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Old January 6th, 2013, 03:20 PM
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SarasMom SarasMom is offline
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Is this an early sign of bloat?

Hello everyone, I'm new here but not new to being a pet mom. My pound puppy Sara is almost 15, and she's a Lab/Beagle/Whippet/SumthinSumthin. She's the love of our lives, but something that seems to have appeared in the past few months is worrying me.

We switched her food in September from Pedigree (mix of dry and wet) to Natural Choice (dry and wet combo also) because she developed allergies. We also have not been giving her any treats since July, again because of the allergies. Since the summer she's started to steadily lose weight, from about 42 pounds to about 37 pounds about a month ago, which we attributed to the lack of treats, and then getting used to the new food. We've also noticed that her shape has changed to the point where her abdomen from the bottom of her ribcage to her pelvis is extremely thin, and her chest almost appears a bit larger or rounder. At first I thought this might be because her abdomen is so thin that it is just an illusion; after all, a five-pound weight loss is pretty significant. But I've read so much about bloat that I'm wondering if she might be at risk for developing it.

Something else that's strange is that it used to be after she ate her abdomen would be full (not abnormally full by any means). But now, even after she eats her abdomen still looks and feels just as thin as prior to eating. That's why I'm worried that maybe her stomach has moved into her ribcage - is that possible?

Some other notes: she doesn’t usually gulp down her dinner, in fact she is finicky and will often eat it just a bit at a time; she doesn’t seem to be in pain or discomfort to any degree; she isn’t having problems going to the bathroom, either peeing or pooping (no diarrhea); she usually lets out a big burp after eating, so she doesn’t appear to have trapped gas; she usually throws up once a month, but it’s just yellow bile (she’s done this for years).

In addition, six months after we got her back in 2000, she was diagnosed with colitis, and in 2006 she started having occasional seizures, which the vet attributed to possible stomach twinges due to the colitis. But she only had about five in total and hasn’t had one in about six years.

She does seem to be drinking more water than usual over these past few months, but we think that’s due to medications she’s on for urinary incontinence. (stilbestrol and propalin).

So, I guess in a nutshell my question is: should we be worried about bloat? Even though she’s a medium-sized dog at the most, I think she’d be considered deep-chested. She’s due for her annual checkup in February, but I was wondering if maybe we should make an earlier appointment.

Any thoughts would be appreciated. Thanks!
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