This post is part of the Caring For Critters Round Robin which was created by Jodi at  Heart Like A Dog.  Each day a different blogger will be sharing their experiences with a particular injury, condition, disease or illness. Since it is a “Round Robin” one blog will pass the baton, so to speak, to the next each day.  Yesterday Jodi kicked off the Caring For Critters Round Robin with a post about Canine ACL Injury/Surgery.  At the end of this post, I will pass the baton on to the next blogger so you can follow from blog to blog.  Jodi is also gathering all of the posts here for quick reference.

Jodi has asked me to share my experience with Canine Bloat or Gastric dilatation-volvulus (GDV).

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The first time I ever heard about the condition called “bloat” was during a seminar hubby and I attended about canine first aid.  The seminar speaker was a veterinarian and she touched a little on the symptoms of bloat and stressed that if we ever suspected that our dog was suffering from it, to take him directly to an emergency vet because the condition could be deadly and time was of the essence.

I filed it away in my brain.

What is Canine Bloat?

Canine bloat is a condition where the dog’s stomach fills with air, (gastric dilatation).  It is an extremely serious condition.  Sometimes the stomach or spleen will twist which cuts off the blood supply to the organs, (gastric dilatation-volvulus).  This condition can be deadly.

Our experience with Bloat/GDV.

June 13, 2011 was a day like any other.  We took Thunder (he was 5 years old at that time), and Storm out to train.  They were training toward their AKC Senior and HRC Seasoned Titles.

Nothing strange happened during training, but later that evening Thunder seemed very ill at ease.  He was pacing about and would not settle down.  He appeared to stand with a roached back and he tried to vomit, but nothing came out.

We started to suspect bloat, but he did not have the swollen stomach that is often described as a symptom.

We decided that even if it turned out to be nothing, it was worth a trip to the Emergency Vet to tell us that he had a bit of a stomach upset.

Hubby and I quickly discussed which ER vet to take him to.  One was closer, but I knew that if this was in fact bloat that I would much rather he be treated at a Veterinary Hospital, so that is where we headed.

It seemed like it took hours to get there, but it was probably less than 1/2 hour.  On the way to the ER vet, Thunder became much worse and it was clear he was in a lot of pain.  Still, he walked into the hospital.

After describing his symptoms and what we suspected, the vet took him back for an x-ray which confirmed that it was bloat and that his stomach and spleen had twisted.

At that point, the decision was whether to do a very expensive surgery where the vet would try to untwist the organs or euthanasia.  Those were the only two choices because once the organs twist, the blood supply is cut off to them and eventually the dog will go into shock and die.  It is a painful death from what I have been told.  The surgery did not have a guaranteed outcome.  Sometimes dogs do not survive the surgery, or if they do, the damage to their organs is too severe and they only survive a few days.

Whatever decision, we only had moments to make it.

Making A Decision.

I bet most readers would say the decision is no brainer.  Surgery is a must because the alternative (euthanasia) is no alternative really.  But it wasn’t that easy.  We had to think of what was best for Thunder and whether the vet felt he would survive the surgery.  No sense in putting him through the surgery if there was no hope for a positive outcome.

The vet said that based on Thunder’s age and vitals, she felt he had a fighting chance.  She also explained that she might have to remove his spleen but that he could live normally without his spleen.  She wanted to give him some plasma prior to surgery because his coagulant levels were a bit low and she wanted his blood to be in as good a shape as possible prior to surgery.  If we decided on surgery, we also had to decide whether to sign a “do not resuscitate” order if something should go wrong during surgery.

After discussing it with the ER vet, (and thankfully she was very candid with us), we decided to go ahead with the surgery and declined to sign the “do not resuscitate” order, which meant that if his heart stopped during surgery, they would work to save him rather than let him go.

We thought we were going to be in for a very long night, but after about an hour and a half, the vet reappeared to tell us that the surgery went very well and that she did not have to remove Thunder’s spleen.

Recuperation.

Thunder spent 3 days in the vet hospital.  Not only did they untwist his stomach and spleen, but they also tacked his stomach to prevent it from twisting again in the future.  He was sent home with various medications: an antibiotic, a pain medication, a pain patch, and something to promote stomach motility (movement).  He could eat his regular food, but broken down into 4 meals.  We had to measure out and limit his water so he would not over drink.  This was something that the ER vet stressed.

Initially Thunder had to be walked on a leash and only for a very short time just to do his business.  No stairs and he had to be kept separate from Storm for 2 weeks.  The staples came out in 10 days and then he could spend some time in his outside kennel, but no running for 4 weeks and no field training or swimming for 6 weeks.

We were also told to make sure we limit water consumption going forward so that Thunder never gulps down a lot at once.  He can have some, but then take it away and give it back after a bit of time has passed.  The vet also instructed us to not feed a meal two hours before exercise or for one hour after.  As long as we followed these few instructions, he could lead his normal life.

We were very lucky.  Thunder recuperated with no side effects and 63 days after his surgery, he was back running hunt tests.  He passed his first Seasoned Test 64 days after his surgery and went on to finish both his Seasoned and Senior titles that summer passing 7 of 9 tests.  He also had a great hunting season.

Lessons Learned.

With bloat it is important to know the warning signs.  I knew some of them, but I was not clear on them.  I also did not realize that some of the symptoms can be very subtle or not present at all.  Thunder presented atypically.  He did not have the inflated abdomen and it did not sound hollow when tapped.  The vet noted that he did not have the gas bubbles in his stomach that are normally present when a dog is bloated.

It is important to know where the nearest ER hospital is located because in many cases bloat happens after hours.  I picked a further hospital because I felt they probably had more experience with bloat and I knew they were the blood bank for our area.  I am glad that I had at least thought of these things ahead of time because there was no time for research.

There is a preventative surgery that can be done to tack the stomach to prevent it from twisting.  It doesn’t prevent the bloating, but it prevents twisting.  It is expensive, but not as expensive as the surgery for bloat.  Because Thunder has a long deep and narrow chest, we had considered the surgery but never had it done.  I wish we had.  That is really my only regret.

Three years post surgery, Thunder is a happy healthy eight year old.

Thanks to Jodi for creating this Round Robin!

Tomorrow’s Caring For Critters Round Robin is going to be hosted by Beth of Travels with Barley who will be writing about Feline Lower Urinary Tract Disease.