[SOLVED ] Q. I have a new puppy 8 weeks old. Had it for 4 days. Today, he looked weak and don't want to eat. Tonight, vomit (only clear liquid).

Experienced and professional animal trainer provide their insights in answering this question :

A. Could it be that the puppy drank too much water too fast? I would take to the vet to rule out illness if he is showing signs of weakness, however.

How to Identify Common Pet Problems ?

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If your dog is vomiting a clear liquid, it can either be caused by stomach secretions or when there is water pooling in the stomach that comes up by itself when vomited. Often, this happens when a dog drinks while feeling nauseous and can`t even keep the water down.

If your dog is still vomiting even after not eating or drinking anything, it`s a sign that something more serious may be happening and you should seek medical attention for your dog immediately. This is especially true if your dog is lethargic, refuses food, or has a tender abdomen.

Why is my puppy being sick? It`s common for puppies to suffer from vomiting and diarrhoea. Puppies throw up for a variety of reasons, including the stress of rehoming, parasites such as worms and amoebae, bacterial infections, viral infections, and, of course, dietary indiscretion (eating something they shouldn`t).

If your dog isn`t eating but seems fine in themselves, try to encourage them to eat. If they`re still not eating after a day, contact your vet for advice. Dogs can go off their food for many reasons but if their appetite doesn`t return then it`s important for you and your vet to find out why.

Why is my puppy throwing up clear liquid? Clear liquid vomit is just water and saliva. You`ll see this when your puppy has an empty stomach, and it can be caused by a number of things, like having a stomach irritation, coughing, drinking too much water or drinking too quickly.

Vomit may be clear or a yellow or brown color, and diarrhea will often contain blood and be a light yellow or mustard colored hue. In addition to vomiting frequently, your puppy may also appear to be drooling or foaming at the mouth as part of their parvo symptoms.

Some of the signs of parvovirus include lethargy; loss of appetite; abdominal pain and bloating; fever or low body temperature (hypothermia); vomiting; and severe, often bloody, diarrhea. Persistent vomiting and diarrhea can cause rapid dehydration, and damage to the intestines and immune system can cause septic shock.

Bladder infections or urinary tract infections are two major culprits of reduced thirst. It could also be diabetes or kidney disease. If you notice other symptoms like lethargy and lack of appetite, and feel like something might be wrong, it`s important to call your veterinarian and discuss what`s going on.

Be aware when behavior deviates from normal. A puppy who usually is bright and active when handled might suddenly become quiet and nonreactive if they`re feeling sick. If a puppy suddenly becomes more vocal, with increased whining or whimpering, he may be trying to let you know that something is wrong.

Puppies, unlike older dogs, don`t have fat reserves. Therefore, they can`t go longer than 12 hours without food. This is particularly true for toy breeds that are prone to hypoglycemia (a drop in blood sugar), which can lead to serious complications. Puppies are also more susceptible to dehydration than older dogs.

Once your puppy is weaned (between 3 and 6 weeks) and has transitioned to solid food, it is best to feed them 4 times a day from ages 6 – 12 weeks. When your puppy is between 3 – 6 months old, reduce meals to 3 times a day. For ages 6 – 12 months of age, you can begin feeding them twice a day.

Puppies under two weeks old need to be fed every 3-4 hours. Slightly older puppies, aged two to four weeks, should be fed every 6-8 hours. What is this? If your puppy fails to keep up with this feeding schedule, that is a sign that something is wrong.

In the early stages of dehydration, your dog is likely to exhibit visible symptoms such as being apprehensive or acting noticeably tired. He or she may pant excessively which can actually cause additional fluid loss. Sunken eyes, dry noses, and dry gums are also possible.

How Long Can a Dog Go Without Food? Dogs can usually go three to five days without food, however, this is not ideal. If your dog has gone two days without food, it is highly recommended you call a veterinarian if you haven`t already. More important than your dog eating is their water intake.

A bright green- or teal-colored vomit suggests your dog ate mouse or rat poison, and you should seek immediate medical advice from your veterinarian or animal poison control center. Quantity: A dog who has gulped down a large bowl of water or dog food too quickly will regurgitate a large volume of material.

If it`s slow to snap back, your dog is dehydrated. Feel his gums. If they`re dry or sticky, he needs more water.

The amount of water a puppy should drink per day is dependent on their size. The general rule is that dogs drink 20 to 40 ml of water per pound of body weight per day. This comes out to about 1 to 5 cups of water for a 20-pound dog.

Puppies often require more water because their kidneys don`t concentrate urine as well, which leads to increased urination. They also tend to be more active and lose more water through vomiting or diarrhea. Geriatric dogs can also drink more (or less) due to cognitive dysfunction or medical issues.

Canine parvovirus (CPV) is a highly contagious viral disease of dogs that commonly causes acute gastrointestinal illness in puppies. The disease most often strikes in pups between six and 20 weeks old, but older animals are sometimes also affected.

The best household cleaner to use to kill parvovirus is bleach (1 part bleach to 30 parts water). It should be used on hard surfaces including tiles, concrete, paving bottoms of shoes etc – leave the bleach on the surface at least 10-15 minutes. Anything that can be washed in bleach should be.

Something to remember about puppies is that they need sleep – lots of it, just like babies. Your puppy will need about 18-19 hours sleep in every 24. So only expect 4 to 5 hours of being awake and only about an hour at a time. If they`re kept awake and playing, you could both be heading for a stressful time.

Depending on their age, most puppies poop between four and five times per day, typically shortly after eating. There is a significant difference in bowel movements between dog breeds, and their bowel habits will change as your dog ages.

The most challenging time of raising a puppy is the adolescent period. Dogs become “teenagers” and seem to forget everything they have ever been taught. This period is individual to each dog, but it may begin when he`s about eight months old and continue until he`s two years old.

Puppy difficulty at ages 7-10 months

It can vary a bit based on each dog, but your puppy likely will hit “adolescence” around 7-10 months, with 8-9 months being the peak described by most owners.

Relevant Questions and Answers :

the most relevant questions and answers related to your specific issue

Q. My 3 month puppy eats his own poop and is also biting what can I do to prevent this

ANSWER : A. When it comes to poop eating, you want to consider a few things. First off, what is his diet like? Maybe something is lacking in his diet that is causing him to want to eat his own poop. This is the most common reason why dogs eat THEIR OWN poop. Try a higher quality kibble like Taste of the Wild, Ziwipeak, Orijen.. and try feeding three meals per day, instead of the more common two meals per day. Remember to gradually switch his kibble. Add a little bit of the new kibble and reduce the old kibble very slowly.. little by little every couple of days until the bowl is mostly new kibble! You should also be cleaning up his poops IMMEDIATELY after he does them.. I mean like, you have a bag in your hand, and you are low enough to scoop it up RIGHT when he finished so he doesn’t have a chance to eat his poop.

When it comes to nipping there are a few things you can do. First, you should yelp as soon as the teeth touch your skin, stand up, cross your arms, and ignore the puppy until he is ignoring you. Once he is off doing his own thing, swoop down and calmly reward him by playing with him WITH A TOY so he doesn’t nip your hands. Whenever you pet him, or interact with him, you should always have a toy on-hand so you can give it to him. This toy should be a soft braided rope toy that YOU own. This means, your puppy is never allowed to have this toy on the floor, and your pup can never “win” tug games with this toy. This is YOUR toy that disappears when you’re finished playing, and reappears when you want to play. If you keep this up, in a weeks time, your puppy will be so excited to see that toy, that as soon as you bring it out, he stops nipping you because he wants to play with the toy. Another thing you can do is have two bags of toys. Bag#1 is full of chew toys/soft toys/squeaky toys/etc. After one week, Bag#1 disappears and out comes Bag#2. Bag#2 has the same types of toys as Bag#1, and it only stays out for one week. This keeps the toys feeling like new to your pup!

Read Full Q/A … : Why Dogs Eat Poop – The 5 Primary Causes – Dog Poop Diet

Q. My cat will not eat the renal food my veterinarian recommended, can I feed a grocery store food?

ANSWER : A. Your veterinarian recommended a therapeutic kidney diet because it has ingredients that will help slow the progression of your cat’s conditions, especially phosphorus and lower protein levels. Many of the non-prescription or grocery store foods generally have high levels of phosphorus and would not be ideal for your cat.

To help your cat accept the new food It is important to do a transition. There are two reasons to do a transition:

1) Occasionally a pet will have a GI upset when switched to a new diet,

2) A pet will accept a new food better when a transition is done to allow the pet to get use to the new texture and flavor.

There is more of a chance with a hydrolyzed protein or different (high or low) fiber level food to cause a GI upset. Transition recommendation:

1) Recommend ¾ old diet – ¼ new diet

2) Do this for a few days; if no GI upset, go to the next step

3) ½ old diet – ½ new diet

4) Do this for a few days; if no GI upset, go to the next step

5) ¼ old diet – ¾ new diet

6) Do this for a few days; if no GI upset, go to the next step

7) End with 100% of the new food.

Sometimes a transition should be longer, especially for cats. Use the same recommendation, but instead of a few days, recommend doing each step for a week or more. If you cat is still not interested in the new diet you can research other non-prescription diets focusing on the labels for appropriate levels of phosphorus and protein.

Also, home cooking may be an option but make sure to provide adequate nutrients. A good website to consult is balanceit.com. This website helps you to create well balanced home cooked recipes and offers supplements to add into the diet.

Read Full Q/A … : The Best and Worst Pet Foods: 13 Pet Foods Ranked

Q. I have a new puppy 8 weeks old. Had it for 4 days. Today, he looked weak and don’t want to eat. Tonight, vomit (only clear liquid).

ANSWER : A. Could it be that the puppy drank too much water too fast? I would take to the vet to rule out illness if he is showing signs of weakness, however.

Read Full Q/A … : Home Remedy for Canine Parvo (Parvovirus)

Q. I have a new puppy 8 weeks old. Had it for 4 days. Today, he looked weak and don’t want to eat. Tonight, vomit (only clear liquid).

ANSWER : A. Puppies do pick up lots of tummy bugs but taking into account the age and being unvaccinated I would be concerned about parvo. I would recommend having him checked over by your vet as soon as possible as little pets can go downhill very quickly and the sooner it gets treatment the easier it will be to treat.

Read Full Q/A … : Are these dog hiccups? – Questions & Answers

Q. How do I get my dog to stop chewing on things? I kennel her when I leave for a few hours, but I can’t go to the mailbox without her eating something.

ANSWER : A. If she’s young, then this is just normal puppy behavior. Don’t worry about it. The thing about puppies is, they explore using their mouths. If your puppy grabs a coat hanger, or a slipper, you should roll up a newspaper, and smack yourself on the head with it for leaving those things out.. your puppy is going to explore things, that’s normal! It is 100% up to YOU to keep those things away from your puppy when your puppy is unsupervised… even for just a moment.

Remember to never scold your puppy for grabbing these things. They are just curious little cuties, and they don’t chew things up to bother us.. Dogs do not have intentional thought, so they aren’t ever doing anything ON PURPOSE to us.. The most important thing you can do when your puppy is chewing something you don’t want her to be chewing is TRADE her the inappropriate item with a toy of hers, so she understands “no honey, that isn’t what puppies chew on… THIS is what puppies chew on!” and then begin playing with her using her toy to show her that TOYS ARE FUN.. Way more fun than a boring ol’ coat hanger.

Another helpful thing you can do is have two bags of toys. In each bag is many different kinds of toys. Lots of chew toys, lots of soft squeaky toys, lots of rope-type toys, a bunch of balls.. All kinds of things! For one week you have bag#1’s toys out for your puppy to play with.. At the end of the one week, you collect those toys, and you bring out bag#2! The toys will be more interesting/feel like new to your puppy, which will in-turn, make her chew less inappropriate things. Her toys are too fun to care about that dumb Wii-mote that you left laying around.

Hope this helps!

Read Full Q/A … : Stop Dog Chewing – Put A Stop To Your Dog's Or Puppy's …

Q. Why does my dog eat grass?

ANSWER : A. As another user mentioned, dogs can eat grass when they want to vomit. Sometimes, when a dog has an upset tummy, they will eat grass. If you notice your dog eating grass frantically, you can assume vomiting will shortly follow. Grass does not digest and pass normally. If your dog eats too much grass, it can cause serious issues with pooping. Your dogs poop can end up all tangled inside of her, and it can need veterinary assistance to remove it. The same goes for celery, so avoid feeding celery to your dog.

The other day my boyfriend accidentally left the laundry room door open where we were keeping the trash that was filled with cooked chicken bones. She ate one of the chicken bones lightning fast. We had to induce vomiting by feeding her some hydrogen peroxide. After we had fed her the peroxide, she immediately began frantically eating grass because her tummy was upset.

If there is something lacking in your dogs diet, it could be that your dog is eating grass to make up for it. I am sure that my dogs diet is extremely well balanced (I do not only feed her an air-dried raw food-type diet (Ziwipeak), but a wide variety of safe, healthy foods), so when she eats grass, I know that it is because she has an upset tummy.

That is why I think it is important making sure your dog has a very well balanced diet. If your dog is on a low quality kibble, your dog may be trying to let you know by eating grass (or eating poop).

Read Full Q/A … : Why Dogs Eat Grass: Causes and Prevention – WebMD

Q. What solid food should I start 4 week old Pit Bull puppies on?

ANSWER : A. A puppy food designed for large breed puppies can help with rapidly growing bones and joints and can be given in a wet form easily to puppies learning to eat solids. You can also provide a dry kibble for them to try and should moisten it with water or some formula to make it easier for the puppies to eat and digest. As the puppies grow and their teeth come in, they will begin to eat and explore more of the solid food on their own.

Mom should also be on a Puppy formula while nursing her puppies as it will provide extra nutrients to both her and babies while they are in a very rapid stage of growth!

Read Full Q/A … : When to Start Feeding Puppies Solid Food? – Pets

Q. I have 8 week old mini Poodles, I wanted to start them out on grain free and to use Innova grain free Natures Table, is this okay?

ANSWER : A. If the food is formulated for puppies, then it should be find to give. There should be an AAFCO statement that states “for growth” or “for all stages of life” to indicate that it is OK to feed puppies during growth. If your puppies are currently on another food, be sure to gradually switch them over a period of about a week to prevent digestive upset. (Starting with a few days of 25new/75 old, then 50/50, then 75/new/25 old before finally all new food) If your puppies are starting on solid food, then moistening larger kibbles can help make it easier for them to eat.

Read Full Q/A … : Dog Feeding Tips