My dog breathing hard, not drinking after surgery. Should I worry?

While drainage is normal post-surgery, heavy breathing, discomfort, or excessive pain, especially while already on medications, are not. If Bailey is in severe distress or is turning blue or pale, or is panting heavily, it would be best to bring her into emergency care ASAP. If she seems stable, but is in discomfort or painful, contacting your vet to bring her in is also a good idea.

She may not have a drive to drink if she received iv fluids during her procedures and you are meeting what she needs through her diet. If she is otherwise happy with normal appetite and energy level and no vomiting or diarrhea you can continue monitoring. If any of these change in addition to not drinking then that would be more concerning as dehydration could ensue. I hope this helps and thank you for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach!

I agree that this is a pretty rapid respiratory rate for Daisy, particularly if she's resting while breathing this quickly. As you mentioned, it's very possible that this fast breathing is due to post-operative pain. However, if she's currently receiving pain medication after surgery, it's a bit less likely. Other causes of rapid breathing can include stress or anxiety, blood clots in the lungs, heart disease, pneumonia, among others. Regardless, it would be best to take Daisy to the vet urgently for evaluation. If the vet suspects pain as the cause, they will be able to prescribe additional pain medications. Otherwise, they will be able to perform any necessary diagnostic testing, which may include chest x-rays or blood clotting times to try to get to the bottom of this issue. I hope that everything goes well for Daisy!

Breathing at an erratic rate while asleep may simply be an indication of active dreaming. As long as her breathing does not appear labored and as long as she is not having any other indications of illness, I would not worry too much about her health. Continue to monitor for any significant changes to her health, monitor her surgical site for any signs of infection or discharge (serous / clear discharge in small amounts is normal), and keep a close eye on her energy level. If all of these seem to check out, I don't think you have anything to be concerned about at this time.

Yes panting and licking can be signs of pain and nausea. I'd get him to an emergency vet tonight if possible, or to your regular vet tomorrow if tonight isn't an option. This could certainly be nothing more than needing a bit more time and medications, but with his recent history, I would take the more cautious route.

Abdominal surgery is a serious surgery, especially when infection is involved. So sleeping a lot would be normal and one way of healing. The shivering and panting is likely caused by pain, so make sure she takes her pain medicine on time. Best let her rest. She may not be hungry today, which is okay. Make sure she has fresh water available. She should be a lot better tomorrow.

Poor Oscar! Panting and an increase in breathing rate could be due to pain or changes in his lungs. I would recommend counting his respiratory rate when he is sleeping. You can do this by counting the number of times he breathes in 15 seconds, then multiplying it by 4. Normally dogs breathe about 20 times a minute when they are sleeping. If Oscar is breathing over 30-40 times a minute while he is sleeping, I would contact his veterinarian and recheck the x-rays of his lungs to make sure there isn't any fluid or other problems in his lungs. If his breathing is normal when he is sleeping, then I would suspect that he is painful, so I would discuss additional pain control options with your veterinarian. Good luck! I hope Oscar is feeling better soon. Thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach.