Bloat

Deep chested breeds of dog are highly susceptible to bloat, this can lead to emergency surgery and the possibility of the dog not surviving.

So how does your dog get bloat?

Bloat occurs due to a build up of gas trapped in the gastro-intestinal tract. This gas is created by microbacteria in the hind gut as a result of bacterial fermentation of starch.

Starch in the mammilian body is digested by amylase, however dogs produce very small quantities and therefore have no capacity to deal with the large amounts in commercial diets.

Therefore small amounts of starch can be coped with in the canine diet, large amounts of starch such as found in dried and tinned foods, from grains, cereals, rice & potatoes can and do lead to bloat and death.