by Frank Will

Created on: May 11, 2009

Bloat in dogs is a condition that is fast becoming one of the leading killers of dogs second only to cancer. Your dog can come inside to eat his dinner, go out and start to play, and the next thing you know he is gasping for air, going into shock, and before you know what has even happened, he has died.

We are very fortunate in that we identified bloat very early in one of our previous Dalmatians, but even with all the safe guards that we take with our current Dalmatian, he still gets mild forms of bloat where he simply throws up, thank goodness, which prevents it from getting to the serious stage.

So what exactly is bloat, what are the causes, the symptoms, and what can you do to help prevent this life threatening condition in your canine friend.

Bloat in dogs is the building up of excessive gas, as well as fluid and foam in your dog's stomach. It is referred to as dilation when the valve at the bottom of becomes blocked which prevent gas as well as other materials that our produced by your pets stomach to exit. It can occur on its own, or it can be the precursor to torsion.

It will typically occur when your dogs has eaten a large meal very rapidly and is generally following by drinking a lot of water. In most cases of life threatening forms of bloat, this is followed by a lot of activity or exercise in the yard, walking, or running; all within the first few hours after eating.

What happens is that your dog's stomach may start the process called torsion. This means that their stomach is basically rotating or flipping over, which causes abnormal twisting of the intestines. This condition is also referred to as GDV, Gastric Dilatation Volvulus, or twisted stomach.

Once this rotation has started, the blood supply is cut off and the stomach begins to die. When this occurs, your dog's entire blood supply is disrupted and conditions in your pet from there on will deteriorate rapidly.

Not all dogs will face this serious of a gas buildup resulting in this chain of events, but in any dog that has volvulus develop, it is the result of dilation within their stomach. As owners, understanding the signs will be critical to saving there lives because at this stage prompt medical treatment is required.

Large breed dogs and large chest dogs are by far and away the most prone to this condition as are dog over 7 years of age. Male dogs are also at a much higher risk than females.

The temperament of dogs also seems to be a factor especially

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