Why Does my Dog Feel Warm?

I have a 2yr. old rescue dog (dna said mini poodle/chihuahua), he was inheirated, moved from Az. to In.

I know a dogs normal temperature is higher than ours and his is normal however, his body is always extremely warm to the touch. Not an excessive amount of hair (white-pink skinned), he loves winter dislikes summer (always seeks our shade). He pants soon after a walk starts in the summer, his heart is okay, thyroid okay and temp is normal.

I've tried to get answers to no avail and when we go to the vet another issue prevails

and the situation I've brought up is unintentionally pushed aside. So, when all the normal health issues are fine, what could be possible reasons for my dogs heating/cooling system being off?

susan

valparaiso, in

I am not convinced that there's anything wrong with your dog's heating and cooling systems. If his temperature is normal, the systems are doing their jobs.

Keep Your Dog Cool in the Summer

School holidays, green grass, blue skies, and warm weather. It is a welcome change after the cold, rainy, and barren winter.

The dogs are dozing, the people are dozing, really everyone is just enjoying the season for lazy and sleepy days.

However, as the temperature rises, it goes from pleasantly warm to unpleasantly hot; then sticky, sweaty hot; then sometimes, awful, scorching hot. If it feels bad for us, imagine what it must feel like for our dogs who always have their fur-coats on!

Dogs have more trouble staying cool than humans do. Because of their thick fur, they mainly dissipate heat through their paws and underbelly. Dogs also stay cool through panting.

Why is my dog always panting?

My dog is always panting! He has water, most of the time he is inside, but he is always panting. Can you give me some insight on what to do? Thanks, E.F.

Dear E.F.,

Panting can be very normal for some animals, especially if overweight or intolerant of warm temperatures. If the panting is truly excessive, it may be an indication of a medical problem. The most common cause of excessive panting in dogs is pain. Unlike humans, dogs will hide their pain and can suppress it without crying out unless it is a sharp, sudden pain. Back problems, hip and joint problems are very common in dogs as in people. Radiographs and a thorough physical exam as well as a complete history from you will be necessary to diagnose these problems. 

Fortunately, we have a wide variety of options to manage pain and treat arthritis in dogs so the long term outlook is usually very good. Another cause of excessive panting in dogs is a common disorder in older dog’s called Cushing’s disease. This is a disease that causes overproduction of the body’s natural steroids and can cause a variety of symptoms including excessive hunger and thirst, poor haircoat, panting, and a pot-bellied appearance. Blood tests will be necessary to diagnose this problem. Lung and heart problems can also cause excessive panting and would require an exam and radiographs to diagnose. It sounds like a trip to your veterinarian for a thorough exam and testing is in order for your dog.

How to Determine When Dog Panting is a Bad Sign

Since dogs cannot sweat profusely like people can, panting is the main way a dog can cool off and help regulate its body temperature. Although dog panting is normal after exercise or when the weather is warm, panting to the point of hyperventilating needs medical attention. A dog that suddenly pants heavily could be in pain or severely frightened, so the condition should be addressed immediately.

Instructions
1 Check for signs of heat stroke. Brachycephalic dogs, or dogs with short noses like pugs or bulldogs, are more prone to heat stroke than dogs with long noses, according to Mar Vista Animal Medical Center. Brachycephalic dogs may succumb to heat exposure even after mild exercise on a humid day, so they always need supervision when exercising. Other signs of heat stroke include extreme drooling or slobbering and sudden collapse. Get such dogs into a cool spot, cover them with a wet towel and take them to a veterinarian immediately.

2 Check for other symptoms of health problems. Since dogs pant when in pain, check for vomiting, diarrhea, distended abdomen, swelling, lameness or a seeming inability to lie down comfortably. Panting far more rapidly than usual accompanied with sudden lethargy, coughing and refusing to eat may be signs of heart failure, pneumonia or lung cancer, according to "The Veterinarian's Guide to Your Dog's Symptoms." The dog will need to see a veterinarian.

Dog Panting? why and what to do?

Dogs pant when they are hot, but heavy dog panting means something is wrong with the dog. It can be due to overheating (heat exhaustion), or if your dog pants even while resting, it may mean that he has some underlying health problem, such as a heart problem. This page looks at the common causes of excessive heavy panting in dogs and what you can do to deal with the issue.

As we all know, dogs pant when they are hot because they do not have as many sweat glands as we do. (The only few sweat glands that they have are on the pads of their feet.) Instead of sweating bullets like humans do, dogs cool themselves by breathing and panting. Therefore, it is absolutely normal that dogs pant on a hot day, or after chasing the ball several times in the park.

Also, the brachycephalic breeds (dogs with a pushed-in face such as the pugs, bulldogs, Boston terriers, etc.) are prone to excessive dog panting because of their small nasal passages and short windpipes. They need to work harder (pant more heavily) for heat reduction.

My Dog is Always Thirsty

Maintaining hydration is an important aspect of your dog's instinct to survive and stay healthy. Since water accounts for more than 60 percent of a dog's body weight, and because breathing, salivating, defecating, and urinating are all responsible for significant losses of water from a dog's body, it stands to reason that dogs need to take in a good amount of fluid each day from what they eat and drink. This is accomplished by a number of intricate feedback mechanisms that directly control a dog's urinary output and thirst center. Most average-sized dogs (around twenty-five pounds) will consume at least sixteen ounces of fluid in a day, either directly or as part of their food. Warmer weather and increased exercise, however, will put greater demands on them and require greater fluid intake.

A little extra drinking and peeing is usually not much to be concerned about. If you are noticing steep increases in these two important functions, however, it is probably worth paying closer attention.

What to Look For

Start by measuring the amount of water your dog is actually drinking in a twenty-four hour period. An average healthy dog drinks about 1/2 to 1 ounce of water per pound of body weight per day.

Causes of Excessive Thirst in Canines

Do you find yourself hearing the unmistakable flap of your dog's tongue in the toilet bowl far more often than ever before? Are there trails of perfect doggy drool everywhere, leading most notably, to the water dish? Are you unable to leave a glass of water on the table? You my friend have a dog with excessive thirst otherwise known as Canine Polydipsia. As annoying as a dog that just can't get enough water can be, this issue may not be behavioral, but medical. There are many causes of excessive thirst in dogs, some of which are serious.

First off, how much water is excessive for a dog?
The average dog needs 20-70 ml per pound of their body weight of water a day (example/ My 150 lb malamute requires 3,000 to 10,500 ml of water a day). To give you a rough idea of how much that is one cup equates to around 237 ml. (In my example that would be 13-40 cups of water!) I would increase this amount on hot summer day or after rigorous exercise.

Nobody knows your dog better than you, you likely will notice when your dogs thirst becomes excessive without measuring daily intake, but knowing what's healthy is helpful information none the less.

Watch For In Your Dog: Excessive Drinking

Dogs cannot tell us when something is bothering them, and I doubt that they would even if they could. Dogs are just not the type to go around complaining about things.

That's why it's important that we watch for signs and symptoms of disease. Generally, anychange in your dog's body, behavior, actions or routine is telling you something. Some of the signs can be quite subtle and easily overlooked or dismissed. Paying attention to early symptoms can save your dog a lot of suffering and give him the best chance for a successful recovery.

Today we'll take a look at excessive thirst/drinking.

I was talking to a friend about post-op issues her dog was having after an extracapsular repair of her ACL. During our discussion she mentioned that in the snow they noticed that her dog's urine was clear, with no color to it at all, and she asked whether it was something to worry about.

I asked if her dog was drinking a lot. It turned out that her dog had been unusually thirsty and drinking large amounts of water since her surgery three months ago!

Excessive drinking is a symptom that should be taken seriously.

What constitutes excessive drinking?
Any change in your dog's drinking or eating habits should be noted. Drinking more than usual without an obvious explanation—such as hot weather or exercise—should not be dismissed. Do you have to fill the water bowl more often lately? Does your dog urinate more frequently? Talk to your veterinarian.

Take it seriously. Depending on other symptoms, excessive drinking can be a sign of a number of conditions, including

• Diabetes mellitus
• Cushing's syndrome
• Addison's disease
• Liver or kidney disease
• A potentially life-threatening uterine infection and other serious conditions

When in doubt, err on the side of caution. 

Early diagnosis can mean the difference between treatment success or failure.

Cat and Dog Skin : Itch , Scratch, Bite, -Lick!

Does your dog (or cat) have skin problems? Is it continually scratching, biting and licking at itself….and you don’t know why? Well, take comfort, you are not alone.

There are really six main reasons why dogs and cats will itch and scratch. The bottom line is... don't let them suffer! There IS a diagnosis to be made and then you and your veterinarian will be better able to select the proper treatment plan.

Itching and scratching in dogs: One of the most common calls made to any animal hospital in America goes something like this: "Doctor, I’ve got to get this dog in right away. He’s driving us nuts. All he does is itch and scratch, bite and lick and he’s keeping us up all night!"

My thought is that if the pet’s caretakers are being driven “nuts” by the dog’s scratching and licking, how awful must the poor dog feel?

Top 5 Causes Of Itching In Dogs

Dogs can become itchy and begin to scratch for many different reasons. However, allergies of various types are among the most common causes.

Canine Flea Allergy Dermatitis
An allergy to fleas is one of the most common reasons dogs become itchy. When a flea bites a dog, it injects a substance into the dog’s skin which causes the allergic response.

For a sensitive dog, one flea bite can make the dog extremely itchy.
One of the most difficult things to understand is that often no overt evidence of fleas is present even though a flea allergy is the reason for the dog’s discomfort. This inability to find evidence of fleas stems from the fact that only one flea need be present and bite the dog in order for the allergic reaction to occur.

In addition, dogs frequently groom themselves and remove the evidence of the fleas through their grooming behavior. Therefore, not being able to find fleas does not rule out a flea allergy as a cause of itching in a dog.