Is Your Pet Suffering From Low Circulating Blood Volume?
Dehydration is a serious condition that can affect the normal function of your pet's organs and systems. These 16 symptoms may be red flags for this life-threatening condition.
STORY AT-A-GLANCE
Pets can be dehydrated without appearing thirsty; dehydration is different from thirst in that it is a potentially life-threatening condition
There are many causes of dehydration in dogs and cats; the most common is fluid loss from the urinary or GI tract
One way to check your pet’s hydration level is to gently lift a bit of skin at the back of the neck; if it stays up like a tent, your dog or cat could be dehydrated
Treating dehydration is easy; it can be more challenging to find and treat the underlying cause
One of the smartest steps you can take to keep your dog or call well hydrated is to feed a moisture rich, species-specific diet
The long, hot days of summer are upon us, and with them brings the potential for dehydration in both people and pets. Did you know that dehydration and thirst are different things? Many people don’t.
Dehydrated Pets May Not Be Thirsty
Feeling thirsty is one of the ways our bodies remind us to hydrate, but dehydration — a potentially life-threatening medical condition — can occur in both humans and pets who don’t feel thirsty.
The medical term for dehydration, “low circulating blood volume,” provides an important clue as to just how serious the condition can be. Dehydration reduces the volume of both blood and intracellular fluids flowing through the body, which in turn reduces oxygen delivery to tissues and organs, as well as the removal of waste products.
Dehydration also throws off the balance of electrolytes, such as calcium, magnesium, sodium, and potassium, which can interfere with the normal function of the body’s organs and systems. If a dehydrated pet isn’t quickly rehydrated, death can be the result.
Dehydration occurs when the body loses more fluid than it takes in. This can happen from lack of food and liquids. It can also happen as a result of increased fluid loss through urination, diarrhea, or blood loss. For a pet who is ill, both circumstances usually apply.
An animal who is vomiting, has diarrhea or is dealing with, for example, pneumonia, or who has experienced blood loss will either refuse to eat or drink, or be unable to eat or drink enough to keep up with the fluid loss occurring in his body. The inability to replace fluids that have been lost can get a pet into trouble in a hurry.
Causes of Dehydration
Dehydration can be caused by several disorders and diseases. Any condition that inflames or irritates any region of the gastrointestinal (GI) tract, from the mouth to the rectum, can cause fluid loss and dehydration. Vomiting and diarrhea are primary causes of dehydration in dogs and cats. Others include:
Panting
Ulcers
Excessive drooling
GI parasites
Infection
Obstruction in the GI tract
Additional causes of fluid loss in pets include:
Burns or a large injury to the skin
Ingestion of a toxin such as ethylene glycol, which is found in antifreeze
Endocrine system diseases such as diabetes mellitus, diabetes insipidus, and Addison’s disease
Hands down, the most common trigger for dehydration in domestic dogs and cats is fluid loss from the urinary and/or GI tract. Sadly, two other very common and entirely preventable causes of dehydration in dogs are being left outside in hot weather, and an outdoor water dish that freezes over in cold weather.
Signs and Symptoms
The symptoms of dehydration are the result of an imbalance of the body’s electrolytes and can impact virtually every organ system in your dog’s or cat’s body, including the GI tract, the central nervous system, muscles, kidneys, the respiratory tract, blood pressure, and heart function.
Signs to watch for include skin “tenting,” meaning that when you gently lift a bit of skin at the back of your pet’s neck, it stays up like a tent. In a hydrated pet, the skin snaps right back (for some breeds, this isn’t always a reliable at-home way to assess hydration). Other symptoms of dehydration include:
Loose or wrinkled skin
Rapid weight loss
Depression
Elevated heart rate
Vomiting
Excessive urination
Panting
Weak pulse quality/strength
Diarrhea
Lethargy
Excessive drooling
Sunken eyes
Lack of appetite
Weakness
Dry, sticky gums
Collapse
Diagnosing Dehydration
Significant dehydration in and of itself can be easy for a veterinarian to spot. Even if it isn’t immediately obvious when the vet examines the animal, since the condition goes along with many common dog and cat ailments, we can reasonably assume that in pets who’ve been vomiting, had diarrhea, or aren’t eating or drinking, they are most likely dehydrated.
The bigger challenge is to identify the underlying cause of the dehydration, because it’s almost always a symptom of some other issue. Diagnostic tests will include a complete blood count and serum biochemistry profile, packed cell volume (PCV), total plasma protein (TPP) tests, a urinalysis, and a fecal test to check for GI parasites.
The results of these tests will tell your veterinarian a great deal about your pet’s overall health and organ function and can point to the likelihood of dehydration. Increased packed cell volume and total plasma protein levels plus an abnormal result for urine specific gravity are significant indicators of moderate to severe dehydration.
Depending on the results of these initial diagnostic tests, additional tests may be required to identify the root cause of your pet’s dehydration. These can include x-rays, ultrasound imaging, urine or fecal cultures, tests for toxin ingestion, tests to assess the function of the adrenal glands, and/or a barium study to evaluate the structures of the GI tract.
Very young and very old pets who lose their appetites or have even just a couple of episodes of vomiting or diarrhea can dehydrate very quickly and should be seen by a veterinarian right away. A sudden decrease in body weight is an important clue that your pet has also suffered an acute loss of body water.
Treatment for Dehydration
The goal in treating dehydration in pets is to replace the fluids that have been lost, correct any electrolyte abnormalities, and identify and resolve the underlying cause.
A moderately to severely dehydrated pet will need to be hospitalized and given intravenous (IV) fluids and an electrolyte solution slowly over 24 to 48 hours, depending on the level of dehydration. The fluid replacement rate is calculated based on the severity of the dehydration and the animal’s size, weight, overall health, and other factors.
Typically, these patients will also receive heart rate and blood pressure monitoring and other types of monitoring, including urine output and body weight.
Correcting dehydration is simply a matter of administering fluids back into the body to replace what has been lost. The bigger challenge is often learning why the animal became dehydrated in the first place.
How to Prevent Dehydration in Your Pet
Dogs and especially cats are designed to get much of the water their bodies need from the food they eat, so make sure you’re feeding a species-specific, nutritionally optimal diet that is naturally moisture dense. This doesn’t include kibble, which has very low moisture content.
The average kibble has about 11% moisture. The evolutionary diet of dogs and cats contains about 70%. If a kibble-consuming pet isn’t drinking the extra water needed for hydration, he can live in a constant state of low-grade dehydration.
Dry food is especially problematic for cats, because they don’t tend to drink as much as dogs drink. They end up being mildly dehydrated much of the time.
Leave multiple bowls of clean filtered water around the house to encourage your pet to drink. Replace the water several times a day. You can also use a pet water fountain. Some feline family members will only drink from a fountain or a dripping sink faucet.
If your pet doesn’t seem to be drinking enough from his bowl, try adding some bone broth to a second bowl of water, or the juice from a can of sardines. I’ve also had good success adding an all-natural electrolyte tablet called Bioplasma to drinking water. There are also commercially available electrolyte products made specifically for pets.
If your pet is throwing up or has diarrhea that doesn’t resolve in a day or so, it’s a good idea to call your vet. This is crucial in the case of very young pets, senior and geriatric animals, and pets who are chronically ill.
Healthypets Disclaimer: This information is for educational purposes only and is not intended to replace the advice of your own veterinarian or doctor. Dr. Karen Becker cannot answer specific questions about your pet's medical issues or make medical recommendations for your pet without first establishing a veterinarian-client-patient relationship. Your pet's medical protocol should be given by your holistic veterinarian.
Sources & References