Expert: Angela Donald - 10/27/2009

Question
I have a female boxer puppy approx 8 months she keeps throwing up and losing weight I have taken her to the vet with no success the vet has done lab/poop test all neg.  can you help I don't want to lose her her bones are sticking she is so thin thanks

Answer
Hi Janice,
Thanks for your question.I would definitely seek a second opinion from another vet.Sometimes parasites like hookworms aren't easily detected and can cause the weightloss as you have described.If she has some kind of intestinal blockage maybe an x-ray might show that, exhaust all options.If it were me I'd also put her on a homemade diet and stay away from commercial dog foods and add vitamins to her diet like NuVet. First I'd start with a bland diet, some boiled chicken meat no bones and some rice with a little of the broth added and see if she can hold that down. If she does then continue this for a few days giving her several small meals throughout the day gradually adding more variety over a few days to a week. Go to my website to learn about what foods dogs should never eat and get more information on homemade diets, you can get the NuVet vitamins by clicking on the link on the right hand side of my website as well. Check boxer dog articles and especially the articles on food and allergies at http://www.hitowerboxers.com/boxerdogarticles.htm if you have any additional questions please feel free to e-mail me directly. I hope you will find all the information there extremely helpful. Good luck and best wishes for you and your beloved boxer.

Angela Donald
Canine Behavior Consultant
http://www.hitowerboxers.com