Megaoesophagus (ME) is a condition where your dog's oesophagus loses the ability to contract to move food and water into the stomach. Instead, their oesophagus dilates, causing food to back up and leading to regurgitation of their meal. Dogs who suffer from this condition can also find it tricky to maintain or gain body weight due to the difficulty in consuming enough calories. Poor pooches.

Our Butternut meals are good for dogs with Megaoesophagus as they coincide with the specific dietary needs of a pooch with this condition - ideally, they need something easy to digest, high in nutrients, and free from any nasties not to mention a diet that can be broken down and has the option to adapt the texture.

One of the first things to understand is which food consistency works best for your pooch, some dogs may be better suited to a more liquid consistency that flows smoothly into their stomach but isn’t too runny that it’s easy to inhale, while others may respond well to small meatballs as this can help stimulate oesophageal contraction to help move the food along. One of the many benefits of Butternut is it can be made into many different consistencies to suit your dog whether it’s by adding some warm water or by moulding them into little meatballs, just what your pooch needs! If needed, you can fork or blend any larger pieces such as the carrots and peas.

Feeding dogs with Megaoesophagus in an upright position, ideally at a 45-90° angle to the floor, is recommended. This position should be maintained for about 15 minutes after feeding, allowing gravity to help move the food down the oesophagus and minimise regurgitation.

We know that dogs who suffer from Megaoesophagus do struggle to maintain their weight and tend to be a little on the skinny side so we would recommend sticking with our richer meals such as beef, pork, lamb, duo of duck and chicken and salmon as these meals are higher in calories so will boost the number of calories they consume daily.

Remember to speak to your vet about the suitability of Butternut Box.