My dog has red spots on gums, belly, ear. Is it an emergency?

Poor Chloe! If her tongue and gums look white instead of pink, this is a medical emergency - she needs to be seen by a vet right away. This can be caused by internal bleeding, heart failure, or severe shock. The red spots on her body could be related to a bleeding disorder, or could be unrelated. The emergency vet can do blood work to help determine what's wrong and get her started on appropriate treatment right away.

Hi there, These appear similar to black fly bites, which appear as dramatic dark red welts, but are otherwise harmless. The skin remains smooth but may be slightly raised or swollen. Google images is helpful on this one! If the skin is itchy, crusting, flaking, and not smooth- that could be a sign of a bacterial or fungal infection that needs diagnostics and treatment. It's not an emergency, but it would be good to have Finn seen this week by his veterinarian to have them evaluated. I hope this helps. Thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach.

Skin lesions like this may indicate big bite, bacterial infections or pimples. Make sure to protect the areas from any licking and Sawyer may need to wear an elizabethan collar. These may resolve on their own. If they are still present in a few days or if they start looking worse, have him examined by the veterinarian. Best of luck.

I think it looks like Jersey might have a bacterial skin infection, or potentially insect bites on her belly. If Jersey seems painful or extremely itchy or has other symptoms you may want to see an emergency vet, but otherwise I think it is okay to wait until your vet opens to have these skin lesions examined.

Hello. I am sorry Max isn't feeling well. Very red gums can be either from severe vasodilation (peripheral blood vessels opening up) and can be related to an allergic reaction, or can also be due to a severe infection present within the body. Some toxins can also cause this as well. Red skin on the belly and the ears can also be due to allergic reactions or sepsis. The discharge from the ears may or may not be related to the redness on the belly and gums. With very red gums I would recommend having Max seen by a vet immediately, as if this is an early reaction, early intervention can significantly help. This is especially important if Max is lethargic, weak, not wanting to get up or move, is having trouble breathing or breathing very quickly, or if he is sore when you touch him, especially his abdomen. If any of these signs are present please don't hesitate and have him seen by a vet immediately. I hope he feels better soon.

Hi, thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach! Poor Coco! I am very worried about Coco. The most common cause for bruising of the skin and gum bleeding are low platelets. This can be caused by loss, destruction or the body stopped making platelets. Common causes of destruction is immune, infectious (tick borne), secondary to medications, recent vaccination or even cancer. I recommend that Coco be seen immediately and have blood work done. Low platelets are treated with immunosuppressive doses of steroids and doxycycline. Animals with low platelets can become anemic which is life threatening. I wish you the best!

It's hard to tell from the pictures, but my two top guesses would be that this is superficial pyoderma (a common condition for dogs in which normal bacteria or yeast get out of control and cause sores/pimples/red moist spots) or it could be true bruising, which would indicate a clotting issue with her blood. It's easy to tell the difference in person (or it could certainly be something else as well - pictures don't always tell the full story) and the treatment/testing required is entirely different, so I would recommend taking her to the vet ASAP. As long as she's not lethargic and has normal appetite then waiting until tomorrow should be fine. The exception to that advice would be if you're sure or highly suspicious that it's really bruising (ie you look at her in 10 minutes and see a bruise popping up everywhere you held her lightly for these pictures) - if it's definitely bruising, go to an emergency clinic if possible. I hope that helps with decision making for tonight. Wishing you and Chasee the best of luck and thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach.