Is this an Emergency: How to Recognize An Emergency Requiring Critical Care In Your Pet

As a pet parent, or in general, some emergency and critical care situations are super obvious. Your pet stopped breathing, is bleeding profusely, has a large open wound, etc.—and of course, you will bring your fur baby in to see the veterinarian.

But what about those concerns that seem to have you wavering? You know the ones that happen on the weekends and have you second-guessing whether every move your pet makes is not their typical—a slight limp, a missed meal, one bout of soft stool, or a small new rash? When and how do you decide that your fur baby needs an emergency and critical care visit?

Here at Bluestar Pet Hospital, our doctors and staff have many years of experience dealing with all kinds of emergencies. From your super obvious hit by cars, attacked by another animal, and heat stroke to those concerns that are less obvious like lethargy, a new rash, a slight limp, or inappetence.

The most helpful advice that we can give is this—you know your pet best. If you are concerned, our veterinarians are concerned. As veterinarians, we often rely on pet owners to pick up on those unusual behaviors your pet may develop and bring them to our attention. Sometimes, they are not an emergency, but sometimes pet parents can pick up on the emergencies before they become even more emergent.

For instance, you may notice your pet has recently developed a slight limp. That is not normal, so you bring your pet in for an emergency visit. After the veterinarian does a physical examination on your pet, they notice the limp seems to be more than just a soft tissue injury. Ultimately it is discovered that your pet is in the early stages of osteoarthritis and needs to be on long term medication and more frequent monitoring. Your pet developed a slight limp because there was a drop in temperature, causing the pain to increase, just like cold weather does with arthritis in humans. For you, this emergency visit helped save you money by catching and treating it early, but more importantly, your fur baby received the relief they needed earlier.

Our veterinarians often tell owners emergency, and critical care is not just the apparent imminent death or necessity of immediate treatment but also when your pet does something that does not sit right with you. Emergencies don’t always have to be treated once they are so advanced.

Unfortunately, we cannot predict when emergencies will happen. Still, we can try to be as prepared as possible by going to the veterinarian when we notice our pets seem “off.” If your pet has any new behaviors or symptoms, we encourage you to give us a call at Bluestar Pet Hospital to bring your pet in to see one of our experienced veterinarians! Call at our Jacksonville, FL location or, if St. Johns is more convenient for you, call  (904) 720-4275.

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