Before I arrived back home in Montana, I already had the next few weeks planned out.
When I wasn’t working on my house, I wanted to be in the backcountry, getting to know my new “neighborhood” - the Crazies and Castles and Little Belts - by taking long, relaxing treks with my dogs.
Unfortunately, as I mentioned in my previous column, the day after I arrived in Martinsdale, Jigs, my German Jagd Terrier, fell ill from bloat after a swim in the reservoir.
As any living being with a gastrointestinal tract understands, a case of excruciatingly painful gas can make even the most levelheaded soul act irrationally. As the old Chinese proverb goes, “A man cannot be in love with a toothache.” Try a bad case of bloat...
But in dogs, bloat (also called gastric dilation) is serious and even life-threatening. Bloat occurs when air and gases suddenly accumulate in the stomach, causing it to swell like a balloon.
Dilation of the stomach may be followed by “volvulus,” a twisting or rotating of the stomach. This condition is rapidly fatal in dogs, causing shock, coma, and death within 6 hours. The disorder is common in large breed dogs - the second leading cause of death next to cancer.
My friends with hunting dogs - labradors, goldens, and flat-coated retrievers - make it a point to watch for bloat symptoms in the field.
Small breeds, like terriers, can experience bloat but are less susceptible to a twisting of the stomach.
My terrier, who has suffered with bloat issues all of his 9 years, turns into a frantic neurosis case when overwhelmed with gas pain. He licks anything and everything - floors, walls, furniture, my other dogs, even me - and will keep at this obsessive behavior for hours unless I do something. The more licking, the more air ingested, and the more gas produced - my 25 lb. dog’s abdomen turns from the size of a soft grapefruit into a hard basketball.
Because bloat is considered a canine emergency, if Jigs’ symptoms still persist after 15 to 30 minutes (depending on how many hours away from a vet we happen to be at the time), I put Jigs in his car crate and rush him to the vet. Often times, the soothing rhythm of the road actually calms his nerves, giving the gas a chance to pass, and we just end up turning around to drive back home. I don’t take chances though - I know many dog owners aren’t as lucky.
That evening 3 weeks ago, Jigs recovered from bloat on his own, but was still acting off. I took him to Dr. Katherine Parks in Harlowton.
A barium series confirmed what we all dreaded - a blockage. Unfortunately in his gas-induced mania, Jigs, a dog that usually cherishes his possessions and never destroys them, had chewed the head off of a stuffed lamb toy in an attempt to relieve the pain.
So Dr. Parks took Jigs straight into surgery.
The surgery went smoothly, the lamb head was removed from his stomach, Jigs began eating right away, and I was thrilled to take him home just a few days later.
But Jigs’ problems weren’t over yet. He developed peritonitis - an inflammation of the cavity containing the abdominal organs.
Dr. Parks put him on IV antibiotics and he was confined to hospital rest for 3 days.
A bad case of bloat, a blockage, surgery, and peritonitis couldn’t bring my tenacious terrier down. After 11 days of TLC with Dr. Parks, Jigs was back home.
Now, my work was just beginning.
Jigs requires a series of pills before each meal to treat his ulcers, excess gas, and GI motility. I cook hamburger, chicken, and rice for easy digestion. The first several days at home, I took Jigs on short 10-15 minute walks around Martinsdale every hour or so, waiting for the grand moment when Jigs would have his first post-surgery/peritonitis bowel movement.
Talk about an exciting vacation...
My neighbors around Martinsdale became concerned when they saw me walking Jigs day and night all around town.
“Everything okay?” a man I’d never met yelled out his front door when he saw me walking Jigs back and forth in a field.
“He had stomach surgery,” I answered. “I’m hoping his system will get working soon...”
“Oh, it will, it will...” the nice man reassured me. “Just takes a little time...”
We walked, and walked, and walked.
“Anything yet?” a friend hollered out her window as she drove by.
Jigs’ bowels became the talk of the town.
My dogs and I didn’t get much time to explore our neighboring mountain ranges, but because of Jigs’ stressful health scare, I met some wonderful, concerned folks all around town.
Jigs’ moment of truth came under a big moon late at night. It was the highlight of my time in Montana. I couldn’t wait to tell my new friends the next morning.
For more information about symptoms, treatment, and prevention of canine bloat, go to the American Animal Hospital Association website at www.healthypet.com or www.dogbreedinfo.com and search “canine bloat.”
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