[jodyhalt]

My french bulldog throws up phlegm every morning

[mogrann]

More details are needed.

My Alapaha Blue Blood Bulldog does the same throwing up his food and water with whitish color phlegm in it if he eats his food too fast. He still does not chew his food as it is smaller pieces.

If you think it is not from eating too fast the experts may need more info.

1. How old?
2. What type of food?
3. Any illness?
4. Any changes in the household?
5. Everyday? Once a week? Only in the morning?
6. Up to date on shots, deworming, and flea treatments?

Susan

[Aurora_Bell]

Yup those are some great questions to start with.
The most common causes for phlegm are:

Overeating. What kind of feeding schedule are you on now?

Indigestion happens to all dogs at one point in time. Usually caused from poor quality dog chow OR table scraps.

Excessive gastric acidity, kind of like acid reflux in humans. Short barrel chested dogs suffer from this the most.

Food allergies... VERY common in bully breeds. Usually the result of table scraps or a commercial dog food.

Changes in diet, lots of bully breeds suffer from food allergies. Have you done a recent food change?

Gastritis. Very uncomfortable for dogs and humans, worth getting it checked out for sure. Can be the first warning symptom of colitis.

Eating of grass or garbage. Dogs usually will eat grass to help with indigestion, but can also cause them to regurgitate the grass as well.

Gastrointestinal obstruction. If they have gotten into garbage or eaten chew toys, this can cause a blockage or tear, which is a bigger issues then just phlegm.

Intestinal parasites. Very important to keep your dogs on a regualr worm medication. I don't use them as often in the winter but VERY important to keep them on a regualr worming and flea treatment through spring and summer.

Eating rapidly... You can use muffin tins to slow your dog down, as eating too fast can cause bloat.

Exercise after taking meals... just like humans dogs need time to digest their food properlly, and you shouldn't feed directly after excersising either.

[jodyhalt]

Thanks for the responses. He is 3 years old. Has allergies that cause itchy skin. I have used raw diet, kibble, almost everything to try and get rid of this. I truly think that his allergies are environmental and not food because I have tired every food for 3 years. And , yes, tried the food for about 1-2 motnhs at a time, without change.
He has a runny nose, lots of phlegm going down his throat.
He sneezes and snot comes out of his nose. We have to wipe his nose with a kleenex.
One vet suggested that he has acid reflux.She perscribed over the counter acid relux meds for this, but, he doesn't keep those down. They come up with his phlegm. She perscribed a food that is only available with a perscription.
It seems that he can keep some of his food down when I feed him canned food, or a small puppy kibble.
I could use a couple of suggestions on a good kibble / dry food now that I am not using raw diet. I think this plegm is from his sinus drainage.
He doesn't chew on toys. Does not get into garbage.
This mostly happens in the morning, but now happening every time we feed him.
Is it possible for a dog to have a sinus infection, and not have it diagnosed by a vet?
Thank you for your help. I am very happy to answer other questions that you might have.

[Aurora_Bell]

Yes absolutely possible that he has a sinus infection, short snouted breeds can be quite prone to them. As for food suggestions, I live in Canada, so our brands a re a bit different, but I do like holistic foods. I have heard great things about Blue Buffalo. It looks like a very high quality chow, and they make an allergy blend. I think Pet Smart or Petco sells this brand. Wellness or Canadid are both good brands as well.

Have you tried using bennadryl to see if that helps?

[jodyhalt]

Thanks.. Yes, he takes a Benadryl every night. Why do you think the vets are not looking at this as a sinus infection? R they so stuck on spending my money searching for an allergy with expensive tests? Or... what?

[Aurora_Bell]

Yikes, I'm really not sure why they wouldn't rule out a sinus infection. Here is my opinion on "prescription" foods. Vet's get paid to sell a specific brand of food. They will NEVER suggest another brand because 9 times out of 10 it goes against their contract to do so. When they sell you a bag they get commission. If you compare the prescription food ingredients to a quality chow, you will find little to NO difference in the content.

You can always see if you have a nutritionist in your area. They aren't too expensive, but be prepared to spend $60-$100 on an allergy test and the once over by them.

Has your vet done a thorough exam up his nose?

[mogrann]

Owen has food allergies and our vet recommended a food that is all fish. He gets a salmon one, it is a bit more expensive as we have to go to a specialty store to get it. Once we found this one we stuck with it and did not bother with the allergy testing or reintroducing foods. We think it would be easier on him, though I am no expert on dogs and could very well be wrong.

The food we feed him is the Acana brand.


Susan

[Aurora_Bell]

Omega oils (fish diets) are excellent! I feed my dogs omega pills, and they often get salmon and haddock right off the boat. A fish diet would be a good thing to try, Mogran, you could also try a lamb and rice mix. Are you in NS too? Check out Shur-gain, they have the best prices in all off NS for holistic foods, and they offer a fish blend as well. The biggest bag is only $38.99, plus it's made right here in the factory in NS.

[NRobson]

Most frenchies have food allergies, all 40 that I know do. There are hypoallergenic foods you can get from the vet - Medi Cal - Hypoallergenic HP and there is one from Perscription diet. We went through the same thing. And still are those two foods have worked for most, we are thinking our situation is environmental and he is going to do the allergy testing to confirm this. He also gets the phlegm when he is flaring up etc. It may be worth the testing to determine or try the foods suggested above.
Good luck