My puppy is fading and dehydrated. What to do if my vet is closed?

Thank you for contacting Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach with your question about Tigger. You can try offering her canned food and adding water to it, but if she is already dehydrated and weak, she needs to see a vet now. She needs IV fluids. I strongly urge you to take her into an ER vet immediately. Best of luck.

Hello. It is best not to force anything into a vomiting pet. This could just cause her to vomit more. She will not become seriously dehydrated if you are going to have her examined tomorrow. What you can try is to rub some Karo syrup on her gums, perhaps a teaspoon or two every few hours. This will help to keep her energy levels up, but is she vomits even after you do this, then it is best just to leave her be until your vet can evaluate her tomorrow. Thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach.

Thank you for contacting Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach with your question about Shakespeare. Oh no, poor boy. I'm concerned about him being dehydrated, and yes I do think this is now an emergency. I would take him into an ER vet immediately. I hope this helps.

I am sorry Sweety isn’t feeling well. There isn’t a simple solution to resolving fevers in puppies at home. I would have her evaluated by her veterinarian as soon as possible with the symptoms you have described. They can determine if she does in fact have a fever (a dry nose doesn’t necessarily mean a fever) and will look for the underlying cause. If they are closed for the weekend and/ or if Sweety becomes more lethargic, continues vomiting , or will not eat, I would bring her to your closest emergency veterinarian. In the meantime, It is important to keep her as hydrated as you can. Continue offering her small amounts of water frequently. If she is holding the water down you can offer her small amounts of very bland food such as boiled chicken breast and white rice. I hope Sweety is feeling much better soon.

Puppies’ eyes usually do not open until about 14 days of age. At 11 days of age, Baby girl would need to be bottle fed Puppy Milk Replacer at least every 2 hours until about 6 weeks of age, and stimulated to urinate/defecated several times a day with a hypoallergenic baby wipe in the genital area (mother dogs usually stimulate their pups to urinate, defecate by licking them down there). I recommend bringing the puppy to your veterinarian for an evaluation as young puppies are extremely susceptible to hypothermia and hypoglycemia (low blood sugar), in addition to dehydration if not fed every 2 hours. They may recommend subcutaneous fluids and possibly offer medical day boarding where their techs can feed Baby girl for you while you are at work (likely pricey though for several weeks). Good luck!

Thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach! This depends on a lot of factors including if she is otherwise exhibiting any symptoms of sickness, if she is eating canned food which already has water in it, how much water she is actually having, among other things. If she is not drinking anything especially if having other symptoms such as vomiting, diarrhea, loss of appetite and/or lethargy, she should be evaluated as soon as possible to prevent dehydration and to investigate the cause. If she is otherwise doing well and is eating canned food, it would be ok to monitor her for another 12-24 hours and if not improved to have her evaluated by a veterinarian then. Hopefully she returns to normal and there is no need for a veterinary visit. Have a great day!

Hello and welcome to Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach. It sounds like Joplin is very very sick. She might have a condition called "Parvovirus" which is a very serious virus that affects puppies, and is more likely if Joplin is unvaccinated. The other possible causes in a puppy include an obstruction in her gut (a blockage from a foreign object (ex. ball) that she ate, or an intussusception (the intestines telescoping in on each other). Also, depending on her age, pyometra is possible along with many other conditions. With what you are describing, I am very concerned that she could die without aggressive care. I strongly recommend you get Joplin to a vet right away, and if your vet is closed go to your closest emergency clinic. They will recommend a test of her poop, as well as possible bloodwork and x-rays, and will likely want to keep her in hospital on IV fluids and medications. Best of luck with Joplin, I hope she feels better soon!