Bloat or Gastric Torsion, a BIG Dog Ailment
I haven’t talked about any dog ailments in a while, so thought we’d take a look at what some people call “bloat” or your veterinarian might call it “Gastric Torsion”. It is a scary condition if it isn’t treated early, as it can be life-threatening.
What happens is that the stomach in the dogs digestive system turns in a way that makes it hard for food to to move on through, so it becomes full of food, bloated because of the food decay, and ultimately, unfortunately, can lead to death (what an important but depressing post to have to write).
This is a condition that bigger dogs are inclined to get, if you are one of the following, you may want to get your owner, well, your owner is probably reading this to you, anyway, you may want to get your owners to learn more about this so you can prevent it:
- Big sized Poodle
- Labrador Retriever
- Saint Bernard
- Gordon Setter
- Great Dane
- Doberman Pinscher
- English Sheepdog
- Irish Setter
I think you get the idea, it’s large dogs with large chest cavaties that are more inclined to suffer from this condition.
What are some of the symptoms?
- Drooling more than usual
- Signs of pain in the abdomen
- Trying to vomit, but not producing anything or producing foamy mucous material
- Not wanting to play like usual, lying around curled up instead.
- Later when the stomach becomes more bloated, more discomfort and more danger
- Hard abdomen to the touch where it is usually soft to the touch
Dogs vomit for many reasons, yorkies can spit up foamy yellow “stuff” which isn’t uncommon, especially in the morning before eating because their stomachs are empty, and bigger dogs who play outside and aren’t watched are good at finding things to eat that make them sick, but if you suspect something more, it is ALWAYS best to have your pet checked by your veterinarian. It may not be as serious as you think, but if it is, at least you will have support and guidance from your Vet.
Treatment: Very basically, releasing the dangerous pressure and surgery are usually the treatment for this. Do a search on this condition, you can use the search feature on this site, to find more information about this condition on the web.
Prevention: Sometimes you can prevent this by not feeding one large meal a day, but feeding a few smaller meals…when you eat your three meals, give your dog a 3rd of what he/she should eat in a day, too.
When you change to a new food, it is ALWAYS a good idea to do it gradually for many reasons, mixing new food with old and gradually changing over. Are you buying a dog? See if any of it’s “ancestors” have had the condition.
Take good care of your pets, as animals who are taken care of by you, we depend on you for that.
