It’s not uncommon for a dog to throw up. While occasional vomiting can be expected with dogs (after all, they can eat a bunch of crazy stuff), it’s not normal for your dog to throw up regularly. Because vomiting can be a sign of a serious medical condition, it’s important to find out why your dog is throwing up and help to stop it as quickly as possible.

Acute vomiting in dogs comes on suddenly, is short in duration, and it may resolve on its own. If the underlying cause doesn’t resolve or isn’t removed or treated, acute vomiting can become progressively worse, and it can even become chronic. Chronic vomiting is vomiting that happens occasionally or regularly for a week or more.

Common Causes of Vomiting in Dogs

Something They’ve Eaten

Dogs often vomit from eating table scraps or garbage, so keep a careful eye on them and be sure to secure away all food and food waste. Foreign objects are another common culprit of vomiting (chewed up toys, socks, rocks, you name it — dogs have eaten it)! Ingesting toxins can cause dogs to vomit (such as antifreeze, lead, zinc, xylitol, or sago palm). Finally, if your dog is allergic to the food they’re eating, this may also cause vomiting. 

Motion Sickness

Car sickness affects as many as 48% of dogs and is a very common reason for dogs to throw up. To see if your dog suffers from car sickness, take this motion sickness quiz.¹ Although vomiting is a sign of motion sickness, other signs include drooling, panting, and restlessness during the car ride. If your dog does suffer from motion sickness, they may benefit from a medication prescribed by their veterinarian.

An Infection of the GI Tract

Whether it’s intestinal worms, a change in your dog’s normal gut bacteria, or Parvovirus, these infections can cause vomiting in dogs.

Other Problems Within the GI Tract

Stomach ulcers, irritation of the stomach or intestine (gastritis or enteritis), IBD (inflammatory bowel disease), and neoplasia (an abnormal growth of tissue) can make your dog throw up.

Diseases Elsewhere in the Body

A few diseases that can cause dogs to vomit include, but are not limited to, Addison’s disease, leptospirosis, kidney or liver disease, and diabetes. 

What You (and Your Vet) Can Do for Your Dog's Vomiting

The best advice is to call your veterinarian to determine if you can treat your dog at home or if your dog needs to be seen immediately. If your dog is otherwise healthy, has only vomited once or twice in the past 24 hours, has normal bowel movements, seems to want to eat, and is acting normally, your veterinarian may recommend that you withhold food for 24 hours and monitor your dog at home. Then you can offer bland food (like chicken and rice) if they have not vomited again over the last day. However, if your dog has certain pre-existing conditions or isn’t eating their food, has decreased energy or urination/defecation, or is known to have eaten something they shouldn’t have, they should be seen by a vet immediately (within 24 hours) when vomiting is present.

If your dog has vomited more than two times in a 24-hour period or is throwing up more than once per week on average, it’s time for a visit with your vet. Throwing up repeatedly can lead to dehydration, electrolyte loss, and base/acid imbalances. All these changes can make your dog’s prognosis worse. Repeated vomiting can also be a sign of a life-threatening condition, like xylitol poisoning or foreign body ingestion. Risk of disease progression and complications, including death, increase the longer you wait to seek treatment for your dog. 

When you visit your veterinarian for your dog’s vomiting symptoms, they’ll take a thorough history, do a physical exam, and will run diagnostic tests (these could include an analysis of a stool sample, bloodwork, x-rays, an abdominal ultrasound, or urine testing) to try to find the cause of the vomiting. During the physical exam, they’ll also assess for any other problems, like dehydration and loss of electrolytes, that are caused by vomiting. Your vet can administer or prescribe specific treatments to address these changes. They may give your dog an injection to help stop the vomiting or have an immediate solution to treat the underlying cause of the vomiting depending on your dog's test results.

What Can You Do to Decrease the Chance That Your Dog Vomits?

The good news is a number of conditions that cause vomiting can be prevented. Gastrointestinal (GI) worms can be prevented by using a monthly parasiticide. Making sure that your dog is up to date on their vaccinations can prevent a number of infectious causes of vomiting such as parvovirus and leptospirosis. It's important to feed your dog a balanced diet as well as keep toxins and other harmful substances safely secured and out of their reach. Finally, taking your dog to your veterinarian for annual examinations can ensure that you identify chronic conditions such as liver or kidney disease, diabetes, or Addison’s disease.

It is not normal for your dog to be throwing up regularly. Regular checkups, deworming, and staying up to date on vaccinations can help keep your dog healthy. Let your veterinarian know if you are concerned about your dog's vomiting so they can determine the underlying cause. Your vet will work with you to create the best treatment plan to stop the vomiting, treat the cause of the vomiting, and improve your dog's quality of life.