Hi everyone, I am new here, I have lost a gsds, over the weekend due to torsion, now after looking on the net I have found that citric acid ie a natural preservatve could be a contributary factor, I have looked at most dog foods, they all seem to contain citric acid, does anyone out there know of one that dosen,t

Hi Janines sorry to hear about your dog. One of mine pups had a torsion & we were very lucky that we managed to save her. Here is a link with lots of link about food but its mostly in the USA but if you scroolright down there is info for UK & other countries. Keep in mind that some foods from USA are exported worldwide.

http://home.attbi.com/~mstraus/dogfeeding.html

Christine2

Hi Tracey - can't help with the food question but just wanted to say I'm really sorry about what happened to your dog.

Joyce

Hi i would just like to say sorry to hear about your puppy. i had a phone call from a lady that had a pup from me he died of the same thing the vet said it was just one of those things made me feel so sad he was a very healthy pup and was vet checked so we dont no what caused it he was 15 weeks old best regards gwen

Janine, can't help you with your quest for the right food, but will say that there are just so many factors that can cause bloat, I wouldn't limit yourself to just one thing. I guess if you are adamant about following the food route, then buy your own meat and biscuit and make your own rations,

Hi Janine, My breed has a tendancy to gastric torsion, and I agree totally with Sams comments.

My Irish Setter has bloated today, for the second time in 10 months. Thankfully he didn't twist on either occasion,but he has needed to have the bloat released by the vet. I have long since accepted that I will probably lose him to this eventually.The Irish Setter is another breed which is prone to bloat, and knowing this , makes me take all the usual precautions anyway. He isn't exercised for hours after feeding,he eats from a bowl on an elevated stand,I control the amount of water that he has access to.What else could I do to minimise the risk of a third episode? Cassidy is an extremely active dog who makes full use of his off lead time. I feel inclined to restrict his exercise to only a couple of minutes free running,and the rest of the time on lead only.I wanted to change his diet as well, he's on a dry complete, and I wondered if a canned meat and biscuit food might be easier on his gut. My vet says not, leave it as is.I'm clutching at straws and fast concluding that there's nothing I can do to change things.Any advice? Meanwhile Cassidy is flat out on the floor sleeping off the after effects of the anaesthetic. Dawn R.

Hi Dawn, sorry to hear about your dog, there is no know cause at the moment. Heres some links on it & I`m hope you`ll find something to help him. My puppy had it at 3mths and her spleen was twisting but she survived & she is now 18mths & it never happened again.

http://www.caninehealthonline.org/index.php?tid=23
http://www.vet.purdue.edu/epi/bloat.htm
http://www.bogartsdaddy.com/bouvier/Health/canine-bloat-resource-page.htm

Christine,Spain

Theres not been much sleep had in our house last night.My Irish Setter Cassidy is dead.He suffered another episode of bloat yeserday and was put to sleep to save him the suffering. The decision was very difficult to make, Cassidy was only five years old, but as this was now his third episode in less than eleven months, I could not let this happen to him any more.

I can't believe what I've done.I feel so guilty. But I know really I've saved him from alot of pain.

Cassidy lived life at full tilt. He loved to gallop, and I'd been reluctant to allow him much free running in the past two weeks since the last episode. Of course he wasn't happy with that.I had begun to feed him three times a day, and I couldn't think of anything else I could do to keep him safe.
I'm really wallowing but I'm just so sad. Dawn R.

Oh dear nursey , so sorry to hear you terrible news

{{{{{{{{{hugs}}}}}}}}}

Melody

Dawn, I am very sorry to hear about your dog :-( It's never easy to give them sleep, but sometimes they give us no choice. Chin up.

Sorry to hear your bad news Dawn :(
To put Cassidy to sleep to save him suffering was a brave decision that not everyone would have the courage and self sacrifice to make. He is at peace now :)
Take Care
Lara

Dawn,
So sorry to hear about Cassidy, it is so hard to make the right decision but sometimes you have to think about quality of life and I'm sure a restricted Irish Setter would have been unhappy.
You did everything you could and when that wasn't enough you took the brave decision to do what was best for him. Bloat is an awful thing and I think to keep him going from one episode to the next would have been wrong. {{{{{{{Hugs}}}}}}}}
Anne

Dawn I am so sorry to hear that, I've had to rush a friend's Dane to vets twice now, luckily the gasses have started to disperse both times but we are both paranoid now. A little verse for you:-

If it should be that I grow weak,
And pain should keep me from my sleep,
Then you must do what must be done,
For this last battle cannot be won.

You will be sad, I understand;
Don't let your grief then stay your hand.
For this day more than all the rest,
Your love for me must stand the test.

We've had so many happy years -
What is to come can hold no fears.
You'd not want me to suffer so;
The time has come, so let me go.

Take me where my needs they'll tend
And please stay with me until the end.
Hold me firm and speak to me
Until my eyes no longer see.

I know in time that you will see
The kindness that you did for me.
Although my tail its last has waved,
From pain and suffering I've been saved.

Please do not grieve - it must be you
Who had this painful thing to do.
We've been so close, we two, these years -
Don't let your heart hold back its tears.

- Author Unknown

Take care. Ingrid

Thankyou all above for your kind thoughts, Ingrid the poem is so appropriate. I think my heart is breaking, today has been very hard. I had to go out as usual this morning with the other dogs. Cassidy would have loved it, he always did. He is such a big miss already. Thankyou all again. Dawn R.

Dawn

I am dreadfully sorry to hear your sad news.

Theresa

I'm so sorry Dawn. As you know, Irish Setters are always a bad risk for Bloat and some dogs in the breed particularly at risk. I know a lot of work has been done concerning the ratio of width of body compared with depth and high ratios are far more at risk than the more rounded bodies.

Whenever we have to make that hard decision we feel we have let our friend down but please don’t dwell on it. There are times when that is the only course of action and that’s the time to think of the good times we have had.

Feeling for you, John

Hi im so sorry to here about your dog such a sad loss my mum and dad lost one of theres a few years back with gastric torsion the only one theyve ever had in 27 ish years of breeding setters such a hard thing to come to terms with and such a great loss to you and your family all the best gwen

Im so very sorry to hear about your loss. Try to take comfort from the fact that you did what you did because you loved him so much and didnt want him to suffer ((hugs)))) xxx

Dawn, I'm so sorry :(
I know it wouldn't have been an easy decision but at least you've done the best for him.
<<<<<< Big Hugs >>>>>>
Dot

Hi, you've no idea how much all your messages mean to me. Thankyou for the support. I was meant to be at Gundog Breeds of Scotland tomorrow, but I just can't muster the neccessary enthusiasm to prepare two American Cockers for the show. So I'll be giving it a miss.Love and Good Luck to anyone who's going. Thanks Dawn R.

Hi I have just came across your post, I am so sorry about your loss, it is not easy whatever we do, I lost a shepherd to torsion just a few weeks ago, and the choice was taken out of my hands, SHE had already gone, take pride in the knowledge that he was loved, well cared for, and will never be forgotten,
thinking of u
tracy