Elevated food bowl or not?
Many belches (and gas!  ) with every meal and his bowel habits are predictable and normal,after a 2 month tussle with food allergies and runny stools (eeeeuuuuwwww) I've had sheepdogs that lay down to eat but Loki will have none of it. He's more than happy to eat without having to work for it, although he refuses to drink water out of the elevated bowl (he prefers to use the bowl on the floor the other dogs use - Guzzles about a quart then occasionally comes over and ralphs it up on my foot - Good job!  )
So.........what's the newest feedback on elevated bowls? Bloat is something I never ever want to have to go through again. |
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| From what i have learned here and just researching the topic, the elevated food bowls are not a good thing. They have a tendency to cause bloat. With that being said Obe's food and water dished are some what elevated. I made a stand but it's only 3-4 inches off the ground. I keep his food in a large plastic container that stands about that high. I was feeding him on top of it, but he would scoot the dish off and spill the food. So then we tired the floor, the bowl went from one side of the room to the other. So I had some scrap lumber and just built a stand. The bowls sit close to 4 inches off the ground. I watch him eat and he never has a problem burping, (unless he is in your face) or hunching his back while eating. After wards, he then just relaxes inside for at least an hour most of the time 2. |
| I have had an OES for more than fifteen years, they all have eaten out of elevated bowls and I never have had a problem with bloat and hopefully I never will. As long as the dog has at least a one hour rest after they have eaten then there should be no problem. Secondly I never give them anything to drink immediately before or after they are fed I wait at least 45 mins. |
| Tasker has always eaten out of an elevated bowl. As a pup he would frequently vomit after means. The Vet suggested elevating the bowl and it worked like a charm. 12 years later I hear it's not advisable .
It's like putting babies down to sleep; one generation is told to sleep on their back another on their belly and yet another on their side!! |
| My guys were afraid of the raised bowls and barked at them . Maybe the young kids will use them. |
Thanks all - I feel better! I would think that, knowing what bloat is, it's only logical that the food would digest better and more quickly if you let gravity do the work, right? It's the same principle as a human eating: If you eat at the kitchen table and sit up straight the food goes where it's supposed to go (for the most part). If you sit on the couch and eat hunched over the coffee table (guilty  ) the chances are you're going to have heartburn and indigestion.
I would be interested in seeing some of the documentation on elevated food bowls causing bloat, though, glutton for punishment that I am. I've googled it and I'm not seeing anything that I find persuasive - Does anyone know of a good article or blog entry that is informative and not hysterical? |
Also: Ginny, you're absolutely right about the 'laying babies on their side vs. on their back' analogy. It's as much about the 'New year, new Rule' as anything else! I'm inclined to stick with the logical, 'gravity is there for a reason' approach regarding digestion since I see the results every day in my bouncy healthy sheepdog.  |
Summer is fed out of an elevated dish. I have a small bucket and a plastic tupperware dish with a cone shape in the middle so she has to move round the bowl to eat. She usually dives on the water bowl but I distract her. I do try to keep them quiet for 30 minutes before and 30 minutes after feeding.  |
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