Elevated Feeders & Bloat?

[AmyDonnelly]

So I've been using elevated feeders for my boxer boys for years now. We just adopted a pit bull and since her addition to the family, everyone eats SO fast. So, I found brake-fast dog bowls that have knobs in the bowl to slow down how fast the dog eats. It says on the brake-fast website that using an elevated feeder can lead to bloat. Why is this? I always thought it aided in the digestion of the food. Since our new dog addition everyone eats so fast and then they end up throwing up piles of undigested dog food and water. So I'm definitely looking to buy those bowls but just wanted to know if anyone knew why elevated feeders are not a good idea.

Thanks!

 

[gmacleod]

The brake-fast site is correct - raised feeders do increase the risk of bloat in large and deep chested dogs. There is a sticky thread at the top of the health forum with details of the findings of several veterinary studies.

As for why - nobody knows. Nobody knows what causes bloat in the first place, let alone how various factors contribute to it. What we DO know is that there are some factors that increase the risk of it occuring. Raised feeders is one of them (it slightly more than doubles the risk). Since bloat is freauently fatal, that's worth paying some attention to

Speed of eating is actually another factor though, so that's also worth paying attention to. The brake-fast bowls seem like a good idea. Possibly you might find that feeding your dogs separately or some slightly different arrangement from the present is also helpful.

 

[AmyDonnelly]

Well regardless of why elevated feeders cause bloat, the fact that it more than doubles the chances is enough for me to stop using it. I had no idea until I read that on the brake-fast website. One of our boxers is a slow eater with food & treats. The other is a bit faster with food and devours treats, sometimes just swallowing them whole. Our rescue pit bull eats so fast I barely put it down before her food is gone. This could be due to the fact that she doesnt want my boys to eat her food, but I have to watch her and call her away from her bowl when shes done, otherwise she will try and steal the boys food and that leads to problems if you know what I mean. So to prevent bloat and to slow my pit and Joe down while eating, I'm getting them all new brake-fast bowls when I go to work on Saturday. Hopefully I notice a big change in how fast the food is eaten.

Thanks for the advice!

 

[entelekia]

If you want to save some money, just find 3-4 good size garden rocks (round river rocks work best), wash them thoroughly and put them in each bowl. They'll have to eat around the rocks and it will slow them down. Same principle as the bowl, but way less expensive.

 

[AmyDonnelly]

Rocks aren't a bad idea at all, thanks! I however have a 3 year old and a 1 year old (human kids) so I think having large rocks in the house is probably not a good idea. I've been paying attention to who eats the fastest, and its my pit by a long shot. She eats her food in less than a minute. My boxers are slower eaters so I think I'll just get her the brake-fast bowl and go from there and see if it makes any difference.

Thanks for the great advice everyone!