While it may be a dog-eat-dog world, it's also a dog-eat-garbage world. Not surprisingly, the indiscriminate snacking habits of dogs, added to the canine tendency toward motion sickness, makes vomiting one of the most common reasons dogs are taken to a veterinarian. An estimated 3 million dogs have a bout of vomiting each year, and an additional 7 million dogs suffer from vomiting caused by motion sickness.

Luckily for dogs with upset stomachs, the owners who worry about them and the veterinarians who treat them, Pfizer Animal Health now offers Cerenia, the first product developed and approved to treat and prevent vomiting in dogs. The drug comes in both an injectable form that is used primarily to treat vomiting in the veterinary hospital and a tablet form that is used by pet owners to prevent motion sickness or treat vomiting at home. (The drug is given one hour before travel.)

"In the past we gave sedatives for motion sickness, and pet owners always faced the dilemma of when to repeat the drug. With Cerenia there's no sedation, and it has convenient, easy-to-understand dosing,Ó said Dr. Tom Carpenter, the owner of Newport Harbor Animal Hospital in Costa Mesa, Calif., and the president of the American Animal Hospital Association.

Carpenter also likes the fact that while in the past medication to stop vomiting had to be given through continuous intravenous infusion or dosed as many as four times per day, Cerenia can be given just once a day.

"I feel safe giving the drug while waiting for radiographs, blood work or other diagnostic samples to come back. Plus by utilizing Cerenia to treat or prevent vomiting, we're going to save pet owners some money,Ó he said.

While vomiting is common in dogs and often no cause for alarm, you should treat this condition as an emergency if you've seen the dog swallow some poison or a poisonous plant, if the vomit has blood in it, if your dog is lethargic or disoriented, or if he's throwing up with alarming frequency. In these cases, every minute counts in rushing your pet to the veterinarian.