The recent vomiting and diarrhoea outbreak in dogs does not appear to be caused by visits to the beach alone, according to customers we have seen this week.
We are reminding owners of our advice if their pet suffers from such an illness and when they should contact us or visit our practices in Bridlington and Driffield.
This includes withdrawing food for 24 hours, keeping them hydrated and visiting us as soon as possible if they become lethargic.
While outbreaks of vomiting and diarrhoea are not unusual in dogs, and can spread very quickly because dogs lick and sniff everything, we want owners to know that beaches are not the only types of location which appear to be the source of this latest issue.
Vet Giles Moore (pictured) said: “We have seen a significant increase in dogs coming to our practices this past week with these symptoms and one of the questions we ask is where have they been walked.
“Many of them have been on the beach – possibly simply because we are so close to the coast – but many have not been walked there at all.
“We don’t believe there is reason for alarm based on what we know. Vomiting and diarrhoea bugs appear and spread quickly because of natural dog behaviour.
“The important thing is to know how to look after your pet if their symptoms are mild and when to see your vet.”
The advice from Aldgate Vets is as follows:
- If your dog starts with vomiting, withdraw food for 24 hours
- If they continue to vomit or become lethargic then contact your vet as soon as possible
- If the vomiting settles, start feeding bland food little and often and build back up to normal quantities over a period of a few days
- If it’s just diarrhoea, continue to feed your pet bland food like chicken and rice
- As with the vomiting, if it’s not resolving or they become lethargic, contact your vets as soon as possible
- Water should be made available at all times to animals with gastrointestinal signs. If they cannot hold water, then contact your vets
If you would like further advice or to make an appointment, call our Driffield practice on 01377 252087 or our Bridlington practice on 01262 677269.
