ANIMAL EMERGENCIES
What to do when your pet is feeling poorly, including prevention, knowing your vet's availability, recognizing emergencies, don't hurt and get hurt.
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BY THERESA ANDERKO
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Issue # 103 - January/February 1987
RELATED CONTENT
What to do when your pet's feeling poorly.
By Randy Kidd, D.V.M.
BY THERESA ANDERKO
Seeing a beloved pet hurt or seriously ill can be frightening and perplexing. But as a practicing veterinarian, I've seen my share of emergencies, and I'm convinced there are things pet owners can do to help make such situations manageable. Here's a short course.
Prevention is the best cure. The cliché bears repeating. Keep Pet out of trouble and you won't have any emergencies.
One of my biggest frustrations is knowing that nearly all the animal injuries I treat could have been avoided with a simple $5 purchase: a leash. A critter running loose in an environment where there are other animals and people (and people's garbage) is a disaster waiting to happen. Our California emergency clinic's statistics, for example, show that 30% to 40% of the animals we treat have been hit by cars, and another 30% to 40% have been in a fight. And almost all the rest have sustained other injuries or illnesses (such as food poisoning from eating garbage) that wouldn't have happened if the animals had been on a leash.
So either keep Pet confined to the house (or the kennel), or walk him on a leash. The up side to leash walking is that both of you will get a two- or three-times-daily workout—good for your health as well as Pet's.
Know your vet's availability. How do the veterinarians in your area handle after-hours emergencies? In some places each vet services all his or her own clients, 24 hours a day. In other areas after-hours calls are referred to a central emergency clinic. In either case, make sure you know the after-hours emergency number; write it down near (or better yet, tape it to) your phone.
Learn to recognize what is (and isn't) an emergency. Many medical problems eventually resolve themselves without any special care. On the other hand, there are instances where you'll need professional help, and quick. Here's a list of conditions that I feel warrant veterinary attention . . . ASAP. .
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