Emergency warning signs: when to go to the vet now
Some symptoms cannot wait until tomorrow. Learn the signs that mean go now.
General guidance, awaiting review by a Guyanese vet. Always ask a vet about your own animal.
Go to a vet immediately if your pet has any of these:
- Difficulty breathing, choking, or blue, grey or very pale gums
- Collapse, cannot stand, or a seizure lasting more than a few minutes (or several in a row)
- Heavy bleeding that does not stop with firm pressure for 5 minutes
- Hit by a vehicle or a bad fall, even if they seem fine
- A swollen, tight belly with retching but nothing comes up (especially large dogs). This can be bloat, which kills within hours
- Repeated vomiting or diarrhoea, especially with blood, or in puppies and kittens
- Straining to urinate with little or nothing coming out (especially male cats)
- Suspected poisoning, snake bite or cane toad contact
- Signs of heatstroke: see heat safety
- A mother in labour straining for more than an hour without producing a baby
- Severe pain: crying out, hiding, will not let you touch an area
When in doubt, call a vet and describe what you see. See emergency help for first aid while you get there.