# Can you see that the dog has bloat?



## CharismaticMillie

Not always. My experience is with torsion. When Henry had GDV, his stomach did not feel or appear bloated. The vet said his tummy felt like maybe he had an obstruction but said it was *not* bloat. X-rays confirmed it _was_ bloat with torsion. Our biggest indicator he had GDV was his behavior. 

For _torsion_, watch for signs of pain - odd behaviors. Henry would suddenly slam his body to the ground and roll on his back like a horse with colic - trying to untwist his stomach. He would try to sit and yelp with pain while biting his stomach - standing up to alleviate the pain. He ran outside and laid down in the grass - wouldn't come inside. 

According to my vet, a dog with torsion will not be able to eat or drink because his stomach is twisted.

I think the classic, easily spotted case of bloat would be a dog with a balloon size stomach. But this is not always the case so if you ever suspect bloat make sure you tell the vet you think it could be bloat and insist on an x-ray.


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## Winnow

Ok so he would not lie sleeping on the floor. 

Good too know ...

I am so stressed about this.
I feed raw but what worries me is there water intake and especially how much Vaka drinks. I try to make her take a break while drinking but sometimes its too late. 

She was for example drinking quite a lot for about 30 minutes ago and now she is fast a sleep on the floor so I guess she is fine  

I just love my spoos so much and I don't want anything to happen to them


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## CharismaticMillie

I suspect dog with bloat (without torsion) might lay on the floor and sleep soundly but would eventually be awoken with discomfort as it progressed. Hopefully Cbrand will comment here because one of her girls has bloated (blown up like a balloon) multiple times. 

With torsion I think they would probably be restless at night, but that is just an assumption, I don't know for sure.

It is so scary the things that can happen to our babies!


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## Winnow

ChocolateMillie said:


> It is so scary the things that can happen to our babies!


Yes to scary sometimes :S

Thanks for the info. 
She is not bloated and is able to pass gas(she burped)
So I guess she will be fine and just has a mom with high anxiety LOL..


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## debjen

When my lab bloated the first time you could definitely see his sides expanding..the 2nd time his ribs were still sprung from the first time and it was much more difficult to tell..

I would say the 2 most tell tale signs of bloating is the trying to throw up and can't and the pain. My lab was pretty stoic and I had never seen him in so much pain he was just writhing and groaning in the car on the way to the vet,


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## cbrand

At the end, they will blow up like a drum, but before that you might notice a failure to settle, asking to go out over and over, panting/whining, or even turning to look at their own stomach.

Do you have a product called Gas X in your country? I've found that this really helps.


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## Winnow

cbrand said:


> At the end, they will blow up like a drum, but before that you might notice a failure to settle, asking to go out over and over, panting/whining, or even turning to look at their own stomach.
> 
> Do you have a product called Gas X in your country? I've found that this really helps.


I am sure I could find it somewhere how is that used ?
Do you use it every day or just when the dog is bloating ?


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## CharismaticMillie

Winnow - if it helps Gas-X is Simethicone.


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## CelticKitti

Winnow have you tried any of the bowls that slow down drinking. I found it really helped Mia.


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## Winnow

CelticKitti said:


> Winnow have you tried any of the bowls that slow down drinking. I found it really helped Mia.


Not done that but I will look into it.

Feeding them raw has helped a lot since they don´t drink as much water now since there food has more moisture in it

Don´t think there is anything wrong with my dogs I am just always worried and better to be as safe as possible.


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## CelticKitti

Winnow said:


> Don´t think there is anything wrong with my dogs I am just always worried and better to be as safe as possible.


I feel the same way. As a puppy Mia would drink so much so fast it scared me. The bowl really helped her slow down and I found she didn't drink the entire bowl too.


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## Liz

cbrand said:


> At the end, they will blow up like a drum, but before that you might notice a failure to settle, asking to go out over and over, panting/whining, or even turning to look at their own stomach.
> 
> Do you have a product called Gas X in your country? I've found that this really helps.


I'll second Carole's description of GDV. My childhood spoo died from torsion. She was restless, uncomfortable, and kept asking for walks. We were completely ignorant as to how serious the situation was, so we waited until the next morning to take her to the vet. It was too late by then.

On another thread, someone else recommended Gas-X. I think they mentioned giving the spoo a thin strip to buy some time for the vet to act. Is this correct?


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## debjen

Liz said:


> On another thread, someone else recommended Gas-X. I think they mentioned giving the spoo a thin strip to buy some time for the vet to act. Is this correct?


Gas-X will help if the the stomach hasn't already flipped. If it has flipped the Gas-X can't get down into the stomach.


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## Liz

debjen said:


> Gas-X will help if the the stomach hasn't already flipped. If it has flipped the Gas-X can't get down into the stomach.


That makes sense, Debjen. But also means it's even more important to catch it early.


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## CharismaticMillie

Liz said:


> That makes sense, Debjen. But also means it's even more important to catch it early.


My vet also explained that torsion is most commonly preceded by bloat but not always.


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## Sutton Bend

My experience was with torsion as well. There was heavy breathing and panting, with some drooling/foaming. This was in an Akita. She was very stoic and it was hard to see physical signs of her sides swelling out, because they are furry and double coated. Her abdomen got hard, and she was having abdominal muscle spasms/wretching.


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## flufflvr

I carry simethicone capsules with me everywhere. They're in my house, my purse, the therapy bag, my glove compartment. . . and if she acts gassy at all I give her a few. I'm rather paranoid myself as Liberty's mother died of bloat.


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## apoodleaday

Lacey also had bloat and torsion. She was fine at 11:00 pm and in significant distress by 2:00 am. 
You couldn't see the expansion of her sides too much, but she was in very obvious pain. She also had the symptom of trying to vomit with no success.
By the time we got to the vet 2:15 am she would lay on the floor and try to stretch out as long as she could to alleviate her discomfort.
If you're ever concerned, an xray is the fastest, safest way to be sure.
If you do ever have a case of bloat, make sure your vet releases the pressure in the stomach before surgery.
Simethicone can buy you a bit of time if you have to travel a long way.


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