Hello. Yesterday a friend told me about this woman that had to take her poodle to the Royal Vet College because of bloat. The dog is ok now, and the woman was told to feed the dog on the floor instead of raised bowl. My friend doesn't know why. Does anyone know? I always fed them raised, now I am worried.
Val xxxx

You know, I actually believe that if a dog is going to bloat, it will bloat regardless of what precautions the owner takes. I had an Irish Setter that suffered three episodes of this and I took every precaution imaginable. My other Irish is treated in the exact same way, and he has never bloated, ever. I think some breeding lines are more at risk than others.
I still feed my remaining Irish from a bowl stand, he's never exercised within a couple hours of a meal, and I am careful of how much water he gets and when.
But I really feel that if it's going to happen, it will.
For years the accepted advice has been to use bowl stands, and to be told all of a sudden that the opposite is now believed to be better, well, it just takes a bit of getting used to. If you and your friend are committed to the reasons for using bowl stands then stick with it. After all it must be more comforable for the big breeds eh.
Dawn R.

Is there any truth that feeding your dog food at body temp lessens the risk of bloat? Can't remember where I heard/read this.

Thank you Dawn. My dogs have always been fed on raised bowls, I think you are right.
Val xxxx

Hi Val.

People say that bloat can occure for many reasons, i.e having water and food bowls raised off the floor can help to prevent this serious condition, for instance they can digest it more easily than they could on the floor, especially for the larger breeds.
Being watered and fed 1 hour before and after exercise also helps in between plenty of rest.

My Bullmastiff is fed off the floor.

Xena

When My Goldie was getting on in life and her tummy used to give her much more trouble ie:farty and bloted - I found that giving her a couple of Super Papaya Enzyme tablets with each meal did the trick. I gave her the same ones that I myself took.

She was a lot happier and the smell of her coat improved as well.

The Purdue report on GDV has said that elevated feeding is now contra indicated and may even be a contributory factor in bloat.

I have lost two dogs to GDV one directly and one indirectly which was one of the reasons for me changing over to raw feeding. The debates will continue but in truth no one has THE answer to bloat, it is, as many other things are, multifactorial and particular to the individual dogs concerned. I feed mine from the floor (Weimaraners) however if I had a giant breed such as a dane etc I may feel differently.

In the final analysis all we can do is research the subject as much as possible, keep up with the latest findings and then make our own decisions for our own dogs. That is all we can be expected to do and what most of us do anyway, what we think is best! :)

May I ask what is your raw diet?

I only ask because I am in the middle of reading a book titled "GIVE YOUR DOG A BONE - by Dr Ian Billinghurst" which advocates a raw diet.

I find this topic very interesting as I want my next pup to be in the most excellent health with a great diet so we may live a long and happy life togeather.

IBs books are interesting, even though so badly written IMHO;(His Barf Diet is better written) another excellent source and IMHO more accessible book is Natural Nutrition for Dogs and Cats by Kmythy Schulze.

Raw Meaty Bones by Tom Lonsdale is also excellent.

IB is somewhat obsessed with veggies and supplements and TL with periodontal disease. Most of us who have fed raw for some time adapt the findings of others to suit our selves, the dogs and our beliefs. one of the best sources of info on this subject is Britbarf forum on Yahoo; you will find plenty of discussion there on the pros and cons of raw feeding and on subjects as to whether to feed grains or not etc.

I would never return to commercial dog food but others find their dogs in excellent health on it. Horses for courses. I apply the same principles to my dogs as I did to my daughter and myself eg that fresh is best and to feed as little processed food as possible and to steer clear of all the additives, colourings, preservatives, humectants, emulsifiers etc that I can. (although at my age perhaps I should be looking at more preservatives) :)

It is a philosophy that works for us.

Thanks Tohme. Will check out thoes books too.
:-)

Hello Xena, that's what I always heard too. Now the vet college is supposed to be the best and they said that apparently, that worried me. But my dogs(almost 5 & 4) have always been fed on raised bowls, I think I'll continue to do so.
Valxxxx

Feeding a dog from a raised bowl helps to reduce the amount of air swallowed in gulping. It is a good aid to older dogs and dogs with gut motility disorders.

However as I understand it, bloat is caused when food begins to ferment in the stomach and produces gas. The big danger is that the stomach can then 'flip' over and seal itself. The body goes into shock and the dog dies within a few hours if not treated.

Exercise is not good an hour before or after feeding as the blood is diverted away from the stomach to the muscles elsewhere in the body, and digestion is slowed down - thus giving the food the chance to ferment and produce gas.

The issue of fermenting food is exactly why I changed over to raw. Meat does not ferment, grains do, as the bulk of commercial food is grain this is yet another reason to avoid it.

The dog may still die if treated as mine did.

Air gulping is not an issue with all dogs. Interestingly enough I have a dog that gulps air when exercised; this is why I keep simethicone handy.

I`ve had this happen twice in my dogs now but very very luckily they have both survived. First time was a pup 12wks old recovering from illness & being fed complete dry just over 2yrs ago, second time was 6 & half yr old raw fed & that happened just 2mths ago, but I`ll always continue to raw feed. I have always taken the precaution of no excercise a couple of hrs either side of feeding them & I did try feeding from a stand before the first time it happened but my dogs seemed uncomfortable with it so I went back to feeding them on ground level. I`ve read just about everything I can find on it but the truth is there is just no answer for it at the moment, wish there was. My own theory of why it happened is at the time they were both under stress & so was I. Both times was when I was nursing another sick dog & I was extremely worried so I do feel that played a big part in it, of course I`ll never know if it was or not it`s just my own theory. There have been a couple of mentions of stress being one of the reasons tho but not many. We just have to take every precaution we think is right & as Tohme says keep an eye out for any new findings/developements on it.

Christine, Spain.

Thanks MB, Tohme & Christine.
I remember now that when my friend told me what the vet college said she mentioned maybe they think that because in the wild the dogs wouldn't eat raised. When I give my dogs raw chicken legs or any big meat bones like ribs also, they actually go into their house and lie down to eat, they don't eat standing up. So that's how they would it in the wild, do you think? Or not really? I agree with stress being bad for digestion. I think I agree also the problem is a combination of factors...I have been feeding my dogs separately so they can relax when eating. This is scary!
Val xxxx

Hi B/Fan, have you read the Purdue report? I`ve put the link below just in case you haven`t.
http://www.vet.purdue.edu/epi/dietrisk.htm

I really don`t know. I watch my lot when they have big meaty bones & stuff like legs or whole chickens to eat & they don`t stay in the same position! :) Sometimes they stand up & hold it down with their paws & tear the meat off, sometimes they have the front parts of their body on the floor & bum stuck right in the air the they`ll give it a good old shake(I try not to be in the way when they do that ) other times they toss it in the air a few times then walk around carrying it like a trophy before they eat it. The only time they lay down to eat is when they have a big marrow or knuckle bone & even then they are up & down tearing at it or trying to get the marrow out :)
I don`t think about it any more otherwise I`d be a nervous wreck, we can only be aware of the dangers & do the best we can to prevent it :)

Christine, Spain.

Sharing information is always useful.

Just for the record I had working dogs for quarter of a century and tried several diet regimes, including raw meat etc., over a period of time (I even contacted US 'Iditarod' competitors - a 1000 mile sled-dog race in Alaska to ask how they fed their super-fit dogs) and eventually settled down to feeding a HIGH QUALITY EXPANDED 'complete' food, in two equal portions per day, but always fed VERY well soaked in boiling water and left to cool for a while. The wet food went down easily (I have a greedy breed) and was more easily digestible when warm as the starch was thus 'released'. My dogs did also get other bits and pieces of 'tasties', leftovers, biscuits and treats., and I never had digestive problems with this regime and, incidentally, never had to have my dogs teeth descaled - most lived to 14 years or thereabouts.

I know it is fashionable to 'knock' complete foods, but I feel there is a place for them if fed with care .

Hi MB, sorry but I haven`t noticed anyone knocking complete foods. All I`ve seen is people trying to give helpful info or point in the direction of more info, to the poster asking about bloat which sadly a lot of people have some knowledge of. Sharing & passing on different experiences is what I read the posts as being, not knocking anything.

Christine, Spain.

Hi Christine - nothing personal meant to anyone - my last contribution was made because reference was made to the fermentation of cereals, rather than meat - and of course most expanded/commercial diets are cereal-based, so may come under suspicion relating to bloat.

Another problem associated with bloat is long distant travelling with dogs who are shown, the stress can cause it to occure.

Hi Xena, you could say anything out of the ordinary is going to cause stress & long distance travelling could cause stress if the dog isn`t used to it. There again a certain amount of stress is known to be good for us, it`s all a balancing act just trying to get things right & sometimes you get a combination of the wrong things at the wrong time & it happens.

Christine, Spain.