Jax Pet Nanny At Your Service

I had a client call me this evening because her Shih tzu named Domino had been drinking very little water all day and she was concerned if he might be dehydrated.  I wanted to share with everyone how this is accomplished and found a great article that describes the steps below.  Sometimes older animals are more challenging to determine if they are dehyrated or not.  When in doubt remember to feel the gums, if they are dry or feel sticy, there is a good chance they could be dehydrated.

Very old,  very skinny or obese animals can sometimes be difficult to determine if they are dehyrated. In these cases, feel the gums. If they feel dry and sticky, the animal is probably dehydrated.

IMPORTANT: if you suspect your pet is dehydrated please take them to a veterinarian ASAP and err on the side of caution.

~Ashley

Jaxpetnanny@gmail.com

Step 1  Check the elasticity of the skin on your dog's neck. In a normaldog, when you pull the skin on the top of its neck and then let it gothe skin quickly goes back to its normal position. (the skin may bedifferent on elderly or obese dogs)

Step 2 To test for dehydration in elderly or obese animals, feel the gums. Dehydrated dogs have dry, sticky gums.

Step 3 Check the color of the gums. Your dog's gum color indicates how much oxygen there is in its bloodstream. Lift alip and look at the color of the gums or lips. You may need to see aveteranarian if they don't look right. By regularly checking, you aremore likely to identify when something is wrong with your dog.

Step 4 If your dog has pigmented gums (Black), check the color of the mucusmembranes inside the lower eyelid, in her vulva, or his prepuce.

Step 5 Checkcapillary refill time. How long do your dog's gums remain pale, after applying pressure? When blood is circulating normally, finger pressureon your dog's gums blanches or pales the area under pressure. When thepressure is relieved, the area instantly refills with blood. 1-2seconds is normal. More than that is an indication something could bewrong.

http://www.ehow.com/how_4491221_tell-dog-dehydrated.html