LEANS N SLOBBERS

Our beautiful sweetie pie, Matilda, has megaesophagus, and Keri suggested I share some info about this disorder here. I think that's a great idea because it's a fairly common birth defect in danes. Before getting Mattie, the only times I had heard about it was in the context of breeders having puppies born with the disorder put down. I had assumed it was an always-fatal problem. Since then, I have learned a lot--like the difference between regurgitation and vomiting (eeewww!).

In my search for a new pup, I contacted a rescue group that had just talked a BYB out of their whole eight-week-old litter, a fawn/harl cross that had produced a menagerie of mismarked pups. I saw a pic of Mattie's fawnequin brother and inquired. The woman with the rescue explained that he was already spoken for, but there was a fawnequin female she was still trying to get from the breeder. They wanted to keep her because she was the runt of the litter and so teensy. Well, she was so teensy because she was starving and they didn't know this. She probably swallowed her mama's milk fine. It was only when they switched to solid food that she had a problem.

When the rescue woman finally got the pup, she knew immediately what the problem was when she tried to feed her. Mattie regurgitated her food right away and then ate it again (sorry, it's gross, but this is what happens with megaesophagus). The vet confirmed the diagnosis and Mattie began a lifetime of eating while standing on her hind legs. In the litter, when Mattie regurgitated, her brothers and sisters said "Woohooo! More food!" and gobbled it up. This is why she was skin and bones.

Megaesophagus is a disorder in which the muscles and nerves in the esophagus are malformed and do not work properly to help food get from the mouth to the stomach. The food, instead, sits in the esophagus until the dog can't hold it there any more and gags. The dog then regurgitates the food. Mattie's esophagus is enlarged to the point she can hold an entire bowl of food in her throat.

Click HERE for a great link that explains the disorder and even has some fun, interactive, animated pics to show what happens.

The danger of megaesophagus, in addition to the obvious potential for starvation in a litter of pups, is the possibility of aspiration. When the food is sitting in the esophagus, particles can quite easily end up in the trachea and be inhaled into the lungs. If this happens, the likelihood of pneumonia is great. Most dogs with megaesophagus eventually die from pneumonia due to food aspiration.

By having Mattie eat with her bowl raised very high, we have almost entirely eliminated her regurgitation. As she eats, her esophagus is almost completely vertical and gravity helps her swallow. She has learned to stay standing long enough for the food to get to her stomach. Here's what she looks like eating:

The only problems we have with her now are when the other dogs leave food in their bowls. She still has a food obsession left over from the days when she was starving, so she checks everyone's bowl after mealtimes. We are pretty vigilant about this, but sometimes she sneaks past us. I think the last regurgitation was at least three or four months ago.

Mattie's mega is pretty severe. A lot of puppies grow out of it. That is, their esophageal muscles and nerves develop over time and, eventually, they are able to eat normally. Hers hasn't gotten better, so it's unlikely it will at this point. It's not so severe that she can't eat treats. She can swallow a couple of dog cookies with no problem. It's just meals that are a challenge for her esophagus.

Fortunately, we have had almost no problem at all since we switched her to Evo. I think this is for two reasons. One, she eats so much less food, she can swallow it easier. And, two, the kibbles are really tiny and there is no grain, so they doesn't expand when they get wet. With other kibbles, we had to completely soak her food before she could eat so that no expansion would happen after the food got into her esophagus. If it wasn't soaked enough, she'd regurgitate it, and we'd just let her eat it again. We called it "Mattie's having seconds." With her saliva added to the food, it was more lubricated and never, ever came up a second time. I know, eeewww, but it quit grossing me out a long time ago.

So, although megaesophagus was once a death sentence for a dog, it doesn't have to be. The simple accommodations we've made for Mattie have just become part of our routine and no big deal at all.

(Thanks Holly for submitting this article)