Your dog just isn’t right. Something’s wrong with your dog. You can’t quite put your finger on what it is. But you know something’s off. What do you do?
When your dog’s not acting normally, but eating, sleeping, and eliminating pretty much like always, there aren’t any concrete symptoms. Do you have a veterinarian who will listen to your concerns? It’s at least worth a call, if not a visit.
Trust your instincts
You know your dog best. You know what’s normal for your dog; what their usual sleeping patterns, play schedule, walking, eating. When they’re reluctant, or refusing, to do some trained behavior you know they know. All of it is part of your day and when something’s not quite right, you can tell.
Even if there’s something in the way they’re holding themselves, or walking funny. You may not even be able to tell exactly what’s different, you just know something’s going on.
Dogs are notorious for being stoic. Oftentimes, they won’t show that something’s wrong until it becomes urgent. Hopefully, even severe reactions will turn out to be nothing, but it’s better to take an unnecessary trip to the vet than to find out you should have.
We certainly have that down pat. Years ago, we came home from work to find our Boston Terrier Daemon in severe pain. Just touching him elicited screams. We’ll never forget the white-knuckle, snowstorm drive to the emergency vet. When we got there, he wasn’t yelling any longer, but he was tender to the vet’s touch. She took x-rays. He had gas. That’s all it was. And we gladly paid the bill.
Don’t wait for urgent
If you do think your dog’s got something going on, try to take notes when you see something off. If it persists for more than a day or two, take your dog and your list to the veterinarian. Physical examination and your notes together may give your dog’s doctor the clues they need to come up with an answer. In many ways, vets are like detectives. Their patients can’t tell them where it hurts, so they must rely on other clues to lead them to a diagnosis.
You never know what tidbit of data will provide the “aha!” moment for your veterinary professional. Something like knowing that your dog is spitting up between meals, rather than after, could be vital information. That led our vet to suspect acid reflux in Roc, Hope’s Brussels Griffon. A simple daily dose of an over-the-counter medication eased the symptoms and stopped the problem from worsening.
Pay attention
One of the reasons we have a regular, weekly grooming schedule for our dogs is to check them out. Are they twitching when we brush them in a certain place? That led to the discovery that Tango’s arthritis is bad in a particular spot in his spine. Is he reluctant to let you brush his teeth or look in his mouth? That’s how we found out that Booker had a bad tooth. An infected tooth can have serious health consequences.
Don’t make yourself crazy worrying about the little things you observe. Make notes and revisit them in a couple of days. Chances are whatever it was has resolved. Like when Fran’s 15-year-old Brussels Griffon Tango (pictured) is moving particularly gingerly one day. We noted it, with the recollection that he’d fallen out of bed the day before. If his movement was still off, we had the history to share with his doctor. He was fine, so the note was discarded.
You know when something’s off with your dog. Don’t dismiss your concern out of hand. Try to pinpoint the difference you notice, and be ready to share that information.
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Well, that’s sensible. I have driven myself crazy with the “just ain’t right” conundrum. Writing it down! Have you noticed that it almost always comes up on a weekend or holiday?
It’s astonishing, isn’t it, how it’s always at the worst possible time? Taking notes is part of our daily routine now. There’s always something we forget if we don’t jot it down.
I can identify with this article big time. I’m 75 and had to move from a nice spot in the country 2 months ago….the landlord evicted us to sell the house w/1.21 ac.I rented. I had to sell my chickens & coop and lost my 30’x30′ garden with herbs, rhubarb, elderberries and more that I planted. We had been there over 8 years…..now rents are out of sight….so I ended up in an apartment complex for low income seniors. I was so busy measuring the apt. to see what I could fit in this apartment, I didn’t pay much attention to the outside. After we moved in…I saw it! There is a cell phone tower 50 yards across the parking lot right in line with my 2nd floor apt. Within 5 weeks, I was breaking out in rashes on my inner forearms and on my forehead. I cannot get to sleep until 4-5 a.m. most often. Some nights my fingers burn as if irradiated. But worst of all…my poor Min-Pin’s personality and behavior did a 180. She used to be outgoing and afraid of nothing. Now she’s afraid of everyone and everything…especially the elevator. She hides under the bed most of the day except for meals and potty breaks. When someone approaches us…she hides behind my legs. I bought pendants that were supposed to harmonize the area around the wearer…
waste of money. And right now I’m broke from the moving expenses and cannot afford to move again, much less be able to afford the rent of a small house again. I just feel trapped and exhausted. But most of all, it breaks my heart to see what all this is doing to my dog. And there is nothing a vet can do for cell tower electromagnetic radiation exposure. I found a list of symptoms on the internet: itching, burning, fear, behavioral changes and insomnia were all on the list!!! Just warn all your readers to check for nearby cell phone towers. Dr. Martin Pall says the nearer they are and the more time you have to be exposed…..the worse the symptoms. Cancer was on that list as well. I only pray we find a way to move out of here before too long.
So sorry to hear you and your dog are in a difficult situation. We hope things work out for you and your Min Pin to find a happy outcome.
I’m always surprised, after over fifty years of caring for my wonderful dogs, how quickly their coats don’t look right to me when they aren’t feeling well. It’s often the first thing I notice, and I’m always puzzled how that could happen so fast, but it has happened enough that I trust it.
That’s a great observation! We’ll have to pay more attention to our dog’s appearance/coat when we feel something’s off. Thank you!