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Can playing with another dog indoors cause bloat near feeding?

Updated On September 23rd, 2025

Pet's info: Dog | Australian Shepherd | Male | neutered | 4 years and 6 months old | 65 lbs

I am dog sitting for a few days and my dog loves other dogs. I read that to reduce the risk of bloat you should not exercise dogs before or after feeding, however, I’m worried since my dog can’t control his excitement or energy around other dogs he can play with. Could indoor playing with another dog be enough activity to cause bloat?

1 Answer

Most Helpful Answer

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Answered By Dr. Melanie, BVSc MS

Veterinarian

Published on January 2nd, 2021

Potentially it can be, yes. To help prevent this, I would put Max in his own room about an hour before feeding time so he can calm down, feed him in that room, and then keep him in that room for an hour after he is done. That way, he will be calm before and after feeding. I hope this helps!

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