Food Rewards While Training

[Guest Bea]

I have of course read about how you shouldn't feed greyhound an hour before or after (even moderate) exercise to reduce the risk of bloat, and so I always feed Bea her breakfast and dinner well before the walks.

 

However, she is VERY food motivated, so I have used cheese cubes/sausages/biscuits when we're out on walks and do little training sessions. She's usually panting a bit on these walks, as they involve recall from quite far away so she comes running, jumping over hurdles etc. Is it ok to give her those treats, or could it be potentially dangerous?

[Guest sheila]

I think that a small treats would be OK. You just don't want a full belly that can block up. For training treats I just use plain old cheapo hot dogs. You could cut them up into 16 little tiny bites and still not have put that much into her tummy to cause a problem. The treats don't have to be of substantial size to qualify as a treat to a dog because they still really really want it whether it is a taste or a mouthful.

[scullysmum]

Small treats will not do her any harm at all...it's just the full tummy of a big bowl of food that should be avoided. A friend of mine took part in a survey done by the Royal Veterinary College on Greyhounds at RGT kennels to find out the causes of bloat and the only real solid thing they found is that some dog are susceptible and therefore you should take all the precautions such as raised feeders, not exercising straight after a full meal etc. and some just were not susceptible no matter if you "broke" all the rules

[PrairieProf]

I thought the most recent studies showed that a raised feeder does not, in fact, help in preventing bloat and might even make it more likely.

Edited May 16, 2009 by PrairieProf

[Guest Pipi5]

The only time I raise my bowls is if I notice them having neck or back problems while eating. I had a black male that always seemed restless when eating, I put his bowl on a little step stool & he was fine after that. When I talked to his trainer one night at Southland, the neck injury was the reason he retired.

I think a little treat like a small "milkbone" would be okay during runs. Just don't over do it.

[SAVED2]

Small milk bone--ok

[scullysmum]

I thought the most recent studies showed that a raised feeder does not, in fact, help in preventing bloat and might even make it more likely.

I don't recall saying it was the most recent study.....just a study.

 

Back to not bothering to try to share any "wisdom" I may have gleaned in the last 20 years owning dogs.

[Guest Bea]

Thanks for the replies everyone! I can now give her the little treats outside without worrying that it might harm her.

[ahicks51]

I thought the most recent studies showed that a raised feeder does not, in fact, help in preventing bloat and might even make it more likely.

 

There's a lot of superstition about raised feeders preventing bloat, but the only refereed literature on the subject indicates it increases the risk in susceptible large and giant breed dogs (217% and 199% relative risk, respectively). Restricting exercise before and after feeding increased the risk (162% relative risk in large breeds, and dropped it slightly in giant breeds (94% relative risk).

 

However, greyhounds weren't studied. Moreover, because if one believes a given animal may be prone to bloat, they might be treated differently (withholding food before and after exercise, raised feeders, etc.). That would totally hork up the results. So it's tough to gauge from studies like these what one should do to prevent bloat. Univariate results like these are good for showing that doing X is correlated with Y as a response; it isn't quite so hot at saying "to prevent Y, you need to do X."

[PrairieProf]

Restricting exercise might raise the risk?? Holy moly, that's new to me.

[GeorgeofNE]

I do not consider a normal walk something you have to worry about feeding with.

 

Running with other hounds in a playgroup? Yes. Taking a brisk walk? No.

 

What you're avoiding, really, is feeding your dog too soon after it's been panting heavily. Not "exercise" per se.

[ahicks51]

Restricting exercise might raise the risk?? Holy moly, that's new to me.

 

But in a study of a population where people might restrict exercise in dogs whose familial history shows an inclination towards bloat, that's pretty much the result you'd get: Bob and Mary don't let Spot run because Spot's sire died of bloat. Net result: they restrict exercise before and after feeding, and Spot bloats and dies anyway. High-risk animal and all that.