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Red Gums

Sent to Pet Experts June 28 04:08 PM

My beautiful American Eskimo dog just turned one year old this month. The past week he has become lethargic, his breath was horrible, he was drooling and all of his gums are bright red. He also had diarhea last week. I took him to a vet and they took tests for Rat poison which came back negative and a blood panel which showed a slight elevation with the liver. The vet said he is not sure what it is. He prescribed 20 Meltronidazole 250 mg., 1 tablet twice a day. His bad breath went away immediately and so did his lethargy and drooling. He still has red gums after 3 days of taking the antibiotics. I take him on a 2-3 mile walk everyday. I thought maybe he might have injested something. He does have a very sensitive stomach. He gets diahrea if I give him anything other than his regular food. The vet wants to anesthesize him and check his teeth, but I have the feeling it is something internal. Would you have any idea what it might be and what I can do to fix it?

Edited by Customer (name blocked for privacy) on June 28 2005 at 4:19 PM

Customer (name blocked for privacy)
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Answer
June 28 4:52 PM (44 minutes and 2 seconds later)
         
REPLIEDCheck Mark
Brick Red mucous membranes in the dog may indicate - Increased perfusion Vasodilation (dilation of the blood vessels) due to early shock, sepsis, fever,systemic inflammatory response syndrome
You can rule out shock as he is getting better and the vet didn't find a fever it seems. So it sounds like its an infection and its good that you were sharp enough to get him to the vet quickly.
It sounds, as the Metronidazole is working well, like your dog has some sort of gastric infection that the med is curing. Dogs often drool when they feel nauseas. He might have grabbed a toad or gotten into something carrying a nasty bacteria. It may take until you are done with the meds before the blood vessel dilation goes away. If he is done with meds and there is still gum redness you may want your vet to check to see if early onset of periodontal disease or some sort of burn to the mouth is also an issue here.
If you had just applied a flea preparation or givne heartworm meds when this happened you may wish to discuss changing what you use with your vet to another brand or at least watch very carefully the next time you use them.
Hope this helps you!

Edited by NHolmes on June 28 2005 at 4:53 PM

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NancyH -- Pet Health Care, Rescue,Train,Breed -- 99% Positive Feedback on 7086 Pet Accepts
30+yrs pet vet care & nursing, rescue, behavior & training, responsible breeding, small animal care
Reply
June 28 5:34 PM (42 minutes and 8 seconds later)
         
Reply to Nancy Holmes's Post: Thank you for your answer. If his gums are no longer red after the meds are done, should I still have the vet anesthesize him and check his teeth for an abcess or early onset of periodontal disease? The vet wanted to do this immediately, even before the meds. He is not on any flea medication. So far he does not have any fleas. We do not have toads here. We live in Los Angeles. When I take him on long walks he does drink water from the street (from sprinklers) and he has a tendency to pick up other dogs feces, which I try to catch before it happens and stop. He is a rescue and I have only had him for 3 wonderful months. I just want him to be well. He is the sweetest dog I have ever had.
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Answer
June 28 5:42 PM (8 minutes and 21 seconds later)
         
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I would say if the redness goes away then you may not need to have him checked for dental issues as yet.
What I worry about a lot is that info on him drinking from puddles - stop that behavior and bring him a water bottle instead - he can drink from your hand or from the bottle.
Any puddle even from sprinklers could have antifreeze in it and that is a very deadly problem for a dog. You can read about it here and it may be your dog just lucked out and didn't get enough to kill him.
http://www.cah.com/library/antifreeze.html
If you have trouble controling his mouth on walks you might want to check out this tool that gives you more head control www.gentleleader.com
I also suggest training him to the command 'leave it' to get him to drop anything or move away from anything. If you want to find a trainer to help with that check out www.apdt.com for trainers near you. Look for one doing positive type training and call and ask if they include the 'leave it' command in their courses.
Good luck with him!

Please press Accept if you find my answer helpful. Want more info? Just reply on your question!
Bonuses for good work are always appreciated!
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NancyH -- Pet Health Care, Rescue,Train,Breed -- 99% Positive Feedback on 7086 Pet Accepts
30+yrs pet vet care & nursing, rescue, behavior & training, responsible breeding, small animal care
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