Author Topic: Gas pains or Bloat?????????  (Read 12260 times)

Offline DixieSugarBear

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Gas pains or Bloat?????????
« on: June 07, 2005, 12:57:24 pm »
It has been a long few days.  Sugar Bear has some runny stool the last few days so I have been giving him chicken and rice to eat. On Monday morning I notice that he was very restlessness, and just could not sleep. He was having paint and chewing at his tail.  So I rushed him to the vet. I know that bloat can happen so fast I did not want to take any chance. She gives him a shot put him on some meds and told me to keep a close eye on him.  He had a good night, but as soon as he gets up he started having bad pains again, so back to the vet for us.  I call the vet on his cell phone at 7am and they met me at the office.  They watched him for about 4hrs. and did some blood test.  I am so very thankful that is was not bloat. I was able to bring him home about an hour ago. He has only had pain twice and has eaten a little rice.  I am keeping him very close and watching his every move. 

Since bloat can kill our babies within hours I though we should all post any stories on dogs with bloat or other issues of that type.  The way we will all know what to look for so that we have a fur-babies as long as possible.

Lisa, Dixie & Sugar Bear
Lisa, owned by the following:
Sugar Bear - Great Pyrenees 4.5 yr.
Dixie Darlin - Great Pyrenees 4 yr.
Penny Lane - Great Pyrenees 2.5 yr.
Beauman - Great Pyrenees 14 months
Izzy - Great Pyrenees 14 month
Rosie - Great Pyrenees (at the bridge)

Offline coonie1970

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Re: Gas pains or Bloat?????????
« Reply #1 on: June 07, 2005, 01:01:06 pm »
Oh No Lisa
Hope he gets better soon. Do they know what could be causing the upset??
I have no idea about bloat. Im glad you posted this.
Coonie
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Offline GrumpyBunny

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Re: Gas pains or Bloat?????????
« Reply #2 on: June 07, 2005, 01:09:29 pm »
Oh no, I am so sorry that you had to go through that, and I hope Sugar Bear is feeling better soon!  

Haven't had experience with bloat, but Cabo once had pancreatitis.  He was in intensive care for several days, and it was very touch and go.  After that, his stomach was never the same - he had to go on a special diet, never had good poop, etc.  So, I have been in that scary place, and can sympathize...
*Founder of the Official Suspicious Chicken Fan Club*

Offline greek4

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Re: Gas pains or Bloat?????????
« Reply #3 on: June 07, 2005, 01:12:29 pm »
Rocco got a pig's foot stuck in his intestines which made him very sick.  I rushed him to the vet and he had to spend the night and get some medicine to take the swelling down.  The vet didn't think it would pass and that he would have to operate.  But my world champion pooper pulled through for me and passed it.  The vets said pigs hoove and ears are bad for dogs because of the high levels of fat which makes it hard for the dog to digest fully.

He was down for  few days then he was back to normal.
Thanks,

Emily and 1 husband, 1 boy, 1 on the way, and 4 crazy dogs

Offline jabear

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Re: Gas pains or Bloat?????????
« Reply #4 on: June 07, 2005, 01:17:41 pm »
How long does it take to happen? We are very cautious with Bear, especially after he eats, but I was wondering- how long would it take to know he has it? What are the signs and symptoms?
Hugs,
Jaime
  Mom to one handsome black Bear.

Offline DixieSugarBear

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Re: Gas pains or Bloat?????????
« Reply #5 on: June 07, 2005, 01:22:09 pm »
I can tell you I almost lost it when the vet said that was going to run some test for bloat.  His vet lost a Great Dane to Bloat last week because he was not treated in time.  It is my understanding that it can happen with in just a few hours and some times less. So getting them to the vet A.S.A.P is a must. 

Sugar Bear should be ok, he is on med for 7 days.  For the next two days is to eat very light (rice & chicken).  He just had another pain.  It it like he is having very bad gas pains.  So when it happens I rub his tummy and hold him in my lap for awhile.  I am told he may have been something he ate?????? 

Lisa, Dixie, and Sugar Bear

Lisa, owned by the following:
Sugar Bear - Great Pyrenees 4.5 yr.
Dixie Darlin - Great Pyrenees 4 yr.
Penny Lane - Great Pyrenees 2.5 yr.
Beauman - Great Pyrenees 14 months
Izzy - Great Pyrenees 14 month
Rosie - Great Pyrenees (at the bridge)

Offline mastiffmommy

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Re: Gas pains or Bloat?????????
« Reply #6 on: June 07, 2005, 01:28:22 pm »
I am so sorry to hear about Sugar Bear. It is a scary scary feeling.......

I have done bunches of research on bloat, both before and after I had a dane girl who got sick and we opted for surgery. It can go soooo fast, and I think that is the real scary part, that if the worst come to the worst you wont have time to do much at all.

We have spoke about bloat a few times on here, and it seems like one thing most people agree on, is that it is hard to keep up with the "new" studies that are being done. Some things they say today that are good to do to prevent bloat, they said the oposit about 10 years ago.

Things that matters, at least according to the studies are. exersise right before and after feeding. Eating from elevated dishes (thats a tricky one, some studies say have them, the newest say dont) give a little water in the kibble, so it doesnt take too much moisture from the body when digested. Not to feed too big meals, since that stretches out the muscles that "hang" the stomach up, and when the belly isnt that full anylonger, they get slack and thats when the belly can turn. stress supposedly can trigger bloat. And of course genetics.

I read a study not long ago that stated that as good as all dogs that come in for bloat has an empty stomach. So that I guess supports that it is good to either free feed or to feed more than once a day.

I hope Sugar Bear is feeling well soon, and please keep us updated, I dont think I understood what was wrong with him, did the vet tell you??

Marit
what the lion is to a cat, the mastiff is to a dog

Offline DixieSugarBear

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Re: Gas pains or Bloat?????????
« Reply #7 on: June 07, 2005, 01:35:57 pm »
In simple terms just hat he has a very bad upset tummy.  I am keeping a note pad with the time that he has pains so that I will know if it is getting better or not.  If not they will be seeing me a third time. I will not take any chances with my baby boy.

Lisa
Lisa, owned by the following:
Sugar Bear - Great Pyrenees 4.5 yr.
Dixie Darlin - Great Pyrenees 4 yr.
Penny Lane - Great Pyrenees 2.5 yr.
Beauman - Great Pyrenees 14 months
Izzy - Great Pyrenees 14 month
Rosie - Great Pyrenees (at the bridge)

Offline mastiffmommy

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Re: Gas pains or Bloat?????????
« Reply #8 on: June 07, 2005, 01:39:00 pm »
Good Luck Lisa and give him big slobbers from me

Marit
what the lion is to a cat, the mastiff is to a dog

Offline DixieSugarBear

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Re: Gas pains or Bloat?????????
« Reply #9 on: June 07, 2005, 02:32:52 pm »
He just loves big slobbers and kisses.  The vet said I can give him gas-x every 6 hrs. so I am hoping that will lessen the pain he is having.  It just kills me to watch him hurt and not be able to fix it.

Lisa
Lisa, owned by the following:
Sugar Bear - Great Pyrenees 4.5 yr.
Dixie Darlin - Great Pyrenees 4 yr.
Penny Lane - Great Pyrenees 2.5 yr.
Beauman - Great Pyrenees 14 months
Izzy - Great Pyrenees 14 month
Rosie - Great Pyrenees (at the bridge)

Offline GrumpyBunny

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Re: Gas pains or Bloat?????????
« Reply #10 on: June 07, 2005, 03:01:17 pm »
It just kills me to watch him hurt and not be able to fix it.

Lisa

I know how you feel, but you are doing everything you can to help him!  Give him kissies on the nose from me...
*Founder of the Official Suspicious Chicken Fan Club*

Offline moonlitcroatia

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Re: Gas pains or Bloat?????????
« Reply #11 on: June 07, 2005, 04:32:54 pm »
Just a thought, if things do not get better - sometimes they are uncomfortable if they've swallowed a sharp object.  When Greta swallowed a huge nail the only way I could tell was that she did not want to sit down...she first refused, and then when she did sit, she whimpered a little bit.  I took her to the vet and they found the nail via x-ray.  I can see how it could potentially take a while to figure out if a dog has swallowed something that is lodged in the stomach or intestine...an d/or punctured it.  One of the dangers is the possibility of blood poisoning.  Greta was lucky...

I know perhaps I sound a bit harsh, but I am quite a worrier and I do some research.  I can tell when something is really wrong with the babies, because I am very in-tune with their moods.  I try to rule out everything.  I go crazy if they are sick.  :'(
I think dogs are the most amazing creatures; they give unconditional love.  For me they are the role model for being alive.  ~Gilda Radner

Offline DixieSugarBear

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Re: Gas pains or Bloat?????????
« Reply #12 on: June 07, 2005, 05:23:21 pm »
Quote
I can tell when something is really wrong with the babies, because I am very in-tune with their moods.  I try to rule out everything.  I go crazy if they are sick. 

I know about the going crazy. Since I lost Rosie last year I make sure Sugar Bear and Dixie go to the vet if any little thing is wrong.  The day we took Rosie to the vet she had a limp in her front leg.  So I took her in only to find out she had been bitten by a rattlesnake.  We lost her three day after that.  I have kicked my self a thousand time for not knowing something was wrong. So now if I think there may be even a little something they are going to the vet. 

Lisa
Lisa, owned by the following:
Sugar Bear - Great Pyrenees 4.5 yr.
Dixie Darlin - Great Pyrenees 4 yr.
Penny Lane - Great Pyrenees 2.5 yr.
Beauman - Great Pyrenees 14 months
Izzy - Great Pyrenees 14 month
Rosie - Great Pyrenees (at the bridge)

Offline shangrila

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Re: Gas pains or Bloat?????????
« Reply #13 on: June 07, 2005, 06:45:37 pm »
When we got Zoey spayed, we took her to a major vetrinary hospital and they convinced us to do a preventative gastro-pexy so that she could never get bloat. It was a few hundred dollars extra, but her recovery wasn't any worse than if she had just been spayed and now we will never have to worry about bloat. The surgeon said that preventative gastro-pexies are beginging to become more common but still pretty rare - basically, what they do is put a couple tiny little stiches holding their stomach in place, since bloat is caused by a twisting of the stomach (and is cured by surgery that untwists it and stiches it into place).

We've deffinately had our share of stomach issues though - one night a few months ago, I woke up in the middle of the night because Zoey was throwing up next to my side of the bed. When I got up to take clean itup and comfort her, I discovered that my whole house was covered in vomit and diahrea (it was horrible) - we rushed her to the emergency room and they diagnosed it as pancreatitis. We couldnt let her eat for a whole day and then had to give her only handfuls of water and rice at a time for like a week. It was the saddest thing ever because she was so in so much pain she could barely walk around and would cry when her food was gone because she was so hungry and there was nothing we could do about it. She got better after that though. She's one tought puppy.

RIP former BPO

Offline DixieSugarBear

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Re: Gas pains or Bloat?????????
« Reply #14 on: June 08, 2005, 10:41:12 am »
Sugar Bear if feeling much better. He has been playing some with Dixie, which makes her very happy. He even found some cookies he had hidden.  He is on plain rice for the next two days. Not getting treat is making him crazy so I know he is feeling better.  I think it was the gas-x that did the trick.  The vet did tell me that is good to give them some gas-x any time you can tell that they are having tummy problems.

Lisa
Lisa, owned by the following:
Sugar Bear - Great Pyrenees 4.5 yr.
Dixie Darlin - Great Pyrenees 4 yr.
Penny Lane - Great Pyrenees 2.5 yr.
Beauman - Great Pyrenees 14 months
Izzy - Great Pyrenees 14 month
Rosie - Great Pyrenees (at the bridge)