My dog is inactive and has a 103F fever. Should I go to the vet?

A fever this high is usually indicative of a bacterial or viral disease going on. Your veterinarian will need to run some tests to try and determine the cause of the fever. Once the cause is identified the proper antibiotics, antifungals, or antipruritic drugs can be prescribed. The tablet given to your dog is basically a fever reducer but will not treat the cause of the fever. I would recommend taking your dog in for a recheck as soon as you’re able to. The exact cause of the fever cannot be determined without further workup and diagnostics. I hope this helps. Thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach. Best of luck.

Betty sounds very sick at the moment, and based on her symptoms, she should see a vet immediately. Without seeing her in person, I can't say what's causing her fever, lethargy, weakness, and lack of appetite, but she could have a systemic illness or infection causing it. She does need veterinary care now for it, so please bring her into a vet right away. I hope this helps!

Poor Cobalt! It sounds like he is lethargic, and he does have a slight fever. Unfortunately these are very general signs of illness, and could be caused by systemic illness, infection, or inflammation. I would keep an eye on him for now, and if the fever goes above 39.5, he stops eating, he continues to be lethargic, or he develops other signs such as vomiting, take him into a vet immediately. I hope this helps!

My next step would be to send off blood for a test for plague (Yersinia pestis) and Tularemia, especially if your dog has access to areas where there are rodents, squirrels and rabbits. These would not be included in regular blood work. You may also want tod discuss a disease called malignant hyperthermia with your veterinarian. Other common causes of "fever of unknown origin" would be tumors, however your vet apparently ruled those out with blood tests, ultrasound, and xray and possibly blood parasites such as Ehrlichia spp, Babesia spp and similar. A heartworm test may also be advisable.

You don't need to give him any medications at the moment. human meds to reduce fever are not suitable for dogs and medications to reduce fever are rarely given in case of mild fever. if your dog does not seem to get better within 48 hours you should take him to the vet in order to get it checked and treated.

Given the persistency of the signs, it is definitively best to have him checked as soon as possible as more investigations are needed at this stage (blood test for sure). Giving antipyretic can only mask the signs at this stage, delaying the diagnosis and appropriate treatment.

Hi and thank you for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach. I recommend that you take your dog to see a veterinarian. It sounds like he needs immediate care if he is not eating, he is lethargic and may have a fever. This sounds like a serious condition that needs to be addressed sooner rather than later. Your veterinarian will perform a full physical exam and determine what additional testing may need to be done (xrays, bloodwork) to give you a better idea of what treatments are needed. Good luck.