Gastric dilatation volvulus, more commonly known as bloat or the stomach flipping, is perhaps one of the most serious medical emergencies your dog can face. You only have one or possibly two hours in which to seek treatment.
Bloat kills about 30 percent of dogs that suffer from it. Bloat starts with the stomach filling with air. As the abdomen area bloats, blood is prevented from returning to the heart from the rear end of the body, causing that blood to pool there and thus reducing the amount of blood the body has to work with. Dogs will slowly go into shock as a result of the restricted blood flow. As the stomach then starts to flip, it then strangles the pancreas and spleen. The pancreas reacts by releasing toxins that can target the heart, causing cardiac arrest. Without immediate intervention, this condition is almost always fatal.
Chances of survival are based on several factors, such as the degree of shock the dog suffered, how damaged the stomach was, pre-existing health concerns, how long surgery takes, and if there was damage to the pancreas and the spleen. Surgery involves removing the air from the stomach, checking for damaged or necrotic tissue in both the stomach, spleen, and pancreas, and tacking the stomach to the wall of the abdomen. Doing this does not prevent bloat in the future, but it does prevent the twist or flip.
This type of bloat is very painful to a dog. Pain, therefore, is the first symptom to look for. Vets report that dogs suffering from bloat prior to going into shock are restless and in obvious pain. Other symptoms include swelling of the abdomen that is painful to touch, retching but not being able to vomit, excessive salivation, and difficulty breathing. Bloat is an absolute medical emergency for which you should rush your dog to a hospital that can perform the surgery immediately regardless of day or night.
We know what happens to the stomach during a case of bloat. However, despite what the internet says, little is known as to why. Some known risk factors are deep-chested breeds that have a high height-to-weight ratio, poor stomach motility, diet, how fast the dog eats, and anxiety. Dogs that have anxiety or are fed one meal per day are two times more likely to bloat. Additionally, dogs that eat too fast are five times more likely to bloat. However, again, no one seems to know why that is the case.
If you search the internet on how to prevent bloat, you will get a long list of recommendations that have been proven to be mostly false, such as spaying or neutering being able to prevent bloat. It does not. It is a time when the stomach can be tacked, which, again, only prevents the twist. Feeding from a raised feeder doesn’t prevent bloat either.
If your dog eats quickly, you should feed them from a slow feeder bowl and feed smaller meals. Also, if your dog has anxiety, take steps to treat it and make sure meal times are stress-free.
The AKC Canine Health Foundation is currently doing research to see what, if any, genetic factors may contribute to bloat. Bloat is seen at a higher rate in breeds like the Great Dane, German Shepherd Dog, Standard Poodles, Labradors, Golden Retrievers, Borzoi, Smooth Collies and German Shorthaired Pointers. This research is very promising as it has found common genetic factors that relate to stomach motility, possibly linked to a cause of bloat.
Bloat can affect any breed and is a very serious medical condition. If your dog is suddenly ill with any of the symptoms described above, there is no harm in rushing to the vet to rule out bloat.
If you have any questions, please feel free to email me at heidi@fouronthefloordogtraining.net.
Heidi Clayton started Four On the Floor Dog Training to provide positive, reward-based dog training in South Jersey. She breeds, trains and shows bull terriers under the SoraBully’s Bull Terriers kennel name. Email questions to heidi@fouronthefloordogtraining.net or learn more at https://fouronthefloordogtraining.net
