Joey throwing up
 

Fist off I'm starting with Joey is going to the Vet Thursday. He is throwing up at least once a week at this point maybe every other week if we are lucky. At first it seemed to just be bile and I thought maybe his tummy was empty but it happens other times to and food comes up. It is not regurgitation it is actual vomit. Sometimes its yellow, and other times its white with food or a treat. Obviously I'm am very worried and not sure what is going on. Sometimes he gets very gassy and seems like he will not poo for a day or two. He also goes through phases where he eats great but then just doesn't want to. I have been sitting at my computer researching things for hours and just have no idea. I'm worried. Sometimes he will be more attached then normal when he is acting like he doesn't feel good. He just turned 2 and everything had been going well. He is almost due for blood work anyway so I was going to go ahead and have that done and talk about doing a Bile Acid Test but there are big issues with that too he will cry the whole time he is at the vet and I doubt he will eat for them. He is very sensitive so I'm just so worried. I just want to make sure I have a list of things to ask about that it might be so if anyone has any thoughts about that or ideas that would be greatly appreciated. Thoughts and prayers are also appreciated.

Has your vet done BATs yet? That would be the first thing I would think of.

Beyond that, an internal med specialist who can ultrasound and scope if necessary. Something is definitely up with him....

I just reread it....Taylor the vets are used to all types of pups...they can get BATs done on him.

He is such a mama's boy I feel terrible leaving him but I'm definitely going to ask about it.

He doesn't have to be there that long.

I'm sorry to hear your little guy is dealing with this. I really can't offer anything other than my good thoughts for this to be something easily fixed, and a speedy recovery time if it comes to that.

Hmmmm....ya know what comes to mind for me...possible gastric ulcers, mostly bc the symptoms are rather random in nature - can be full or empty tummy and bile/no-bile - and that's rather stomach-ulcer like.

Running bloods is always good, of course. But I almost think if it were me, I might first try a trial of Sucralfate prior to anything else -- almost just to have that diagnostic info *first* - ya know what I mean...?

And have you already tried Pepcid? I mean, I realize it's probably not GERD, but still - have you tried it BID?

Also, see this article for GI-duodenal ulcers.

But really importantly maybe - see this one to see how to culture for Heliobacter in dogs.

I am just going to put this out here....when my Teddy was diagnosed with a liver shunt he was much older. There had been no typical symptoms and no alterations in any of his blood work over 7 years...he had blood drawn yearly. I will post the link here....I was stunned and learned so much more about shunts than I knew previously. The ONLY symptom I missed was that he could be finicky at times about food and he would vomit occasionally but nothing I thought was a concern and you all know how I am about going to the vet.

http://www.yorkietalk.com/forums/sic...ver-shunt.html

Additionally, Dr. Tobias has all of the symptoms in this brochure that I find to be so detailed and informative. I always share it with people who suspect or have pups with diagnosed shunts.

https://vetmed.tennessee.edu/vmc2/Do...D-Brochure.pdf

This is from the above link...pay special attention to the bolded sentences....

Clinical signs of dogs with congenital
portosystemic shunts (PSS)
Animals with congenital PSS often present at a young
age, unless blood flow through the shunt is small or
intermittent. Dogs with congenital PSS are often small
in size and have poor muscle mass and hair coats;
breeders may note they are the “runts” of the litter.
Most commonly these dogs have behavior changes
such as weakness, a quiet demeanor, or dull attitude.
Occasionally neurologic signs can be more severe,
particularly if blood sugar is low or if excessive amounts
of protein are consumed. In those instances, the dogs
may pace, circle, act blind, press their heads against
the wall, or even have seizures. Because the liver is no
longer efficiently processing ammonia from proteins,
large amounts of the toxin are excreted into the kidneys
and bladder where the ammonia can concentrate
into spikey crystals (ammonium biurate crystals) or
condense into stones (urate stones) that are not visible
on plain x-rays. Both crystals and stones will result
in urinary tract inflammation and infection. Dogs
with congenital PSS may also urinate more frequently,
and therefore drink more, because they lose the ability
to concentrate their urine. Occasionally dogs will be
nauseous, causing poor appetite, vomiting, or excessive
salivation. Some dogs may even develop stomach ulcers.[/COLOR]
Neurologic and gastrointestinal signs can vary from day
to day. (Figure 1)
Clinical Signs & Diagnosis
C

-----------------------
I am NOT saying Joey has a shunt. I am just saying if he were mine I would rule it out to be on the safe side. More than likely it is not; but, it is a cheap, non invasive test. Stomach issues can be a royal pain in the backside to figure out...before I even went there I would rule out a shunt just because this is a yorkie.

They moved his appointment up to 4:20pm today so I will talk to the vet about all of it. It's so weird with him he will go several days eating pretty good and then wham doesn't want to eat much and just picks for days. There has to be something up so I plan to not to stop until we figure it out. I don't know how yall do it with the little tiny ones because at 10 pounds he seems sooooo small especially when he is sick. I will update yall when I get back.

Just remember, most general vets think liver shunts have symptoms or changes in blood work. Mine was shocked when Teddy was diagnosed

Ok so they did a large blood panel and got samples of his poo and urine to send off as well. She thinks it could be whipworms or possibly Addison’s. She gave us a dewormer and the Purina probiotics to try until we get the results back. If nothing shows up then we are going to do a BAT.

It would be great for something simple like worms.

Yeah, I never thought I would be praying for worms lol

:lol tears: I hear that!

:eek::D:thumbup: