When is the best times to feed my Great Dane to avoid Bloat?

Question

I heard it is like 30 minutes before exercise or an hour and a half after exercise. Is this right?

P.S. I plan on feeding 2-3 times a day but will walk or play 2 times a day. Just want to make sure I give his food time to digest.

P.S.S and she will be eating Innova Large puppy.

Answer 1

Definitely wait at least 30-45 minutes after feeding and before exercise.
Feed a quality kibble like Canidae that does not contain empty fillers.
Dogs that are prone to bloat should be fed 2x or more a day, being fed a single meal seems to increase the likelihood. Smaller more frequent meals means the stomach stays smaller and does not distend as much.
Free access to water all day means the dog is less apt to overdrink and swallow air along with the water (a possible cause; the stomach over-filling with air & water enables it to rotate)
If the dog is a guzzler then do not serve water with the meal.
The doggy daycare where I work brings dogs from playroom to our potty yard at 3:30, we spend 20 minutes in the potty yard, then kennel and feed them at 4 pm; then some quiet time before they go back out for a 5 pm potty. So we wait approx 30 minutes after exercise to feed, and another 45 before going back out again. The water thing might come into play however, if the dog exercises then drinks a lot then you probably should wait a bit longer before feeding.
http://www.geocities.com/walhallafila/bloatkiller.html
http://www.doglogic.com/bloat.htm
Know the symptoms and prepare a plan of action well in advance. Memorize the vet's phone number. Pray you never have to use it.

Answer 2

1

Answer 3

I would wait an hour and a half after exercise and an hour before. Remember to feed 2-3 small meals per day, not 1 or 2 large ones as this can increase the risk of bloat.

Answer 4

An hour and a half before exercise is best. Feeding the dane 2-3 smaller meals a day is also a good way to avoid bloat. Plus avoid dog foods that contain corn, corn starch or some other thickener, too much starch can swell in the gut, and it isnt aborbed very well. And if its a puppy, dont exercise it too much or feed it a high protien puppy food, both of these can lead to bone problems.

Answer 5

1) do NOT feed a Dane puppy puppy food of any kind not even large breed.. they are a giant breed not a large breed and the protein level in puppy foods is too high. A Dane should not have a food with a protein level higher then 24%

2) no heavy exercise an hour before or 2 hours after is a good rule of thumb to follow. Simple walking is fine, just no running, jumping and the like
3) do not soak the food in water
4) Innova is a good food just go with an adult formula not a puppy and make sure it has no more then 24% protein other good choices are Canidae All Life Stages, Chicken Soup Adult or Large Breed Adult formula, Wellness just to name a few

Answer 6

That is good , as for exercise a gentle walk is okay just no running or bouncing around

As others mentioned feed twice a day and preferrably a premium food low on grains as it is more nutrient dense so you feeding portions are much smaller so less bulk they are carrying in their stomach after a meal.

I know some dane owners and they feed raw diets to help reduce the risk of bloating so it might be something you want to look into

Answer 7

It's not so much of a matter of WHEN but more of a matter of WHAT. Feed a very high quality food. 2 or less grains in the first 5 ingredients. No more then 24% protein and preferably around 22 to 23%
Never with hold water and no need to with hold exercise. No need to feed from raised dishes. Great Dane puppies are not the high risk for bloat. It is generally an adult thing.
The only thing experts can agree on when it comes to bloat is that A. It is stress related. B. It is/can be inherited.
Stress comes in all kinds of ways. Not just living but with food, over vaccination and other ways.
Do your homework and don't sit around worrying about bloat to the point you cause your dog to feel your stress.
Read the forums on Danes Online and talk to breeders. Yur best way to prevent bloat though in my opinion is to start by what you are putting IN the bowl.
We have 6 Great Danes, never had one to bloat, feed a raw diet and do limited vaccines.

Instead of feeding some nasty food that swells so bad you need to soak it in water... choose a food with fewer grains and you won't have the swelling factor. It is NOT a good idea to soak a dogs food in water. Just buy something good to start with! It only makes sense. Read your labels. Consider a raw diet for your Dane. :)

Answer 8

Yes, though I would prefer you wait until at least a half hour AFTER exercise, and don't let him gulp a whole bowl of water after exercise either. What happens with bloat is the stomach can rotate inside itself, twisting the ends shut. A heavy stomach full of food and water is more likely to twist. Signs are distended (inflated) hard stomach, weak and fast pulse, shallow breathing, pale gums and acting shocky (weak, unaware of surroundings). Definite emergency if it happens. Some vets reccommend tacking the stomach down as a preventative, but opinions really vary on whether or not it does any good. Plus that requires abdominal surgery, if your dog is female and will be spayed, it can be done then without much additional trauma, but if your dog is male or will be kept intact, then you're opening the abdomen when you don't really have to. Ask your vet what he/she thinks about that.

Answer 9

1 hour before or after any exercise. Feed 2 to 3 times per day in smaller meals. Do not let him take large gulps of water. Wait until he is mostly cooled down before offering any water. Have a canine bloat kit handy, and know how to use it. It's a self made kit, you can find it online.

Answer 10

Two meals per day is better than one. Making sure the food bowl and water bowl are not on the ground is another way to help out (the less the dog bends, the better) Check the food as well for wheat content, etc. As you've probably seen, soggy kibble expands. The more non-essential ingredients, the more it will expand. Definitely allow at least 30 minutes between exercise and feeding. Although I prefer to feed BEFORE exercise as my dogs tended to be FAMISHED after exercise and drank tons of water (adding to the expansion effect)