By: Kelly Marshall
Submitted: 2008-12-26 08:39:20 | Word Count: 501
Unlike human beings, dogs do not have the ability to communicate that they are feeling ill. Dogs are not even like children who can cry and indicate their discomfort. The illness of your pet dog has to be deduced by observing the behavior of the dog. Dogs have a comparatively higher pain threshold as compared to humans. Hence, they will cry out only when they are under severe pain and discomfort. By then, things become too late. Hence, the onus is upon the owner of the dog to find out whether his dog is ill or not. The best way to do so is to observe the normal behavior of the dog. If you can differentiate between normal and abnormal behavior of your dog, you can easily find out whether your dog is ill or not.
After waking up in the morning, make it a point to greet your dog by stopping all your activities and observe its behavior for at least one minute. Do not restrain the behavior of the dog. Just observe the dog for a minute.
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Observe your dog during the morning and evening outdoor activities. Let your dog walk in front of you and observe it. Watch it when it moving up or down the stairs or when it standing or sitting. Watch for at least ten seconds.
Do make sure that you watch the first twenty seconds of your dog eating its meal. Further, watch it for at least twenty seconds in sleep and watch a complete urination and a bowel movement
Do not expect to immediately know everything about your dog s behavior. Keep on observing and you will discover that you can discern subtle variations in the behavior of your dog. Even if you are not conscious of the same, you will find that your observations come up when talking to your vet. If you observe any explicit abnormality, do not get worked up. It is important to objectively watch the abnormalities and describe them correctly to your vet.
Once the process of observation becomes a habit, you will realize that it does not take more than four to six minutes of your day. Soon, you will learn to discern subtle changes which may indicate to an illness. There are very few symptoms, called pathognomonic symptoms, which indicate a specific illness. Generally, symptoms are vague and general. You will learn to recognize them as well.
It is advisable to take aged dogs out for walks more often as they are more susceptible to arthritis. Frequent exercise can delay the problem. Further, aged dogs become lazy and frequent moderate helps circulation.
Unlike humans, a weak bladder in dogs is not a minor irritant but an indication of a bladder infection or the possibility of a kidney problem in the future. Bladder infections are common irrespective of the age of the dogs. On the other hand, kidney diseases are more common in aged dogs. It is one of the most common problems found in old dogs.
