Do you think your dog has a fever? Do you notice him down or listless ? Do n’t feel like eating either ? It is time to take his temperature because no, having a dry nose is not indicative of a feverish state, although this is a very widespread belief. The only way to know if your dog has a fever is by taking its temperature with a thermometer. Ana Anglada, veterinarian at Anaga Centro Veterinario tells us how to do it.
To begin with, the thermometer that we use with our pet must be digital , never the traditional mercury thermometer, as it can break inside its body. In addition, the digital one gives more exact results.
Each part of the animal’s body has a different temperature and this depends a lot on the climate. To know if the dog has a fever, it is recommended to take the temperature in the anal area since it does not depend so much on the weather and there the degrees of the interior are well identified. As you may have guessed, furry dogs do not usually like to have a thermometer inserted into that area, so it is best to get a digital thermometer with a flexible tip , which will be less annoying (they are sold at the pharmacy). Also, we will need petroleum jelly to facilitate entry. We will put a little Vaseline on the tip and in a calm way, speaking with affection and caressing it, we will introduce it through the anus and wait for the thermometer to beep.
The normal temperature in adult dogs is up to 39.2 degrees and it will not be reliable if the animal has just exercised or has been lying in the sun. In these cases, you will have to wait a little for the temperature to stabilize before putting the thermometer. In the event that the thermometer reads more than 39.2 degrees, we must take the furry dog to the veterinary clinic.
Puppies, meanwhile, have a lower body temperature than adults. It is considered normal to be between 34 and 36 degrees .
The veterinarian makes one last but very important recommendation and that is that we will never give the dog medications to lower its temperature on our own. The reason is that many of our human medicines are toxic to humans and can cause serious health problems.
So now you know, get a flexible tip digital thermometer and a jar of Vaseline if you don’t already have them. It is the only way to know if the furry is a few degrees too high.
