QUESTION: My healthy dog has
started to pant excessively in our bedroom at night, but not
the rest of the time? She seems totally normal during the day.
It is pretty warm in our room right now with the weather
warming up. Why do dogs pant anyway?
ANSWER: I think she is just
panting because she is to warm at night, in a closed room.
Panting is the normal process by which dogs lower their body
temperature. This is accomplished by evaporation of water from
the mouth, tongue and lungs, and by the exchange of cooler air
for warm air in the lungs.
In hot weather or other extreme heat,
panting which is rapid and labored and accompanied by an
anxious look, the possibility of "Heat Stroke" should be
considered. Not applicable in your dogs case.
Rapid Breathing can be caused by pain,
emotional stress, fever and over heating (for example,
overexertion or overheated surroundings). Other conditions to
consider are Shock (reduced circulation, haemorrhage), lung
and heart disease (not enough oxygen in the blood) and Acid
Build-up (diabetes, kidney disease).
Dehydration caused by prolonged
diarrhoea and various toxic states will cause a dog to breathe
rapidly. An increased rate of breathing while at rest suggests
a diseased state or other complications and the dog should be
examined by a Veterinarian immediately.
With the information supplied, you will
have to decide if only because the weather has warmed up and
she is finding the bedroom to warm or if something else is
happening with her. I am quite sure if anything else was going
on (see above), you would have noticed the more Rapid
Breathing and other signs of distress during other periods of
the day.
