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Help! Diarrhea and throwing up won't stop

Our vet says "Some dogs just do this." I don't believe it. For almost a year, Sammy has had loose, oily bowel movements and periodically will throw up his meal. At first the vet took him off of dry dog food, rehydrated him with a massive infusion of liquid under the skin of his back. That helped for a few weeks, maybe. Then, she prescribed i/d dog food, Flagylmetronidazole 250 and Carfate 1 gm. After a week or so, Sammy improved, but every few weeks he relapses. We stopped letting him play in the yard outside on his own, assuming it was something he was eating in the yard. Sometimes we feed him cooked chicken and rice after fasting for a day. And each time, he goes back on the drugs. Now we feed him Nutro Natural Choice for Sensitive Stomachs. Given the texture and the smell, its not surprising that it doesn't help.

This can't be right. Can anybody help?

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Permalink Reply by Mary Jones on December 27, 2010 at 6:24am

Have another vet check him up. Since this has been going on for almost a year, it might be something serious. But I hope your dog is just doing fine. How is he doing now?

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Permalink Reply by Shari Wolfe on December 27, 2010 at 11:05am

I agree with you on everything. I have also used Tylan powder/capsules, which works very well, and sometimes better than Flagyl. I am currently feeding my Cavaliers Fromm Salmon A La Veg, which they love, and it agrees with their GI tracts. Natural Balance Duck or Venison and Sweet Potatoes is also very good, and recommended, because of the limited ingredients. I have fed the Venison, a great protein! A teaspoon of pumpkin a day (with dinner), plus a probiotic (with breakfast) will help.

Joyce Bustrum said:

Dear Craig - My little tri girl has problems off and on. Try giving him canned pumpkin. A couple of teaspoons in his food. It helps settle the stomach. Don't give the greasy chicken from the market because it is too high in fat. Feed the best food you can. Duck and potato seems to be very bland on their stomachs. Did the vet check for pancreatitis? A half of a flagyl will stop the diarrhea. If you feed rice make sure it is brown rice. You can also give them a teaspoon or two of keaopectate to help the stomach. Joyce - Lola and Eden's mom

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Permalink Reply by Mary Jones on December 25, 2011 at 7:23am

You should rush your Cavalier King Charles Spaniel Dog to the vet. This condition can be fatal.

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Permalink Reply by Steve McElheny on January 2, 2012 at 2:33pm

Craig,

I am a Cavalier Breeder and would advise you to read Shari post. I would love to have her as one of my puppy people. We work hand an d hand with a nutitionist that we have known for years. First thing is probiotics. He sells some of the best. Here is his web site.

www.mainlydogs.com

I told in a rescue several months ago with one of the same problems. Looking over the vet records, the vet didn't really help the former owners out. I have one of the best Cavalier Vet's in Central Ohio. Working with him, we de-wormed the dog, gain-free dog foods, Flagyl twice a day for a full 14 days, and started him on Probiotics After that, Max started gaining weight and stools were great. Max was placed with his new owners with no problems.

You might show these post to your Vet and see what they say. If you feel that they are not much help, look at switching vets. No to say they are bad, but some are better than others. Ask other Cavalier people in your area.

Hope all of these post help you.

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Permalink Reply by Sara Armstrong on January 9, 2012 at 6:16pm

I have a 6 year old Blenheim Cavalier, Maxwell. I wanted to share my experience relative to diet related health. My Maxwell suffered from regular bouts with diarrhea starting when he was one year old until age four. I was at my vet constantly with him and it was always gastroenteritis, IBS, etc. They always gave him medication to treat the symptoms and always suggested I/D. I became very frustrated with this process. My poor Max had to suffer through these episodes and when I would bring up diet with my vet, they kept saying bland (I/D) is best to treat the symptoms. Again, not addressing the underlying problem. So I spent one weekend reading everything I could find online about IBS in dogs. Everything kept pointing to diet...low fat, high fiber and NO grains. Then I started researching dog foods. I have always fed Maxwell with high quality food, but all had grains. Given that Max needed a low fat, low calorie (he needed to lose a couple pounds), high fiber, grain free food without too much protein I decided on Wellness Core Reduced Fat. While there aren't a ton of good possibilities out there, there are definitely a handful that appeared to be a fit. While I chose Wellness Core, I know others who have had a great experience with Taste of the Wild as well.

It's been two years and not one bout with diarrhea. Needless to say I switched vets. While I don't expect them to tell me what to feed my dog, they quite simply always treated the symptoms and never helped talk through what might be causing the problems in the first place.

Thanks for letting me share my experience!

Sara Armstrong & Maxwell : )

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Permalink Reply by Brenda Catanesi on January 9, 2012 at 8:47pm

I had the exact same experience with my Cavalier and after many brands my vet suggested taking my dog off dog food altogether. It has been almost 4 years and we couldn't be happier. I have met with dog nutritionists and we came up with a diet heavy in vegetables, sweet potatoes, quinoa, ground chicken or bison as a base. In addition, fish once or twice per week for her coat along with a multi-vitamin for overall nutrition. My parents dog recently moved in and was fat. She went on this food and dropped 3pounds to 20 pounds in 2 months and she is active so eats almost 3cups per day. Their coats are beautiful and they are now very healthy dogs.

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Permalink Reply by Elaine Woloshyn on February 19, 2012 at 8:21am

We don't have problems with our cavaliers but that may be because it took us over a year to get their two sibling rough coat collie rescues over their "collie-i-tas". We feed Wellness with canned pumpkin and plain nonfat yoghurt mixed together. They get few if any treats other than a couple of pill pockets shared between the four of them or a low fat cheese stick broken into little pieces and shared. The two cavaliers are always hungry and we struggle to keep them trim so they get salt-free green beans and baby carrots to supplement. We used to have the collies on boiled ground beef and rice every other week until we came up with this combo....

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Permalink Reply by Marjorie on February 26, 2012 at 10:48am

Hello Brenda,

Could you please tell me more about your home prepared diet and what type and amt of multi-vitamin your dog is on, as one of my girls has been suffering with digestive upset and the vet put her on a home prepared diet, but the supplements to go with the diet aare about $40 per week for the two dogs and this combined with the cost of the fresh chicken in killing me! I'd like to continue feeding home cooked but at the moment it's costing me about $100 per week for the two dogs. I'd be grateful for any advice and recipies that you could share.

thanks,

Marjorie

Brenda Catanesi said:

I had the exact same experience with my Cavalier and after many brands my vet suggested taking my dog off dog food altogether. It has been almost 4 years and we couldn't be happier. I have met with dog nutritionists and we came up with a diet heavy in vegetables, sweet potatoes, quinoa, ground chicken or bison as a base. In addition, fish once or twice per week for her coat along with a multi-vitamin for overall nutrition. My parents dog recently moved in and was fat. She went on this food and dropped 3pounds to 20 pounds in 2 months and she is active so eats almost 3cups per day. Their coats are beautiful and they are now very healthy dogs.

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Permalink Reply by Brenda Catanesi on February 26, 2012 at 2:03pm

Hi Marjorie..we use a multi called Whole Dog Daily which costs $20 per month for the 2 dogs. You may be using too much meat in your diet which was my mistake. I worked with a woman named Ellen Tomy who wrote a book called A Dog's Life Diet to add more whole grain like quinoa and more veggies which is better for the dog and cheaper for me. I now use half the protein and it is working out great. We sometimes buy boneless chicken breasts and thighs and grind them in a food processor to ensure quality and keep costs down. We load up when there are sales on chicken or bison. We add brown rice, lentils and quinoa along with sweet potatoes, squash, carrots, spinach or broccoli and this lasts about 6 days for my 2 dogs. We have it down to about $20-$25 per week. The website is www.adogslifediet.com. Good luck and let me know if I can help!

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Permalink Reply by Marjorie on February 26, 2012 at 2:35pm

Hi Brenda, thanks for your prompt reply. One of my dogs has always had a bit of a digestive problem and then last Sept. they both got into something and one recovered and the other never really did. Her LIPA levels are very high which suggests possible pancreatitis, but it could also be IBM. I just had her to a naturopathic vet and she is on a low fat one protein (chicken) diet with brown rice, cod lover and safflower oil diet with a vitamin, mineral & pre-biotic fiber supplement called "Hilary's Blend." She is also on a spleen support tincture and is scheduled for acupuncture next week. We are to stay on this diet for 2-4 weeks and then move to antigin diet of ground pork and oatmeal. Some of the other diets in the book that goes with the supplements have alot of fruits and veggies in them, but for now we have to stay on a restrictive diet until her tummy settles down. Both my dogs need to lose about 2lbs (Cavalier!). How many calories do you feed your dogs a day and do you know the daily protein and fat amts you feed? I'm goin gto check out the site you gave me it looks VERY interesting. I really appreciate the help. Thanks! Marjorie

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Permalink Reply by Kay Devorace on October 3, 2012 at 2:33pm

can't believe how similar of a situation we are going through right now.. We have done every step you mention and even have the ID dog food ready to go, but he can't stop with the diarrhea. He is even a ruby and looks identical to yours! Chicken and rice are now not working, and I feel helpless. He is not himself.. We had all the bloodwork, x-rays, fluids as mentioned before and he did improve after that, but here we are a couple weeks later with diarrhea, and some vomiting..mostly grass. He is having urine accidents in the house too..not like him. Vet just thinks its a sensitive "system"..Help!

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Permalink Reply by Cheryl on October 3, 2012 at 2:58pm

Kay, not sure if you read back to my comments from a couple of years ago. My boy has been quite stable since getting the treatment I described. He is still eating only the Salmon/rice diet. He has had episodes only when getting into other food or eating stuff outdoors, at which time he needs the steroid for a few days.

He gets only this food and no other snacks or chewies. The critical phase was when the vet gave him the drugs initially.