Raised bowl questions

KimB3384

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Hi all! We were at the vet this morning for an unrelated issue when I happened to mention that in the past four months Bisou has regurgitated a handful of times. It's always in the evening about two hours after eating, and it's really only been 3 or 4 times. The vet wasn't overly concerned but said that if left untreated or unaddressed it could possibly develop into something far more serious. She suggested breaking each feeding session into two smaller ones (so feed her half her meal at the regular time and then 30 minutes later feed her the rest) and elevate her food dish if possible. I found an elevated slow feeder bowl on Drs. Foster and Smith, so my question is - do I need two? One for food and one for water? Also, she's about 11 inches at the shoulder, so would a small version that's 5.5" high be the right height?

Any help or suggestions would be much appreciated.
 
Hi all! We were at the vet this morning for an unrelated issue when I happened to mention that in the past four months Bisou has regurgitated a handful of times. It's always in the evening about two hours after eating, and it's really only been 3 or 4 times. The vet wasn't overly concerned but said that if left untreated or unaddressed it could possibly develop into something far more serious. She suggested breaking each feeding session into two smaller ones (so feed her half her meal at the regular time and then 30 minutes later feed her the rest) and elevate her food dish if possible. I found an elevated slow feeder bowl on Drs. Foster and Smith, so my question is - do I need two? One for food and one for water? Also, she's about 11 inches at the shoulder, so would a small version that's 5.5" high be the right height?
Any help or suggestions would be much appreciated.
We use an elevated feeder and water combo. We do it because they take in less air and won't putt putt. I assume taking in the air would also make them vomit. I use both food and water elevated. My dog is about 18 mos now and when he was a pup he did vomit occasionally. It was his entire stomach of undigested food. The first time I ran him to my vet who is very close and the son of my husband's friend. He suggested the raised bowls but I didn't do it right away. He did vomit a couple more times and then I came across some bowls I liked that were stainless, which I had been looking for because of allergies, and raised so I bought them and he never vomited again and we have no putt putts :D
 
We use an elevated feeder and water combo. We do it because they take in less air and won't putt putt. I assume taking in the air would also make them vomit. I use both food and water elevated. My dog is about 18 mos now and when he was a pup he did vomit occasionally. It was his entire stomach of undigested food. The first time I ran him to my vet who is very close and the son of my husband's friend. He suggested the raised bowls but I didn't do it right away. He did vomit a couple more times and then I came across some bowls I liked that were stainless, which I had been looking for because of allergies, and raised so I bought them and he never vomited again and we have no putt putts :D

Thanks, Kris! That's exactly what I was looking for. It made sense to me that they should both be raised, but sometimes you just need to hear from someone else that you're on the right track. Any idea how tall your bowls are? The ones I found were ceramic but I'd really prefer stainless steel since I feed raw. And if I'm breaking her feedings into smaller batches anyway I can't imagine that a slow feeder would make much difference. The material is going to be more important.
 
I've been looking for raised stainless steel slow feed bowls. I originally had 2 raised small bowls for food and water but Jax eats so fast that sometimes he would throw up whole pieces of kibble at night. I finally got a slow feed bowl but it's bigger than the original bowl so it didn't fit into the stand so now both bowls are on the floor.
 
We don't use raised bowls, but we do feed them twice a day, morning and evening. I don't think it is a big problem with Frenchies, but with English bullies and other large breed dogs, I have read articles that say raised bowls can cause bloat. A slow feed bowl will also help.
 
I've been looking for raised stainless steel slow feed bowls. I originally had 2 raised small bowls for food and water but Jax eats so fast that sometimes he would throw up whole pieces of kibble at night. I finally got a slow feed bowl but it's bigger than the original bowl so it didn't fit into the stand so now both bowls are on the floor.

If you ever find that combo at a reasonable price, please let me know. I found something on Pinterest but to get both the water and food elevated it was well over $100. I'm not saying that my dog isn't worth that amount of money, but I'd rather spend that kind of scratch on food or treats or even clothes.
 
We don't use raised bowls, but we do feed them twice a day, morning and evening. I don't think it is a big problem with Frenchies, but with English bullies and other large breed dogs, I have read articles that say raised bowls can cause bloat. A slow feed bowl will also help.

I've read the same thing - they cause bloat. Then I've read that they don't cause bloat. It's so stressful and confusing. I just want to make sure I'm doing right by her.
 
I recently went through a similar issue with Nacho. Nacho would vomit at least once a day, mostly in the middle of the night. It progressivly got worse and as it turns out he needed a soft palate reduction. The vomiting has stopped since then! However my husband and I purchased Nacho's elevated bowls from Petco for around $40. It comes in pieces and you have to buy the stand and the bowls seperately but you can choose from stainless, plastic, or ceramic bowls. We got the stainless and really love the whole thing. He has done really well having his bowls up off the floor!
 
I recently went through a similar issue with Nacho. Nacho would vomit at least once a day, mostly in the middle of the night. It progressivly got worse and as it turns out he needed a soft palate reduction. The vomiting has stopped since then! However my husband and I purchased Nacho's elevated bowls from Petco for around $40. It comes in pieces and you have to buy the stand and the bowls seperately but you can choose from stainless, plastic, or ceramic bowls. We got the stainless and really love the whole thing. He has done really well having his bowls up off the floor!

The Bowlmates system? That looks really nice! Thanks for the tip! Did you get the medium? It says it's 5.3" high. I think that would be high enough.
 
Yes we got the Bowlmates. I couldn't think of the name earlier, sorry! We actually got the small because Nacho is on the small side and it is a perfect height for him. Even with all of this vomiting issues before his surgery we noticed a huge improvement by simply elevating his bowls! They were reasonably priced and I loved the colors!
 
Yes we got the Bowlmates. I couldn't think of the name earlier, sorry! We actually got the small because Nacho is on the small side and it is a perfect height for him. Even with all of this vomiting issues before his surgery we noticed a huge improvement by simply elevating his bowls! They were reasonably priced and I loved the colors!

Perfect! I'm ordering a set today. Thank you so much! I almost want to get one of each color - they're all so great. I should get Ohio State red, but I think I might do orange. It just looks so bright and happy :)
 
I'm gonna chin in here with info on bloat. Bloat is the twisting of the stomach. It is normally found in large breed big chested dogs. My golden retriever had this happen. It is caused by eating to quickly and sometimes it can happen when your dog plays a lot after meals. A slow feed bowl has nothing to do with bloat. If your dog eats quickly that could be the cause but the type of bowl you feed out of is not the cause of the bloat. The slow feed bowls do help slow the eating down which can help reduce the likelihood of the dog bloating.


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I hope they work well for you! I wanted all the colors too but my husband made me pick one! :) We chose the lime green but I loved the orange too! Good luck!
 
Yes we got the Bowlmates. I couldn't think of the name earlier, sorry! We actually got the small because Nacho is on the small side and it is a perfect height for him. Even with all of this vomiting issues before his surgery we noticed a huge improvement by simply elevating his bowls! They were reasonably priced and I loved the colors!

Bumping this post in case anyone is looking for a good raised bowl feeding system. The Bowlmates system from Petco is fantastic, and is so reasonably priced. We feed raw and the stainless steel bowl inserts are just perfect. They're on sale right now, so go buy one if you're in the market!
 
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