Common Causes of Fever in Dogs

Common Causes of Fever in Dogs

Since dog fever is less common that human fever, most people do not know the common causes if fever in dogs. However, like any human being your dog may also suffer from fever. As a responsible owner, you should be aware of the warning signs and know what are the common causes of fever in dogs. A dog will not tell you what is wrong, you have to be able to monitor its state of health, detecting whether or not it has fever. A very high fever can be a serious risk to your pet's life. In this oneHOWTO article we tell you what are the common causes of fever in dogs, as it is in the observation of the causes that you will find the keys to your dog's well-being.

Steps to follow:
1

For starters, you should know that fever is a defence mechanism of the organism. The body temperature rises to kill pathogens, this being a protective reaction of the immune system. A dog's normal body temperature is between 38.5 and 39.5. If it exceeds 39.5 degrees we can be sure it has fever. If it reaches 41 degrees it can cause fatal damage to your pet and even cause its death. In reality it is not easy to detect if your dog has a fever because its body temperature will usually be higher than that of humans. The nose test, i.e. if the nose is dry it has fever, does not work all the time. What you need to do to take you dog temperature, is use a dog rectal thermometer, which will measure its temperature in one minute. Let's now look at the common causes of fever in dogs.

2

If your dog reaches a high temperature as a result of ambient heat or physical exertion such condition is called heatstroke or hyperthermia. It is important to distinguish these cases from a real fever.

There are a variety of conditions and diseases that can cause a fever in your pet. One of the most common are infections, which can be located in any area of its body; for example, it can be a pneumonia (lung infection), the kidneys (pyelonephritis) or even the brain (encephalitis). The causes of infection can be fungal, viral or due to bacteria. The symptoms you will notice will vary depending on where the infection is found and its causes. For example, a fungal disease can affect various body parts.

If, after being treated for regular fever, your dog does not improve, you may consider checking out the symptoms for Valley Fever in dogs, as this may be the case. If you also find ticks in your dog or notice other symptoms such as loss of apetite, look for symptoms of Rocky Mountain spotted fever too.

3

Another common cause of fever in dogs is administered vaccines. After vaccination, within 24 or 48 hours, some increase in temperature may be noted and this is totally normal. It is the result of an interaction between the injection and your pet's defences. Your dog may also suffer a slight fever following substance abuse. For example, if it accidentally eats nuts it is normal that it will suffer an increased body temperature.

4

It is often not easy to determine the cause of fever in a dog, and this takes the name FOO or fever of unknown origin. However, the most common causes of fever in dogs are immune system disorders, cancer, non-infectious inflammatory diseases, bacterial, viral, and parasitic infections and bone marrow problems.

5

In the event that your pet shows signs of fever you should go to the vet for a full check up. Additionally, it is also possible to use natural treatments that we show you in our article home remedies to reduce my dog's fever.

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