Our dog nearly died today because we went on vacation and missed important early signs that just slipped my mind.
Dogs going on Vacation
We like to travel with some of our pets, we tend to think it is less stressful for them and more fun. We have done this for years and years and so didn’t think much on taking our 5 month old puppy with us on a long road trip to visit family in Massachusetts. We double checked our list, dog crates, tags, collars, leashes, food and water bowls, grooming kit, toys, treats, potty bags ect. We even remembered paper towels in case one of them got car sick. Dogs on vacation are not so rare, it shouldn’t have been an issue.
Oh no, our puppy is car sick!
Hours into the trip our Pomeranian puppy got sick. We cleaned him up, his crate up, and took him to go potty. In hind site I would not have done this at the rest stop dog area, it is a place that could very well transmit canine illness to a puppy that does not yet have a full immune system. We thought the best thing for the puppy was to not give him any more food and water on the drive. We got in late the night and noticed he didn’t want to eat, we thought it was just upset from the trip.
Pets are fun on vacation!
The day after the trip found us out playing and the puppy was running and jumping and enjoying the sun and grass. I couldn’t help but think how much better coming with us must be for him than going to a kennel. Dogs just want to be with us right? However that day puppy didn’t really eat, he rejected some other high quality food as well as his own. I thought he just was still stressed about the trip, and didn’t much worry yet as he seemed normal.
Puppy vomit!
Today we woke to puppy vomit. It was clear liquid and he couldn’t even keep water down and wouldn’t eat anything still. What stood out though was that he was lethargic. He didn’t want to move and my step-mother thought he had a fever. We tried to get food and water in him and let him rest while we held him but he wasn’t getting better so I asked my parents for the number to their vet, they called and made an appointment and we went in with a very sick little dog.
Whats wrong with him?
I thought maybe it was some horrible doggy illness like Parvo but the timing didn’t add up, he was fine before the trip and it had not been enough days for incubation for about anything. The vet knew right away, it was hypoglycemia! I had not even thought of it and it was something I researched well when we first got a small breed puppy. I can’t believe I missed it, something so basic. You might have guessed it already by me mentioning how the eating issue had gone over the last few days. A blood test said his sugar was down to 18, and normally it is around 100. He would have died if we had not gotten him to the vet.
What caused it? Stress triggered the attack, and set off the puking, and that started him down the path to low blood sugar and that made him not hungry. One minute they can be fine and the next in a coma and dead. We got lucky and our puppy didn’t end up in a coma. Blood sugar like that though can cause brain damage. It all started because of this trip and I feel so badly. I am of course responsible.
Treatment for Hypoglycemia
Puppy got a shot of something to help stop the vomiting, was syringe fed high calorie gel, and given fluids under his skin. They had us take him home with instructions for over night to feed him every 2 hours with this special diet, and if all goes smoothly call the vet in the morning, if not, go to the 24 hour pet hospital.
I am glad we have the high cal gel to give to the puppy and will be sure to keep some on hand all the time now. Puppy might grow out of this thankfully but better safe than sorry. Now I need to figure out how to help puppy not get sick on the trip home and I need to evaluate what will be best for him in the future when we go on trips. It has been a hard day. Seeing a puppy that will not move for hours is scary and so very sad.
Stress kills, it can kill pets and people. We think that vacations help with stress and sometimes they do, sometimes though they can make everything worse. This is a very stressful trip I must say.
(image of our sick but alert puppy tonight)
WOW! That’s pretty scary! Glad he’s ok and your mom knew that he possibly had a fever! And yeah I wouldn’t have suspected that either! And good thing you went to a good vet!
As it turns out, the pup didn’t have a fever, he was actually too cold!
oh wow! that’s crazy. Pretty sure I wouldn’t have taken him to the vet at all although being lethargic I might’ve… really depends but glad he’s ok!