Gastritis in dogs: possible triggers and tips for treatment
It is quite common for dogs to suffer from gastritis. The inflammation of the stomach lining can be both acute and chronic and can be caused by a number of triggers.
The following section explains the symptoms of gastritis in dogs, how it is treated and the options available to you for prevention.
What is gastritis in dogs?
Gastritis is the medical term for inflammation of the lining of the stomach. Gastritis in dogs is caused by damage to the protective layer that normally protects the stomach wall from stomach acid.
The inflammation of the mucous membranes of the stomach releases histamines, which over time increases the discomfort associated with it. Initially, inflammation of the mucous membranes of the stomach is only an acute problem. Without treatment, however, affected dogs can easily develop chronic gastritis.
What causes gastritis in dogs?
If your dog suffers from gastritis, there are several possible causes. These include intestinal parasites such as worms and giardia, as well as food allergies and stress, which can lead to inflammation of the stomach lining.
Other possible causes of gastritis in dogs include swallowed foreign objects, the use of certain medicines, a number of diseases and eating snow.
What symptoms does gastritis cause in dogs?
Initially, the symptoms caused by gastritis in dogs are similar to those of a normal gastrointestinal infection. In most cases, this makes it difficult to detect the inflammation of the stomach lining early on.
Irrespective of this, the following symptoms in your dog may be an indication of gastritis:
- Stomach pain
- Heartburn
- Diarrhoea
- Vomiting (often with bile)
If the inflammation of the stomach lining has developed into a chronic problem in your dog, you will also notice a lack of appetite. As a result, your four-legged friend will lose body weight over time and probably also develop a dull coat. Apart from this, your dog's mucous membranes will most likely be particularly pale.
If there is blood in your dog's vomit, he will most likely suffer not only from gastritis but also from a stomach ulcer. This is probably also the case if your dog's excrement is strikingly black. This is because this usually indicates that blood from the stomach is contained in the excrement.
How is gastritis diagnosed in dogs?
If you suspect that your dog may be suffering from gastritis, you should consult a vet as soon as possible. The vet will carry out blood tests and an ultrasound examination of the stomach as part of his examination.
If your dog's gastritis is a chronic problem, it is also important to get to the bottom of its causes. To do this, they will need to be tested for various pathogens, and an endoscopy of the stomach and upper small intestine will be carried out.
How is gastritis in dogs treated?
How gastritis in your dog needs to be treated depends primarily on its severity and course. This is because the necessary treatment measures differ depending on whether the gastritis is acute or chronic.
Treatment of acute gastritis in dogs
If your dog suffers from acute gastritis, it is primarily necessary for your dog to fast. 24 hours without food will ensure that your dog's stomach calms down.
If necessary, you can also give your dog with gastritis an additional remedy for his nausea. Regardless of this, you must of course ensure that your four-legged friend drinks enough during the fast.
In most cases, acute gastritis in dogs can be treated without major problems, so your dog should have no more complaints after a week or two. However, diarrhoea and vomiting can sometimes lead to a high level of fluid loss and affected dogs may need to be given an infusion to compensate.
Treatment of chronic gastritis in dogs
If your dog's gastritis is chronic, you must expect treatment to be much more complicated. This is mainly due to the fact that very different measures are required depending on the trigger.
If your dog's gastritis was caused by an infectious disease, for example, the vet will probably prescribe antibiotics for your dog. If, on the other hand, giardia or worms are responsible for gastritis in your dog, the administration of a suitable deworming agent is an indispensable part of the treatment measures.
Apart from this, it is relatively common that it is not possible to determine the exact cause of chronic gastritis in your dog. In this case, treatment usually consists of agents to inhibit the production of stomach acid and immunosuppressive drugs such as cortisone.
A change of food can also help to relieve the symptoms. Treating chronic gastritis in dogs requires patience and can sometimes take several months.
How can I prevent gastritis in my dog?
Unfortunately, it is not possible to completely rule out the possibility that your dog will develop gastritis at some point in their life. However, there are some things you can do to at least significantly reduce the risk.
First of all, make sure you avoid unnecessary stress in your dog's everyday life. After all, just like you, stress can be a real pain in the stomach for your dog. You should also make sure your dog gets all the important vaccinations to prevent gastritis caused by an infectious disease such as distemper.
It is also important that you treat intestinal parasites such as giardia and worms in your dog immediately, or ideally avoid any possible infestation from the outset. You can do this particularly gently with Bellfor Vermal, for example.
Which food is suitable for dogs with gastritis?
A balanced diet plays an important role with regard to gastritis in dogs. An easily digestible dog food helps, among other things, to avoid intolerances and food allergies in your dog and thus reduce the risk of inflammation of the stomach lining.
To this end, we recommend that you rely on our hypoallergenic dog food with insect protein from the larvae of Hermetia illucens (black soldier flies). This unusual source of protein is easily digestible and is also characterised by its excellent digestibility.
Our insect-based food is therefore not only perfectly suited to prevent gastritis in nutritionally sensitive quadrupeds but also to provide dogs with pre-existing gastritis with all the important nutrients in a digestible way.
Our tip against diarrhoea in dogs with gastritis
Diarrhoea is one of the typical symptoms that occur in dogs with gastritis. With Gastro Relax from Bellfor, you can counteract diarrhoea in a natural way and support the treatment by the vet in a sensible way.
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