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Why did my dog die suddenly after eating horse poop and throwing up?

Updated On September 23rd, 2025

My female American Staffordshire terrier just recently died. She’s a rescue that we’ve had for 6.5 years. When we got her, the vet said she was anywhere between 4-6 years old. So she could’ve been 12 years old. She was always eating horse poop. Horses haven’t had ivermectin in months. She ate her food that night, slept fine but threw up the next morning. We left for work and she laid down as we could see on the pet camera. She never woke up. She was running around like a puppy the day before.

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2 Answers

Most Helpful Answer

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Answered By Dr. Elizabeth

Veterinarian

Published on November 10th, 2019

I'm sorry to hear of the passing of your beautiful girl. Without a necropsy (an autopsy) it's impossible to know exactly what happened or why she passed. Dogs can have heart attacks and strokes just like humans and it's possible this is what happened to her. It's strictly a guess but it sounds as if her passing was peaceful. Try to focus on the memories you created in those 6.5 years. She will always be with you in your heart. My condolences.

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    Answered By Dr. Melanie, BVSc MS

    Veterinarian

    Published on

    I'm so sorry that she died suddenly, please accept my condolences for your loss. If she died so suddenly, it could be something like a tumor on the spleen. Those can grow, the dog shows no signs, then the spleen suddenly ruptures and the dog is extremely sick and goes downhill very fast. It could also be a heart problem. Again, I'm so sorry for your loss.

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