My dog's heart is racing, paws itchy, and belly swollen. What's wrong?

You should get your dog seen by our veterinarian right away. Rapid heartbeat in dogs could indicate that he is in pain, has heat disease, an electrolyte imbalance or another hidden condition. Left untreated it can lead to injury of the heart itself and/or congestive heart failure. Your vet will do an exam, blood work and x-rays to determine the cause of the illness and suggest an effective treatment plan.

Oh my. Poor girl! These symptoms are suggestive of a possible adrenal gland problem. Increased drinking, stomach bloating, tachycardia (increased heart rate) as well as tachypnea (increased respiratory rate) are common signs of Cushing disease, Pheochromocytoma and heart disease. I would highly recommend seeking yet another vets opinion about Twinklesa and get some actual tests ran on her. She needs baseline bloodwork (CBC, biochemistry) and radiographs of her abdomen and chest in order to diagnose her underlying condition. The results of those tests should be able to point the vet in the right direction towards her treatment. If she has already had those tests done and the vets are still unable to come up with a diagnosis, then I would recommend considering a referral to an internal specialists. Your vet should be able to send the referral through and get Twinkles seen within a weeks time. I hope you get to the bottom of what is causing Twinkles symptoms and can get her the proper treatment soon. Best of luck!

That is quite a bit of swelling! I would recommend that Daisy get checked out by the vet. It’s hard to say without examining her if the licking and chewing was caused by the swelling or if it is a result. Allergies can cause excessive licking, inflammation or lymphatic flow issues can cause swelling, and treatments for all of these conditions will vary.

I can understand being worried about Buddy. It sounds like there are a few things going on with him. Constantly licking his paws could be due to something such as allergies, an injury, infection, parasites, anxiety, or even boredom. The heavy panting could be due to heat, pain, or a severe medical problem like heart disease. I'm not sure how old he is, but heart disease can be a common problem in older dogs, and when the heart isn't pumping properly due to heart disease, it leads to fluid build up in the lungs, consequently leading to panting. Without seeing him in person, I can't say what is going on for sure with him, but I agree it does sound worrying. I think it's best you have him seen by a vet now for a health check to be safe. Best of luck.

I am sorry to hear about your pup. One of our major rule-outs/possible causes in these cases is an allergy. We can have allergies to things in the environment like grass, pollen, dust (called atopy) or food allergies. We can also have flea bite hypersensitivity where just one or two flea bites can make a dog break out all over and itch. Often a secondary skin infection with bacteria or yeast develops in these cases, which require antibiotic therapy. There are some lower cost antibiotics available ahttp://m.humanesociety.org/animals/resources/tips/trouble_affording_veterinary_care.htmls generic drugs at many grocery stores, so if you let your vet know your financial limitations, they can try to find the most cost effective options. Sometimes once the secondary infection is under control the itching may be managed with a lower cost drug like an antihistamine such as hydroxyzine, benadryl, or zyrtec, along with a fatty acid supplement. Being on an effective flea preventative is also crucial in these cases. You can read more about allergies at https://veterinarypartner.vin.com/default.aspx?pid=19239&id=4952662 . I would look around to see if there are any low cost clinics in your area. Sometimes the human society or APL or ASPCA will have these. Some vet clinics will also take payment plans or work with companies like Care Credit to offer payment plans. You can read more about ideas to help pay for vet care at http://m.humanesociety.org/animals/resources/tips/trouble_affording_veterinary_care.html

I can certainly see how this would be very alarming to witness. The symptoms you describe may be related to a disease process affecting an organ system (more often the neurologic (seizure event) or cardiac (heart event) systems). What i would recommend is a visit to your family veterinarian for a physical exam, to discuss the events, and to discuss additional testing (like bloodwork to rule out organ changes). It is also extremely helpful to get a video of an event so that your vet can watch it. Also, given the age of your pup, make sure there is nothing new in the environment that he could be snacking on that may be toxic to dogs (plants, etc.). I hope this helps and thank you for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach!

I would recommend that you have Bella examined by a vet as soon as possible. Open mouth breathing in a dog that is in a cool, comfortable environment can be caused by heart disease, lung disease, anemia, severe pain, among a few others. Rapid heart rate can also be caused by these things. When you get to the vet, they will do a physical exam and may recommend x-rays to make a diagnosis.