14 Jun Dog Bloating; Diagnosis, Treatment And Symptoms

Most vets hate this canine digestive disease and some call it “the mother of all canine emergencies”. One of them says that 30 years ago, the survival probability of a dog that wasn’t very bloated and could walk on his own was no more than 50%. Even now, despite the progress of treatment methods, about 30% of dogs that suffer from this problem die. I hope that bloat will never happen to your puppy or dog, but getting familiar with this problem and having enough information about why it happens, what are its symptoms, how to treat it, and what is good for treating bloat in a puppy or an adult dog, may one day help you and save your dog’s life. So, if you have a dog or are interested in dogs, stay tuned in this article about dog bloating.

Dog bloat definition 

Bloating, also known as colic in puppies, is an emergency problem that requires immediate treatment and often requires surgery. Dog bloating occurs when a dog’s stomach fills and expands with gas, food, or liquids. When the stomach expands, it puts pressure on the organs and veins around it and doesn’t allow the blood to return from the hind legs and abdomen to the heart and other organs of the body. As a result, it may cause dangerous problems, for example:

• Difficulty breathing
• Rupture of the abdominal wall
• Decreased blood flow to the stomach and heart. Blood collects in the lower part of the body, blood volume decreases and the dog goes into shock.

In some cases, the dog’s stomach rotates or twists, which is called gastric dilatation and volvulus (GDV). Even in the mildest case of bloat (which happens very rarely and is usually a severe problem), the dog will die if he isn’t treated. These events are dangerous enough, but something worse can happen, which is very uncomfortable: when the stomach rotates, it also rotates the spleen and pancreas, and the blood flow to these two important organs is cut off. When the blood oxygen doesn’t reach the pancreas, several very toxic hormones are released, one of which disables the heart. It’s possible that the dog’s flatulence can be treated successfully and it seems that the danger has been completely removed, but suddenly the dog dies due to heart failure.

Symptoms of bloating in puppies

Symptoms of this problem can appear very quickly. Bloating is very painful for puppies or adult dogs, and at first, they may show symptoms of stomach pain. Early signs of bloating in dogs can include:

• Abdominal enlargement and swelling
• Abdominal stiffness
• Excessive salivation (drooling)
• The dog feels pain and if you touch or press his belly, he may moan
• Symptoms of suffering and discomfort such as shortness of breath and restlessness
• Looking at his stomach
• Constant walking
• Looking anxious
• Retching (that is, the dog tries to vomit, but nothing comes out)
• He lies down so that the front part of his body is down and the back part is up

As the situation worsens, the following may happen:

• Pale gums
• Increased pulse and heartbeat of the puppy

• Shortness of breath
• Weakness
• Faint

If you don’t treat your dog, he will probably go into shock after an hour or two. The heart rate increases and the pulse becomes weaker and finally, the dog dies. It should be noted that some other digestive problems such as peritonitis, intestinal obstruction, tumour and cancer or internal bleeding, as well as problems such as Cushing’s syndrome (hyperadrenocorticism), ascites or very severe contamination with parasitic worms, can also cause stomach bloating in dogs.

Causes of dog bloating

Ever since the bloat disease was first recognized, this question has baffled veterinarians. Now we know that the air accumulates in the stomach (dilation) and the stomach twists (volvulus), but we don’t know that the accumulation of air causes it to twist or that the stomach first twists and then the air accumulates inside it. Experts are still not sure about the cause of bloat in dogs, but some things increase the likelihood of this problem, including:

• Eating only one heavy meal during the day
• Eating fast
• Excessive physical activity (such as running or playing) after eating
• Heredity (there’s a history of bloating among the dog’s close relatives)
• Eating too much food or liquid
• Stress

Breeds that are more at risk

Any dog can suffer from bloat, but this problem is more common in some breeds. The risk of bloat in dogs or puppies is related to the structure of their chest. Dogs that have a deep and narrow chest and a large size (i.e. very tall, not wide and elongated) are usually more prone to bloat. For example, the risk of bloating in a Great Dane dog with a very high height-to-width ratio is 5 to 8 times higher than in dogs with a low height-to-width ratio. In addition to Great Danes, giant dog breeds such as St. Bernard, Weimaraner, Irish Setter and Gordon Setter and large breeds such as Akita, Boxer, Basset Hound, German Shepherd, Labrador, Standard Poodle and Doberman Pinscher are also more at risk of bloat.

If a dog’s close relatives, including his father, mother, sister, brother or puppies, suffer from bloating, it’s more likely to cause this problem for himself and puppies shouldn’t be taken from him. The probability of bloat in male dogs is twice that of females, and neutering does not affect the possibility of this problem. Age also has an effect and dogs between 7 and 12 years old are more at risk. On the other hand, overweight dogs are more prone to bloating.

Treatment

The treatment of dog bloating depends on its severity. The veterinarian may first insert a tube from the dog’s throat into his stomach to relieve the pressure inside the stomach. Sometimes the twisting of the stomach doesn’t allow the tube to go down. If this is the case, a large, hollow needle is inserted into the stomach from the side of the abdomen to relieve the pressure. Of course, if the puppy is in shock, the first thing veterinarians do is treat the shock and immediately start injecting fluids (usually with antibiotics). They will probably take an X-ray of the dog’s stomach to see if the stomach is twisted or not. If there’s a twist, emergency surgery is necessary. After the dog’s condition is stable, he will be operated on.

Two things are done in surgery. First, they empty the stomach and cut it to the right position. If part of the stomach wall is damaged, those parts are removed. The second thing is that because in a large percentage of cases (up to 90%) the dog’s flatulence will happen again, the stomach is attached to the abdominal wall (gastropexy) to prevent it from twisting again. Then they check to see if other parts of the body are damaged or not.

Prevention

It used to be said that putting dog food dishes on the floor increases the possibility of bloat, but a few years later it was found that this issue isn’t true. With these conflicting results, we can’t give definitive advice on how to prevent flatulence.

It has been said about some foods are related to bloating, but it’s still not possible to be completely sure. For example, they also say this issue is for grains, but the problem is that the main diet of most large dog breeds is grains, and maybe these dogs get bloated because of their large size and increase their weight, not because of grain consumption. Of course, it has been determined that foods that contain soybean meal or oil and fat as part of the first 4 ingredients increase the risk of a dog bloating up to 4 times.

The solutions to prevent the dogs from bloating

Dogs that are overweight or underweight are more prone to bloat, so it’s very important to bring the dog to the right weight. Dogs that eat one meal a day are twice as likely to develop bloat as dogs that eat two meals a day. So, instead of one or two very large meals, you should divide the food into several small meals throughout the day. The speed of eating also has an effect. The rate of bloating in dogs that eat quickly is 5 times higher than those that are used to eating slowly.

Using special food containers that slow down eating can be helpful, but you should also pay attention to the anxiety of dogs that eat in a group because it can increase the risk of bloat. Dogs that are stressed or hyperactive are more at risk. Separating dogs from each other while eating can help reduce their anxiety and stress. Sad and depressed or fearful dogs are twice as likely to suffer from bloating than happy dogs.

To wrap up

Dog blowing can be extremely dangerous and defeat a dog that was playing an hour ago. So never wait to see what happens and whether the dog’s condition will improve or not. If you notice that the dog’s stomach is bloated or you see other symptoms that we mentioned, take him to the vet immediately. To have a healthy and lively dog, you must pay attention to nutrition, activity, health, grooming, etc. You can prevent the disease and have a healthy dog in this case. You can count on the specialized team of MishkaGrooming in all these steps. Our experienced and precise groomers have carefully and accurately groomed your dogs so they count the moments for the next session.