Critter Talk: Vomiting or Regurgitation in Dogs and Cats

Read Time:3 Minute, 21 Second

Vomiting is a symptom that commonly affects both cats and dogs. In fact, I performed a little puke clean up in the back of my car this morning. Apollo gets car sick at times; guess I wasn’t taking those turns as gently as I thought.

Even though vomiting is very common, one of the first things that a veterinarian has to do when faced with a “vomiting” pet is determine whether or not that is truly what is occurring. Vomiting can easily be confused with regurgitation, and making the distinction between vomiting and regurgitation is crucial. Not only are their causes very different, but so are the treatments that are most likely to help.

Of course, it is ultimately the veterinarian’s job to determine whether a pet is vomiting or regurgitating, but it is very helpful if pet owners know what distinguishes the two conditions so they can accurately describe what they are seeing at home.

Below we have listed a common cause of vomiting in dogs…

Your dog may have eaten some food or water that has gone bad.
Your dog may have eaten or drank some insecticides or pesticides.
Your dog or puppy may have swallowed a foreign object.
Your dog may have developed what is known as Inflammatory Bowl Disorder or IBD.
Your dog or puppy may developed some food allergies.
The cause of your dog vomiting maybe due to a glandular problem such as hypoadrenocorticism.
Your dog may have pancreatitis which is a disorder of the abdomen
It maybe due to parasites such as roundworm, hookworm, or whipworm
The cause of your dog vomiting maybe aspergillosis or histoplasmosis which is a fungal problem
The cause of dog vomiting maybe the same as humans often suffer a due to salmonella a bacteria infection.

Vomiting is an active process. It involves contractions of the abdominal wall (i.e., retching) prior to the actual event and the sensation of nausea, which is often associated with excess salivation, licking of the lips, and drooling. Regurgitation, on the other hand, is passive and may occur just after a pet changes position (e.g., lowers his head). Whenever I hear an owner say something like, “He didn’t even seem to know that it was going to happen,” or, “He just opened his mouth and out came food,” I start thinking regurgitation versus vomiting.

Where the material comes from is also important. Vomitus (love that word) originates in the stomach and sometimes the first part of the small intestine. If you see bile, a yellow or orange digestive fluid that is produced by the liver and delivered to the small intestine, you know your pet is vomiting, but an absence of bile doesn’t eliminate vomiting as a possibility.

Regurgitated material travels backwards from either the esophagus or pharynx into the mouth or nose. Regurgitus (yes, it’s actually a word) sometimes exits the body in the shape of a tube because of the time it spends in the esophagus and typically contains food, saliva, and some mucus but no bile.

Not to confuse matters, but another symptom that is sometimes called “vomiting” by owners is expectoration. If your pet coughs a few (or more) times and then gags up a glob of mucus and associated nastiness (expectorus?), he may well be expectorating rather than vomiting or regurgitating.

If you get the opportunity, take a video of your pet during one of his “episodes” before your appointment and bring it with you. The first time one of my clients did this I couldn’t help thinking, “Dude, that’s a little weird,” but we reached a definitive diagnosis in about half the time it sometimes takes, which made everyone involved very happy.

Thanks to Dr. Jennifer Coates and Dog Obedience Training Online for their contributions to this article.

Follow MadMike’sAmerica on Facebook and Twitter, and don’t forget to visit our HOME PAGE.

If you liked our story please share it at REDDIT.COM and PINTEREST as well as TUMBLR.

About Post Author

Professor Mike

Professor Mike is a left-leaning, dog loving, political junkie. He has written dozens of articles for Substack, Medium, Simily, and Tribel. Professor Mike has been published at Smerconish.com, among others. He is a strong proponent of the environment, and a passionate protector of animals. In addition he is a fierce anti-Trumper. Take a moment and share his work.

professormike05@gmail.com