How to Detect and Prevent Bloating and Torsion in Dogs
Bloating occurs when the stomach fills with air or food and is followed by torsion, a condition in which the stomach turns around on itself. Some believe it's caused by overfeeding or too much exercise before or after feeding.
- Difficulty:
- Moderately Easy
Instructions
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Be aware that this condition can be fatal.
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Know your dog's risk: The condition is most common in large and giant breeds.
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Help prevent bloating and torsion by feeding your dog twice a day.
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Avoid vigorous activity 1 hour before and after a meal.
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Be sure to always have water available for your dog, but prevent your dog from drinking large volumes immediately after exercise.
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Take your dog to the veterinarian immediately if within hours of a meal she is salivating, wrenching, vomiting and appears to have an enlarged abdomen.
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Comments
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Leilani Luckett
Jan 17, 2010
The type of food you feed is important. I have Irish Wolfhounds, and I never feed kibble. I only feed raw food; 80% meat, 10% bone, 5% liver, and 5% other organs. 50% of the diet should be red meat, 25-50% white meat, and 0-25% fish. I have never had a case of gastric torsion in my Wolfhounds with this diet. -
pam00
Oct 25, 2006
The type of food you feed them is important. Commercial Kibble expands in the stomach when mixed with water. It usually doubles in size. In dogs that are prone to the condition this can cause the stomach to torque to either empty or digest in a hurry.
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Sep 16, 2006
My Scottish Deerhound just developed torsion and was saved with surgery. She is an immature female, with no family history. I have always fed my dogs a high quality food. No one knows what went wrong for sure, she didn't have much food in her stomach at the time. I am blaming it on her love of drinking from the garden hose. The nozzle broke and I bought a new one that seems to have a lot of air with the water. So, no more drinking from the hose.
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Sep 16, 2006
My Scottish Deerhound just developed torsion and was saved with surgery. She is an immature female, with no family history. I have always fed my dogs a high quality food. No one knows what went wrong for sure, she didn't have much food in her stomach at the time. I am blaming it on her love of drinking from the garden hose. The nozzle broke and I bought a new one that seems to have a lot of air with the water. So, no more drinking from the hose.
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Aug 08, 2006
We just lost our German Shepard, Colonel, to gastric torsion. It happened early in the morning, only fifteen or twenty minutes in the operating room. Our family had no knowledge whatsoever of this disease. We have his brother to focus on now, and make sure we can prevent this from happening to him. I suggest reading anything and everything you can about this disease. Ask your vet. And if you don't have one...get one. Death from the disease can come very quickly, and you need to know the causes and symptoms.
