Roland starting blurping in Dec. 2007. At first it was quite rare - a couple of times in 2-3 weeks. It was always episodic. In other words, it would come in clusters. He'd not blurp for a week or more and then blurp 4-5 times over a 2 day period. This made it quite difficult to determine whether the food (size, dry vs wet, etc) made any difference. Also in early 2008, we were preparing to move to another state. We finally moved the dogs - a 2 day drive across the western US. Roland did not blurp once on the trip. We were so afraid that we'd be cleaning up a hotel room or the car, but we made it safely. However, now we have a sick dog in a new city with no vet. Plus, trying to unpack, start new jobs, get the dogs settled, etc. Life was quite hectic. However, Roland was reasonable stable and not losing weight.
The blurping was gradually increasing in frequency. Early on it was days between blurps, sometimes a week or two. Then he might go a few days without blurping. Then he might skip a day. Then it was nearly every day. We did notice that he was more likely to blurp on weekends. Took a while to figure out, but it seems that he is more active when are around and clearly increased activity increased the likelihood that he'd blurp. When we're at work, he sleeps all day.
We also noticed during this same time period that he was getting weaker in his rear. The new house had 2 steps up to the backdoor and he was clearly not as strong as when he was younger (but who is?). He was also losing muscle mass, mostly, in his rear. We consulted with a veterinary internal medicine specialist, who also happens to be a greyhound breeder, and she told us that this a fairly common in older, large male greyhounds. We don't think this weakness is related to his megaesophagus, but it has clearly affected his treatment. He is too weak to sit for more than a few seconds. Greyhounds are not big sitters anyway - prefering to lie down or stand. Early in 2008, we tried having Roland sit for a few minutes after eating, to improve esophageal emptying, but his rear quivered so much we gave up on that approach.
The blurping was gradually increasing in frequency. Early on it was days between blurps, sometimes a week or two. Then he might go a few days without blurping. Then he might skip a day. Then it was nearly every day. We did notice that he was more likely to blurp on weekends. Took a while to figure out, but it seems that he is more active when are around and clearly increased activity increased the likelihood that he'd blurp. When we're at work, he sleeps all day.
We also noticed during this same time period that he was getting weaker in his rear. The new house had 2 steps up to the backdoor and he was clearly not as strong as when he was younger (but who is?). He was also losing muscle mass, mostly, in his rear. We consulted with a veterinary internal medicine specialist, who also happens to be a greyhound breeder, and she told us that this a fairly common in older, large male greyhounds. We don't think this weakness is related to his megaesophagus, but it has clearly affected his treatment. He is too weak to sit for more than a few seconds. Greyhounds are not big sitters anyway - prefering to lie down or stand. Early in 2008, we tried having Roland sit for a few minutes after eating, to improve esophageal emptying, but his rear quivered so much we gave up on that approach.
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