11 week old puppy keeps vomiting

[puppyunwell]

My 11 week old puppy keeps vomiting. He was fine for a week after I brought him home from the breeder, and then he was sick three times in the afternoon, a few hours after her lunch. It was kibble - getting progressively more digested/mushy with each time she was sick. He was acting okay, maybe slightly subdued and quiet but still happy and playful. I took him to the vets to be on the safe side, and they said everything seemed normal (no bloated or painful tummy, normal temperature) and it was likely a stomach bug. It started 4 days after his first visit to the vet/first vaccine. He had an anti-sickness injection which worked.

Around 15 or so hours after the anti-sickness injection wore off she was sick again. The same situation - she kept his breakfast down, but threw his lunch up several hours after eating. I took him back to the vet and they have given him an anti-sickness injection and said it may be a stomach bug, but they may need to do further tests if he vomits again once the injection wears off (which it will be doing now).

Does anyone have any ideas or suggestions of what it may be? I'm not sure if I've been overfeeding him as his kibble is based on his expected adult size, and as he is a mixed breed I'm not sure how big he will get. His poos are normal, and he has a good appetite. He's not been out on the ground anywhere apart from the vets as he isn't fully vaccinated yet, but has been carried around places with me. He is wormed. Eats 3x a day (I've now changed this to 5 times a day upon the vet's recommendation).

I'm not sure whether to just pay for a blood test and ultrasound scan to be on the safe side, or whether to wait and see if he starts vomiting after this injection has worn off?

First of all, what breed is your puppy? It's also not clear if your puppy is a dog or bitch as one minute it's a she then it's a him in your OP.
You seem to be feeding your puppy way too much. Your puppy should be fed as a puppy not as an adult, this includes being on a correct puppy diet - they need to be on a food specific to their dietary needs.
5 x meals a day adult portions ? Your vet recommended that, for an 11 week puppy? Your puppy needs 4 appropriate high quality puppy meals per day ( spread out).
Whilst puppy is being sick I would feed on a bland chicken/salmon diet.
What is puppy currently eating? It does really sound like you are overwhelming the puppy, just because the puppy will eat it's own body weight in food doesn't mean it should

I'm not sure if I've been overfeeding him as his kibble is based on his expected adult size, and as he is a mixed breed I'm not sure how big he will get.

I'd start here. Cut this down to 20g of kibble per kg of his CURRENT weight per day - split into 4 meals and see how he gets on from there.

Your puppy should be fed as a puppy not as an adult, this includes being on a correct puppy diet

When they say their puppy is being fed based on their adult size I'm assuming they don't mean adult portions, they mean that the correct portion to give is based on projected size as an adult.

But at 11 weeks should definitely be fed 4 times a day. I'd personally feed smaller meals more frequently before opting for further tests if otherwise well.

Without knowing what the pup is being fed you can't possibly say that 20g per kg of current weight is the correct amount.

@CyberStrider
OP should still be feeding in reference to current weight of her puppy is not what it will be at 1 years old. Food portions should increase with age.

It’s a bit unclear in your OP how much you’re feeding him. What breed is he and how much do you feed him (in grams)?

Oopsie - doubly post!

What brand are you feeding and how much? Is he eating too quickly?

No, plenty of foods have a feeding guide based on projected adult weight not current.

OP should be feeding as per the guide for the food she is feeding.

@CyberStrider
Ok. Either way, she's feeding her pup way too much.

Sorry for the typos in my post, I also have a female dog so keep calling him 'her'... It's a male puppy, he's a mixed breed but very small (currently 2.5 kg). He is being fed this food (I will be switching him once this issue has hopefully settled down): https://www.petsathome.com/product/harringtons-dry-puppy-food-rich-in-turkey-and-rice/P1020 and it says 'The feeding chart shows suggested approximate daily amounts (based on your dogs expected ADULT body weight), although we recommend feeding young puppies to appetite if possible.'

The first few days at home he would just pick at his food and I was worried he wasn't eating enough, but he now eats his entire portion in one sitting. Not sure if that's because he's more settled here now, or if his increase in appetite is a symptom/concern. I wouldn't say he eats his food quickly, but like I said he has gone from grazing/picking at his food to eating it in one sitting.

So just to clarify he's getting 80g of food split into 5x 16g portions instead of 3x 27g portions. I have had dogs before so I'm not completely clueless (!), although he is the smallest breed I've ever had and I've never given this brand of kibble before.

I would maybe try changing his food op.
With him being so tiny as well, I would definitely be feeding small(er) amounts rather than (projected amounts) to see if that helps.
I definitely wouldn't up his food to 5x daily.
Wait at least 4x hours before feeding next meals to ensure he's digesting previous meals.
I say changing his food because it could be that not agreeing with him. AVA, Lillie's kitchen etc.

Some food brands do go on expected adult weight, which doesn't help if you don't know how big your dog will grow. For example, James Wellbeloved.

Edit: Sorry. Posted as same time as someone else. Didn't intend to do a pile on, but can't work out how to delete my post.

What did the breeder feed him? It could well be that the food doesn’t suit him - I have four dogs, on all different diets - or that he’s actually allergic to something

It's the same food the breeder gave him, it wouldn't be my first choice, so he has been on it since being weaned. I did ask the vet if we should change his food but he said to wait a little while first until his stomach is more settled before introducing new food... If anyone has any recommendations for kibble though I'd really appreciate it.

Blimey if I had a 11 week old puppy regularly being sick I would not mess around with changing food and quantity as my first concern.

I would be demanding blood tests and stool tests at the very least.

Get all the medical issues ruled out first and there are a lot for a puppy.

They haven’t upped his food, the vet just advised to divide the daily food allowance into 5 instead of 3 meals which makes perfect sense. Puppies should be on 4 small meals a day anyway.

@ladymammalade
Yes, if you have read my PP I have been recommending 4 meals a day.

@puppyunwell how is the puppy this morning? Hope they are feeling better

I think you need to go back to the vets. ZHave you told your vet that your puppy is still being sick? Their advice will be different with prolonged sickness verses one period of sickness.
I would also changing food. I would ask you vet to recommend one.

It doesn’t necessarily mean something significant is going on but it equally might. One of our dogs had awful tummy problems with diahhorea (can’t spell that word!) for weeks as a pup. We did have blood tests etc done to be sure nothing more going on. We tried a couple of tummy settle pastes and the second worked a treat.

I've been to the vets twice, on both days the puppy was sick (Friday and Sunday). Both vets said they wanted to try an anti-sickness injection first before further testing. He hasn't been sick for 48 hours now so I'm hopeful that it was just a mild stomach bug, which is what the vets suggested it might be. He's still eating, drinking, pooing and playing normally.

If he is sick again I'll ask for a blood test, stool test and scan.

My puppy didn’t get on with Harrington’s very well, we moved him onto Butchers puppy trays which seemed much better.

Hes also little.

Thanks for the update and so glad he is feeling better