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Why Is My Vizsla Throwing Up? (7 Causes & What To Do)

A nauseous Vizsla may be unable to keep their food down, turn their nose up to food in general, and feel generally unwell for hours on end. This article explains the likely causes behind vomiting and what you need to know to help your Vizsla recover. 

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Is My Vizsla Really Vomiting?

Before discussing what could cause an upset stomach in your Vizsla, it’s important to first understand if your Vizsla is truly vomiting or not. While you may think vomiting in dogs is pretty self-explanatory, you may be surprised to learn that you can easily confuse vomiting with other actions. 

Vomiting in dogs can often be confused with two unrelated actions; coughing or regurgitation. Both actions can produce fluid or other material coming from the mouth, leading Vizsla owners to assume their dog is vomiting. 

Tips on identifying when your Vizsla is vomiting, regurgitating, or coughing.

When your Vizsla vomits, you will see a full-body motion that involves the abdomen. You will often see their abdominal muscles contracting multiple times, accompanied by gulping that matches each abdominal movement. Vomit is then produced immediately after these movements. 

If your Vizsla is regurgitating versus vomiting, there will be a few key movements that are missing. A regurgitating dog will bring up the contents of their stomach without any abdominal contractions, often soon after eating. Most dogs will act completely normal after the occurrence as well, as it is not often accompanied by nausea. 

Severe coughing in Vizslas can also be confused with vomiting in some cases. Dogs with a severe cough may hack up small amounts of fluid after their coughing episodes, even retching when these fluids are produced. Coughing will not involve any abdominal contractions, and you will often hear a loud hack or honk during their episode. 

If you are ever confused on whether or not your Vizsla is vomiting, you can always attempt to film the episode and show your veterinarian. They should be able to better identify the action, and determine the best plan of action going forward. 

7 Possible Reasons Your Vizsla Is Vomiting

If your Vizsla is suddenly vomiting, you are likely searching for any possible explanation behind their GI upset. To help you better understand your dog’s current stomach grumbles, let’s list some of the most common causes below. 

1. Eating Things They Shouldn’t

When your Vizsla eats something they shouldn’t, this is referred to as dietary indiscretion. Dietary indiscretion can include eating anything from fatty foods to items in the trash, often throwing off the bacterial balance within their gut. Because their gut balance can be disturbed when eating things they shouldn’t, this can often lead to GI upset. 

2. Bacterial Infections

Our Vizsla companions come in contact with multiple forms of bacteria each day. Bacteria can be found in the soil beneath their paws, on their favorite toys, and even hiding within their water bowl. This bacteria can easily find its way to your dog’s GI tract, resulting in an array of GI symptoms to follow. 

3. Intestinal Parasites

Intestinal parasites are a common cause of vomiting and diarrhea in our Vizsla friends. Intestinal parasites burrow into the lining of a dog’s GI tract, resulting in serious GI upset for most canine friends. 

Worms can easily be transmitted to your dog if they are not on monthly heartworm prevention, as these medications often include ingredients that kill intestinal parasites as well. Some of the most common intestinal parasites in dogs include roundworms, hookworms, whipworms, coccidia, and giardia.

4. Intestinal Blockages

Vizslas are curious pups, and they are known to get their paws on things they shouldn’t. If your furry friend consumes something that is inedible or difficult to digest, this can result in an intestinal blockage. 

When a dog has an intestinal blockage, this makes it difficult for digested material to pass through the GI tract. If material cannot flow freely through the intestines, this often results in vomiting. 

5. Infectious GI Illness

Infectious GI illness can lead to vomiting or diarrhea in our Vizsla friends. Contagious viruses and bacteria can find their way into a dog’s life in many ways, especially if your Vizsla spends time in public settings. 

These contagious illnesses can be present in the soil, on contaminated surfaces, or in any form of canine excretions or wastes. This is why it is so important to vaccinate your Vizsla as recommended by your veterinarian, as this can prevent multiple health complications down the line. 

6. Toxicities

A toxicity refers to the consumption of any item that is not approved for our canine friends. A potentially toxic substance for dogs can be anything from human medication to certain food items, often leading to serious health complications if they are consumed in excess. 

When a dog eats something toxic, this can lead to an array of GI symptoms to follow. Vomiting is one of the most common symptoms in toxicities of all kinds, as damage to any body system can result in nausea.

Some of the toxic substances for dogs that you may find in your home include grapes, chocolate, human medications, caffeine, household cleaners, essential oils, and more. If you think your Vizsla came in contact with anything potentially toxic, we suggest contacting your vet immediately. 

7. Other Medical Conditions

Vomiting in Vizslas can be a symptom of multiple underlying illnesses. Ranging from GI conditions to metabolic disease, a vomiting pup can point to an array of potential health complications. 

The potential for your Vizslas vomiting being caused by underlying illness is why it’s so important to seek veterinary care if the issue doesn’t resolve within 12 to 24 hours. Your vet can perform a series of diagnostics that can rule out any serious complications and put together the best treatment plan possible.

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My Vizsla Puppy Is Vomiting

While vomiting should be taken seriously in your Vizsla, a vomiting Vizsla puppy should always be an immediate cause of concern. Throwing up can rapidly dehydrate a dog in general, but even more so in our growing canine friends. 

Not only is vomiting a huge concern, but so are the other forms of GI upset that often accompany their nausea. A vomiting pup may refuse to eat or drink, and this is extremely dangerous in puppies. Puppies require more nutrients throughout the day to keep up with their growing bodies, so any period without food can lead to serious complications. 

While one episode of vomiting in an adult Vizsla may not be the end of the world, it should warrant concern when it occurs in a puppy. We always suggest contacting your vet at the first sign of GI upset in a Vizsla puppy, as they can rapidly decline if it’s not addressed as soon as possible. 

Recommended read: Are vizslas good for allergy sufferers?

5 Safe Ways To Help Your Vomiting Vizsla At Home

If your Vizsla has vomited once, there are a few ways to soothe their stomach at home before visiting your veterinarian. These stomach-settling methods can be used as the first line of defense before contacting your veterinarian and may even settle their gurgling stomach for good. 

It’s important to note that if your Vizsla vomits more than once, you should skip over these options and give your vet a call! 

1. Fasting

Fasting can benefit some furry friends with an upset stomach. Fasting for 12 hours can help to give their stomach a break from digestion, as well as allow any unwanted bacteria or spoiled food to pass. 

It’s important to note that you should only attempt to fast adult dogs, or any dog that is free of any chronic medical conditions. If your dog continues to vomit throughout their fasting period, it’s best to reach out to your vet.

2. Bland Diets

If you have managed to put an end to your Vizslas vomiting at home, you will want to offer them a bland diet until their upset stomach resolves. Boiled chicken breast and white rice without any seasoning is easy on your dog’s stomach, and is tasty enough to encourage them to eat. 

3. Promoting Rest

Vizslas are energetic pups that have a hard time slowing down. Rest is essential when it comes to settling an upset stomach, and can help to speed up your pup’s healing process. Be sure to avoid any strenuous activity until their vomiting resolves, as well as encouraging them to rest as much as possible. 

4. Hydration

If your Vizsla is still able to keep water down, you will want to make sure they are staying as hydrated as possible. You can do this by adding water into their daily meals, as well as encouraging them to visit their water bowl frequently.

5. Starting Probiotics

Once your Vizslas stomach has begun to settle, they may benefit from the addition of probiotics to their daily diet. Probiotics can help to restore the balance of healthy bacteria within the gut, as well as promoting GI health going forward. If you are unsure of which probiotics are best for your pup, we suggest asking your vet about their preferred options. 

When To See The Vet

If your Vizsla is suddenly vomiting, you may wonder when it is time to ditch the at-home treatment and contact your vet. While treatments at home can help to settle any mild GI symptoms in dogs, some cases of GI upset will need medical intervention to resolve. 

If your Vizsla vomits more than once over a 24 hour period, we always suggest contacting your vet for further guidance. Multiple vomiting episodes can quickly dehydrate your dog, and can be dangerous to wait if any underlying illnesses are involved. This is especially true if your Vizsla is experiencing any other forms of GI upset as well. 

It is always better to be safe than sorry when it comes to your dog’s health. If at any point you are concerned, we always suggest giving your vet a call. 

Final Thoughts

An upset stomach is no fun in our canine friends, and often requires a bit of extra care on our part. Be sure to review the formation we discussed above, and you can soothe your pup’s upset stomach in no time!

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Disclaimer

Before making any decisions that could affect the health and/or safety of your dog, you should always consult a trained veterinarian in your local area. Even though this content may have been written/reviewed by a trained veterinarian, our advice to you is to always consult your own local veterinarian in person. Please read our full dislcaimer if you have any questions.