Vet said maybe bloat, but didn't x-ray?

[FoxHunter2015]

I took my dog to the emergency vet this morning and left feeling incredibly frustrated. Dog had diarrhea since Friday night, ranging from loosely formed to watery. Late Saturday night things were looking up, and the dog had seemed mostly himself during that time, maybe straining when he went to the bathroom a bit. He has a sensitive stomach and has a bad habit of getting into everything. Living on a farm, I figured he got into something when I wasn’t watching him and needed some time to work through his system. At the first notice of diarrhea I stopped normal food and switched to boiled chicken and white rice.

Early this morning he seemed normal but quickly progressed into a very uncomfortable dog. After letting him out in the morning (I didn’t watch him because as of the previous night he seemed mostly normal) he came in acting not right. Uncomfortable, stretching, going from laying to standing to pacing and back, looking at his stomach, etc. At this point he had no food in his system. I immediately called the vet and took him in, not really sure what was happening but knowing it wasn’t right. Of course at the vet he seemed totally fine and happy, but vet listened to the symptoms, felt his tummy (normal) listened to heart/gut sounds, etc. No x-rays, no blood draw.

Based on her exam, she said possibly early warning signs of bloat, and gave my dog a GI anti-inflammatory shot along with some meds for the diarrhea, she said to watch him and sent him home. Since that time he has seemed relatively normal but a bit lethargic, and has not pooped.

I am very concerned about the possibility of bloat now, and I am frustrated with the lack of diagnostics done. But this is my first large breed dog and first experience with anything resembling bloat, so I am really not sure what to think. Internet sources recommending immediate surgery with a 50% survival rate have me even more concerned and wondering if I should go to a larger vet hospital for a second opinion.

I am am just not sure what to think of the situation, if I am right to be frustrated or if I am overreacting because the vet mentioned the word bloat.

[Lizrd]

Doesn’t bloat typically come with some retching without producing anything? Is your dog doing that? If in doubt I would either go to another emergency room or get in to my regular vet first thing tomorrow. Good luck! I do not like managing sick pups…

[hosspuller]

Full on Bloat or gastric torsion is life threatening. I lost a Doberman to bloat. Two hours after his dinner, we put him down.

I would trust the vet, She said Early warning signs… Not bloat.

As Lizrd posted … If he tries to retch without producing anything… that’s your cue for immediate response.

[Aly]

Even allowing for the difference between bloat (essentially really bad gas and a belly ache) and GDV (torsion or a twist in the spleen or intestines), I’d be very concerned that the vet didn’t get some film. Bloat can lead to GDV and it’s GDV that’s the life threatening condition.The other possibility (which isn’t good either, but which also could be diagnosed on film) is that your dog may have ingested something that’s now forming a blockage (e.g., corn cobs). That possibility would explain why he’s not eliminated yet. So, under the right circumstances, blockages can become life-threatening situations too.

Keep in mind that some dogs can present idiosyncratically with bloat/GDV. (I’ve had 20+ years with two breeds notorious for this condition). Then too, some dogs can be very stoic w/regard to discomfort/pain, so it’s not always easy to tell what’s going on. You really have to watch carefully and trust your gut. You know your dog.

Were it my dog, I’d be on the road (NOW) to an ER vet (or a well-equipped regular vet), where I’d describe the symptoms you’ve seen so far and express your concern that no film was taken by the previous vet.

Good luck,

Aly

[TheHotSensitiveType]

Based on what you wrote, I wouldn’t have high confidence in what the vet said and would schedule a second opinion with another vet.

For instance… what did she exactly say you should do to prevent an episode of bloat if this is fact was an early warning sign? Telling you this is an early warning sign without recommendations for prevention isn’t exactly helpful.

@FoxHunter2015

I am very concerned about the possibility of bloat now, and I am frustrated with the lack of diagnostics done. But this is my first large breed dog and first experience with anything resembling bloat, so I am really not sure what to think. Internet sources recommending immediate surgery with a 50% survival rate have me even more concerned and wondering if I should go to a larger vet hospital for a second opinion.

IME, bloat has a very sudden onset like @hosspuller and is life threatening. Retching isn’t a required symptom… Our dane was getting up and down, up and down, up and down in the bathroom and then came to sit next to me. That, that is when I saw his white gums. We panicked (that is a VERY BAD symptom), found an emergency vet and loaded him in the car where on the way he threw up. It turns out that emergency vet can’t find their butt with both hands so they misdiagnosed an an hemangiosarcoma based on x-rays which left me thinking that we had days to a few weeks left with our dog. Then they did an ultrasound which didn’t back up the x-ray findings but couldn’t explain what they saw. They said to come back next day to see super-duper-special-utra-awesome (expensive) ultrasound technician the next day who also couldn’t find her butt with… you get my point. They couldn’t explain what they saw so I scheduled an appointment with our regular vet office.

You know what? It was bloat like I thought. Our normal vet office was able to diagnose based on my description of when it happened, the getting up and down, the white gums. What she said was that often when the owner shoves the dog in the car and takes him/her for a ride, the torsion can partially or fully resolve itself. She did an ultrasound and found that in our case, the torsion only partially resolved with the spleen being left flipped over on itself. However, blood flow was restored to all organs. Our normal vet suggested a spleenectomy as well as stomach tacking as soon as possible, and she said his spleen was all kinds of twisted on itself when she removed it… This was two years ago, and I am sure you can tell I am still pissed at the VCA emergency vet near us for being completely incompetent.

If we end up with a large breed dog again, when we spay/neuter I am going to ask the vet about doing a preventive stomach tacking at the same time. This whole event was terrifying, and we are one of the lucky one’s whose dog survived!

[FoxHunter2015]

Thanks for the replies everyone. I am trying to get my dog in for a second opinion, but it seems that no one is willing to see him as an emergency because we are not current clients. I do not know if I should take him to a larger emergency vet and eat the thousand dollar plus cost of doing that or wait it out.

I have gotten some very rude responses while calling for second opinions, it is incredibly frustrating as this is not how it works with horse vets in my area!

He seems happy, stable, and comfortable right now, but I am still very worried about the possibility of an obstruction or bloat. I suppose at the first sign of any distress I will have to take him to one of the big emergency vets and just eat nothing but ramen for the next few months. The costs of pet ownership!

[Lizrd]

Fox Hunter, I see you are new the board. Welcome. You will get a lot of great advice about horses and dogs here. One thing we can’t do is diagnose over the internet. You know your dog best. If there seems to be additional discomfort, run - don’t walk- to a different ER. You will also want to be a current client at a clinic near you so that you have options when needed. Horse vets operate differently than small animal vets, that’s for sure. Good luck and please keep us posted.

[Marshfield]

Honestly, in every ER I’ve worked in, the moment someone raises even the slightest concern of bloat, I get an x-ray. Blessedly, many are false alarms.

GDV surgery itself isn’t super tough technically, but the medical management can be tough. I suspect that if you even mentioned concern for it, many day practices may not have wanted to touch it. It may very well be something they routinely refer; that way no transport is required post op.