Understanding the dangers of bloat to your dog

It's likely you or someone you know has lost a dog to bloat. Bloat is when a dog's stomach fills with gas and flips, causing a life-threatening situation. Although it can affect any breed, large breeds, like Great Danes, Newfoundlands, and St. Bernards, are at a much higher risk of developing bloat. More often than not, bloat turns out to be fatal so, if you believe your dog is showing symptoms, it's important to treat the situation as an emergency. Unfortunately, the exact cause of bloat remains a mystery, so prevention is difficult. However, some factors believed to contribute to bloat are eating a large meal quickly, eating only high-grain dry dog food, exercising immediately before or after eating, and drinking lots of water during a meal.

One of the most obvious symptoms of bloat is an enlarged abdomen. Dogs experiencing bloat will typically pant, drool, and repeatedly attempt to vomit without success. Oftentimes, the trauma of bloat, especially as it progresses, can send your dog into shock, which will result in labored breathing and likely collapse.

The effects of bloat are so severe they can kill your dog in less than an hour, so it's important to get your dog emergency veterinary treatment as fast as possible. Do not try to treat your dog at home or "wait it out". Call your vet ahead of time to let them know you're coming so your dog can receive treatment as soon as you arrive. The vet will likely do x-rays first to confirm bloat and will usually have to treat your dog for shock before doing anything else.

Truthfully, most dogs do not survive bloat. A small percentage, though, can be treated through surgery. The first thing the vet will need to do is remove the built up gas in your dog's stomach. Once the dog is stabilized, surgery is needed to flip the stomach back into its proper position and anchor it in place. This surgery can be costly and success is not guaranteed. Even if a dog makes it through surgery, they are still at high risk of another case of bloat in the future.

Bloat is a truly terrible condition that takes the lives of many dogs each year. If you are a dog owner, especially if it's a large breed dog, something as simple as taking the time to split up your dog's meals throughout the day and introducing canned food to their diet can help prevent bloat from happening. As bloat has a high fatality rate, preventing it is much more preferable to hoping for the best through treatment. Above all, remember that if you are concerned about your dog's health, get to the vet as soon as possible.

Alaina Goodnough is the Promotions Coordinator at Cocheco Valley Humane Society in Dover, NH. She lives in Sanford, ME with two parrots, a cockatoo, a cat, a bearded dragon, and two dachshunds. She can be reached at CVHS at devassist@cvhsonline.org. To learn more about Cocheco Valley Humane Society, go to www.cvhsonline.org or call 603-749-5322.