Husky Throwing Up: 6 Reasons Why & What To Do

A husky that’s vomiting and throwing up is definitely a cause for concern. After helping husky owners with this specific concern for several years, I’ve learned a thing or two about why it happens.

This article highlights the main reasons and, most importantly, what to do next.

6 Reasons why your husky throws up:

1. Ingesting garbage, foreign objects, toxic ingredients
2. Heatstroke
3. Eating too fast
4. Sensitive stomach
5. Car sickness
6. Underlying health issues

Everything will be explained in full detail below. But first, an important difference owners must know.

Is Your Husky Vomiting or Regurgitating?

Many people skip over whether or not their dog is actually vomiting or regurgitating. Both are different processes and mean different things. So it’s important to clear this up first.

Vomiting

Vomiting in dogs is usually defined as a forceful projection of contents that may have been partially digested within the stomach or intestines. Vomit usually smells sour and contains bile from the stomach. Vomiting can be seen with heavy retching or abdominal heaving. Dog’s will typically drool, swallow excessively or lick their lips constantly.

Regurgitation

Regurgitation is when your dog brings up a small amount of usually undigested food from his esophagus. Regurgitation can happen shortly after eating, but doesn’t involve heavy retching. Dog’s will typically feel ok after regurgitation and isn’t followed by signs of nausea like vomiting is.

So, it’s important to identify whether your husky is vomiting or regurgitating. Vomiting is a sign that something is wrong, whereas regurgitation can happen more randomly.

6 Reasons Why Your Husky Thows Up

Before starting it’s best to know that I am not a professional veterinarian, and nothing beats advice from someone that’s actually trained in this field.

Well, there can be many reasons, and vomiting is a common symptom of many problems. Sometimes vomiting can be caused by something harmless, or it can be caused by something serious.

While it’s difficult to list all reasons for vomiting (because there are so many) It helps to cover the most common reasons that make up most cases.

1) Ingesting garbage, foreign bodies or toxic ingredients

Huskies are adventurous souls, and while they typically aren’t a greedy breed when it comes to food, their curiosity may get the better of them.

One of the biggest causes of sickness and vomiting is ingesting the wrong thing. It could be something foul or rotten from the garbage, something completely inedible like a rope toy, or something off the kitchen side which is toxic to dogs.

Many types of foods that we commonly eat are toxic for dogs, such a certain fruit, nuts, spices, caffeine, chocolate, and many other ingredients. All of these items can cause vomiting.

Once the problematic item has reached the stomach, the brain will start sending signals that there’s something wrong and that whatever it is, it needs to come back out. The issue with foreign bodies is that your dog may not be able to vomit the inedible item back out. This is a whole different matter and your dog will need emergency medical attention asap.

2) Heatstroke

Just like with us, heatstroke can make your husky feel rather sick, and vomiting can certainly happen as a result.

Despite what many believe, Siberian huskies are actually very adaptable to hotter climates. Whether or not they like it, is a different question altogether.

Still, too much sunshine mixed with a bit of dehydration can cause heatstroke quickly. Heatstroke will often have many symptoms, including a lack of appetite, lethargy, nausea, and of course, vomiting.

If you have a husky and live in a hot country or state, this very well could be the reason. You may want to check out an article I have dedicated to caring for huskies in hot weather. I live with a husky mix in the Philippines, so I know a little bit about this!

3) Eating too fast

If your husky is a fast eater, you will need to slow him down. It may not seem like an issue, but fast eating has been linked to many negative side effects, and one condition called gastric dilatation volvulus can even be fatal.

Ingesting too much air is usually what happens when your husky wolfs down his food (pun definitely intended). This is when all the various health concerns start arising.

With there being so many negative responses for eating too quickly, vomiting can certainly be a result of this behavior. It’s not very typical for huskies to be fast eaters, but if you have one, you must take measures to stop this behavior as soon as possible. Slow-feeding bowls are a great option to try out.

4) Sensitive Stomach / Recent change in diet

Siberian huskies are notorious for having sensitive stomachs. Many food ingredients and kibble brands do not work well for huskies and can cause many negative responses, such as vomiting.

Many husky owners promote the BARF diet (raw food diet) and say that it’s the best type of diet for a husky. This is a complex topic that I won’t get into here.

But I personally agree that it is healthier and more suitable for a husky, over commercial kibble. Unfortunately, it’s very hard to get correct, and it’s extremely expensive to maintain.

Many owners have found a lot of success with something in between, human-grade pet food.

This may be something you are interested in but you will need to speak to an expert in this field. The BARF diet has to be very specific, following correct ratios of ingredients.

Huskies are also susceptible to many allergies. It helps to know some of the common allergens so you can start removing them from your husky’s daily routine. Even chicken is a common allergen and I know many huskies who are completely fine until they eat chicken or even chicken-based kibble.

Vomiting can be the result of irritating your husky’s sensitive stomach.

5) Car sickness

This is very specific so you’ll likely know right away whether this relates to your husky or not. If you’ve traveled with your husky in the car today or the previous day, he may be suffering from some motion sickness.

It can happen in dogs just like it can with us. Some dogs just aren’t great at handling the ride and can feel nauseous after even a relatively short journey.

If you think he may be vomiting due to a recent car ride, keep checking him and don’t automatically assume you’ve found the reason.

6) Other underlying health concerns

The vomiting may be a symptom of something more serious which is currently undiagnosed.

Vomiting can be a symptom of MANY underlying health issues, so it’s always best to take it seriously.

If your husky vomits multiple times per day OR vomits for consecutive days, you must visit a veterinarian for a proper health check-up.

It will be very handy for your veterinarian if you take a stool sample along with you, take note of his overall behavior, and have information on the recent dog food he has eaten. This will all go towards better diagnosis.

What Kind of Vomit is Your Husky Throwing Up?

It sounds disgusting but it helps to give the vomit a brief inspection as it can tell you some extra information. Check out the graphic below which explains a few key pieces of information depending on the type of vomit your dog has thrown up.

This infographic is from PetMD.

Husky Vomiting: What To Do Next

Vomiting should always be taken seriously, but it doesn’t necessarily require immediate attention from a veterinarian. There are a few things you can try first.

However, if you notice that your husky has been sick for consecutive days in a row, or many different times throughout the same day, it’s best to give a veterinarian a call for further instructions.

When you notice it for the first time, and your husky otherwise appears to be well, try the following method: Taken From Vets-Now.com A Professionally-Run Veterinarian Website.

1. Remove all food and water for 2 hours. This lets his stomach settle without interruption.
   
2. After 2 hours, you can reintroduce water a couple of tablespoons at a time, every half hour. Keep the food back for another 6-8 hours.
   
3. If the vomit has stopped, after the 6-8 hours you can reintroduce small meals, 1-3 tablespoons at a time, consisting of bland cooked foods like plain boiled chicken breast or white fish, plain pasta or white rice, every 2-3 hours. Fats, dairy and raw meat should be avoided.
   
4. If the vomit still hasn’t come back, your husky will be able to return back to a partial amount of his normal food, the following day. Mix in a small amount of kibble alongside the plain bland foods and increase it slowly over the next day or two. Give the meals in small amounts, 4-6 times per day. It’s best to keep the meals small and frequent as it’s easier for his stomach and digestive system to handle.

Will Burnt Toast Help a Sick Husky?

No. Let’s explain why.

We humans love to find ways to fix things ourselves, we are by nature, problem solvers, and that’s amazing. But sometimes, we get a little out of our area of expertise and things start becoming unsafe.

There are many “remedies” online that you can try when your dog becomes sick or starts vomiting. One of the common ones is the use of burnt toast. Let’s explain why this is more harmful than good, despite being so well-known.

Why Burnt Toast For Sick Dogs Is Not Safe.

This is a classic. And, I don’t doubt that to some extent it does actually work, but it’s not for the reason it’s known for. The burnt bits on toast are thought to be activated charcoal, but it is not activated charcoal.

It’s true, that activated charcoal is good for many health-related issues. But you only get activated charcoal from burning special kinds of wood, then exposing the burnt wood to high temperatures via steam for various reasons I don’t need to get into!

All you need to know is that the burnt bits on toast come from burnt fats, carbohydrates, and contain harmful carcinogens and acrylamide components. Burnt toast is NOT activated charcoal.

The reason burnt toast may work is simply that it’s bland food and has nothing to do with the burnt bits, which in fact, are just harmful and toxic. If you really want to try toast, just make normal toast.

When To See a Professional

Although I’ve mentioned this specifically a few times above, it’s good to clarify it here too.

So, when exactly should you contact a veterinarian about your husky vomiting?

If your husky has just vomited once, you can consider this to be an isolated incident. And you can follow the home method above. At this stage, you don’t need to contact a veterinarian.

But, you must keep watching him closely, because if he continues to vomit many times throughout the day OR he continues to vomit consecutively for more than one day, it’s strongly recommended to call a veterinarian.

Aside from this, if you suspect that he’s vomiting because he’s ingested a foreign body, or you have good reason to believe it’s something serious then you should contact your veterinarian right away, regardless of how many times he’s vomited.

Summary

Good luck with your sick husky, and always be ready to ask for help if you are not sure. If you have experience with this, comment below, I would love to hear your story.

Most Recommended For Huskies 🐶

Best Brushes For Husky Shedding ⭐

My two favorite brushes for a beautiful coat are a simple Undercoat Rake and a Slicker Brush. These brushes when used together will de-shed and maintain your husky’s coat better than anything else.

Best Online Training Program For Huskies⭐

Brain Training For Dogs has become increasingly popular with Siberian Huskies in the last few years. It’s now recognized as perhaps the best way to train a husky in the most stress-free, positive way.

Best Husky Puppy Book ⭐

If you would like to support My Happy Husky directly and have an easy to read and entertaining guide for training your husky puppy, check out my book The Husky Puppy Handbook on Amazon. All purchases are greatly appreciated.

Resources Used:

• https://www.petmd.com/dog/conditions/digestive/different-types-dog-vomit-and-what-they-indicate
• https://www.vets-now.com/about/
• https://pets.webmd.com/dogs/vomiting-dogs-causes-treatment
• https://www.petcarerx.com/article/caring-for-a-sick-dog-the-dos-and-the-donts/1387