Beyond the baby gate and cabinet safety latches, providing the best food and giving all of your love – you should also be prepared for a possible medical emergency with your dog. Here’s a guide to some symptoms that indicate an immediate trip to the Emergency Room.
- · If your pet is experiencing difficulty with or no breathing/no heartbeat. On the way to the emergency clinic, you can apply rapid pressure on the chest right behind the elbow to help massage the heart if it is not beating. Pressure on the chest of a non-breathing pet will help move air, and you can do mouth-to-mouth resuscitation with your pet.
- · Repeated vomiting or retching. This could result from a number of things, including swallowing a toxin. Repeated attempts to vomit without result could be from a foreign body blockage in the stomach or intestines or GDV, a common—and life threatening–condition known as bloat, where a dog’s stomach becomes twisted.
- · Inability to urinate or defecate. Inappropriate urination may be caused by variety of conditions such as bladder stones to serious urinary tract infections or even kidney failure. Inability to defecate could be from a blockage, GDV or tumor.
- · Distended and/or painful abdomen. This can be from GDV or from peritonitis and needs to be evaluated by a veterinarian.
- · Seizures or any collapse. Dogs that never have had a seizure before or those whose seizure lasts more than 1 or 2 minutes should be seen with no delays. You can push on the nose tip just above the lip, but be careful not to reach too near the dog’s mouth to avoid being bitten. Talk to your pet, and try to keep her awake and conscio
- · Choking/gagging. Keep your pet as quiet as possible. If you are unable to remove the object, or your dog collapses, head to the ER immediately. You can try using quick, firm pressure on the chest to push the object out. For smaller pets, hang them upside down from their back legs and firmly tap their chest to help the object drop out.
- · Paralysis or inability to walk. This could be the result of a stroke or ruptured spinal disc needing surgical correction. If so, the longer you wait, the greater the chance the paralysis will be permanent
- · Bloody diarrhea. Lower gastrointestinal tract bleeding from a foreign object or other cause and hemorrhagic gastroenteritis are two of the more serious causes of bloody diarrhea and can be life-threatening. Blood in the stool is not a wait-and-see situation.
- · Certainly, if your dog is vocalizing pain by whining or yelping, it is time to get help. Or, he may be lethargic and not eatingor drinking. These are all signs that your pet needs your help right away.
While medical diagnosis is not possible over the phone, if you are in doubt, don’t hesitate to call for guidance about whether your dog’s symptoms require immediate medical attention or take your dog to your preferred emergency clinic for an evaluation of his condition. It’s up to you to be your best friends’ best advocate and get them life-saving help if needed.