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Bullmastiff owners what do you feed your dog?

Jonny_Rogue

Member
My 5 year old boy has been on blue buffalo lamb and potatoe for about 2 years but recently he started throwing up during the night 2a-3a (chunks, not foam or bile) and sometimes during the day 2p-3p. The vet believes it is due to food allergies. He suggested duck or salmon based sensitive stomach and added he preferred the brands royal cabin or hills... problem is so far as I can tell these brands don't have a duck or salmon based sensitive stomach blend (chicken only). Because I couldn't find what he suggested, I switched to blue buffalo duck and potatoe about a week ago but the throwing up hasn't stopped! Just wondering if anyone has had similar issues with their bullmastiff and interested in what diets have worked for you.

For reference, we feed him around 7am and around 5pm each day from an elevated bowl. The throwing up happens probably about 3 out of every 4 days and has been going on for nearly a month. Any help would be most appreciated.
 

marke

Well-Known Member
I had a dog had an intussusception as a pup , the only thing she could eat for years afterwards was purina one sensitive systems , it's samon ........canadae makes a limited ingredient salmon dog food called "pure sea" .......
 

PippatheMastiff

Well-Known Member
I would get a second opinion about food allergies. Could be something else that needs attention. I'd get an MRI and ultrasound, if you haven't already.


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Jonny_Rogue

Member
How long after he eats does the food come back up and what does it look like?

He eats around 7am and if he throws up during the day it will be around 2pm-3pm. Then he eats around 5pm at nights and throws up around 2am-3am. The first throw up always includes quote a bit of food food, then if there are throw ups number 2 and 3 those will be bile or foam.

Within the last two days he hasn't had much. Of a dinner appetite which is very unusual for him.
 

Swif

Active Member
We have an ambullneo and feed him victor ultra high protein. Very happy with the food. Switched from canidie about 6 months ago


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marke

Well-Known Member
his symptoms are pretty general , I have to think they need to start looking for what's not wrong with him . I would get bloodwork and an abdominal x-ray if that was not already done .......... a dog that usually eats , and slows down to a stop is never a good sign .......... does he re-eat what he throws up ?
 

Jonny_Rogue

Member
his symptoms are pretty general , I have to think they need to start looking for what's not wrong with him . I would get bloodwork and an abdominal x-ray if that was not already done .......... a dog that usually eats , and slows down to a stop is never a good sign .......... does he re-eat what he throws up ?

Thanks for your reply. He has some other things going on that lead them to conclude food allergy, namely he has licked the top of his back paws to the point that there is a small open sore on them. Vet says this generally due to leg/knee pain, anxiety, or allergies or can be a combo of all or some of them. Because he licks so much they said it's possible the built up saliva is causing him to throw up... not sure if I buy that because he goes long periods of time where he doesn't lick and then will still throw up. He is talking an antibiotic for the sores, an antihistamine and acid reducers. All of this for the last 10 days plus a diet switch and I'm still not seeing any improvements. I worry they are missing something more serious but I'm trying to trust them since they are the experts after all.
 

marke

Well-Known Member
he sure does got lots of stuff going on .... did they do an abdominal x-ray ? and a blood workup ? that really is a start ....... they should treat him as if he has an ulcer if the x-rays and bloodwork show nothing , dogs do get ulcers ........ as far as licking his feet your vet is right anxiety will cause that . does he have any other signs of an allergy ? redness ? his ears ? eyes? loose stools ? itching ? if it's anxiety you may want to try giving him large bones to chew on .......
 

dpenning

Well-Known Member
Thanks for your reply. He has some other things going on that lead them to conclude food allergy, namely he has licked the top of his back paws to the point that there is a small open sore on them. Vet says this generally due to leg/knee pain, anxiety, or allergies or can be a combo of all or some of them. Because he licks so much they said it's possible the built up saliva is causing him to throw up... not sure if I buy that because he goes long periods of time where he doesn't lick and then will still throw up. He is talking an antibiotic for the sores, an antihistamine and acid reducers. All of this for the last 10 days plus a diet switch and I'm still not seeing any improvements. I worry they are missing something more serious but I'm trying to trust them since they are the experts after all.

It is all well and good to trust your vet but you have to trust your instincts too. You know your dog much better than they do. I took my dog to theER and they looked at her bouncing around being goofy and said she probably vomited up the offending bully stick and to give her rice and chicken broth for a few days and she would be fine. Her behavior was a front and I took her to my regular vet the next day. Sure enough, she still had a toy blockage.

You have to advocate for your dog and trust your instincts. There is a happy medium In there somewhere. Hope your baby feels better soon.


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PippatheMastiff

Well-Known Member
I work for a vet, and so many times owners tell us how sick they are, but when they come in, they seem fine. My vet says later, sure, that dog was real sick, sarcastically, which pisses me off. Anyway all that to say sometimes vets miss things, signs are not obvious cuz pooch might feel better or act like they do. Don't know why. But you know what you see. Trust your instincts. You'll be very happy you did!


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PippatheMastiff

Well-Known Member
Also, vomiting chunks of food that long after eating may be gastric paresis, or at least slow stomach muscles, slow to empty. Try feeding liquidy and light. Yogurt, rice with beef or chicken stock, add water or stock to ground food. Stuff that's easily digested. If vomiting stops, you may have an idea of what's going on.


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Jonny_Rogue

Member
he sure does got lots of stuff going on .... did they do an abdominal x-ray ? and a blood workup ? that really is a start ....... they should treat him as if he has an ulcer if the x-rays and bloodwork show nothing , dogs do get ulcers ........ as far as licking his feet your vet is right anxiety will cause that . does he have any other signs of an allergy ? redness ? his ears ? eyes? loose stools ? itching ? if it's anxiety you may want to try giving him large bones to chew on .......

They have have not done an X-ray or blood work. He is itchy on his shoulder/lower neck area and he does have some discharge in one ear but this time particularly unusual for him. His stool is pretty regular, slightly more tar-y than usual but it was normal until I switched from lamb and potato to duck. Eyes are normal as far as I can tell. 3 more throw ups last night. I called this morning and was more forceful with the vet, letting them know his condition seems to be deteriorating (sometimes doesn't want his food) and set up another appointment for today at 2p. Hopefully they can get to the bottom of this.

Also I started giving him only half of his normal kibble meal mixed with rice for his last two meals to help try to calm whatever is going on in his stomach.
 

Boxergirl

Well-Known Member
I strongly suggest that you ask for a full thyroid panel. Thyroid issues show up in very vague ways sometimes and are often overlooked. It's not usually included in a full blood panel. You have to request it. At least you do with my vets.
 

Jakesmum

Well-Known Member
A lot of good suggestions on here for getting a full blood workup and thyroid tests done. I've dealt with a lot of allergies with my boy and he is now on Zignature Kangaroo.
 

Jonny_Rogue

Member
Just back from the vets. They did an X-ray and full blood work up including thyroid. Blood results won't be in until tomorrow- X-ray showed no signs of blockage but he could see the breakfast meal undigested and just sitting in the stomach (he had breakfast around 8a and the X-ray was taken around 3pm). That made him suggest the issue could be gastroparesis as already suggested by Pippathemastiff. Along those lines they gave him a shot of cerenia to get things moving and prescribed a pill version to be taken once a day for 4 days. Really hoping this works... blood results will be in tomorrow so hopefully we'll know more then. Thank you for all of the replies and help everyone.
 

Boxergirl

Well-Known Member
Good! Sometimes hypothyroid can cause gastoparesis, so it would be good to rule out a thyroid issue. Please let us know what you find out and how things are going.
 

Elana P

Well-Known Member
Just back from the vets. They did an X-ray and full blood work up including thyroid. Blood results won't be in until tomorrow- X-ray showed no signs of blockage but he could see the breakfast meal undigested and just sitting in the stomach (he had breakfast around 8a and the X-ray was taken around 3pm). That made him suggest the issue could be gastroparesis as already suggested by Pippathemastiff. Along those lines they gave him a shot of cerenia to get things moving and prescribed a pill version to be taken once a day for 4 days. Really hoping this works... blood results will be in tomorrow so hopefully we'll know more then. Thank you for all of the replies and help everyone.
 

Elana P

Well-Known Member
Really hoping that they find out what it is, and
give him something to make it better.

I know how much these guys love their food. If he refuses to eat, that's not a good sign.