Top 5 Cat and Dog Injuries
Dogs and cats are curious, agile, and playful animals that love to explore their surroundings. They’re a unique part of our families and behave like kids in many ways. Due to their nature, it’s inevitable for them to get hurt in their daily routines. However, knowing the common injuries that occur to your pets can help you be proactive in getting them out of harm’s way.
So let’s discuss the common cat and dog injuries you should look out for.
Common Injuries That Occur in Pets
Pets are fun, loving animals that like to play, explore, and make the most of their days. But like people, they can also get injured on their adventures.
Below are five common pet injuries and tips on how to avoid them.
1. Dog Bites
When dogs and cats fight, bleeding wounds, bruising, and skin lacerations are usually obvious. Wounds and cuts must be treated with a bandage or sterile gauze or at least covered with a clean, dry cloth. If the wounds are bleeding, apply gentle and firm pressure. Dog and cat fights are inevitable if you regularly take your pet outdoors for walks or visits to the park. You must be consistent with your pet’s regular physical exams, vaccinations, and parasite prevention to protect them from deadly viral diseases in social settings.
Having your pet sterilized is also a plus. Spaying or neutering can decrease your pet’s chances of developing infections and cancer in their reproductive system and reduce undesirable behaviors.
2. Fractures
Fractures in pets usually happen due to traumas ranging from minor to fatal. This can happen to your dog when jumping from a height or struck by a vehicle. Your dog’s age, the accident’s impact, and the injury’s location in their body will determine the severity of the fracture. If you suspect fractures, strains, or other soft injuries in your pet, it’s necessary to take them to vet surgeons. If you’re looking for animal surgeons to treat your pet, you may search for “veterinary surgeon near me” specific results.
3. Oral Trauma or Fractured Tooth
Dogs often damage their larger upper molars, back molars, or carnassial teeth when they chew random hard objects, which usually leads to fractured teeth.
Below are common symptoms of a tooth fracture in dogs:
- Drooling
- Chewing on one side of the mouth
- A swollen lump under the eyes that may indicate oral abscesses
- Lack of appetite
When this happens, you must take your companion to vet dentists to stop their pain and treat their condition. It’s essential to maintain your dog’s teeth, not only taking them to their dentists when they already have dental issues. Being consistent with pet dental cleaning can keep their oral health in optimum condition and prevent unwanted systemic conditions.
Fractured teeth can be prevented by removing everything in your home that can catch your pet’s interest to chew on. You can also provide your pet with chew toys that are safe for their teeth.
4. Insect Bites or Stings
Bites from insects and crawlers like ants, spiders, ticks, wasps, and bees may cause mild irritation and serious conditions like anaphylactic shock. Since pets are always playful, they’ll chase or play with insects for fun, unaware of their painful and harmful bites. When you take your pet outdoors, always keep an eye on them so you can distract them immediately when they attempt to catch insects.
5. Poisoning
Many human medications, foods, household chemicals, and plants can be dangerous or deadly to dogs. The best preventive measure to keep your pets from getting poisoned is to keep these things away from them. If you think your companion has ingested something poisonous, immediately take them to the vet for treatment.
Final Thoughts
Your pet will not say a word when something is wrong. So as their parent and guardian, you must have the instincts to tell what’s normal and when they’re hurt so you can act immediately. If your companion experiences any of the injuries mentioned above, call the vet right away to attend to your situation.