My senior dog has an enlarged esophagus and is vomiting. What to do?

Hello and thank you for reaching out to Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach. I'm sorry to hear that Rooney has been diagnosed with megaesophagus. This means that the esophagus is abnormally enlarged/dilated, and does not move food down toward the stomach appropriately. This can make dogs more prone to regurgitating their food or water, meaning the food or water falls from their mouth after eating/drinking. Dogs with megaesophagus are more likely to develop aspiration pneumonia, which can be life-threatening. The type of food is not as important as how you feed Rooney. It will be important to feed Rooney in an upright position, and offer him meatballs of wet dog food one at a time. There are specific dog feeding chairs, called Bailey chairs, that you can purchase online, that help dogs with megaesophagus eat upright. I hope this is helpful!

If your vet has not performed a chest x-ray looking for a condition called megaesophagus, this needs to be done immediately. You don't mention Sadie's age, but this can be a condition that's present from birth or one that is acquired later in life. I would recommend you seek a second opinion immediately, as these dogs are prone to developing aspiration pneumonia.

Poor girl. She may have a condition that is causing this such as megaesophagus. I am not sure if your vet has ran any tests yet, but I would recommend starting with thoracic radiographs and perhaps even a barium series will need to be done to detect a possible megaesophagus. Form there the vet will prescribe medication if this conditon is confirmed. The main concern with a pet that regurgitates is aspiration pneumonia. This is why they suggest to elevate the food bowl to allow gravity to help keep the food down. However most owners have to make a gruel (water mixed with food and then puréed) and also give pro-motility drugs (i.e. Metoclopramide) in addition to help manage this condition. Here is more information on megaesophagus if this is confirmed to be the cause of your pet regurgitation episodes. http://www.veterinarypartner.com/Content.plx?P=A&S=0&C=0&A=3480 I hope this helps you with Cozy’s regurgitation episodes. Best wishes and take care.

Hello and thank you for reaching out to Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach. Since Timberblynn is an older girl, I would be worried about the possibility of some type of cancer causing her clinical signs. She may have a mass causing enlargement of one or many of her abdominal organs, such as her liver, and leading to her feeling sick and vomiting. I recommend making an appointment with your veterinarian to have her seen. Your vet can perform an exam and see if he/she can palpate any masses or organ abnormalities. Your vet may also recommend bloodwork and/or imaging to see any changes in her abdomen. In the meantime, you can try offering her a bland diet suck as boiled chicken and rice, however I feel strongly that she should see your veterinarian. I hope this is helpful!

Thank you for submitting your question regarding Marko. I am sorry to hear about his diagnosis. If he is still eating, drinking and acting like himself, then that seems like a good quality of life. This will likely change as his disease progresses though. In the meantime, you can see about trying a different anti-vomiting medication on him. Cerenia would be a good choice. This may control the vomiting better and help him feel a bit better. I hope this information helps!

Megaesophagus is not something that suddenly appears unless it is congenital. THis could have developed ofer a long period of time and your dog was able to compensate so you would not have noticed any problem By Friday it may have just enlarged to the point where Sarena was not able to compensate and then you noticed that she hat trouble eating. Here is some useful information: https://vcahospitals.com/know-your-pet/megaesophagus

Hi. Regurgitation differs from vomiting in that the expelled material almost always originates from the esophagus—the tube that moves food, water and saliva from the mouth down into the stomach. Vomiting is preceeded by retching noises, where as regurgitation is a passive event where you only hear a noise as the material comes up. The most common cause of regurgitation is megaesophagus. Megaesophagus is a generalized enlargement of the esophaguswith a decreased to absent motility which is required for moving food and liquid down to the stomach. It is diagnosed most commonly by a lateral x-ray of the chest where the esophagus goes from the beginning of chest area into the stomach. If it is vomiting, it is unfortunately a vague sign that can occur from many possibilitites.  It can be from a dietary indiscretion, a food sensitivity, a GI infection,  pancreatitis, metabolic and endocrine conditions, foreign bodies in the intestines, and more.   The best thing for vomiting would be to get blood work and abdominal x-rays done. Good luck