Common health problems
Dogs just like people get sick. The scariest part about it that your dog can not tell you what hurts. It is important for you to learn the signs of symptoms of possible health problems. Some of them are obvious like vomiting and diarrhea and some are more vague. I will try to cover simple health issues that will resolve on its own and when veterinarian consult is required.
To assess your pet’s general health you first look at the whole picture. Is your dog eating and drinking? Is your dog eager to go for a walk? Is your dog playful and happy? This questions are based on assumption that it is your dog’s baseline behavior. If your dog sleeps a lot, not eating or drinking, appears to be disinterested in normal activities it is time to go to the vet. If you dog is happy but have some symptoms of illness you might be able to help your dog yourself.
Symptoms and how to resolve the problem
Diarrhea
Diarrhea happens every now and then for various reasons. Some of the reasons are the food is too rich, ate lots of liver treats, had too much food, ate something that not supposed to, diet change, medication and stress, More serious reasons are viral, bacterial or parasitic infection and many other reasons that is beyond the purpose of this page.
So , if your dog has loose stools but happy in general you can try to resolve the issue at home.
Reduce amount of food
Increase fiber intake (canned pumpkin, bananas, blueberries but avoid broccoli )
Choose low fat food. If feeding raw, give chicken carcasses and necks.
May give yogurt and buttermilk
Raw honey
When to contact your veterinarian
Large amounts of watery stools can cause dehydration and electrolyte imbalance, especially dangerous in young puppies. If your dog is not drinking, lethargic, urinate less, have blood in stool (could be frank red or stool can appear black depending on the location of bleeding ( if you gave blueberries black stool is normal)) you need to contact your vet ASAP.
Poop
As a dog owner you are familiar with picking up your dog’s poop. By examining your dog’s poop you can learn a lot about their health and diet. The link below has great description and pictures of normal stool and abnormal stool with potential causes. I recommend you familiarize yourself with it to be aware of problems.
https://healthypets.mercola.com/sites/healthypets/archive/2015/07/15/assessing-dog-poop.aspx
Vomiting
You need to recognize the difference between vomiting and regurgitation and when to contact your vet.
Regurgitation is when undigested food comes out covered in mucus. Most common reason for it the dog ate too fast or swallowed too big pieces. It doesn’t have the specific smell of vomit. In most cases the dog will eat it again in a few minutes and it is totally normal. If your dog ate a lot of grass on empty stomach it will come out too. Regurgitation is normal and no cause for concern.
Nausea sometimes precedes vomiting or could be isolated. Signs of nausea are excessive drooling, lots of swallowing saliva, odd expression on the face. Could be morning sickness for pregnant dogs or motion sickness or indigestion. Usually resolves spontaneously or proceeds to vomiting
Vomiting is common and usually is a way for a dog to get rid of harmful gastric content. It has specific smell, texture and color. The reasons for vomiting could be viral or bacterial infections, diet related causes like food intolerance, ingestion of garbage and many other causes.
So , if your dog has vomited but happy in general you can try to resolve the issue at home.
Don’t give any food for up to 24 hours for adults and up to 8 hours for a young puppy.
Make Chamomile or Calendula tea with raw honey and let a dog drink as much as wanted
You can make low fat broth and let the dog drink it to keep hydrated
If no vomiting, start feeding again but reduce amount
When to contact your veterinarian
Persisting vomiting and inability to defecate could be a sign of bowel obstruction
Blood or coffee-ground color of gastric content indicate bleeding
Lots of vomiting and diarrhea in young puppies can cause dehydration and electrolyte imbalance
If your dog lethargic, doesn’t drink, doesn’t urinate you need to contact your vet ASAP or go to emergency
Constipation
Constipation is a difficult, infrequent or absent bowel movements. Signs include dry, hard stools and straining when trying to defecate. Main reasons for constipation is poor diet, lack of exercises, obesity and dehydration. If you don’t feel this could be the reasons you dog constipated you need to contact your vet to explore other more serious causes.
If your dog occasionally constipated but overall happy and healthy
Increase fiber intake ( fruits and vegetables, canned pumpkin )
Can give olive oil
Make sure your dog have plenty of fresh water especially if kibble fed
Lots of exercises
When to contact your veterinarian
Unable to defecate for several days combined with vomiting
Bloated and painful abdomen
Urinary tract infection
Signs of urinary tract problems are inability to urinate or passing only small amounts of urine, straining to urinate and looks in pain or crying out, increased frequency, constant licking, increased water consumption. The most common cause of UTIs in dogs is bacteria. There are many other causes which is beyond the purpose of this page.
If your dog remains happy, eating and drinking and playing you can try to avoid antibiotics at this time and use home remedies.
I use one capsule of cranberry extract in 10 ml of water with a bit of raw honey, mix well and give several times a day for 3 days. How much to give would depend on the size of your dog.
Lots of fresh water
Cranberries and Blueberries
Immunity booster supplements like NuVet Plus or any other high quality of your choosing
Keep rear end clean
Lots of exercises
To prevent bacterial UTIs reduce the amount of time your dog holds urine. If you work more then 6 hours a day arrange someone to come and let your dog out. More common in older females and puppies that forced to hold their bladder longer then they should.
When to contact your veterinarian
Your dog developed fever, vomiting, lethargy
Disinterested in food, water and playing
Blood in urine
Ear infection
Ear infections in dogs are common. The signs are scratching and rubbing at the ear and head shaking. Abnormal odor from the ear might be present. Most ear infections are caused by bacteria and yeast, sometimes ear mites. Common causes are moisture in the ear promotes bacteria growth. Food allergy can cause yeast ear infection.
What can you do to help your dog
You must clean the ear with a gentle cleanser at least 2 times a day. Fill the ear canal with the cleaning solution and gently massage the ear at the base. Let your dog shake his/her head to remove debris and wipe the ear. Repeat until solution comes out clear. Wipe the ear until clean and dry. I recommend to use “EcoEars all natural ear care” . You can get it from Amazon. It is all natural and does amazing job of dissolving wax for regular cleaning once a week and clearing up infections.
Best to prevent it all together.
Check your dog ears frequently
Maintenance clean once a week and after swimming or mud bathing
Make sure your dog likes routine ear cleaning so it will be easy for you to clean them when/if your dog has a problem and in pain.
When to contact your veterinarian
If you see blood
If you are unable to clean your dog ears
If your dog in a lot of pain
If the condition of the ears does not improve or gets worse
If your dog’s behavior changed and you worried
Drooling
Drooling, excessive salivation, can be sign of nausea, pain, stress and other causes. And it is also normal response to heat and food. If you have other symptoms combined with excessive drooling please don’t disregard it.
Do your best to identify the cause
Inspect your dog’s mouth to make sure it is not dental problem or something lodged in teeth
Observe your dog’s swallowing, to make sure it is normal, to rule out obstruction or swelling
Gently press on abdomen and watch for reaction from your dog, painful or not
Press on joints, to rule out joints pain
Observe your dog’s behavior, look for clues
When to contact your veterinarian
If you are unable to identify the cause and your dog continues to drool abnormal amounts
If you found the cause and it is beyond your skills to correct
If your dog becomes lethargic, vet ASAP
Coprophagia
Coprophagia is a Greek word meaning feces eating. Some dogs are adamant poop eaters. The sign of this condition is obvious, the dog will eat other dog’s or it’s own stool. I included this condition here because I believe it is a sign of illness. This excludes dog-mothers that would eat poop of her puppies to keep den clean and stimulate urination and defecation. Absolutely healthy young puppies can try it out too, but that is because they are exploring the world and would put anything in their mouth. Clean den and healthy diet does not promote poop eating habit.
Why?
The most logical reason for dog coprophagia is nutritional deficiency due to luck of enzymes or any other reasons that leads to decreased absorption of nutrients. Dr. Conor Brady specifically pointed to deficiency of Vitamine K in his book “Feeding Dogs”
What can you do to try to stop it?
Go Raw
Restore your dog’s gut health
Clean up immediately
Some people believe that you can feed dogs pineapple and pumpkin in order to stop them eating their poop. I think this will not correct the underline problem of unhealthy gut but perhaps will become less appealing in taste or smell.
https://healthypets.mercola.com/sites/healthypets/archive/2013/08/23/coprophagia-poop-eating.aspx
http://www.dogpoopdiet.com/why-dogs-eat-poop/
Sneezing and Coughing
Just like humans dogs get respiratory infections caused by viruses and bacteria. The signs you may observe are sneezing, reverse sneezing, coughing, watery eyes, runny nose. In most cases the symptoms will resolve within 2 weeks or so. There are many other more complicated reasons for respiratory problems for which you need to see your vet.
What can you do to help?
Make sure your dog have plenty of fresh water
Support immune system by giving NuVet Plus supplements or other of your choosing
Give immune boosting foods like blueberries, mango, papaya, spinach and broccoli
No need to limit activities if your dog is up to it
Avoid taking your sick dog to dog parks to protect other dogs as most viruses are highly contagious
When to contact your vet
If your dog have difficulties breathing vet ASAP. The signs you will observe are visible movements of chest and abdomen, sitting up with head down and nasal flaring, wheezy or crackly noisy breathing
If symptoms are not resolved or getting worse after 2 weeks
If your dog became lethargic vet ASAP