars and throw things and smack each other around. Could that have an effect on my dog? i know it stresses the crap out of me. He doesnt get excited about food at all, infact hes lost 10 pounds since we last took him.....this is not normal for a year old saint. Hes only 130 pounds now. His hair falls out alot..more than just shedding.

Hopefully we are moving out of this house soon(we find out next wednesday if its sold) and we will be moving to a nice quiet place...I hope that gets him better:(

[joce]

If there is no food in it it means his stomach is empty. Try feeding him more small meals a day. when my dobe was younger I would give him a tiny bit right before we went to bed and a tiny bit right when getting up. Now he is fine on two to three a day.

And what are you feeding him? food affects the coat a lot.

[Melissa_W]

It's good that you've taken him to the vet. My dog and I have been struggling with a similar situation, he throws up every 2-3 weeks. Luckily he is not losing weight like your boy.

What food is your dog eating? He could have food allergies/intolerances. I've manipulated my dogs diet and seen some improvement. Does he fast before he gets sick? How many times are you feeding him per day? As Joce said, an empty stomach can cause vomiting in some dogs.

Just to give you an idea of the treatment plan we're on, we've had bloodwork, x-rays, and parasite testing done. All the results were normal. Now, he's being treated with Panacur, just to completely rule out parasites. Next he'll be treated for Helicobacter. If that doesn't help you either go on a food trial or have an endoscopy done. I hope you don't have to go through all that, but that is the sequence of things.

Did you get your Saint from a breeder? If so, I would talk to him/her about your dogs history. My dog has no family history of IBD or gastrointestinal disorders. Accordingly, we will probably have an endoscopy done if he doesn't show improvement soon, as his breeder thinks that he may have an obstruction or intestinal stricture in the small intestine that doesn't show up on the x-rays.

I hope you get it figured out. I wish you the best of luck. Keep us updated!

[Bernardlover]

thanks everyone for the replies

mack eats Innova large/giant breed puppy food. He doesnt have a set feeding time or limit...i just fill his dish when its empty. He never eats all of it...just till hes full and then comes back later on when hes hungry later on. He doesnt get (much) people food...maybe a fry here or there. and he gets pig ears for a treat once and a while.

I will ask the breeder about history of this sort of thing. Cause his bernard buddy Max..is only 2 months older and pushing 170 lbs....I know its not right to compare dogs but 40 pounds is a big difference...

[Melissa_W]

hmm... Yeah, I would definitely let the breeder know what's going on. You did the right thing taking him to the vet, especially when you consider his weight loss. It could be many things, but I hope it's nothing too serious. Let us know what you find out.

[Roxy's CD]

Roxy went on a trip with the same thing a few months back.

Bright yellow, sometimes foamy bile.

As joce said, and that's what I was told as well, is sometimes when their stomache is empty, they'll puke up the bile.

When does this happen?

With Roxy it was always first thing in the morning. So what I started doing was right before bed feeding her a small meal, or just something, so she wouldn't be absolutely starving come morning time.

[Bernardlover]

well i got the call from the vet, his blood was normal. So thats good. Im thinking his throwing up/hair/weight loss is due to the stress of living here. Hes got to listen to the crap upstairs too...and bernards have such human like feelings lol We go tonight to sign papers for the sale of this house (yay!!) and then we will be moving back to British Columbia so maybe that will help out....to have his own space and a dog friend.

Hes got x-rays for his hip next satuday so I am going to call the breeder and let her know and she whats shes got to say.

thanks again everyone

[Saintgirl]

Sounds like stomach bile. I wouldn't worry about Mack only being 130lbs at a year, that sounds like a great weight for your boy, 170lbs at a year is way too big for a year old puppy, Saints should grow nice and slow. They can continue to grow up until 2-3 years, and the slower the better. 170lbs on a still growing pup is a lot of stress on the growing joints. Don't worry about how big how fast because your boy will reach his final height and weight in the end whether he gets their slowly or quickly.

I agree that if you feed him a couple of times a day you may see an end to the bile. Put his food down and wait 10-15 minutes and then take it up. Mack will get the point soon enough. Eat or don't!. It's best that Saints get on a regular feeding schedule anyway, bloat is a major concern!

A couple questions about his popping hip. Have you seen him show any lameness? Has he favored it at all? Popping is not an uncommon sound, although not one that you want to hear, in a still growing puppy. I would hold off on x-rays untill he is 2 at least, unless of course he is showing lameness. Until he is 2, it is difficult to make a call about the condition of the joint unless like I already have said, it is a health concern at the moment.

[Melissa_W]

How long has this been going on? Did you see a sudden change in his eating habits, or was it gradual?

I'm glad his blood work was normal. The move will probably stress him out at first, but I'm sure he'll love his new place.

[Steponme]

I would think your situation upstairs would and probably is stressing him out. Dogs don't like to hear people yelling and making loud noises. I hope he gets better soon. Poor baby. Good luck.

[DanL]

It sounds like there is a lot going on with your poor pup. As far as the yellow barf goes, Gunnar does that from time to time, maybe not once a week but close to it. I don't really worry about it because he's healthy. With the other factors you mentioned- weight loss, hair loss, those are serious. Good luck, I hope everything works out.

[Bernardlover]

thanks everyone :)

I hope thats all it is, is stress. I hope when we move to our new place, where it will just be the dog and I(hubby will stay here to work) it will get better for him.
another thing...his bernard friend Max also had blood tests this week and both his and my dogs protien count was down by one point...from where it should be. i wonder why it would be the same on both of them?

His hips make a noise..i dont know how to explain it...but its like a pop and a SNAP its really loud when he stands up...so i dont know if thats normal? it doesnt sound good, thats for sure.