Posted by: [EMAIL PROTECTED]
This info was just passed on to me from a friend on another list...feel free
to do the same.
Janet
Although I'll post most of my updates on the ACA list because I went to
the conference as the ACA delegate, I'll post the bloat notes here as
they're of general interest. The Purdue Bloat study, from 6/94 to 3/99,
included nearly 2000 dogs from 12 large and giant breeds--Akita,
Bloodhound, Collie, Great Dane, Irish Setter, Irish Wolfhound,
Newfoundland, Rottweiler, Saint Bernard, Standard Poodle, and
Weimaraner. Of those, the Great Dane had the highest rate of bloat of
the giant breeds, and Bloodhounds had the highest of the large breeds.
The least likely of the 11 breeds to bloat in those size categories were
St Bernards and Rottweilers. The rest were lumped together, somewhere in
the middle. The rate of bloat in the graph corresponded well with the
graph of owner's assessment of their dog's personality, i.e. "happy"
dogs had the lowest rate of bloat in this study.
Some of the other factors reported on in this study that showed
increased risk are age (older dogs may have stretched, weaker stomach
ligaments), chest depth/width ratio (more bloat in deeper and narrower
chests), chest depth-abdomen depth (more bloat in deep chests and
abdomens), greater height (especially in females), and fearful and
easily upset personalities of the dogs. The one factor from this study
that correlated well with decreased risk was a "happy" personality:
being happy significantly reduced the risk of GDV (gastric
dilatation-volvulus, aka bloat-torsion). Dietary factors are still being
analyzed.
First-degree relatives who bloated increased the risk for a particular
dog, with a greater risk from having siblings or offspring who bloated
than having parents who bloated. (Dr Glickman thinks the latter
observation may be inaccurate and would need to be studied with a larger
sample.) However, the general observation is a clear indication that GVD
is genetic.
Although breeders often feel there's a relationship between amount of
tuck-up and bloat, statistics didn't show this. If they do bloat more,
it may be because the dogs weren't so healthy before they bloated (e.g.,
had inflammatory bowel disease).
Dr Glickman found no scientific basis for many of the current guidelines
for preventing bloat; some may increase rather than decrease risk.
*Increased* risk of bloat was found with dogs who had water and exercise
restricted around meals, who had their food bowls raised, and who took
medications like Simethacone to prevent bloat. This doesn't mean these
factors would make the average dog more likely to bloat; it means that
doing these things for a dog predisposed genetically to bloat doesn't
necessarily help prevent bloat. [clear as mud?] Other tips did hold up
in the study: fast eaters and dogs who were fed only once a day had a
higher rate of bloat.
Future work on this study includes evaluating diets and their
ingredients, determining how the risk factors interact, providing
guidelines for GDV prevention and evaluating the efficacy of these
guidelines, and evaluating the role of esophageal function in GDV
studies. He's very excited about the work on esophageal function, which
is now being funded by a grant from the Collie Club of America.
The guidelines he feels he can give with confidence at the current time are:
1. Don't breed dogs if a first degree relative has bloated.
2. In a high-risk breed, consider having a gastropexy done when the
dog
is neutered.
3. Feed multiple meals daily.
4. Reduce eating speed.
5. Use behavior modification on a fearful, anxious dog.
6. Don't change current feeding regimens until study is complete.
--
Linda Wroth Richmond, CA [EMAIL PROTECTED]
