Emergency Treatment of Chinese Shar-Pei
Situations may occur that require emergency treatment. Discuss with your veterinarian what to do if an emergency arises. Does he or she have after-hours emergency care at his or her clinic? If not, where is the closest emergency clinic? You may not have time to get answers to these questions when an emergency arises, and it seems that emergencies invariably happen at night Keep the number of the nearest emergency clinic near your telephone, and call ahead, if possible, to alert them to what the problem might be.
Always keep these emergency supplies on hand: a rectal thermometer, petroleum jelly, a soft muzzle, hydrogen peroxide or anitbacterial wash, an over-the-counter antihistamine, and a crate that you can quickly put in your car to transport an injured or sick dog. If you are alone and have no one to accompany you to an emergency clinic, you will need to keep your dog confined so that you can safely drive the car. Over-the-counter medications that may prove helpful in an emergency are aspirin, syrup of ipecac and antibiotic ointment
Accidents
Your dog can be seriously injured in any number of accidents. It will always be better if there are two persons to assist in getting your dog to an emergency clinic when she is injured. (Someday, i foresee ambulance services for injured pets.) This is the time when a soft muzzle is helpful, either made of soft cloth or straps that have Velcro closures. If no muzzle is handy, you can use a strip of cloth, gauze or panty hose. Simply wrap the dog’s muzzle, then make one tie under the chin, then around the neck and another more secure tie behind the head. If the dog is in a great deal of pain, she may bite without realizing you are trying to help. If she is bleeding, you must apply pressure at the point of bleeding or just above, at a point nearer the heart to try to stop the bleeding. If there are any evident broken bones, you can temporarily splint leg bones with rolls of newspaper. Wrap the dog in a blanket and go to the nearest emergency clinic.
Allergic Reaction
Insect bites such as bee, wasp or hornet stings or spider bites can cause mild to severe allergic reactions in the dog. The very allergic dog may have welts, the head and face may swell, and the dog may have respiratory distress. It is important to treat the more severe symptoms immediately. The usual mode of treatment is with antihistamines, steroids or epinephrine injection. For the minor sting or bite that is not accompanied by unusual reactions, make a paste of either meat tenderizer or baking soda, and watch the dog for several hours after he is stung.
Cardiac Arrest
If your dog loses consciousness and you suspect cardiac arrest, place your thumb under one front leg and your four fingers in the other armpit areas to determine whether your dog’s heart is still beating. This places the chest between your fingers. Reach up to feel for a heartbeat. If you cannot feel a heartbeat, put your ear on the dog’s chest to listen for a heartbeat, then check for a pulse either in the side of the neck or inside the hind leg where the leg meets the body. a normal pulse rate is 80 to 140 beats per minute. Cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) can be performed on a dog by first examining the dog’s mouth to make sure the mouth and airway are clear. Then close the mouth and, holding it shut, blow three short breaths into the nose (watch to see the chest rise). Then, with the dog on his side, press down with two hands on the chest to stimulate the heart and force air in and out of the lungs. Chest compression should be rapid, and you should stop about every thirty seconds to see whether the heartbeat has resumed. Get the dog to an emergency clinic, giving the described CPR all the
way, unless the dog begins breathing on his own.
Diarrhea and Dehydration
While diarrhea in and of itself is not an emergency, it can be a symptom of another problem, and if not diagnosed and treated can cause dehydration. This can become an emergency and is particularly serious in young puppies. You can check to see whether a dog is seriously dehydrated by pulling up the skin on the back. If the skin feels plump and quickly returns to its normal position, the dog is probably not seriously dehydrated. However, if the skin feels pliable and remains “pulled up,” then that is an indication that the dog/puppy is becoming dehydrated. Dry or “tacky” gums may also indicate dehydration. The dog probably is too sick to be expected to drink enough water to correct the condition. Take her to a veterinarian who, if he or she confirms dehydration, will inject fluids that are slowly absorbed into her body. This is only a temporary measure. Your vet must determine what is causing the diarrhea and resulting dehydration. Some of the causes of diarrhea may include parasites; bacterial or virile infections; spoiled or toxic food; indigestible material such as hair, bones, sticks and so on; or stress.
After you have determined the cause of a bout of diarrhea and the condition has been treated, it is helpful to feed a bland diet for the first twenty-four hours to which you have added yogurt to restore the helpful flora to the intestinal tract.
Poison
If your dog has been poisoned accidentally, you must try to find the source of poison so that when you call your veterinarian or poison control center they can accurately tell whether you should or should not induce vomiting. Most accidental poisonings are caused by household cleaning agents, fertilizers, poison put out for rodents, or antifreeze, which is apparently sweet and tasty to dogs, but also very deadly. Another common cause of poisonings is the ingestion of human drugs. Always keep your medications secured where your dog can’t get to them.
If your veterinarian instructs you to induce vomiting, you can administer ipecac, a syrup that can be purchased at your pharmacy and should be kept in your emergency kit. Take some of the vomitus with you to the veterinarian so that he can determine the type of poison ingested by your dog.
Symptoms of poisoning vary with the type of poison ingested but can include vomiting or attempting to vomit, salivating, disorientation, loss of muscle control and convulsions.
The National Animal Poison Control Center has two emergency phone numbers for information: The first requires a credit card number (800)548-2423 and (900)680-0000 (charged to your phone at $20.00 for the first five minutes, then $2.95 for each additional minute).
Heatstroke
Unlike humans, dogs cannot sweat and can more easily become overheated. They pant to cool themselves and when panting is no longer adequate, their temperature begins to rise and can quickly reach dangerous limits. Never leave a dog in a closed car on a warm day or out in the sun too long even if they seem to like lying in the sun (and many Shar-Pei do). Shar-Pei are perhaps more heat-intolerant than other breeds due to the previously described brachycephalic airway obstruction syndrome, which interferes with normal heat exchange via the respiratory tract. Black Shar-Pei is much more susceptible to heat than the lighter-colored dogs because their dark color absorbs heat rays rather than reflecting them. Lighter-colored Shar-Pei such as the creams and dilutes are also very susceptible to sunburn. The overheated dog must be cooled immediately. If a hose
is available, wet the dog with cool (not cold) water starting with the head or put the dog in a tub and run cool water over the dog until the temperature has dropped to 103F or 102F. Once the temperature is down, take the dog to a veterinarian for further treatment.
Shock
Shock is the result of severe illness, injury or internal bleeding, and the symptoms are weak pulse, shallow breathing, pale gums and dilated pupils. The body temperature drops and the circulatory system begins to shut down. Prompt veterinary care is imperative as this is a life-threatening condition. The dog must be kept warm at an even temperature, kept as quiet as possible and taken to an emergency clinic.