Eating Grass Question

[newfgewf]

Hello

I'm wondering if anyone has experienced what I'm going through with Balli. Occasionally he will start pacing, going inside and outside, licking the carpet/cement, eating hairballs and if we don't get him outside in time to eat grass he will eat the carpet. I did a search on eating grass and found this from 2003 but not a possible cause:

bloat scare topic

This has been going on for 2 years. When it first happened Balli had to have surgery for eating 90 sq inches of carpet. While they were in there they tacked his stomach. My vet has put him on 400 mg of tagament twice daily. This has helped over the 2 years but occasionally he will still do it (maybe once every quarter). Recently he has done it 3 times in 1 week.

There is no rhyme or reason to when he does it. We are very careful about preventing bloat. No playing before or after eating, soaked food, raised feeders...even though they supposedly don't help. He will do it in the middle of the night when we've all been asleep, when we're all awake during the day, after eating, not after eating.

After he eats grass he's fine. We had a dog door at our house but now we live in an apartment (dog door to balcony so he can have outside time). Luckily I have a dog walking business so he's with me all the time but when he's not I put him in a crate...the carpet eating and surgery was too much of a scare for me.

Sooo sorry to make this so long but I'm baffled and so is my vet. I will be scheduling another appointment with the vet. She said if the problem increases with him on the tagament then we will need to do tests (bloodwork, ultrasound, possible scope of the stomach).

Has anyone experienced this? Is it bloat? Sorry if I didn't give enough background...I will answer any questions.

Thanks for ANY help

 

[newfgewf]

2 things I forgot...

When he does this his tummy is soft and squishy like his Momma's

not hard. Annndd, he used to vomit after eating the grass but in the last year he doesn't. Just eats the grass then the next day we have what we call a "newf patty" ...grass filled poop

 

[Ginny]

It doesn't sound at all like bloat. If bloat isn't treated, death is imminent. They drool more than usual, pace, and will often try to vomit. The grass eating indicates that his stomach is upset. My Bailey had a gastropexy (stapling of the stomach) which caused a section of her intestines to slip under and in front of her stomach. This was caught on a Xray. I had to feed her 5 small, soaked meals a day, otherwise she would make a gurgling sound and have stomach upset. It seems to me that tests are in order. I'd get a full work up since this seems to be increasing in frequency. It may be worthwhile to consult another vet. The first thing my vet would have done was run tests.

[ 03-21-2006, 10:21 AM: Message edited by: Ginny ]

 

[charlieinnj]

We went through the same experience with our Berner. He had bloated twice and after the second episode, had the 'tacking'. But there would still be random episodes where he'd go into an absolute panic and start the grass eating, etc. One time, when he could get out, he even ate the leaves off of an artificial plant.

We took him to the Vet during one of the episodes and they confirmed he wasn't bloating but, he had a large amount of gas in his intestines.

We fed him Eagle Pak for the majority of his life but I had read recently where someone switched their dog off of it because it made them very gassy. So, could it be the brand of food you're feeding her?

[ 03-21-2006, 10:44 AM: Message edited by: charlieinnj ]

 

[Jeannie]

Does your dog food expand when wet? To test put a few pieces of kibble in water and let it set. If it expands then it is not good for a newf. The expanding dog food releases gas.

It is an old wise tale that dogs eat grass when they have an upset tummy. They eat it because it tastes good. Since they cannot digest it they either vomit it or poop it out. At least that is what I have been told.

Maybe this is just a behavior problem and has nothing to do with health. Asking a behaviorist may be a good idea.

 

[newfgewf]

Thank you for the advice and experience

We feed Purina Sensitive diet. In the past we've tried everything from Iams to Wellness and it's the only thing Balli can handle. Ewwf, the Wellness was highly recommended but squishy Newf sized poops are not fun to pick up I soak his food in water, microwave it for 30 seconds then let it sit til fully expanded...usually about 30 minutes. Sometimes we're in a rush and it doesn't sit as long. I think I will keep this in mind and see if there's a connection...THANKS!

Our vet did suggest a full work up but said we could try the tagament to start. She said if the episodes picked up in frequency then we'd have to do more testing...we opted the more conservative route of the tagment. Seemed to work until recently so it's off to the vet again

Poor guy, between OCD, a broken toe, hygroma on the elbow, eating the carpet, and hip displasia in his right hip...I'm surprised I haven't made him live in a bubble. On second thought "The Newf in the Bubble" would make a funny movie

Thanks again!

 

[Ginny]

It really isn't a wive's tail concerning the connection between eating grass and upset stomachs. As you pointed out, Jeannie, they don't digest it so they vomit. That is instinctivly why they eat it: vomiting helps ease the stomach distress.

Let us know how your boy does. I know how worrying situations like this can be.

 

[sarnewfie]

That is called heartburn, dogs get it to, emmett did it, a pepcid a day or tagamet a day and he was fine.
he used to try to eat sampsons tail when he had his grass eating attack indoors! it was with great desperation that he would lick the carpet, try to eat sampsons tail and, when outside eating grass in a frenzy.
are you giving suppliments? if so are they given with meals
vit c and msm can cause upset tummy so it is crucial they be given with plenty of food.
i agree tgrass doesnt digest, but, when it comes out the other end it is no longer green! sometimes i wonder if the green in hte grass is necessary and good for them, though at a casual grazing not a frenzied one.

[ 03-22-2006, 08:40 AM: Message edited by: sarnewfie ]

 

[Sound Bay Newfs]

I also think there is a connection with an upset tummy and eating grass or other unusual things. They are trying to get themselves to throw up so they can feel better. Pepcid is good at that time to relieve the upset.

 

[newfgewf]

Thanks again !

We do give Balli supplements in his food. He gets 2 scoops SynoviCre granules, 1.5 tablets Etodolac, and 2 tagaments in the morning and then just the tagament in the evening. He gets 2 cups soaked Purina Sensitive Diet...hopefully this is enough with his meds.

Were doing a bit of a test right now. I think there's a connection between the amount of time soaking the food and the gas released...thanks a ton for that input! Ross is GREAT with the dogs but he doesn't always do things, let's just say, my way. After reading the replies yesterday I started going over the past week and the episodes. They seemed to occur on the days Ross fed the dogs. I know this because 99.9% of the time it's me feeding the dogs. So we talked last night and the agreement is to let the food sit in water for 45 minutes.

Ross obviously took note cause when I woke up this morning the food was already sitting in water. He timed it so after coffee and the dog's morning walk it would be 45 minutes...such a good guy!

Thanks again and I will keep everyone posted!

 

[N2N Mags Dad]

All three newfs here nibble and eat grass. They seem to be selective, picking, tasting and searching for a certain type of sprout it seems. I think emerging crab grass is their favorite. It seems more like a mild preference then a crazy driven need, but they definitely want to eat grass.

Doesn't really correlate to type of foods they are getting at the time. I mean, they'll chase anything from oatmeal to fish to chicken to oreos with some grass. Weird.