Canine 'Bloat' or Gastric dilatation and volvulus syndrome (GDV), in dogs
01st September 2007
Ever since I first produced my new website in April 2007, I have considered starting a newsletter about my dogs. That's because they are an integral part of my life and a part that so many people can appreciate and share in to a greater or lesser degree. I also happen to enjoy photographing dogs and love seeing the pleasure that my pictures give to their owners as they view perhaps the first professional portrait they have ever commissioned of their dog.
However, I always thought that it might appear boring and self indulgent of me, and so I have resisted until now - or at least until the catastrophic events of last Saturday 16th June 2007! Now I feel I HAVE to post this newsletter in order to try to prevent any other dog from suffering so miserably.
I have 2 large dogs, a 7 year old Bull Mastiff / Rottweiler cross bitch called 'Kaz', which I have had from 3 months old,
Kaz as a puppy 
Kaz at 7years old
and a 6 ? year old Neapolitan Mastiff bitch 'Bella', which I rescued 3 years ago.
Bella as she is now 
Bella 2 years ago
Bella had had a really horrible time with her previous owner, having had a litter of at least 15 pups of which only 2 survived and although they were weaned off her, her owners had not stopped her milk and were feeding her on nothing more than pasta. She weighed a mere 37 kilos and was chronically anaemic with a coat that was only millimetres long and her skin full of dry sores. She looked like those emaciated pictures you see in RSPCA adverts.
Bella on the day I received her 
From the moment I got her, I put her on an intensive program of rebuilding her strength and wellbeing, but in spite of all my best efforts the anaemia did not respond fully and so she had to undergo a full hysterectomy. This was successful in remedying her anaemia.
She has since undergone 2 operations to remove a furunculosis infection on her carpal joint on her leg (which was present when I took her on) and then she was diagnosed earlier this year with osteoarthritis of both hips, hip dysplasia in one hip and spondulosis on her spine (which explains why she has never been able to bend her back since I have had her).
As a lifelong dog owner, I knew that Bella had had it really rough but I felt that I had seen most of the health problems that dogs have to face and thought she was perhaps over the worst of things, but I was so very, very, wrong.
Last Friday night 15th June, about an hour after having been fed, Bella suddenly started attempting to vomit. I say 'attempting' because what she was going through was what the vets call 'unproductive vomiting' i.e. she was vomiting nothing more than mucous which I can only describe as resembling a whisked egg white - nothing more, not even a trace of her meal! She showed no other signs of being unwell, other than a slight distension of her stomach, and soon settled down in her bed to sleep and I assumed that she was just feeling queasy as she often does after eating grass or some other noxious substance (as most dogs do) - and in that moment I had missed the key symptom that may have saved poor Bella from even more suffering.
The reason for this will become apparent when I tell you that unproductive vomiting is THE signature symptom of....'Bloat'. Bloat, or GDV as it is called by vets, occurs when the entrance to, and exit from, the stomach are closed off and the dog cannot get rid of its stomach contents or the gas that is continually produced whilst the stomach continues to digest them. The cause is still unknown - the outcome swift beyond belief, terribly uncertain, but always extremely grave and often fatal if not treated within the hour.
Like most dog owners out there I had no idea that dogs could get bloat, neither did I know nor fully understand what its implications were, nor how unbelievably quick it can strike.
The following is a graphic illustration of the events that followed.
Next morning I went to take my dogs out for their morning walk only for Bella to begin her unproductive vomiting again. During her walk I tried to relieve her distress by rubbing her stomach but to no avail. Within 15 minutes of starting our walk, her stomach had suddenly blown up like a drum and the sight of her distress had become frightening. I knew from the look in her eyes that this was very serious and I had no option but to drag her back home (with some difficulty as she weighs over 8 stone - 53 Kilos). I got her home as quickly as was humanly possible and immediately rang my vet some 15 miles away.
I was advised to take her straight in, which I did, driving with all haste, but getting caught in a stream of slow moving traffic and roadworks. On our arrival I dragged Bella out of the car into surgery, and left my partner to park my car over the road. The diagnosis of 'bloat' was immediately confirmed by the young lady vet on duty and by the time my partner arrived just 2 minutes after me, Bella was already being prepared for an emergency operation. My partner and I were ushered out of the room and told that the situation was dire and I would be contacted later.
Amazingly all this occurred within about 1 hour from the onset of Bella's stomach distension. Everything occurred so quickly that it felt unreal and neither the truth nor the implications would dawn on us for some time yet.
As we would only have been in the way we headed the 15 miles back home, where I immediately rang the vet to check on Bella's progress, only to be told that Bella was still being treated and the vet would ring me later.
After what seemed like an eternity, but was in fact about 4½ hours, the practice vet finally 'phoned me to say that he had been called in to join his junior partner because the operation was so complicated, (fortunately, although he was off for the weekend he hadn't gone away and so could be called in). The complexities of the operation had employed the combined skills of both of them and nursing staff for all of that time, but they had thankfully succeeded in saving Bella without damage to her vital organs and stomach.
Bella then had to be nursed for the next 2½ days connected to a drip to maintain her fluids, etc. before I was, gratefully able to collect her and bring her home. She has now been home with me for 3 days and I have had her back to the vet's twice already, but she does appear to be gaining a little in strength, and I can only hope and pray that she will eventually make a full recovery, although it will be some days yet before she is out of the woods, and I fear many weeks or months before she is fit again.
I hope that the reason for this news sheet is now becoming clear. I have learned a lesson the hard way, and it's a lesson I hope all dog owners will never have to learn. Bloat is probably the second biggest killer of dogs after cancer, but it is SUDDEN and IMMEDIATELY LIFE THREATENING, and even when caught in time, it is DEBILITATING in the extreme.
From onset to death can be a matter of as little as an hour or two !!
So, please look out for non productive vomiting in your dog because this is the key symptom - if you see it, 'phone your vet's immediately, make sure they are ready to receive your dog as an emergency admission, and get your dog there as soon as you possibly can. You may save its life. Do nothing, or delay and you will almost certainly condemn your pet to die in agony as it suffers shock and heart failure as its blood flow and internal organs are destroyed by the pressure of the expanding stomach. If, as usually seems to happen, the complication of a torsion (twist) occurs in the stomach then the prognosis is made even more dire. Bella was fortunate enough inasmuch as this occurred whilst in the vets and so they were able to control it immediately, but, such are the medical complexities of bloat, not without some difficulty. I have only the highest praise for my vets, Jane (who started Bella's treatment so urgently and gave so much kind aftercare) and Chris (who thinks almost as much of Bella as I do), whose experience and combined expertise undoubtedly saved Bella from an untimely and agonising end. I would also like to add that it would almost certainly have had a different outcome if not for the experience and kindness of all the practice staff. Thanks to you all ! I must also give extra special thanks to RSPCA vet Jim who also thinks almost as much of Bella as me and who has looked after her wellbeing so devotedly for the last 2 years, and thanks to the RSPCA staff, Pam, Paula, and Kelly for showing Bella so much kindness.
The one lesson I have learned from this is that if ever I see any of my dogs vomiting unproductively - no matter what condition they appear to be in - I will not hesitate, but immediately take it to my vet.
I hope you don't think that this is over dramatising but in any case, I suggest that you try a Google search for 'canine bloat' or type in any of the web links below and see what others think, and good luck!.. but more importantly I hope you never need it.
www.globalspan.net/bloat.htm
www.canismajor.com/dog/bloat.html
www.thepetcenter.com/sur/bloat.html
However, I always thought that it might appear boring and self indulgent of me, and so I have resisted until now - or at least until the catastrophic events of last Saturday 16th June 2007! Now I feel I HAVE to post this newsletter in order to try to prevent any other dog from suffering so miserably.
I have 2 large dogs, a 7 year old Bull Mastiff / Rottweiler cross bitch called 'Kaz', which I have had from 3 months old,
Kaz as a puppy Kaz at 7years oldand a 6 ? year old Neapolitan Mastiff bitch 'Bella', which I rescued 3 years ago.
Bella as she is now Bella 2 years ago Bella had had a really horrible time with her previous owner, having had a litter of at least 15 pups of which only 2 survived and although they were weaned off her, her owners had not stopped her milk and were feeding her on nothing more than pasta. She weighed a mere 37 kilos and was chronically anaemic with a coat that was only millimetres long and her skin full of dry sores. She looked like those emaciated pictures you see in RSPCA adverts.
Bella on the day I received her From the moment I got her, I put her on an intensive program of rebuilding her strength and wellbeing, but in spite of all my best efforts the anaemia did not respond fully and so she had to undergo a full hysterectomy. This was successful in remedying her anaemia.
She has since undergone 2 operations to remove a furunculosis infection on her carpal joint on her leg (which was present when I took her on) and then she was diagnosed earlier this year with osteoarthritis of both hips, hip dysplasia in one hip and spondulosis on her spine (which explains why she has never been able to bend her back since I have had her).
As a lifelong dog owner, I knew that Bella had had it really rough but I felt that I had seen most of the health problems that dogs have to face and thought she was perhaps over the worst of things, but I was so very, very, wrong.
Last Friday night 15th June, about an hour after having been fed, Bella suddenly started attempting to vomit. I say 'attempting' because what she was going through was what the vets call 'unproductive vomiting' i.e. she was vomiting nothing more than mucous which I can only describe as resembling a whisked egg white - nothing more, not even a trace of her meal! She showed no other signs of being unwell, other than a slight distension of her stomach, and soon settled down in her bed to sleep and I assumed that she was just feeling queasy as she often does after eating grass or some other noxious substance (as most dogs do) - and in that moment I had missed the key symptom that may have saved poor Bella from even more suffering.
The reason for this will become apparent when I tell you that unproductive vomiting is THE signature symptom of....'Bloat'. Bloat, or GDV as it is called by vets, occurs when the entrance to, and exit from, the stomach are closed off and the dog cannot get rid of its stomach contents or the gas that is continually produced whilst the stomach continues to digest them. The cause is still unknown - the outcome swift beyond belief, terribly uncertain, but always extremely grave and often fatal if not treated within the hour.
Like most dog owners out there I had no idea that dogs could get bloat, neither did I know nor fully understand what its implications were, nor how unbelievably quick it can strike.
The following is a graphic illustration of the events that followed.
Next morning I went to take my dogs out for their morning walk only for Bella to begin her unproductive vomiting again. During her walk I tried to relieve her distress by rubbing her stomach but to no avail. Within 15 minutes of starting our walk, her stomach had suddenly blown up like a drum and the sight of her distress had become frightening. I knew from the look in her eyes that this was very serious and I had no option but to drag her back home (with some difficulty as she weighs over 8 stone - 53 Kilos). I got her home as quickly as was humanly possible and immediately rang my vet some 15 miles away.
I was advised to take her straight in, which I did, driving with all haste, but getting caught in a stream of slow moving traffic and roadworks. On our arrival I dragged Bella out of the car into surgery, and left my partner to park my car over the road. The diagnosis of 'bloat' was immediately confirmed by the young lady vet on duty and by the time my partner arrived just 2 minutes after me, Bella was already being prepared for an emergency operation. My partner and I were ushered out of the room and told that the situation was dire and I would be contacted later.
Amazingly all this occurred within about 1 hour from the onset of Bella's stomach distension. Everything occurred so quickly that it felt unreal and neither the truth nor the implications would dawn on us for some time yet.
As we would only have been in the way we headed the 15 miles back home, where I immediately rang the vet to check on Bella's progress, only to be told that Bella was still being treated and the vet would ring me later.
After what seemed like an eternity, but was in fact about 4½ hours, the practice vet finally 'phoned me to say that he had been called in to join his junior partner because the operation was so complicated, (fortunately, although he was off for the weekend he hadn't gone away and so could be called in). The complexities of the operation had employed the combined skills of both of them and nursing staff for all of that time, but they had thankfully succeeded in saving Bella without damage to her vital organs and stomach.
Bella then had to be nursed for the next 2½ days connected to a drip to maintain her fluids, etc. before I was, gratefully able to collect her and bring her home. She has now been home with me for 3 days and I have had her back to the vet's twice already, but she does appear to be gaining a little in strength, and I can only hope and pray that she will eventually make a full recovery, although it will be some days yet before she is out of the woods, and I fear many weeks or months before she is fit again.
I hope that the reason for this news sheet is now becoming clear. I have learned a lesson the hard way, and it's a lesson I hope all dog owners will never have to learn. Bloat is probably the second biggest killer of dogs after cancer, but it is SUDDEN and IMMEDIATELY LIFE THREATENING, and even when caught in time, it is DEBILITATING in the extreme.
From onset to death can be a matter of as little as an hour or two !!
So, please look out for non productive vomiting in your dog because this is the key symptom - if you see it, 'phone your vet's immediately, make sure they are ready to receive your dog as an emergency admission, and get your dog there as soon as you possibly can. You may save its life. Do nothing, or delay and you will almost certainly condemn your pet to die in agony as it suffers shock and heart failure as its blood flow and internal organs are destroyed by the pressure of the expanding stomach. If, as usually seems to happen, the complication of a torsion (twist) occurs in the stomach then the prognosis is made even more dire. Bella was fortunate enough inasmuch as this occurred whilst in the vets and so they were able to control it immediately, but, such are the medical complexities of bloat, not without some difficulty. I have only the highest praise for my vets, Jane (who started Bella's treatment so urgently and gave so much kind aftercare) and Chris (who thinks almost as much of Bella as I do), whose experience and combined expertise undoubtedly saved Bella from an untimely and agonising end. I would also like to add that it would almost certainly have had a different outcome if not for the experience and kindness of all the practice staff. Thanks to you all ! I must also give extra special thanks to RSPCA vet Jim who also thinks almost as much of Bella as me and who has looked after her wellbeing so devotedly for the last 2 years, and thanks to the RSPCA staff, Pam, Paula, and Kelly for showing Bella so much kindness.
The one lesson I have learned from this is that if ever I see any of my dogs vomiting unproductively - no matter what condition they appear to be in - I will not hesitate, but immediately take it to my vet.
I hope you don't think that this is over dramatising but in any case, I suggest that you try a Google search for 'canine bloat' or type in any of the web links below and see what others think, and good luck!.. but more importantly I hope you never need it.
www.globalspan.net/bloat.htm
www.canismajor.com/dog/bloat.html
www.thepetcenter.com/sur/bloat.html