is this because of dehydrated? - Page 1

this is 2nd time happened to my gal.
last year happened once and  yesterday.

this never happens to her when playing in the morning.
i usually play like 10-20 mins. around 7:30pm.

so yesterday after playing 15mins i saw she was panting and took off right away as even she was so eager to play.
then took home within 5mins and this is in the baseball court that i usually play with her within 5mins drive.
when she got off the car and try to come inside my house her hind legs were unbalanced and walking slowly but hind legs were dragging, sometimes not even balanced.
i was scared to death.
provide her water and she was drinking like crazy and dropped on the ground and infront of the water.

could this be due to dehydrate? never happnes in the morning and even runs more in the morning.
besides, she was in heat two weeks ago could this be the factor too.....

after few mins she was fine last nite but scared me again............

would be glad to hear any experiences....

thanks all.

How old is she? Please take your girl to the vets, dragging her hind legs is very serious. I'm hoping Hodie jumps on here, she is much more experienced than I am. Where are you located? jh

You do not say how old the dog is or what exactly you are doing with the dog. You don't say where you live. Even early in the morning, if the humidity is too high, even if it is not really hot, it is possible for your dog to overheat. But, there are many other things that could be wrong. What you describe happening is ABSOLUTELY NOT NORMAL. Based on what you say it is not possible to know if the dog is staggering and having trouble standing from weakness or what.

I would need more information to even guess what is really going on.  Kalibeck has already given you the advice you MUST follow. The dog should be seen by a vet and as soon as possible. This probably has nothing to do with heat unless the dog has an infection.

In the meantime, I would suggest that you do NOT do this with your dog, and NEVER let the dog water "like crazy", especially after exercise or you could have a dog who ends up in surgery for a gut torsion or worse.

Good luck. Keep us posted and if you wish, feel free to provide more information. But a veterinarian needs to see this dog.

As someone who has dealt with heat stoke twice to the point of having the dog at the University of Illinois Veterinary Clinic, I would be careful.  Be very cautious when giving free amounts of water to a dog that is under stress.  Especially a GSD because of their propencity to bloat.  Give enough fluid to just wet the dogs mouth and clear the throat and wait until the breathing settles down.  Make sure that you don't give too much water prior to the exercise and definitely don't feed it.  In the warmer months I give additional electrolite supplements to aid in regeneration and cramp prevention.  To monitor temperature I carry a thermometer as well just to be sure.  You may want to check into having your vet do some bloodwork just to see if everything is functioning properly.

thanks for all the suggestions.
sorry to mention about her age.
she is 22mos old now.
i never fed or let her drink water before take it to the ground.
its just normal exercise or play she was doing with me.
i just play with her with two balls as her exercise that's all.

i'll take her to vet to show if there's any problem.

i also don't let her drink right after her exercise but yesterday i was so scared.....

but wondering if anyone has similar experience by dog having dehydrated.....

lets see what vet says about.....

There was a post awhile back about dogs and overheating and what to do, Hodie , do you remember, it had to do with being at a show and a dehydrataion.

Simple checks for dehydration are easy.  Pinch the skin on top of the head, between the ears.  If it doesn't spring back to normal, there may be some dehydration or check the gums for color and moisture.  Having trouble walking or balancing can be another sign.  From an overheating standpoint, it is best to lower the body temperature rapidly but not so quickly that you shock the system.  Submersing the dog in cold water is a no no.  Wet, cool towels and cold water between the loins as well as cooling the pads and ears are best.  Cool water works better on these areas as they are the most sparsely hair covered regions of the dog's body.  Alcohol has been rumored to work because of it's cool feel when touching bare skin but unlike water, it evaporates rapidly.