The color chart
One episode after eating grass or gulping a meal is usually nothing. Vomiting that repeats, or comes with other signs, deserves a call to your vet.
| Color | What it can mean | What to do |
|---|---|---|
| Yellow or yellow foam | Bile on an empty stomach, often early in the morning or after a long gap between meals | Watch. Call a vet if it repeats over several days or comes with other signs. |
| White foam | Froth from an empty or irritated stomach. It can follow eating grass, or a cough that ends in gagging. | Watch a one-off. Go now if your dog retches and nothing comes up. |
| Clear liquid | Water or saliva, often after drinking fast | Usually watch. Call a vet if your dog cannot keep water down. |
| Brown | Food or kibble. Dark brown vomit that smells like stool can point to a blockage. | Watch a single episode. Call a vet today if it smells like stool or keeps happening. |
| Green | Grass, or bile mixed in. Some rodent poisons are dyed green or blue. | Watch if your dog ate grass. Call a vet now if poison is possible. |
| Red or pink | Fresh blood from the mouth, throat or stomach | Call a vet today. Go now if there is more than a streak. |
| Black or like coffee grounds | Digested blood from the stomach | Call a vet now. This is not one to watch. |
Vomiting or regurgitation?
Vomiting is active: your dog heaves, the belly works, and partly digested food or yellow bile comes up. Regurgitation is passive: undigested food slides up with little effort, often soon after eating and sometimes still tube-shaped.
The causes are different, so tell your vet which one you saw. A short video or photo helps.
When to call a vet instead of waiting
- Retching with nothing coming up, especially with a swollen or tight belly. In large, deep-chested dogs this can be bloat, which is an emergency.
- Blood, or black material that looks like coffee grounds.
- Vomiting more than two or three times in a day, or for longer than 24 hours.
- Vomiting together with diarrhea, weakness, pain, or refusing food or water.
- Any vomiting in a puppy, a senior dog or a dog with a known illness.
- A chance your dog swallowed something toxic, or a toy, sock or bone.
How Miyu helps with vomit checks
Photograph the vomit and Miyu reads the visible color and content, then gives one of four care levels: watch, keep an eye, see a vet today, or see a vet now. The photos stay in your dog's history, so you can show your vet what you saw.
Miyu never says all clear. A photo cannot rule everything out, and the list of red flags above is always free in the app.
Frequently asked questions
Why is my dog throwing up yellow foam?
Usually it is bile on an empty stomach, often early in the morning. Talk to your vet if it keeps happening, and straight away if it comes with other signs such as lethargy or refusing food.
Is white foam vomit an emergency?
Usually not as a one-off. It is an emergency if your dog keeps trying to vomit but nothing comes up, or the belly looks swollen.
When is dog vomit an emergency?
Go now for blood or coffee-ground material, unproductive retching, a swollen belly, possible poison, or vomiting with weakness or collapse.
Can an app diagnose my dog from a vomit photo?
No. Miyu is not a veterinarian and does not diagnose. It reads what is visible in a photo and suggests whether to watch or call a vet.
Sources
General guidance consistent with these veterinary sources. They did not review this page.
- Vomiting in Dogs · VCA Animal Hospitals
- Dog Vomiting: Causes, Diagnosis, Treatment · American Kennel Club
- Animal Poison Control · ASPCA
This guide is general information, not veterinary advice. Miyu is not a veterinarian and does not diagnose. If your pet seems unwell or you are worried, contact your vet.
