My puppy is gagging up food and water. Should I take him to the vet?

Puppies are notorious for swallowing anything that crosses their path. They don't have hands, so they explore everything with their mouths. He may have swallowed something that is stuck, there may even be a piece of string looped around the base of his tongue. Hopefully your vet did a thorough oral examination, including lifting the tongue in order to see underneath. This area is very hard to see and string can hide there very easily. It could be a long human hair that is bothering him. If you find string, thread or hair in his mouth that goes down his throat, DO NOT PULL IT. Same goes for any you may see as he tries to defecate. NEVER pull on any linear foreign body. It could be looped around some soft tissue out of sight and you will cause more damage. Any stringlike material caught around the tongue should be cut with a pair of safety scissors and allowed to go on down. If this happens, let your vet know what is going on and if he develops any other symptoms, such as vomiting, diarrhea, lethargy, loss of appetite, get him back in to see your vet right away.

I'm sorry to hear Sebastian is having issues. First, I would verify that he is vomiting, not regurgitating or coughing hard enough to bring up phlegm. Regurgitation is a sign of some congenital issues that would need to be evaluated by a veterinarian, and exposure to kennel cough can lead to coughing with phlegm production. If it is vomiting, and it worsens or does not resolve in 24hours or he starts acting ill then I would recommend he be evaluated by his veterinarian to determine the underlying cause for his issue. Good luck!

Thank you for submitting your question regarding Naisha. If she continues to make the noises you described, I recommend that she sees her veterinarian today. She could be experiencing nausea that is making her retch, gag and lick her lips. Other times these noises can actually be related to an upper respiratory tract infection. The puppy will cough and gag. This can occasionally bring up a white foamy fluid. Either way she should be seen as she is such a young puppy. I hope this information helps!

Some puppies can make noises while they eat, which can be normal, and if Bojangles is eating too quickly he could be choking a little which is causing the gag. Trying to get him to slow down in his eating and drinking with a slow-down bowl (or placing a few tennis balls in the bowl) or feeding smaller meals more frequently may help. If he is choking a lot, acting like he can't breathe or is painful, is vomiting or can't keep anything down, or seems in distress from it, a vet visit to rule out anything is always best.

Hi, thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach! Poor Shooter! I wonder if Shooter could be coughing with a terminal retch. With coughing sometimes they can even bring up white foam or yellow bile a the end of the cough. Since he is eating it makes be think he might not actually be trying to vomit. Try to catch the episode on video and have Shooter seen today or tomorrow by your Vet, before the weekend. If he is coughing he may have kennel cough and need antibiotics or cough suppressants. He is a young puppy so I don't think you should wait too long with the symptoms you are describing. I hope this helps and I wish Shooter the best!

Hi you are correct with Czar that his could be megaesophagus (ME) and less likely choking from something stuck in his throat. Choking would be a very acute and violent episode. ME is something that would continue to happen at most meals. There are some other medical reasons for Czar's clinical signs as well like a hiatal hernia (abnormal position of the stomach) and other defects he could have been born with. Regardless it is extremely important that he been seen by his veterinarian for a diagnosis. They can take an X-ray to look for ME, something stuck in the throat, or a congenital defect. Also, the doctor can get him on medication to help with the vomiting/regurgitation. Best of luck with Czar

Hi there. What you're describing sounds like it might be hiccups, which are common and normal in puppies. But I can't say for sure without seeing him. I would recommend getting some video of him doing it, and showing it to your regular veterinarian at his next visit - he/she should be able to tell you if it's normal, or something to be concerned about.