Raised Dog Bowls

[pfcarquejo]

Hello my Friends. Do you use Raised Dog Bowls to feed your bullmastiffs?I use something similar to this:

 

[Smokeycat]

I don't have a BM but I do use raised feeders for my dogs. Jiggers has one that looks like the picture. Kryten (EM) has a large bowl that sits on top of a rubber maid container as I couldn't find a raised feeder with bowls large enough to hold a meal (3c) for him that he wouldn't spill out of once he put his face into the bowl.

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[EverythingEnglishMastiff]

I think I use exactly what you have in your picture lol. Works great for us.

 

[ruby55]

We don't use raised bowls, we tried raised bowls to avoid bloat & the only dog who bloated was the one who ate out of the raised bowls. The other dogs either ate in their crates, or knocked their bowls out of the feeders onto the floor & made a mess. Now, 4 of them eat in their crates, & all but one lay down to eat. Sunny eats in the kitchen, & he also lays down to eat. The dogs who eat in their crates sit there for about 15 minutes after they eat.

 

[Iymala]

i use raised feeders for both my English Mastiffs purely for comfort as bending down to the floor looks much less comfortable. Not to mention both of mine prefer to drink from raised sources. I have heard both sides on the raised feeders that they cause bloat and that they help prevent bloat. There doesn't seem to really be conclusive evidence that it helps or hurts either way.


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[EverythingEnglishMastiff]

I only use them for food. My dogs drink their water out of 5 gallon buckets or the rainwater capturing traugh outside. Iymala is right it's sort of a crap shoot. Also if you were selective in choosing a breeder you would know if bloat was something they had in their lines beforehand. I just try to consciously keep exercise, horseplay, and rolling around at a minimum until after about an hour from the time they last ate.

 

[DennasMom]

We have a raised feeder - kept at about elbow height (saw that recommendation somewhere...) I like that it keeps the bowls off the floor, and allows air to circulate and dry any drool or splatter that may hit the ground.

 

[pfcarquejo]

The raised feeder is almost destroyed!!! But I think the bulldogs helped!

 

[twilightzone1981]

Ok I'm confused.. I thought raised feeders caused bloat? My knowledge only goes so far as a Google search but most of what I read says to avoid raised bowls and to feed giant breeds from the ground. My EM pup is 12 weeks old and lays down to eat.

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[Oscar'sMom]

We use raised feeders! My bf made us one to fit the large stainless bowls we have. They're perfect!

 

[Smokeycat]

Ok I'm confused.. I thought raised feeders caused bloat? My knowledge only goes so far as a Google search but most of what I read says to avoid raised bowls and to feed giant breeds from the ground. My EM pup is 12 weeks old and lays down to eat.

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There's no evidence that raised bowls prevent or cause bloat. There is also no evidence that eating from the floor prevents or causes bloat. It basically comes down to owner/canine preference. My EM will not eat from the floor nor will he eat lying down so he gets a bowl raised to his elbow height. My other dog will eat from a bowl on the floor but he has to bend his knees to do so so he also has a raised bowl.

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[twilightzone1981]

Again, I'm no expert. And you know what works for you through experience, and that trumps all. But there was a six year study done (Glickman study) and the results showed that dogs that ate from elevated bowls were 110% more likely to suffer from bloat than dogs that are from the floor.

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[EverythingEnglishMastiff]

I thought bloat was caused by exercise after eating?

 

[Joao M]

Again, I'm no expert. And you know what works for you through experience, and that trumps all. But there was a six year study done (Glickman study) and the results showed that dogs that ate from elevated bowls were 110% more likely to suffer from bloat than dogs that are from the floor. Sent from my XT1093 using Tapatalk

I read about that as well; don´t remember the %, however

 

[tmricciuto]

I talked to my vet about the raised bowl issue and he agreed that the studies tend to be inconclusive and there are studies proving it does and doesn't. Both of my girls will eat from the ground so that's how they get fed. When we start raw they will eat in their crates on the ground as well.

 

[twilightzone1981]

I notice of a lot of people feed their dogs inside the crates, I've never done this. Is it something that I should be doing? I have a 12 week old puppy and am afraid that he would make a mess in his crate. What are the advantages?

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[Smokeycat]

Again, I'm no expert. And you know what works for you through experience, and that trumps all. But there was a six year study done (Glickman study) and the results showed that dogs that ate from elevated bowls were 110% more likely to suffer from bloat than dogs that are from the floor.

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The problem I see with a lot of the more recent bloat studies is that they have been done after people were told that you should raise the bowl and I've never seen any study or survey where they separate raised feeders and on the ground and then look at the number of dogs who have bloated. If more dogs are fed from raised dishes and more of these dogs bloat does that mean it dishes are bad or that there were just more dogs in that group.

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[tmricciuto]

I notice of a lot of people feed their dogs inside the crates, I've never done this. Is it something that I should be doing? I have a 12 week old puppy and am afraid that he would make a mess in his crate. What are the advantages?Sent from my XT1093 using Tapatalk

I am going to feed them in their crates when I start to feed raw. This way my girls who eats like she'll never be fed again won't go after her sister who likes to take her time to eat. This will also allow me to just pull out the crate liner and wipe it down with antibacterial cleaner as opposed to having to go wherever they drag their food in the kitchen or outside.

 

[Hector]

Do whatever you feel is right and what seems to be comfortable for the dog. I started feeding my mastiff on the ground and then switched to an elevated surface because of the bloat thing and then went back to the ground because I felt like it didn't matter. My old shepherd mix has always been fed on the ground, but recently I noticed she was having difficulty getting the food and kept shifting her body to eat so I feed her on a elevated surface. I also started feeding Hector on the bench on the deck just because it seems to be easier for him to get the food. The only time I feed in the crate is if the dog is scared of the crate and that is one way to get them used to it. I have always fed the dogs outside unless it's super stormy and wet.

 

[Molossers R Us]

this is my 21st year owning Molosser breeds, and I have almost always fed from raised bowls whenever and wherever possible. I haven't ever had an issue with bloat, although I am not at all sure about attributing that to raised bowls. My main reason for using raised bowls is to prevent the dogs from gulping in so much air while they are eating. When a dish is on the ground level, the dog is basically eating "up hill" and ingests a substantial amount of air as well as food. Air ingested by dogs tends to come out the other end smelling about a thousand times worse than it has any right to! In my experience, raised bowls help keep this to a minimum.