Why is my dog panting excessively indoors when it's not hot?

Hi there, and good question about panting. Panting can be a sign of discomfort, anxiety, and occasionally a sign of an endocrine disorder called Cushing’s syndrome. Along with panting dogs with Cushings are usually drinking a lot of water, urinating frequently, and have an increased appetite. I would encourage you to have them evaluated by your veterinarian soon. They may be showing more signs of discomfort then is realized and they may benefit from medication and or supplements for arthritis. Best of luck and I hope they improve soon. Thank you for using Pet Coach.

Chows have very thick fur, so they can easily get hot in very warm climates. If it's quite hot where you are now, that can cause the panting. I have a Chow myself, and I see her panting sometimes in hot weather even when she indoors in the a/c. Make sure she has a cool, dark room with a fan in it to cool her down, and that she always has access to plenty of fresh, cool water. I hope this helps.

Hello, yes these sings if persistent could be indicative of certain deseases such as cushings or diabetes. Other causes of these signs may include something more benign such as a UTI. If he continues to have these signs or if you note increased urinations, lethargy and loss of appetite than he should be evaluated by his veterinarian. He may need blood work and a urinalysis to screen for these. Hope this helps and best of luck.

Poor Happy! Good on you for checking her gums to make sure they look normal. Even though it's not hot outside, she could have worked herself up running around outside leading to her panting. Her drinking could be an effort to cool herself down. You can put a fan on her to see if that helps with the panting, and make sure she has plenty of access to fresh water at all times. Keep monitoring Happy, and if you do notice that her gums turn red or pale, she starts vomiting, becomes dizzy, shows weakness, has a bright red tongue, or the heavy panting continues over the next few hours despite trying to cool her down, I would have her seen by a vet right away. There is also a chance her panting could be due to a medical illness, such as cardiac disease, respiratory disease, or heartworms. Even if her panting stops, I would still have Happy seen by a vet tomorrow for a health check to be safe.

Excessive panting can be a sign of overheating, but also a sign of pain, or an endocrine disease such as Cushing's disease, especially in an old dog like yours, Arthritis is high on the list, as at that age your dog will definitely have arthritic changes that can be highly painful. Cushing;s disease is also on the list, especially if your dog developed a pot belly, drinks and urinates more than usual, pants heavily even when it is not hot, and maybe loses some hair. Both of these conditions need to be checked out by your veterinarian, in order to ensure a good quality of life for your dog. Arthritis pain can be treated well with a medication called Carprofen and/or other pain medications. Cushings symptoms can be treated with special medication that reduces the production of cortisone. A blood test can rule out Cushing's disease. I suggest you schedule an exam with your vet.

Hi there. Excessive panting can be a sign of pain, physical discomfort, stress or anxiety, certain types of illnesses such as liver disease or Cushing's disease, or simply being too hot :) Without more information about Kai's behavior, it's hard to say why he might be panting more than normal. Feel free to post again with more information about your concerns - we would be happy to try and help.

The doctor wants to test Jazzy for a disease called Cushings Disease which can cause these symptoms. Cushings is not an easy disease to diagnose. This diagnosis usually requires a few blood tests and an abdominal ultrasound. This disease is treatable so you should pursue the tests as you can. Cushings disease is generally slowly progressive so you likely have time to work through things as you can.