HELP! Basset ate his way through bag of kibble

sionnaic · 20-07-2010 1:56am #1

Hey - am very worried as my basset pup (8 months) got into the room where we keep their bags of dried food about an hour and 20 mins ago and ate I don't know how much :eek:

he came out of his own accord which means he ate until he couldn't eat anymore which can only mean he ate a hell of a lot because this dog is impossible to fill.

His belly looks huge - much bigger than normal and is getting really hard. I'm worried that the food will swell up in his stomach with the moisture and rupture something. He went to sleep but now he's just started drinking loads of water in the last minute or so. I don't know what to do.

I rang the duty vet in our local practice and she was spectacularly unhelpful. She said bassets weren't really prone to bloating when I know that's one of the main things they're prone to. I asked her should we try make him get sick and she said she didn't know. She didn't seem to care at all. She just said to watch him.

Should I try another vet? Should I try to make him get sick?
Anyone on here at this time of night who knows anything about this?

I don't know what to do

scudzilla · 20-07-2010 4:12am

sionnaic wrote: »

Hey - am very worried as my basset pup (8 months) got into the room where we keep their bags of dried food about an hour and 20 mins ago and ate I don't know how much :eek: he came out of his own accord which means he ate until he couldn't eat anymore which can only mean he ate a hell of a lot because this dog is impossible to fill.

His belly looks huge - much bigger than normal and is getting really hard. I'm worried that the food will swell up in his stomach with the moisture and rupture something. He went to sleep but now he's just started drinking loads of water in the last minute or so. I don't know what to do.

I rang the duty vet in our local practice and she was spectacularly unhelpful. She said bassets weren't really prone to bloating when I know that's one of the main things they're prone to. I asked her should we try make him get sick and she said she didn't know. She didn't seem to care at all. She just said to watch him.

Should I try another vet? Should I try to make him get sick?
Anyone on here at this time of night who knows anything about this?

I don't know what to do

I'm no vet but i can't see it being a problem, sure he may crap a lot over the next 24hrs or so, may even be sick, but just like a human who eats too much.

If it didn't agree wit him, he'd throw it up

suziwalsh · 20-07-2010 9:31am

Just don't feed him for next 24 hours. He will be fine. Definately no not try and make him sick.

barbiegirl · 20-07-2010 10:08am

If you want to move the clearance a bit quicker some olive oil can help. If he won't take it raw, then a tin of tuna in olive oil will do the job. Works great for constipation, and should help the poor thing. That will teach him to be a greedy guts ;-)

Alun · 20-07-2010 10:18am

Coincidentally I saw a case of a dog on one of the many US style animal rescue programs on TV very recently who had done exactly the same, and they had to actually operate on the poor animal and open up the stomach to remove the obstruction. The danger of the stomach erupting or squeezing other vital organs were the main issues here as far as I can recall.

If you're not happy with your own vet's appraisal of the situation, I'd ring around and ask for a second opnion.

LisaO · 20-07-2010 11:15am

Our border terrier puppy ate a 2kg bag of cat food during the course of one night when he was very tiny. His stomach was just as you describe - swollen up like a barrel & hard as a rock. He spent the following 24 hours in (our) bed, feeling very sorry for himself & the stink off him was unreal! But he soon recovered with no ill effects

Interceptor · 20-07-2010 1:43pm

Bassetts - Pfft. Ours ate 10kg of chicken feed pellets and had the nerve to look hungry later that day - I wouldn't worry about your pup, he'll pass it through in the normal way and unless you suspect impaction (did he eat much of the plastic bag?) or constipation I'd just get a better lock on the food store.

'cptr

LBD · 20-07-2010 2:08pm

Would you believe our Basset did the exact same when he was about ten months old. Except it was a half eaten 15KG bag.......I have photos of his tummy when he sat down it rested on the floor beside him. We brought him for his usual walk that evening and he literally farted the whole way around!!!! Gave us quite a laugh but he was fine not a bother on him. And as interceptor said above he had the cheek to look for his dinner that evening too......cheeky pup!

sionnaic · 20-07-2010 2:28pm

Hi everyone - thanks for all the reassurances! Poor Roly actually deteriorated quite a bit and was in a good bit of pain - he was doing the whole dry retching thing which is a big warning sign for GDV (http://www.upstatevetspecialists.com/gvd_conditions.php) which can kill within 1-2 hours
so we ended up rushing him to the really really nice people in DEAC in UCD...at 3 in the morning.... :eek:
he was a bit shocky so they put him on an IV but thankfully didn't have to operate because we'd gotten him in for treatment in time.
He's back with us now, looking and feeling a bit sorry for himself but he's on the mend thankfully. Can't praise the DEAC enough - the vet and nurse who were on call were so nice and handled it so well.
And the food is now in a big sealed plastic box on a high shelf!!!!! :rolleyes:

Graces7 · 20-07-2010 4:18pm

sionnaic wrote: »

Hi everyone - thanks for all the reassurances! Poor Roly actually deteriorated quite a bit and was in a good bit of pain - he was doing the whole dry retching thing which is a big warning sign for GDV (http://www.upstatevetspecialists.com/gvd_conditions.php) which can kill within 1-2 hours
so we ended up rushing him to the really really nice people in DEAC in UCD...at 3 in the morning.... :eek:
he was a bit shocky so they put him on an IV but thankfully didn't have to operate because we'd gotten him in for treatment in time.
He's back with us now, looking and feeling a bit sorry for himself but he's on the mend thankfully. Can't praise the DEAC enough - the vet and nurse who were on call were so nice and handled it so well.
And the food is now in a big sealed plastic box on a high shelf!!!!! :rolleyes:

Thankful you got good help in time. And that you got a second opinion.

Dry food is dangerous because it IS dry and as you rightly foresaw, it swells when you add water. Which of course the dog does not know and thus eats far more than he can hold.

There were once cases of i think rats dying through eating too many dried raw porridge oats for the same reason.

One of our cats gorged on a hare he caught; but that cleared as it stayed the same size.

fatmammycat · 20-07-2010 6:29pm

You really need to get a different regular vet, bassets and indeed all deep chested dogs are prone to bloat and twisted stomachs- as my friend found out to the tune of almost 3000 euros with her basset. They ought to be fed three small meals a day as opposed to one large meal. I can't believe the original vet was so flippant with you regarding such a young animal. I'm really glad your dog had pulled through this.

HELP! Basset ate his way through bag of kibble

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