Help Needed! My 6 month old bully, boss, is sick

[Tara Lewerth]

Hey everyone! I am new to this site but any help would be greatly appreciated. As with any bulldog boss tries to chew and eat anything at all he is not supposed to even though our house is stocked top to bottom with toys for him. A few days ago he woke up around 4 am throwing up and continued that on and off for about 6 hours. Since then he went a day without getting sick but the last three days he has woken up very early in the morning, around 4am each time, thrown up once and then went back to sleep. Once he wakes up for the day he is extremely hyper. He does not get sick any other time of the day. When he throws up it's mostly yellow foam, no food. I took him to the bet and they did everything from X-rays to blood tests. She said he was perfectly healthy except for a possible spot in his intestine... But she only told me about that because she couldn't %100 tell me it was nothing to worry about. I feel
Absolutely terrible for him I just want him
To feel well. I got him Pepcid AC (by vet recommendation) but that didn't seem to change him waking up this morning and throwing up. Other than that his appetite is normal, and he hasn't had any diarrhea or anything else. He is sometimes lethargic when he is not being overly hyper, but what bulldog isn't? If anyone has anything that could possibly be helpful please let me know ASAP!!!!! Thank you so much for taking the time to help!

Tara

 

[Marine91]

If he is eating, drinking and pooing fine chances of an obstruction are minimal. You said he is waking up around 4am each day and vomiting... It could be just an upset empty tummy. Try giving him a small snack like part of a plain rice cake before he goes to bed to see if that helps.

 

[TyTysmom]

[MENTION=13853]Tara Lewerth[/MENTION] - Hi Tara - when she said possible spot in his intestine, did she mean there could possibly be an obstruction there? The only test they can do to fully know is a barium swallow. With Tyson, 4 sets of xrays & 2 ultrasounds ALL missed the socks he had eaten. It wasn't until the barium swallow that we knew for sure something was in there, because the barium will outline the object.

How are his stools? All normal - meaning firm, full size, not ribbon like? Perhaps try some pumpkin in his food, if he has something small in there, that could help soften things up and maybe get it out? (If he swallowed something he shouldn't have)

One last thought. What time is his last feeding? He could be throwing up bc he's hungry... perhaps a little rice cake right before bed could help settle his belly. I break mine up into pieces when I give it to Tyson, bc he likes to swallow things whole.

 

[Manydogs]

@Tara Lewerth What time does he eat his lat meal? Sometimes they will throw up because their stomach feels empty. I give mine a snack before they go to bed for the night. some people recommend giving them a rice cake at bedtime. If that is the only time he throws up, and seems fine otherwise-try a bedtime snack.

 

[Donnam]

Well, a member here (I think it was Tyson?) ate 3 socks. I amazed me that it took a really long time for the vet to find the socks in there. I'll try to find her name to tag her to read your post.

However, some dogs just throw up a lot. My first boxer threw up nearly every day when she was young, so much that I worried that she would never gain any weight at all. We went to the vet a couple of times and he could find nothing wrong. But she did grow and she grew out of the throwing up and was fine. You should probably take him back to the vet or get a second opinion if you notice any change for the worse. Keep us posted!

 

[TyTysmom]

Well, a member here (I think it was Tyson?) ate 3 socks. I amazed me that it took a really long time for the vet to find the socks in there. I'll try to find her name to tag her to read your post.

However, some dogs just throw up a lot. My first boxer threw up nearly every day when she was young, so much that I worried that she would never gain any weight at all. We went to the vet a couple of times and he could find nothing wrong. But she did grow and she grew out of the throwing up and was fine. You should probably take him back to the vet or get a second opinion if you notice any change for the worse. Keep us posted!

Its me I posted up there - and yes Tara it took him just about over a month to vomit the first of three socks up. 2nd sock came up day after, and the 3rd had to be surgically removed (because it had adhered to his stomach already) - 4 sets of xrays (one set we even paid extra to have reviewed by an "radiology expert" phhhstt), 2 ultrasounds, nothing saw them. Until the barium.

 

[brutus77]

Everyone has you covered. I think he is hungry. Just keep an eye out for obstruction signs.

 

[Donnam]

Its me I posted up there - and yes Tara it took him just about over a month to vomit the first of three socks up. 2nd sock came up day after, and the 3rd had to be surgically removed (because it had adhered to his stomach already) - 4 sets of xrays (one set we even paid extra to have reviewed by an "radiology expert" phhhstt), 2 ultrasounds, nothing saw them. Until the barium.

Sorry Jessica, I think we posted about the same time! I remember Tyson's case so well. My first bully swallowed a BIG plastic piece of a toy once. We weren't aware of it at the time. It stayed in her stomach for several weeks and she finally vomited it up. It was swallowed soft and came up hard as a rock from sitting in her tummy so long. Before she finally threw it up, she threw up some yellow foamy stuff for a couple of days.

 

[Binky]

Tara:

Try Activia Yogurt!

I know it sounds weird, but I had a similar experience with my little dog a few years back. They couldn't figure out what was wrong with him, he had a lot more symptoms than your dog had bloody stool and vomiting. He went thru a lot of very expensive tests, they gave him some medicine to help him with his vomiting and seemed to be a little better, but then started doing the same thing. Took him back to the vet on the weekend, he saw a different vet and she suggested the Activia Yogurt. Of course, he lapped it up because he thought it was ice cream. In about 24 to 48 hours he was significantly better, all for about $4. The vet said it was the enzymes in the yogurt that does the trick.

Best of luck!

Glad I found this forum today, I have two English Bulldogs.

 

[Tara Lewerth]

Thank you all so much! I'm really hoping that I can figure this out for him and me! I hate seeing him not feeling well and also don't particularly like cleaning up vomit everyday at 4am. I have activia at home and will definitely be getting some rice cakes! I appreciate all your I put!! Should I account the crazy hyper activity to him just being a puppy? His mood has definitely swayed a little since he has been sick. Again thank you all so much! Boss and I reAlly appreciate it

 

[TyTysmom]

Thank you all so much! I'm really hoping that I can figure this out for him and me! I hate seeing him not feeling well and also don't particularly like cleaning up vomit everyday at 4am. I have activia at home and will definitely be getting some rice cakes! I appreciate all your I put!! Should I account the crazy hyper activity to him just being a puppy? His mood has definitely swayed a little since he has been sick. Again thank you all so much! Boss and I reAlly appreciate it

Make sure they are just plain jane rice cakes And yes, the crazy hyperness is all puppy, and totally normal for a bully. I speak from personal experience though, try your best to not leave things out he could get too, and get rid of any toys he could take apart or that he could swallow. If you have bigger toys or durable ones, those are fine. Just always keep your eye on him while he's playing with them.

 

[brutus77]

Thank you all so much! I'm really hoping that I can figure this out for him and me! I hate seeing him not feeling well and also don't particularly like cleaning up vomit everyday at 4am. I have activia at home and will definitely be getting some rice cakes! I appreciate all your I put!! Should I account the crazy hyper activity to him just being a puppy? His mood has definitely swayed a little since he has been sick. Again thank you all so much! Boss and I reAlly appreciate it

I would say yes. Puppies are crazy. There is a thread started here about craziness in a 5-6mo old every night. Bulldogs can have anywhere from extended hyperactivity to spurts of it. Again, I would keep half an eye out for any signs of obstruction, but I think giving him a snack will solve your problems.

 

[Tara Lewerth]

Yah the vet said she couldn't tell me %100 if it was an obstruction or not unless she sent the X-ray to a radiology expert. I didn't want to fork over the money (not that I wouldn't necessary) but at this point I'm trying to figure out other alternatives until I need to make other arrangements

 

[TyTysmom]

Yah the vet said she couldn't tell me %100 if it was an obstruction or not unless she sent the X-ray to a radiology expert. I didn't want to fork over the money (not that I wouldn't necessary) but at this point I'm trying to figure out other alternatives until I need to make other arrangements

Welllllll like I mentioned earlier... not even the "radiology expert" we paid extra for said anything. They just reported back "all normal" -- Out of curiosity do you have the xrays? I got all of Tyson's on a cd. If you do have them, could you post a picture??

If you don't see improvement in a few days, I would highly recommend you ask for a barium swallow. They make them swallow the barium, and then follow it via xrays every 30mins to an hour to see if everything is passing correctly as it should, then they do final xrays about 24 hrs later. If there is something obstructed, the barium will outline it. Its also beneficial bc if it happens to be something small or stuck, the barium could also help push it through.... It will need to be done on an empty belly, so they will ask you to fast (if possible) and you'll be at the vet for a while, unless you just drop off for the day.

 

[harveyspecter]

Good Luck to you. I just wish you well that nothing is serious.