French Bulldog Vomiting

Taking care of a Frenchie is one of the most fun things you can do! Frenchies are always full of energy and leave no opportunity to get into shenanigans that are entertaining for the whole family! But your French bulldog vomiting is a problem, and these little warriors need to be taken care of more than other dogs!

Since Frenchies have a very sensitive digestive tract, they are susceptible to many different things that may be a normal part of other breeds’ diets. This, coupled with the fact that French bulldogs are from the Brachycephalic breed of dogs, which has a shorter snout, and a smaller skull.

This causes their mouths to have lesser space to house their tongue, which leads to eating issues as well. We know that you love and care for your precious Frenchie, and you don’t want to see your French bulldog throwing up!

This is why we’ve prepared this guide to help you if you’re wondering, “why is my French bulldog throwing up, and how can I solve it?”. This guide contains the symptoms and causes of vomiting in French bulldogs, along with a list of remedies that can help alleviate this issue. So, make sure to read this article to the very end in order to get the best knowledge possible!

Why is my French bulldog throwing up?

Since French Bulldogs are a very sensitive breed, it’s quite hard to pinpoint what exactly might be causing them to throw up. We’ve compiled a list of different things that can cause them to throw up and related symptoms that you must look out for.

Food Allergies

Food allergies are one of the most common reasons why your French bulldog might be throwing up. These allergies occur when a chemical or ingredient causes a reaction in your dog’s immune system. These can occur with a food that’s been introduced into your dog’s diet, or your dog can develop an allergic reaction to some type of food over time.

Some symptoms of food allergies involve getting itchy skin, with sores and bald, reddish patches of skin as well. Your dog might begin to bite and scratch itself excessively in an attempt to ward off the constant itching it will be experiencing.

Aside from this, Frenchies also develop ear infections and stomach-related issues, like diarrhea, stomach aches, and a rumbling tummy, along with others. Diarrhea and stomach issues are usually connected to your French bulldog throwing up.

Food allergies in dogs can occur from almost any type of food, and some of the most common foods that cause an allergic reaction are dairy products and different types of meat like chicken, lamb, and beef. Other foods can include wheat, gluten, soy, and other additives and preservatives added to some dog foods.

Eating disorders

Another factor behind your dog’s vomiting is if they have bad eating habits. Make sure that your dog is trained to eat food properly and keep it from going down as fast as possible. This is common in dogs that haven’t been trained, and they usually end up having stomach aches and might end up regurgitating their most recent meal.

This usually occurs due to too much air getting trapped inside the Frenchie’s tummy, which causes a strain on other organs, and the dog will try to mitigate this by trying to expel the content of its stomach.

Bloated stomachs are also caused by eating too much or too fast since it leads to air getting trapped within the stomach. If you have a habit of exercising your dog after it has had its meal, we’d advise that you discontinue that practice since that leads to bloating as well.

Oesophageal disorders

Oesophageal disorders might be a cause behind your French bulldog throwing up as well. Congenital defects like vascular rings are caused by hereditary defects, making it harder for your Frenchie to swallow food and increasing the chances of vomiting or regurgitating.

Inflammation of the esophagus is also a common cause of vomiting in dogs and is more commonly referred to as esophagitis. Symptoms of esophagitis include visible pain when swallowing food, coughing and drooling, along with weight loss.

Other conditions include having a dilated esophagus, which causes food to remain in the esophagus, and not go all the way to the stomach. While there is no external cause for this deformity, it has to be managed throughout the course of your pup’s life since they won’t be able to swallow food properly. You will need to make sure that your dog eats in an upright position so that the food can travel to the stomach easily.

Other factors behind vomiting

While the most common reasons behind your Frenchie vomiting have been outlined above, there can be other reasons as well. Different organ-related issues can be a factor behind your dog’s vomiting. For example, your dog might be subject to kidney diseases, Addison’s disease (which causes gastroenteritis, bad appetite, etc. in dogs, and has vomiting as a symptom)

Other diseases can involve the liver, and pancreas, as well as a plethora of infections. All of these can have vomiting as a symptom, so your best bet would be to visit your vet to ensure that your dog gets the best attention and you’re able to solve the issue at its earliest before it becomes something worse.

Diagnosing the type of vomit

If you see your French bulldog vomiting, a wise thing to do would be to try to diagnose the content of the dog’s vomit. Sometimes, the shape and consistency of the matter can help identify what is wrong with your pup and would also help the vet understand how to properly treat your dog.

For example, suppose the vomit is lumpy and has bits of undigested food in it. In that case, this is an indication that the food has not been properly digested and that it was probably caused by your Frenchie eating too fast or exercising right after eating.

On the other hand, vomit that is grainy indicates that the food has already been digested and is coming from the abdomen instead of the esophagus. Grainy vomit might also include smaller pieces of undigested food, along with small traces of blood.

Vomit that is completely free of undigested food particles and instead is watery and slimy or foamy means that your dog might be suffering from something else entirely, and you might need to take them to the vet immediately.

French Bulldog Vomiting vs. regurgitating

Unlike regurgitation, vomiting occurs when the dog is expelling contents from its stomach or intestines. Regurgitation, on the other hand, involves the expulsion of food from the esophagus. Which usually holds a small amount of uneaten food and water.

While bad eating habits might usually cause regurgitation, it’s vomiting that you have to be worried about since it strains your dog’s muscles and causes muscle contraction as well. Your dog’s body might tense up. Vomit usually has a different color, with clear fluid if it’s coming from the stomach or a yellowish-green mixture if it is coming from the intestines. This is mainly due to the bile and gastric juices in your dog’s tummy.

While some cases of regurgitation might be cured at home, if you see your French bulldog throwing up foam or vomiting profusely, you might need to take them to the vet ASAP.

How to treat food allergies

Now that we’ve discussed in detail what causes French bulldog vomiting, let’s talk about how you can mitigate issues like food allergies.

The first step in solving food allergies is to ensure that your dog’s stomach doesn’t contain any more of the triggering foods. This can be done by keeping them hydrated by giving them water (around 50 ml of water per hour) and not letting them eat anything else.

This should be accompanied by placing a food ban on your dog to ensure that it doesn’t ingest any more things that are causing it to have an allergic reaction. You can either follow a prescribed diet from your vet or start feeding your bland dog food that doesn’t cause any reactions. Different types of diets, like a novel protein diet or a hydrolyzed protein diet, should be used, as these diets include sources of protein that are not combined with other proteins that may be causing the allergic reaction in your dog.

Once your dog is completely on the bland diet, start by introducing newer foods into your dog’s diet. But make sure to introduce them slowly, and not all at once, since that can lead to gastrointestinal stress in your Frenchie. Try to introduce one food item per week and feed it in small amounts along with the bland food you’re feeding your dog.

Once you’ve fed them the test food for 3 days, check whether the dog has any allergic reactions to it. If the food is safe, mark it down in a notebook along with other safe foods that your dog can eat. Once you’ve tested out several different foods, you will have a list of foods your dog can safely eat without an allergic reaction.

French Bulldog Vomiting Final thoughts

You should always take your Frenchie to the vet if you see your French bulldog throwing up. Your vet will be able to diagnose the exact cause behind your Frenchie throwing up and will be able to prescribe the correct medication and diet to help solve this issue.

Aside from this, always make sure not to give any table scraps to your dog and keep anything small out of their reach since they love chewing and ingesting random stuff. Keep your garbage away from the Frenchie since they enjoy digging for scraps, which can lead to germs and diseases entering their body, leading to vomiting and sickness.

Remember to use the elimination diet to remove the foods that can cause allergic reactions from your dogs’ diet and keep them hydrated for the duration of their sickness.

We hope this article was helpful and that you’re able to find a quick cure for your Frenchie. Always remember to act as soon as possible since your Frenchie’s health is at stake, and we know you can’t bear to see your precious pup in pain! Hopefully, they’ll be well in no time. Good luck!