I’m so frustrated l, he must have eaten so much food

[aramazd]

We’re currently staying with my brother in law, I have two dogs and he has one. Mine know not to get into their food bin if I forget and leave it open. His dog, not so much. Obviously this is my fault, I left the bin open. But he had access to it overnight and must have eaten a bunch. He obviously doesn’t feel well this morning. Drooling a bit, pacing around. It’s not his normal food either, he eats a different brand than mine. I feel terrible and I’m super stressed that he will need a vet visit. We’re staying with my brother in law because we’re not doing well financially, I can’t afford to pay for a vet visit right now.

I know I screwed the lid on a little, so he had to have nudged it some to open it. I feel like such an idiot, and I hate that this dog is sick because of me. And I keep forgetting about the darn lid! I’ve done this a bunch, someone usually catches it pretty quick. Anyone else ever deal with a dog who obviously ate too much?

 

[blacksabbath]

@aramazd My dog would have done the same thing. Put the food somewhere inaccessible, behind a closed door of possible.

Because it's dog food (heavily depending on the amount consumed) they will probably be okay. I would try to guess based on what's left to see how much they ate and let the owners decide if they want to go to the vet. Calling the vet to ask is always a good idea.

 

[cory_a_jenk]

@blacksabbath Great advice. I used to put my dog’s food canister on top of the dryer out of reach because I’d forget to put the lid on which either led to my dog getting in there or ants finding it so this solved both problems. Every dog is different but hopefully nothing too serious results from this to the dog. I’m just trying to think what evolutionarily would be the purpose of gorging behavior in dogs in today’s society when there isn’t food scarcity

 

[aramazd]

@cory_a_jenk He’s well fed with expensive food. I don’t know why he decided to gorge himself! Hopefully he will start feeling better soon. I’m so mad at myself over it

 

[cory_a_jenk]

@aramazd Don’t beat yourself up over it and hopefully the vet will provide a good recommendation based on how much he ate. Probably a good idea to keep him well hydrated to help digestion along. Sometimes these things happen and that’s how we learn and just do things differently moving forward.

 

[aramazd]

@cory_a_jenk I wish I knew how much he ate. It’s a large bin, so it’s hard to gauge how much is missing. The best I can do is keep an eye on him it seems. Thankfully BIL isn’t mad at me.

 

[blacksabbath]

@cory_a_jenk Having food scarcity at a young age. I rescued my dog at 12 weeks, she was an owner surrender and malnourished when we got her. Breed can play a role in some dogs (mine is a beagle mix lol, they tend to eat everything). All dogs are different though.

 

[cory_a_jenk]

@blacksabbath Yes good point about maybe experiencing food scarcity at some point. But, if it is genetics and the pup has had a solid experience so far, it is kind of a nasty joke nature is playing on the gorging pups. Lol

 

[aramazd]

@blacksabbath My BIL got him from a good breeder, and has had him since he was probably 8 weeks old (not sure exactly when, but I know young puppy). He’s always been well cared for, though he was made to lose some weight after he got too chunky. He’s a good weight now, though I bet he put on a pound or two after this adventure. it is a terrible evolutionary trait though! One of my two got an actual blockage from eating a toy and had to have surgery, so I freak super easy now. I’m basically just ignoring all responsibilities today to watch him, so I know he’s okay. As long as he starts feeling better by this evening, I think he’ll be just fine.

 

[blacksabbath]

@aramazd I was just giving an example (using my dogs experience).

I'm glad the pup is gonna be okay!

 

[aramazd]

@blacksabbath I did reach out to a vet, she said he will probably be fine but told me what to do and what to watch out for. She said he should be fine at home, that they don’t generally do much for them aside from anti nausea meds and fluids. Just withhold food for today. I’m definitely moving the food, I can’t be trusted. I’m just going to try and keep him resting. Means I won’t be doing anything today, but it is my fault this happened to begin with

 

[lill]

@aramazd My dog once at a half can of knock off slim fast. It didn’t have real chocolate or sugar or anything else toxic, so I just watched him closely. He got real bloated (it has that stuff that swells in your belly so you feel fuller) and fatty/lethargic, but he was fine after a day and a half and some crazy boom booms.

 

[aramazd]

@lill Poor baby! I’m glad he was back to his old self quickly. This pup currently has his head in my lap and is panting heavy, but demanding scratches. I’m hopeful it means he’s fine, just too full

 

[lill]

@aramazd Yeah my dog still wanted to eat, just not much because if they don’t eat after a long enough time I’d be concerned. Water etc; the worst that can happen is him getting a blockage or literally rupturing his gut which is what I was watching for. Any yelping and I’d go to an emergency vet asap

 

[aramazd]

@lill Absolutely. And all dogs are different and respond to pain differently, I don’t know how he is. When my boy had a blockage, he just kept hiding from us which was out of character for him. I know the signs he had, so I’m watching for those. It’s definitely been several hours since it happened by now

 

[aramazd]

Here’s what the vet said:

sorry he isn't feeling his best!
What can happen is they can get what we call food bloat, which essentially means their stomach is just too full of food, that can make them uncomfortable and breath a little more shallowly. That will take some time to resolve as the food breaks down. Now, with it being new food we also have to worry about GI upset, vomiting, diarrhea and possibly some pancreatitis. The drooling is a common sign of nausea. I would fast him today. No food this morning or evening, and then in the morning tomorrow start a probiotic to help get his guy back on track. If you see: vomiting that is persistent, blow out diarrhea with blood, excessive lethargy, not wanting to eat breakfast in the morning, then I would have him evaluated. If he doesn't want to eat breakfast in the morning than you could offer a bland diet of boiled chicken and white rice to entice him, if he is otherwise acting normal.