Bloat (GDV)

What actually happens in bloat

Bloat begins as gastric dilatation: the stomach distends with gas and fluid. In some cases, especially in large, deep-chested dogs, the distended stomach rotates around its long axis. The rotation pinches off the entrance and exit of the stomach, traps gas inside, compresses major blood vessels, and starts a cascade of shock, tissue death, and arrhythmia.

Without surgery, GDV is almost always fatal. With prompt surgery, survival rates in published case series are roughly 80%. "Prompt" means within a few hours.

Warning signs, go to the ER

• Distended, hard abdomen, often suddenly
• Unproductive retching, the dog tries to vomit but nothing comes up
• Drooling and pacing, can't get comfortable
• Rapid, labored breathing
• Pale gums and collapse in late stages

Risk factors

• Deep-chested large and giant breeds: Great Danes, Standard Poodles, Weimaraners, Setters, German Shepherds, Saint Bernards
• First-degree relative with a GDV history
• Older age and lean body condition
• Eating one large meal per day
• Eating rapidly
• Stress

Prevention

• Slow feeders or food puzzles to slow eating speed.
• Two or three meals daily instead of one large meal.
• Avoid heavy exercise immediately before and after meals.
• Prophylactic gastropexy, a surgical procedure that tacks the stomach to the body wall, significantly reduces risk in high-risk breeds. Often performed during spay/neuter in at-risk lines.

Why it matters

Bloat is the canonical case where minutes matter. Owners of at-risk breeds should know the signs and know which 24-hour emergency hospital they're going to before they ever need it. For high-risk dogs, prophylactic gastropexy is one of the few preventive surgical conversations worth having early.