Dehydration is one of the most serious problems that our friend can have, and at the same time, one of the easiest to avoid. However, sometimes it is not easy to know if the animal is dehydrated or not, because if it is in the initial phase, the most normal thing is that it is overlooked, since it will not show too many symptoms and these will not be especially serious.
But since it is a disorder that can be life threatening, it is very important that we do not ignore the slightest symptom. Therefore, we are going to what are the signs of dehydration in dogs and what you should do to help them get better.
What are the causes?
Dehydration occurs when the body removes more fluids than it recovers. This causes an imbalance of fluids, but also electrolytes, which causes the body to be damaged. If not remedied in time, life could be in serious danger.
The causes are multiple, including those associated with enfermedades whose symptoms are, among others, vomiting and diarrhea. Serious illnesses can also cause dehydration; without forgetting the heatstroke.
What are the symptoms?
Symptoms of dehydration in dogs are the following:
- Dry gums
- Thick saliva
- Darkened urine
- Lethargy
- Anorexia
- Dry skin, with loss of elasticity
- Hollow eyes
What types and degrees of dehydration are there?
Dehydration in dogs is a serious problem, which is not usually solved -except in very, very mild cases in which there are hardly any symptoms- by giving it water. As we have mentioned, there are diseases that cause vomiting and diarrhea, but which also tend to cause loss of appetite, general malaise, among other symptoms.
Therefore, it is very important that if we notice that our dog has any of the symptoms that we said above, or any other that makes us suspect that he is not well, we must take him to the vet as soon as possible, because there are three types of dehydration based on the amount of solutes and electrolytes you lose. These are the isotonic, the hypertonic, and the hypotonic.
Depending on the severity, various degrees of dehydration are distinguishedThese are:
- Less than 4%: It is the mildest case, we will hardly notice symptoms.
- Between 5 and 6%: the skin begins to lose elasticity.
- Between 6 and 8%: the skin loses elasticity, it takes a long time to recover.
- Between 8 and 10%: In addition to the skin problem, we will see that he has dry mucous membranes and sunken eyes.
- Between 10 and 12%: Apart from the above symptoms, the animal will go into shock and have pale mucous membranes. Also, it will be cold on its paws.
- Between 10 and 15%: the animal will be in severe shock and could die at any moment.
How to help you?
The vet give you fluids and electrolytes to balance your body; It can be intravenously if the animal is very ill, or orally or sometimes with a syringe if the case is rather mild. If it is a puppy, the administration could be intraosseous.
Of course, if the professional considers that he should stay in the hospital, the best thing to do is listen to him and let him do his job.
How to prevent the dog from becoming dehydrated?
There are many things we can do to avoid dehydration in dogs, his:
- Make sure you always have clean and fresh water.
- Never leave it in a closed car in the sun.
- Give him wet food instead of dry, especially if he has a disease that could cause dehydration.
- Provide him with a shady corner.
- In case of observing some of the symptoms that we have mentioned, we will take you to the vet.
We hope this article has been useful to you.