Megaesophagus is a remarkably common medical condition in dogs (especially German Shepherds, Great Danes, and Irish Setters).

What is Megaesophagus in dogs?

Megaesophagus occurs when a bodily function called “Peristalsis” fails. Peristalis [LINK] is a wave-like motion the muscles in the alimentary-tract create to move food down into the stomach. There are two movements required for food to travel properly from the mouth to the stomach:

1)  The food is swallowed and moves into the esophagus.

2)  The alimentary-tract pushes the food into the stomach.

Peristalis occurs when food does not move through the esophagus towards the stomach. It’s like taking a bottom-of-the-throat gulp… kind of. That’s probably a terribly analogy.

Detecting Megaesophagus is not easy. It’s probably even harder to confidently diagnose. It occurs at any age, in a puppy or in an older dog… though from what I’m learning it seems to be most common in puppies. It can also be congenital (handed down from parents) or it can be due to an operable condition called Persistent Right Aortic Arch. [LINK] (Our likely combination, see other post: PRAA) You can identify Megaesophagus by paying close attention the difference between your dog vomiting and regurgitating.

Dog Regurgitation or Vomiting?

Vomiting is not necessarily a result of Megaesophagus. That could be allergies, or any number of other things. Regurgitation is almost always one of the symptoms. What is the difference? Vomiting involves hacking, gagging, heaving, and fully-body retching as the body’s muscle’s actively contract to expel the contents of its stomach. Regurgitation is almost entirely passive and occurs when the food or water is swallowed from the mouth but remains just past that point. From there, it simply moves back into the mouth and comes out… almost like it’s “falling” out. It probably doesn’t even cause the dog an incredible amount of discomfort… though I’m positive he doesn’t enjoy it.

For instance, Gunner our GSD loves to jump up and down off the bed when we play. Sometimes, if he hasn’t spent enough time in his Bailey Chair after he’s eaten, when he jumps down off the bed, the impact of the ground will induce regurgitation. There doesn’t need to be a forceful event for it to occur, but it can occur because of one. Sometimes he’s just sitting by the front window, bends his head down, and then “shhhhloop”… all over the wood floor.

Other concerns associated with Megaesophagus?

Aside form the obvious issues with Megaesophagus (Like the dog not getting his nutrition), there is a secondary danger that you need to be aware of: Aspiration Pneumonia [LINK]

Treatment Options for Megaesophagus:

• Build a “Bailey Chair” [LINK] and feed your dog in it. This sounds more difficult than it really is. This is the single most important thing you can do. Sooner or later I will post plans for this.

• When in the “Bailey Chair” the dog should be in the vertical position for at least 10 minutes after eating so that the gravity will move the food down to the stomach. We’ve been doing this long enough now we can almost tell when most of the food has passed into the stomach.  One sign is his belly is full. The other sign is a soft burping sound he makes while eating. We can literally hear the food pass (this is likely because we are dealing with some variation of a PRAA, may not be the case for all dogs with Megaesphogus.)

• Help your pet be in a vertical position when drinking fluids. This will prevent aspiration problems. How? Elevate the water dish above some stairs.  Some will argue this isn’t good enough and the dog should be in the Chair to drink water. This is counter to other arguments that the dog should always have unrestricted access to water. Decide for yourself and see how your dog reacts.

• A wet diet that is low in fat and semi solid in consistency is optimal. We feed ground Raw Meat [LINK].  I personally think this helps considerably because it isn’t as abrasive as dry kibble, or as large.  If you are committed to keeping the animal on kibble, you might have more success by soaking it in water for an hour prior to feeding. Most commercial kibble is heat-pressed, which means it will expand when it is saturated in water (or mucus).  Think about the effect of that if the kibble is stuck in the esophagus.

• Serve smaller quantities throughout the day. Instead of one big eating, break it up into at least two (what we’re doing) or three… four.  Whatever you can manage with time.

• Let your Veterinarian know what your plans are and inform yourself of the symptoms with Aspiration Pneumonia.  Antibiotics will be necessary if your pet develops this. (Gunner never has, fingers crossed)

Summary

Its manageable… that’s what they all say and thus far it seems to be true. Gunner is healthy and we appear to be making progress.  He’s comfortable eating in his chair and is regurgitating considerably less.

I hope you’ve found the post helpful. I’d love to hear any comments or feedback on my strategy to manage this.