It's minor, but it's not entirely trivial

For that past few months, we have been trying to deal with a certain rather mysterious problem that Novel has. I've mentioned it in passing, but I've never explained it in full. However, because we have not yet solved it, and turn in in August is rapidly approaching, and because it is quickly becoming a very likely hindrance to Novel's chances of graduation, I figure it's about time that I give a through explanation. 

Novel is a puker. 

Sometime around the beginning of this year, he began vomiting several times a month. The first time he did it, I thought he had simply eaten his food to fast. When he did it again the next day, we worried that he was sick, so I took him to the vet. He checked out perfectly normal, and we came home with some metoclopramide to help settle his stomach. 

For a while, I thought the medicine was helping...until one day he vomited again about 15 minutes after taking his pill. We kept him on the medicine until it became obvious that it was doing nothing to keep him from vomiting. Since then we have done bloodwork, xrays, and exams to try to find a medical reason for his vomiting, without any success.

In general, he does not vomit often, (no more than 2 or 3 times a month) but now and then he seems to have bad weeks. In April he had a full weekend of almost constant vomiting and diarrhea, although I have my suspicions that that episode was unrelated to his general tendencies to vomit. Last week also, (while I was gone in New York and he was staying with a puppy sitter) he seemed to have a pretty bad week vomit-wise. The only possible cause I have been able to discover is that he is more likely to vomit after drinking, although that is not a hard and fast rule. 

For the first month or two, we hoped that it would clear up on its own, but now I am not so hopeful. Our puppy program manager says she has never seen a dog released for vomiting, but then again, she has never seen a dog that vomits for no reason. Of course, if it doesn't clear up, and we can't figure it out, Novel has little chance of graduating. 

For now, I am soaking Novel's food in water, and carefully monitoring, recording, and even experimenting with all eating, drinking and vomiting in hopes of finding a cause or trigger for the vomiting. I am bracing myself for the very likely possibility that he will not make it long in AT. It is hard because he has such a great temperament. He is so smart and steady and willing to work and I really feel that he would have a good chance of graduating if it wasn't for this "little" problem.

But I am thankful that it is a "little" problem. Vomiting twice a month is really a very minor health problem compared to most, and seems to have no other side effects. If he does get released, at least it would not be a hard thing for me to live with ;)