[Aldo]

All of the bloat info here is concerning. This is NOT something new. My parents lost a GSD in 1976 from a stomach torsion (not called bloat then). My 8 month old INHALES his food, and BELCHES more than I have EVER seen any dog! He will belch after drinking a lot of water too. I comfort myself by believing this will minimize his risk, but I really don't have any idea if it is true or not. I had stopped soaking his food a few weeks ago (Orijen) but he got HORRIBLE gas...smelled like invisible death. That has mostly gone away with soaking the food again. He eats 3x daily, about 1.5 cups each meal; water warmed in the microwave and mostly absorbed (so it doesn't expand later). Can't worry too much about this stuff, just do what you can and relax.

 

[fkeeley]

:thinking: I don't know if I buy on the ice thing. I mean, a little ice, how can that make a dog bloat? I think of us as humans. Food is normally the main cause of bloat; so why not dogs? I know their anatomy is not as ours but it is logical that anything with soy, fiber, etc would make anybody bloat if not in moderation. I spoke with my vet about it and he said that if the dog is going to bloat, it will bloat; nothing can really prevent it. I now always have gas x in my cupboards and the vet's emergency number on speed dial and do follow the no exercise afterwards, no water, good food with no citric acid or soy in it, etc and just pray that it won't happen to me again. I was lucky that Thunder's stomach didn't twist and was able to live the rest of his life, happy, as he should; but what a nighmare it was, everyday thinking he might bloat again. I just pray it won't happen with my Danica

 

[Dejavu]

Bloat is a scary thing! I've heard about acupressure helping a lot and I found these two links where you can see where the point for bloat is (also called ST36 or Foot Three Mile).

http://www.luckydoghealth.com/dogacupressurechart.htm

Accupressure Point for Bloat

Video: Three Mile Run Dog Acupressure Point: Acupressure for Arthritic Dogs | eHow.com

 

[GSDBESTK9]

My Sam bloated a couple of years ago, thankfully, so far so good. In his case it was a combination of eating out of a raised-food-bowl and him being such an aggressive eater. We had just gotten back from NC, so no exercise before of after his meal. He started bloating within minutes of him eating. I threw away all the raised-bowls and he now eats from one of those break-fast bowls.

 

[fkeeley]

I had to get Danica one of those bowls because she devours her food. It's just so darn scary. I wish researchers would focus more on bloat other than Great Danes I tell ya! In the end, not knowing what causes bloat, all we can do is try to prevent the best we can. I still think that what we give them must have a huge part in it and also how their digestive system is working. Like us, that sometimes feel bloated after a huge meal or eating gas producing foods such as beans, soy, too much "ruffage" or veggies, etc. I just pray that it won't happen to me again. Luckly I was home with Thunder bloated so I was able to take him to the vet quickly. Had I been working that day, God only knows in what type of condition I would have found him in.

 

[GSDBESTK9]

Yep, it is a combination of a lot of things (genetics, kind of kibble, bowl, aggressive eater, etc.). That's why I think feeding Grain Free also helps.

 

[fkeeley]

I totally agree! Once Danica can tolerate grain free, that's what I will feed her. I just hope her stomach agrees with it! I think it will . No raised bowls, continue with the slow feeder bow, no exercising right before/after a meal, etc, etc and just enjoy that little troublemaker of mine :crazy:

 

[dogmama]

Gastroplexy

I went to a seminar this week on bloat. The vets said, as many of you have said, we just don't know enough. We DO know that feeding from raised bowls, gulping food, being male, being excitable, having a change in routine (e.g., owner leaves town), being middle aged or later seems to contribute. They would not affirm that the type of food was the culprit.

Their suggestion was gastroplexy. This clinic is quite modern & does it laproscopically. They said that the dog can still bloat, but you won't have torsion, therefore it isn't a life threatening emergency. Cost = $2K. I'm going to have it done. My Zack is a prime candidate for bloat.

Recovering is 3-4 days of complete rest. No jumping, running, etc. Then 2-3 weeks of leash walks but no crazy exercise (read: ball playing!). Not too bad.

 

[lrodptl]

I went to a seminar this week on bloat. The vets said, as many of you have said, we just don't know enough. We DO know that feeding from raised bowls, gulping food, being male, being excitable, having a change in routine (e.g., owner leaves town), being middle aged or later seems to contribute. They would not affirm that the type of food was the culprit.

Their suggestion was gastroplexy. This clinic is quite modern & does it laproscopically. They said that the dog can still bloat, but you won't have torsion, therefore it isn't a life threatening emergency. Cost = $2K. I'm going to have it done. My Zack is a prime candidate for bloat.

Recovering is 3-4 days of complete rest. No jumping, running, etc. Then 2-3 weeks of leash walks but no crazy exercise (read: ball playing!). Not too bad.

Our senior recently died as a result of torsion 3 weeks after a splenectomy which the vet said was unrelated. I have my doubts and would add splenectomy to the list. If we had been advised to staple the stomach while he was open for splenectomy I think his life would have continued much further and with great quality.

 

[dogmama]

I'm so sorry to hear of your loss.

Interestingly, the vets said that in the case of torsion, a splenectomy is not uncommon. The torsion causes a lack of blood supply & the spleen often fails first. Don't know if it can cause torsion but if there is more room for the stomach to twist during a bloat, it seems like it could contribute. I'm not a vet, I'm just doing pure speculation.

Again, sorry about your "senior." For me, it's worse than a human passing, in most instances!

 

[GSDLoverII]

Kaiser had his spleen removed when he bloated almost a year ago.

 

[lrodptl]

I'm so sorry to hear of your loss.

Interestingly, the vets said that in the case of torsion, a splenectomy is not uncommon. The torsion causes a lack of blood supply & the spleen often fails first. Don't know if it can cause torsion but if there is more room for the stomach to twist during a bloat, it seems like it could contribute. I'm not a vet, I'm just doing pure speculation.

Again, sorry about your "senior." For me, it's worse than a human passing, in most instances!

There is at least one study I found that says a prior splenectomy can predispose to torsion.

 

[lrodptl]

Kaiser had his spleen removed when he bloated almost a year ago.

This would scare me.

Gastric dilatation-volvulus as complication after ... [J Vet Med A Physiol Pathol Clin Med. 2006] - PubMed result

 

[GSDLoverII]

This would scare me.

Gastric dilatation-volvulus as complication after ... [J Vet Med A Physiol Pathol Clin Med. 2006] - PubMed result

Luckily, he has a gastropexy that they did the night he bloated.
I still watch him like a hawk and get dog sitters if I am gone more than 3 hours.
The girls that work at my vets office dogsit for me.
I know he can still bloat even though his stomach is tacked down.
I keep a lot of gasx on hand and if I have a Dr.
appt or whatever, I give him a gasx in advance.
There are still no guarantees though.
I also had my other 2 dogs gastropexied laprascopically for prevention.
I am Very sorry about your senior!

 

[hunterisgreat]

My dog had twisted bloat. Surgery to correct. No issues since. Dog was on it's feet and normal one day after surgery

 

[hunterisgreat]

My dog had twisted bloat. Surgery to correct. No issues since. Dog was on it's feet and normal one day after surgery

I'll elaborate now that I'm not on my phone... fed from elevated bowl at the time. Always been on grain-free and raw diet. Dog bloated at approx 5am asleep on my bed. Was at vet by 6:20am. There was minor bruising at the twist, but otherwise healthy. No dead tissue. Did the stomach to rib cage stich thing. Despite my best efforts, I couldn't keep him calm upon leaving the next day, nor could I keep him from jumping into my lifted SUV. Has never had any bloat issues before, or since. Freak thing really. Ironically one of my closest friends great dane died from bloat just 2 months prior. Before that he had a GSD that died of bloat (before I knew him)

My personal opinion... its purely a factor of mechanical dimensions of the chest & waist, with feeding and activity habits as contributing factors. I'll never know why my dog bloated at 5am... 12 hours after the last meal, a solid 8 hours after the last drink or physical activity... that sort of takes the relevance out of the food & exercise habits. There's also no history of it in his lines as far as I can tell. I bet many dogs die of bloat that go undiagnosed though.

 

[enzosmama]

Okay I NEED HELP! I've introduced a male GSD into my home about 3 weeks ago. He is parasite free, but I cannot for the life of me get him to keep his food down. He excessively drinks water also. Is this common? I am just so worried because I know he isn't getting any nutrients this way. I have made an appointment with the vet for Monday. I just wanted to know if this for sure fell into the bloat category and is in normal for a puppy to have it?? What can I do for him!!?!?

 

[fkeeley]

Not sure if I understood the question correctly but with bloat it's like they are going to vomit but don't. No one really knows why they bloated when they do. There are several theories out there but no consistency. Best thing to do is to have gas x handy, know the symptoms and have your vet on speed dial. It certainly has something to do with the digestive system but how and why certain dogs .....I hope some day we will know

 

[Cassidy's Mom]

Okay I NEED HELP! I've introduced a male GSD into my home about 3 weeks ago. He is parasite free, but I cannot for the life of me get him to keep his food down. He excessively drinks water also. Is this common? I am just so worried because I know he isn't getting any nutrients this way. I have made an appointment with the vet for Monday. I just wanted to know if this for sure fell into the bloat category and is in normal for a puppy to have it?? What can I do for him!!?!?

You might want to ask your vet about megaesophagus: Canine Megaesophagus, Aspiration Pneumonia & Myasthenia Gravis

 

[Samba]

Ice and other things that can get gstric cramping or abnormal contractions going may contribute to bloat. My vet has seen it a dog was hot and ate ice.