# 6 month old pup is vomiting during exercise/training



## Richmond Custodio (Jan 28, 2017)

Hi guys not sure if this is the right place so if not please let me know!

So I've been training Kaiser every Saturday morning for 2 hours and in between we'll go to the dog park and train and excercise. 

I noticed Kaiser has been vomiting a green liquid during his exercise or training. He doesn't do this all the time but he has done it a few times already. 

I feed him IAMs dry food as well as pedigree chicken wet food but I feed him an hour after his training exercise. 

I was told it could be because of stress but Kaiser seems way to happy to be stressed when we're out. He loves doing the agility courses and he loves training with the other dogs as well so I don't know if it could be stressed? I can understand since there are a lot of dogs and a lot is going on but his tail is always wagging. 

He would usually gag and keep is head down when it happens. I'm thinking of taking him to the vet but my trainer and a few other people have told me he's okay, he's just not use to this much exercise and to cut it down a bit? 

Any thoughts or opinions? I trust my trainers since they specialize in training german shepherds especially but I'm just worried for my pup. 

I do give him water during training to get him hydrated, not sure if this would cause it but again, he doesn't throw up all the time, just sometimes?

Thanks everyone!


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## LuvShepherds (May 27, 2012)

How old is he? 2 hr sessions are a lot for a puppy. Did you ask your vet? Green doesn't sound good. Is he eating grass? That can make a dog vomit.


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## zetti (May 11, 2014)

Richmond Custodio said:


> Hi guys not sure if this is the right place so if not please let me know!
> 
> So I've been training Kaiser every Saturday morning for 2 hours and in between we'll go to the dog park and train and excercise.
> 
> ...


Take him to the vet. Please. A trainer is not qualified to tell you not to take your puppy to the vet. None of us are qualified to diagnose your pup via keyboard.

Please get your pup to the vet and let us know what the doctor says.


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## Richmond Custodio (Jan 28, 2017)

zetti said:


> Richmond Custodio said:
> 
> 
> > Hi guys not sure if this is the right place so if not please let me know!
> ...


Spoke to my friend who's a vet so I could get immediate answers. She came over and took a look and asked me a few questions.

Kaiser is healthy  the reason he threw up was because he's hungry. She said the green foamy bile is a sign of him just working out pretty much on an empty stomach. 

I usually feed him around 11am and at 5pm but lots of times he doesn't eat a lot so I would just leave it for him to eat around that time. Since he was running a lot with no food, it caused him to throw up. She said he's fine, just either feed him some wet food at night if we work out early morning or give him a small treat before he sleeps or when he wakes up to have some food in him 

Thanks everyone!


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## onyx'girl (May 18, 2007)

the food you are feeding is not great. I would get a better nutrition, especially if you are training often. Do you use treats when you train?


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## Richmond Custodio (Jan 28, 2017)

onyx'girl said:


> the food you are feeding is not great. I would get a better nutrition, especially if you are training often. Do you use treats when you train?


What do you recommend? I have always used iams just because I see it's not mostly made out of wheat??


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## onyx'girl (May 18, 2007)

I feed raw....I try to stay with limited ingredients and whole foods. If you only have one dog, and can afford it, maybe research raw feeding? Pedigree canned is not what I'd ever want to feed. There are better brands of canned food. 
If I fed kibble, I'd probably feed Wellness or Merrick. I'm sure others have other suggestions.


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## Richmond Custodio (Jan 28, 2017)

onyx'girl said:


> I feed raw....I try to stay with limited ingredients and whole foods. If you only have one dog, and can afford it, maybe research raw feeding? Pedigree canned is not what I'd ever want to feed. There are better brands of canned food.
> If I fed kibble, I'd probably feed Wellness or Merrick. I'm sure others have other suggestions.


I tried feeding him raw chicken and beef but he doesn't like it... he lets it sit there and never eats it... :T


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## onyx'girl (May 18, 2007)

Has he always had no food drive? If this is recent, then I would have bloodwork done to rule out any bacteria or other issues. When dogs barf bile from an empty gut, it is usually yellow and a bit of foam, not green. I wonder if the gut flora is off so the appetite is as well. Has your dog been on antibiotics in the past year?


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## Richmond Custodio (Jan 28, 2017)

onyx'girl said:


> Has he always had no food drive? If this is recent, then I would have bloodwork done to rule out any bacteria or other issues. When dogs barf bile from an empty gut, it is usually yellow and a bit of foam, not green. I wonder if the gut flora is off so the appetite is as well. Has your dog been on antibiotics in the past year?


Yeah sadly. The vet told me it could be because he would rather play than eat since he's a puppy when I got him checked awhile ago. He'll eat his dog food after an hour to two hours of being alone but won't touch his raw food. I got some test in him done a month ago because he was skinny and the vet said everything came out good. He's been eating more of his dog food but still not a lot sadly. He refuses to eat raw chicken and beef though sadly... he's never been on antibiotics before.


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## onyx'girl (May 18, 2007)

I would get some digestive enzymes and probiotics. Even yogurt may be something that can be added. Does his weight seem ok? Muscle tone good?
Teething may also be playing into it...the pups gums over working and saliva bacteria in the mouth from the teething could cause gastric blah. Gambit had stinky breath when he was teething, it went away soon after he turned 8 months.


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## Richmond Custodio (Jan 28, 2017)

onyx'girl said:


> I would get some digestive enzymes and probiotics. Even yogurt may be something that can be added. Does his weight seem ok? Muscle tone good?
> Teething may also be playing into it...the pups gums over working and saliva bacteria in the mouth from the teething could cause gastric blah. Gambit had stinky breath when he was teething, it went away soon after he turned 8 months.


Hmm I'll try the yogurt and some enzymes! He's 6 months and weighs a little more than 50lbs. He seems skinny on toward his back though? He's not underweight but he definitely does seem skinny towards his back? 

I'll post pics tomorrow, it's too dark, maybe you can help me out? Not sure if this is normal since I only had german shepherds at 1 year old.


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## Richmond Custodio (Jan 28, 2017)

onyx'girl said:


> I would get some digestive enzymes and probiotics. Even yogurt may be something that can be added. Does his weight seem ok? Muscle tone good?
> Teething may also be playing into it...the pups gums over working and saliva bacteria in the mouth from the teething could cause gastric blah. Gambit had stinky breath when he was teething, it went away soon after he turned 8 months.


Here's a pic a of him, I feel like he's a little skinny but not to sure if this is normal for a puppy?


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## Julian G (Apr 4, 2016)

2 hours for a 6 month old pup? WAY too much.


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## Richmond Custodio (Jan 28, 2017)

Julian G said:


> 2 hours for a 6 month old pup? WAY too much.


Really?!? I mean he enjoys it and is still active after? What we usually do is pretty much practice walking on a leash as well as commands then we'll also do obstacles then lastly bitework. Should I cut him down? He gets 10 mins breaks after 30 mins.


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## Nurse Bishop (Nov 20, 2016)

You are supposed to barely feel the ribs and they show an obvious waistline seen from above. I fed Inga purina puppy chow, now purina one large breed puppy. At eleven months she weighs seventy pounds and has a waistline. I trust the nutritional science behind purina feeds, have used it for years. She eats, I will say devours her food. She does not vomit. You might feed a dog that age three times a day. I feed first thing in the morning and late in the evening, take her out to poo before bed. No exercise an hour before and an hour after. Inga gets worked every day and has been since she was twelve weeks old. She knows twenty seven commands. But we never train her two hours straight. It is several fifteen or twenty minute sessions, all happy and playful. Then play and roaming the fields. You could do this twice a day if you have to go to your job. Wow, you do bitework? This is way too young. I would mix a little plain yogurt in her food, he will like that.


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## Dotbat215 (Aug 19, 2015)

I would look at what you're food is rated on dogfoodadvisor.com.

It's not perfect but a good jumping off point. 

There are plenty of good higher quality kibbles that are not significantly more expensive than Iams.


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## Cassidy's Mom (Mar 30, 2003)

Richmond Custodio said:


> I usually feed him around 11am and at 5pm....


So, there's 6 hours between breakfast and dinner and 18 hours between dinner and breakfast? I would try to change that schedule so it's closer to eating every 12 hours. Doesn't have to be perfect, but if you can get it to within an hour or two of 12 hours, that would be better. 

And I agree that two hours straight is a lot of training/exercise for a 6 month old puppy, although it depends on what kind. Running around playing, where he can go at his own pace, and stop and rest whenever he wants would be one thing, sustained exercise would another. 

Even if he seems fine and has plenty of energy you need to keep in mind that he's still growing, and his bones and joints are still developing, and too much of the wrong kind of exercise too early can be detrimental.


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## Nurse Bishop (Nov 20, 2016)

Thats right. Young GSDs growth Plates are still oPen. No too much flirt Pole work or jumping more than their own height.


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## K9KOA (Aug 21, 2016)

Anymore pics of your boy? He looks just like my Koa from the top view. Like identical coloring.


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## Sabis mom (Mar 20, 2014)

Richmond Custodio said:


> What do you recommend? I have always used iams just because I see it's not mostly made out of wheat??


I will never understand why people still feed Iams.


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## Richmond Custodio (Jan 28, 2017)

Cassidy's Mom said:


> Richmond Custodio said:
> 
> 
> > I usually feed him around 11am and at 5pm....
> ...


Yeah our training is once a week class session but it's on their own paste. I notice when he is tired and will sit on the side when he wants to rest.


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## Richmond Custodio (Jan 28, 2017)

K9KOA said:


> Anymore pics of your boy? He looks just like my Koa from the top view. Like identical coloring.


Yes sir! Black red and white kinda on his neck


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## Richmond Custodio (Jan 28, 2017)

Dotbat215 said:


> I would look at what you're food is rated on dogfoodadvisor.com.
> 
> It's not perfect but a good jumping off point.
> 
> There are plenty of good higher quality kibbles that are not significantly more expensive than Iams.


Definitely will! Yeah I saw they're rated 3 stars. Not too bad I guess but definitely there are better ones and cheaper! We only went with iams because they sponsored our old dog and gave us a lifetime discount (or 25 years or something like that) when we buy their products. We get their 50lb bags for $25


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## Richmond Custodio (Jan 28, 2017)

Nurse Bishop said:


> Thats right. Young GSDs growth Plates are still oPen. No too much flirt Pole work or jumping more than their own height.


Thanks for info! We usually do maybe half an hour a week max of pole work and obstacles? Is that too much for a pup at his age? When would you recommend that he can do more? Never owned a german shepherd younger than a year so this all new to me /: trainers I go to told me 30 mins a week is not bad for him?


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## Richmond Custodio (Jan 28, 2017)

Nurse Bishop said:


> You are supposed to barely feel the ribs and they show an obvious waistline seen from above. I fed Inga purina puppy chow, now purina one large breed puppy. At eleven months she weighs seventy pounds and has a waistline. I trust the nutritional science behind purina feeds, have used it for years. She eats, I will say devours her food. She does not vomit. You might feed a dog that age three times a day. I feed first thing in the morning and late in the evening, take her out to poo before bed. No exercise an hour before and an hour after. Inga gets worked every day and has been since she was twelve weeks old. She knows twenty seven commands. But we never train her two hours straight. It is several fifteen or twenty minute sessions, all happy and playful. Then play and roaming the fields. You could do this twice a day if you have to go to your job. Wow, you do bitework? This is way too young. I would mix a little plain yogurt in her food, he will like that.


So my saturdays are different with my dog. We do dog training from 8am-10am. I don't usually feed him til 11-11:30am then he'll take a few hours to eat it so I'll feed him again around 6pm-7pm


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## K9KOA (Aug 21, 2016)

Here she is at 7 months.


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## Sabis mom (Mar 20, 2014)

Richmond Custodio said:


> What do you recommend? I have always used iams just because I see it's not mostly made out of wheat??


Chicken, Corn Meal, Ground Whole Grain Sorghum, Chicken By-Product Meal (source of Chondroitin Sulfate and Glucosamine), Ground Whole Grain Barley, Dried Beet Pulp, Chicken Flavor, Dried Egg Product, Chicken Fat (preserved with mixed Tocopherols, a source of Vitamin E), Brewers Dried Yeast, Potassium Chloride, Salt, Dicalcium Phosphate, Flax Meal, Choline Chloride, Fructooligosaccharides, Vitamins (Vitamin E Supplement, Ascorbic Acid, Vitamin A Acetate, Calcium Pantothenate, Biotin, Thiamine Mononitrate (source of vitamin B1), Vitamin B12 Supplement, Niacin, Riboflavin Supplement (source of vitamin B2), Inositol, Pyridoxine Hydrochloride (source of vitamin B6), Vitamin D3 Supplement, Folic Acid), Minerals (Ferrous Sulfate, Zinc Oxide, Manganese Sulfate, Copper Sulfate, Manganous Oxide, Potassium Iodide), Calcium Carbonate, L-Lysine Monohydrochloride, DL-Methionine, L-Tryptophan, L-Carnitine, Rosemary Extract, Citric Acid.

No not mostly wheat. Mostly corn.

I have a dog that vomits when her stomach is empty. Every time. You said he spends hours with his food. I would try and stop that. Maybe since he is still young try smaller meals more often. It helps regulate their body weight to feed smaller meals more often and if you take his food away after 15 minutes it will stop that habit of lingering with his food. You can offer it again after a few hours.


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## Sunshyne (May 22, 2021)

onyx'girl said:


> I feed raw....I try to stay with limited ingredients and whole foods. If you only have one dog, and can afford it, maybe research raw feeding? Pedigree canned is not what I'd ever want to feed. There are better brands of canned food.
> If I fed kibble, I'd probably feed Wellness or Merrick. I'm sure others have other suggestions.


I feed our German Shepherd puppy the wilderness or wild for large breed puppy. And then I add some chicken breast or fresh liver in for texture and fun


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