What causes the thickening of the stomach for a dog? Here’s What to Do Next

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How is gastritis treated?

Treatment is based on the specific cause. Most acute cases resolve without medical intervention. Non-medical treatment guidelines for acute gastritis include:

  • withhold food for 24 to 48 hours
  • offer small amounts of water frequently during the first 24 hours (if fluids cannot be given orally without inducing vomiting, seek immediate veterinary treatment)
  • if there is no vomiting for 24 hours, feed a small amount of a highly-digestible, low-fat food
  • resume feeding with small meals given frequently (usually about ½ of the normal daily amount of food, divided into 4-6 meals)
  • gradually increase the amount of food over the next two to three days
  • if vomiting returns, notify your veterinarian

    • Medical treatment for dogs with gastritis may include:

  • anti-emetic (anti-vomiting) medications, for example maropitant (brand name Cerenia®) or metoclopramide (brand name Reglan®)
  • fluid therapy if patient is dehydrated
  • proton pump inhibitors – can be used in severe cases of stomach ulceration, for example omeprazole
  • gastrointestinal protectants, for example sucralfate (brand names Carafate®, Sulcrate®)
  • H2 receptor antagonists, when stomach ulcers are suspected, for example famotidine (brand name Pepcid®) or ranitidine (brand name Zantac®)

    • Treatment of Long-Term Stomach Inflammation in Dogs

    The protocol for the treatment of your beloved pet will be determined by the underlying cause, and also by whether or not the diagnosis was definitively concluded. When the diagnosis has not been conclusive to date, some veterinarians will begin the treatment of the long-term stomach inflammation by giving a deworming treatment to start. In some cases, the presence of a parasitic worm may not have been identified, but that does not rule out the possibility.

    Other potential treatments could be immunosuppressive medication to control the inflammation, or putting your pet on a hypoallergenic diet in order to ascertain if a food allergy is the culprit for the vomiting. In the instance of a diagnosed case of hypertrophic gastropathy, for example, surgery may be required to remove damaged tissue. If your dog has been infected by the helicobacter spiral bacteria, a prescription for antibiotics will be administered. It is interesting to note that in order to eliminate this bacteria, a combination of a few different antibiotics must be given because the helicobacter organism can easily develop a resistance to just one.

    If your dog is quite ill and dehydrated upon arrival at the clinic, he will be treated for the dehydration and possible electrolyte imbalances first, before the commencement of the inflammation regimen. If the vomiting is persistent, your veterinarian will want to give your dog medication to control that first, in order to eliminate the nausea. Gastroprotectants will be given as well.

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    How do you treat an inflamed stomach in a dog?

  • withhold food for 24 to 48 hours.
  • offer small amounts of water frequently during the first 24 hours (if fluids cannot be given orally without inducing vomiting, seek immediate veterinary treatment)
  • if there is no vomiting for 24 hours, feed a small amount of a highly-digestible, low-fat food.

    • Bloat in a dog. How to diagnose GDV, and why an acutely distended abdomen might be an emergency. Co

    Gastritis is a common cause of gastric wall edema and can lead to gastric wall thickening with preserved normal wall layering. 7, 22 Chronic hypertrophic gastritis and polyps also have mucosal layer thickening although the thickening is predominantly because of mucosal hypertrophy and not edema.