My dog has a fever. What should I do to help and when to see a vet?

Unfortunately there are no OTC medications you can give Mia for pain and fever. Many human ones are toxic to dogs, and can be fatal if given. You can put a cold compress on her head to see if that helps the fever. You will need to have her seen by a vet for these problems.

A fever in dogs is a body temp above 103.5 F. Normal body temperature ranges from 99 F to 102.5 F. If she will allow, use a rectal thermometer to check Diamond's temperature. If she does have a fever, she will need to be examined by your veterinarian. Fevers have multiple causes, so your vet may recommend certain diagnostics. Discuss payment plans or alternative financing options, such as CareCredit ( www.carecredit.com ), with your veterinarian. Unfortunately, there is nothing you can safely give at home to help if she does have a fever. Many OTC medications have a slim margin of safety or are downright toxic to dogs.

Poor guy. Not every pet with a fever has an infection, so if the antibiotic isn’t working it’s either because there is no infection, the infection is internal, or the antibiotic is not the right kind of antibiotic for the infection. Your pet needs additional testing to sort this out and make sure we are on the right track with treatment. I would start with baseline bloodwork and a urinalysis. Best to take your pet back in to your vet or to another vet for a second opinion here so that we can get a proper diagnosis and tailored treatment based on your pets specific problem. I hope that your pet is able to make a full and speedy recovery soon! Best wishes and take care.

Make sure it is in-fact a fever. Dogs have a higher temperature than people. If his temperature is less than 39C, then he does not have a fever. Fever usually indicates one of the following: 1). Infection 2) Toxin ingestion 3). Heat stress If he just got done playing and/or running around, then it may be heat stress. The temperature will go down if he stays calm in a cool environment. If it's not heat stress and his temperature is above 39C, then this is an emergency and he needs to go to the vet. Do not give any fever medication meant for people, because these can be dangerous. The vet will have to give special dog medicine to bring down the fever. I hope that helps and all is well with Softie.

I am so sorry to hear that your pet has a fever of unknown origin I’m assuming. The vet has to run labs to try and find the source of the fever. Has she had any testing done? Bloodwork and urinalysis would be the first place I would start. If she has a high white blood cell count, then antibiotics can be started on her to treat for a suspected infection, which can then be assumed to be the source of the fever. Fever in pets doesn’t happen randomly, and in most cases antibiotics prescribed by your vet are needed. I would highly discourage you from using any over the counter human fever reducer medicaiton, as these can be quite toxic in pets. It’s best to feed Ava as normal and offer her plenty of access to water until she can be seen by your vet. I hope this helps. Best wishes in getting Ava’s fever to come down. I hope she feels better soon. Take care..

I would get your pet seen by a vet as soon as possible. Fever and loss of appetite is concerning and should be investigated. There could be any number of causes, but a sudden onset fever usually indicates an infection of some kind that should be treated with medication right away.

Hello. I am so sorry that Mia is not feeling well. You do want to have her assessed by your veterinarian as soon as possible as any illness can affect her nursing puppies. Hopefully she will be feeling better soon &nthanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach.