When your dog bloats, every minute counts

Veterinarian Wendy Brooks, my former colleague at VeterinaryPartner.com, once called it “the mother of all emergencies,” and it’s the subject of my column in SFGate.com this week:

You’re trying to sleep, and your dog is driving you nuts. He’s restless, he’s panting, and he keeps making a sound like he’s clearing his throat, or maybe trying to throw up.

You check his stomach, and it seems a little bloated. Don’t reach for the Gas-X; reach for your car keys, because your dog is showing all the signs of one of the most serious and time-critical of all veterinary emergencies, gastric dilation and volvulus (GDV).

You might know this condition by one of its more common names, bloat, or bloat and torsion. More likely you’ve never heard of it at all. Simply put, torsion occurs when the stomach, for unknown reasons, twists so its ends are closed off, trapping air in the stomach.

While bloat affects many species, including humans and cats, those most at risk are dogs, particularly those of the larger breeds. Only around 6 percent of all dog breeds in general will bloat in their lifetime, but that rises to nearer to 25 percent for large and giant breed dogs.

Among those breeds likely to bloat are the most popular dogs in America, Labrador Retrievers, and all their retriever cousins, including the Golden. The breed with the highest incidence of bloat is the Great Dane, followed by the St. Bernard in second place and the Weimaraner in third. Mixed breed dogs can bloat, German shepherds can bloat, poodles can bloat, Irish Setters can bloat. If it has four legs and says “woof,” it can probably bloat.

The causes of bloat aren’t known, but I summarize much of the information that came out of the huge Purdue bloat study, give dog owners an idea of how to recognize the signs of bloat in their dogs and what to do when they see them, and explain what happens when a vet is treating a dog for GDV. I also discuss the procedure known as “stomach tacking,” often recommended to prevent bloat in high-risk breeds.

If you or someone you know have one of the bloat-prone breeds, or aren’t sure, be sure to check it out.

Comments

Hi- Here in Northern CA, I had my dog prophylactically pexied at UC Davis during his neutering. Having survived a bloat with my previous Standard Poodle- this is the best $350. ever spent ever.
Victoria

[Wallie Gee]

I did not know about bloat. Last Tuesday 08/26/2008, my Chow Chow Bella Bear was going in and out of the dog door and made a little whinning noise. I knew immediately that something was amiss. I went to her and I usually give her a belly rub and to my surprise, her abdomen was hard as a blown up balloon and Bella cried again. I called my Vet right away and they told me not to bring her in, but to take her to the Emergency Animal Hospital immediately plus adding that this is life threatening. I immediately drove Bella to the hospital and they were waiting for my arrival due to a call from my Vet and within a half hour, Bella was in emergency surgery. I was lucky and Bella even luckier as the surgery was a success and she is home with me now. I was fortunate enough to have noticed the symptoms and reacted quickly. It saved her life! Her stomach turned 90 degrees and her spleen was moved, but because this was corrected right away, there was no damage to any organs. Her stomach was repositioned and spleen put back with no ill effects. Bella is in recovery and in the healing process that will take about 3 weeks. We are grateful to have terrific Vets and owe them our eternal graditude. Everyone that has a dog should be armed with the knowledge required to look out for bloat. Bloat can kill within hours!