I saw this out there on the web.
Truth is, nobody really knows what causes bloat.


Ice Causes Bloat?

 

Truth is, nobody really knows what causes bloat.

Yep, that's the scary thing about it.

 

I am always grateful for threads like this. They are very educational. I knock on wood as I say this, but I have not been faced with my dogs bloating yet. I know it is a possibility every day. I feed them their kibble in ground level dishes, their raw in their crates. After they eat, they are confined indoors for a bit so they can rest and digest. I have Gas X on hand just in case & have two vet numbers, our normal vet and the E vet numbers memorized, and programmed in my phone. They are both no more than 10 minutes from our house.

 

So here is a question for you all.
Zisso loves Ice...in the winter when the water buckets freeze over he will break the ice to eat it. In the summer, if I drop an ice cube, he usually gets it before I can and I can't get it back(he will run from me if he has ice & try to get it) so the Q is...is giving ice a big no no when they are over heated, or at all times? I mean, I always thought that some things in moderation are okay. It seems like ice in moderation might still be okay. I know that when trying to cool a dog off we have to careful and do it slowly, just as we would with humans, but really...No ice ever?

 

Madison gets a piece of ice after her walks. It keeps her from gulping to much water. I am no expert so I say do what you feel is comfortable for you. I just lost a dog to Bloat and honestly as far as I know there were no real reason for it other than him drinking a bunch of water. I dont think any one really knows what causes it. It is just the luck of the draw. The er Vet says if it is gonna happen its gonna happen there was nothing we could have done to prevent it.

 

Zisso, I let my kids eat snow and they break off the ice in their pool during the winter, run around with the pieces then lie down and chomp down some. I don't feed them ice in the summer, but that's because a sudden cool down of a hot body is reckless anyhow. Not because of bloat issues.

Is ice more dangerous than raw but less dangerous than kibble? I don't think anyone can answer any of that. I think it's genetics, stress (which is all about genetics) and age (which ties back to genetics in large part).

I can wave a rabbit's foot over my dog's bowl every night before he eats. If he doesn't bloat, does that mean it worked? If I feed him raw, and he doesn't bloat, I might think that means raw doesn't cause bloat. Is there cause and effect for either? Or are both superstitious thinking? I think the Purdue study has some useful information, but the methods are questionable. So I pay attention to them (I don't need to use a raised feeder -- none of my dogs have neck issues -- so I don't). But is there cause and effect? I don't know.

For me, honestly, it's just easier to say I have no gosh darn idea. They like to play in snow. If they take a big mouthful and swallow it, I don't freak out. My stressing about what they eat constantly or whether they should rest one hour or two would cause them stress, and stress DOES seem to have causative effect toward bloat.

So, I let my kids live and enjoy themselves. I don't take stupid risks. But I learned last year that when a life is cut short abruptly, I found a lot of solace in knowing that my dog lived every single day to his fullest. He played hard. He ran fast. He rolled in snow and chased snowballs. Did any of these contribute to his death? I'm certain that they did not. But he packed as much living as any dog could into his exuberant little life.

We can drive ourselves and our dogs crazy. Or we can do what's reasonable and let them live happy full lives. I manage the risk by making sure that I know how to respond to bloat. If I can't prevent it, then I can respond swiftly and efficiently. For me, that's a KNOWN in a vast sea of unknowns. That's how I choose to live with it.

 

I just had to bring my GSD into the animal hospital last night after he threw up alot. After they took x-rays I got the horrible news. My GSD's stomach twisted. They had to put him into surgery last night. The vet and surgeon said the only real preventative thing they can do is tack the stomach down, and they told me that's not even 100% preventive. They also told me feed the dog less but more frequently, watch how much and how fast he drinks water, and no exercise or playing for at least 1 hour after eating (this will allow the food to settle). This has to be the worst thing my dog has and will ever go though. My advice is just watch how much he eats drinks and DO NOT exersize or play with him for at least an hour.

 

Help with Bloat

Hi,

I'm new to the forum and found many intresting information, since last saturday my GSD hasn't been well.

He's been restless, can't move, not eating, just drinking water and he's been breathing very heavily ... first of all i thought it was cause of the amount of fireworks there has been in the past few days. (since he was a puppy he was always scared of the fireworks)

I took him to the Vet on an emergency call and he found a bloated stomach with water.

He gave the dog the following medication Lasilix 40mg 3 times daily.

Today is the second day of medication and i can't seem to see him get any better.


Any suggestions? I really can't handle my GSD being in such shape since he's been a great companion.

Anyone can suggest what can help to get him better? maybe a position to put him in so maybe he can take better breats? Should i feed him?


I'm so new to this! Please help.

Much appreciated.

Keith

Malta:help:

 

My GSD of 8yrs was rushed to ER to find out he had bloat, He had the GDV surgery and now he has an aspirated lung which caused an ammonia. Does anyone have some advice on some additional herbs or natural remedies I can give him because he is on allot of meds.

 

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.

 

: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

 

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

 

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.

 

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.

 

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.

 

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:

 

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.

 

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.

 

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!

 

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.

 

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

 

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.

 

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

 

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

 

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.

 

Gastropexy report

Thought I'd update on Zack's gastropexy -

He had it done laproscopically one week ago. He is doing great! They kept him overnight. When he came home the next morning, he was still groggy & sore for a couple of days. Now, the challenge is to keep him from jumping, running, ball chasing, etc., for the next week (when sutures are removed.)

They shaved him from the bottom of his ribcage to his lower groin area. He just started licking a couple of days ago & now sports a handsome blue blow-up donut. The cat keeps stalking him - can't figure out what that "thing" is. I figure when we get done with it, Zack can use it as a life preserver because his swimming is really bad.

 

My little girl, Shoshona, is two years post Bloat/Surgery and doing well. There is hope if it can be caught in time and we can get them to a skilled Vet facility.

 

can they bloat from any age?
are puppies just as likely to get bloat?

 

I haven't heard a puppy bloating. I feel like it might be somewhat age related but don't quote me on that. I guess I just hear happening to older dogs not young ones. I still take all the necessary precautions as I don't want to have to go through it again. Not taking any chances; of course, there is no guarantee unfortunately. I still think that the best precaution is to know the symptoms and rush the dog to the vet if you think he might be bloating.