My small unspayed dog has a saggy stomach. Should I see a vet?

Thank you for submitting your question regarding Giselle. If she is eating, drinking and acting normal, then it is likely not an emergency. However, she should have it evaluated by her veterinarian. She may have developed a mammary mass. This is more common in dogs that have not been spayed. Her veterinarian will perform an examination and then possibly collect a sample from the swelling to analyze. I hope this information helps!

As she is unspayed i strongly suspect a uterine infection, it can often be missed on blood test and xray. i strongly recommend taking her urgently to the vet for a recheck, an ultrasound needs to be done and bloods needs to be repeated, if this is what i suspect, she will need an emergency surgery to have her uterus removed.

First off, I'm very sorry your lost your grandmother! Please accept my condolences for your loss. I see that she isn't spayed, and I would be concerned Bailey could have a pyometra. This is an infection of the uterus that is fatal without treatment. It would cause her to not eat and have a swollen stomach. She needs to see a vet immediately, this is not something you can treat at home. Please take her into a vet now. Best of luck.

I would be very concerned about Bubbles, and take her into a vet immediately. I see that she isn't spayed, which means she can develop a life threatening infection of the uterus called a pyometra. A pyometra is fatal without treatment, and it causes vomiting, weakness, and lethargy, all signs she is showing. Without seeing her in person, I can't say for certain if she has one or not, but because of the seriousness of a pyometra I would take her into vet now. Please take her into an ER vet clinic; if there isn't one in your area, there will be a vet on call for emergencies. The information to reach that vet is found on a clinic's answering machine or website. Best of luck, I hope this helps!

The discoloration you are seeing appears to be located around Ariel's mammary glands. I see that she is 10 months old and not yet spayed. If she has just had a heat cycle it is normal for there to be increased blood flow to the mammary glands, which can cause them to be a little swollen and discolored. However, if it appears to be getting worse, there is any discharge or she appears painful, I would certainly have your veterinarian examine her. It's hard to tell from the picture, but if it is spreading down the inside of her leg, then that is abnormal and she should be examined. Good luck! I hope that was helpful. Thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach.

Poor Saltay! I'm afraid it sounds like something is seriously wrong. Based on the symptoms you're describing here, I would be concerned that she may have a serious uterine infection called a pyometra - this is a life-threatening emergency that is unfortunately common in middle-aged and older intact females. If this is the problem, she will likely need emergency surgery to remove the infected uterus. Other possible causes of an enlarged stomach, weakness, and decreased appetite would include congestive heart failure, some type of cancer in the abdomen, or internal bleeding. I would strongly recommend taking Saltay to an emergency clinic tonight for an exam, as it may not be safe to wait until morning. The veterinarian there can do blood work and x-rays if needed to help diagnose the problem and get her started on appropriate treatment.

Unfortunately, the x-rays are not showing up as well here as the originals would, so I'll comment on what I see, but I could easily be missing something. The heart does not appear enlarged, but their are some distended arteries in the x-ray that make me suspicious of heart disease and more specifically heartworm. The abdomen is generally distended and the liver appears somewhat enlarged. This can happen with the heart disease I mentioned or some other condition affecting the liver. I do not see an obvious pyometra on the x-rays or ultrasound (sonogram). I wish I could help you with the other questions, but it's impossible without me knowing the cat's full history, or having the opportunity to examine the cat myself. One thing we can offer on Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach is a consultation. This is a service that you would have to pay for, but it would allow you to text back-and-forth with one of our experts and send as many pictures as you want. With these consultations, we can help to identify the problems by gaining all the necessary information. Otherwise, you may seek a second opinion from another veterinarian in your area. I hope this is somewhat helpful and everything turns out OK Maicah.