Food for Acid Reflux

[roanne9145]

Hello all! I come to you experts for some help/advice.
I am trying to find a new food for Dooley as he has developed Acid Reflux. We have already been to the vet for an initial consultation as he would randomly vomit, sometimes with food and frothy liquid and sometimes just some phlegm and bile. He also started drinking lots of water then he would make a hacking sound almost as if he were choking. The Vet suggested a Pepcid with his meals and possibly a food change to something with a little less fat/protein to see if that keeps the symptoms down before we go further with scoping and/or surgery. He is not over weight and has been on Fromm Beef Frittata his entire life.

He gets a 3/4 cup twice a day and a Pepcid with each meal. This seemed to help a little but I can tell he is still dealing with the reflux irritation. Some days seem to be worse than others. His vomiting seems quite random. He could go several weeks without and then he might vomit twice in two days. Sometimes its after he eats and sometimes it can be hours later. No real rhyme or reason that we can figure out.

So, is there anything you all have figured out food wise that seemed to help? I am not opposed to switching away from Fromm if need be.

Thanks for the help!

My girl was doing the same thing. Oddly enough I gave her dry food instead of moist and nothing else in it and she stopped totally. Have no clue why but it worked. Try. Try it and let me know if that works I'd be interested to know good luck

 

[geshaw30]

We had this issue & after some research I discovered one of our EB’s had Bilious Vomiting Syndrome (BVS-yes, it’s a thing). Later the vet believed the same. After you read up on this you’ll find it helps to keep something in their stomach. So just before bedtime our 3yd old male gets a small handful of kibble; then gets fed breakfast around 6. This works wonders. Additionally I have yet to find a vet who says there is a problem with Omeprazole (Prilosec). You will find folks who disagree but to each their own I guess.
As for a food recommendation here’s what I’ve found with bulldogs over the past 15 yrs. Don‘t believe anyone who tells you “this food is the best”. No such thing. What works for mine might not set so well with yours. As an example some people might rave over Royal Canin but I found it to be garbage. That being said their prescription diet was really helpful the one time we needed to use it. Go figure.
As you have probably discovered a kibble for this breed is trial & error where base ingredients (chicken, fish, lamb, etc) are concerned. Fats, grains, and more importantly protein counts also come into play. The common denominator is overall quality. Take a look at “dogfoodadvisor(dot)com“ to help with this.
Wish you all the best. I know what you’re going through.

 

[helsonwheels]

To add to what helsonwheels has said, you can try adding fennel seed to his food and use apple cider vinegar with the Mother in it.

Yes fennel seeds are great‼️

 

[Roccomama78]

To add to what helsonwheels has said, you can try adding fennel seed to his food and use apple cider vinegar with the Mother in it.

I have the apple cider vinager with mother in it in the capsel form... Do you think that Would be okay to sprinkle on the food or in the water? Just curious, because My guy turned his nose up when I tried adding some ACV to his water.

 

[helsonwheels]

I have the apple cider vinager with mother in it in the capsel form... Do you think that Would be okay to sprinkle on the food or in the water? Just curious, because My guy turned his nose up when I tried adding some ACV to his water.

Try with food then.

 

[4WHLN]

What food are you feeding? If not the palate it could an issue with the food. one of my guys was allergic to rice and would random throw up, our French had issue with tuna and once we identified that his vomiting stopped as well.

Sorry its been so long since my original post. Life gets crazy sometimes and time flies by. But I wanted to give a little update. I have been trying different things with Dooley to try to narrow down this situation.
I have changed his food from Fromm Beef Frittata Veg (hes been on this since he was a puppy) to the Pork and Applesauce. He is allergic to chicken so I have to watch out for that ingredient. So staying with Fromm was the easiest "first move". He seems to have taken well to the new food. I have started giving him his Pepcid 30 min prior to feeding and I have been wetting his food allowing it to soften some to aid in digestion. Also I am adding a cap fill of ACV w/ Mother to his water bowl everyday and picking it up at night and during the day while I am at work. I think he was drinking water just because it was there most times. Thinking back over time, I was noticing he tended to hack more and vomit around the times he would drink LOTS of water for seemingly no reason. So far, this has seemed to have stopped.
We are going to the vet next week for his annual booster shots and I will talk again with the vet about our next move.