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My dog had diarrhea, vomited, now limping and constipated. What to do?

Updated On September 23rd, 2025

Pet's info: Dog | Rat Terrier | Male | unneutered | 4 years and 6 months old | 18 lbs

Hello. Two days ago my dog had explosive diarrhea along with throwing up. We have him in a dog kennel bed at night based on his weight, he’s a rat terrier so he’s medium sized. Lately his stomach has been better but now one of his paws is causing him pain....I’m not scared but I hate to see my puppy hopping. He’s also a bit constipated, what should I do? I don’t know if he’s eaten anything unusual outside or not. :(

2 Answers

Most Helpful Answer

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Answered By Dr. Dayna, DVM, CVA

Veterinarian, Certified Veterinary Acupuncturist

Published on October 13th, 2017

It’s been a rough few day for Max! It’s not unusual after diarrhea to have a few days without a bowel movement. The limping is concerning. I would recommend that he be evaluated by a veterinarian. They can look for signs of trauma/ fracture, infection, embedded foreign object etc.. They may prescribe some dog safe pain medication as well. Good luck and I hope he is back to normal soon.

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    Answered By Daniel Fonza, DVM

    Veterinarian

    Published on January 25th, 2018

    Hi there and thank you for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach to address your concern. The vomiting and diarrhea could have been due to the diet. Many times GI symptoms of vomiting and diarrhea can be linked back to the diet and / or intestinal bacteria. If this happens again or becomes a recurrent problem I would recommend switching to a different food altogether and consider adding in a probiotic to see if this helps reduce the symptoms. If these do not help, I would recommend having Joshie examined by a veterinarian so that the most appropriate diagnostic and treatment recommendations can be made. I hope this helps guide you in the right direction. Please let me know if you have any other questions or concerns and I would be more than happy to help you further.

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