My 2.5 year old chocolate Lab died suddenly and unexpectedly 3 weeks ago. My family is totally heartbroken and have no answers. I just don't get it and we couldn't bring ourselves to do an autopsy as the situation was traumatizing enough. He was playing and having a good time in the snow with my daughter the day before, all was good. The next morning was unbearable. I woke up for work like always let him out to do his business, but when he came in, he went to his bed and before I knew it his legs were kicking in the air and he was gone! He was much more than just a pet, he was our baby, our child. It's so incredibly hard to go on. Has anyone ever experienced this or have a clue what this could have been? Please help!
My pets are my children too and having recently dealth with (actually are still grieving) the death of our lab/Great Dane mix I know the sorrow you are experiencing. It sounds like your dog had some type of seizure. However, I'm not sure anyone can specifically determine the cause of death in a situation such as yours without a necropsy (autopsy). I'm sincerely sorry your dog died. It may ease your grief to find a special way to honor him. When the time is right, open your heart and home to another dog that needs a loving home.
Ask a QuestionHere are the questions asked by community members. Read on to see the answers provided by the ThriftyFun community or ask a new question.
My dog was sick about a month ago. She couldn't keep any food down and she had diarrhea and was vomiting. I checked her gums to see if they were pink and they were, but were a little bit pale. I knew she might be dehydrated so I gave her Pedialyte and plain white rice in small servings for her to regain her strength and her appetite.
She was back to normal after a week. This past Sunday night my daughter called me to tell me that my dog was acting weird. She vomited and collapsed. She asked me to hurry home because her gums were gray and she wasn't moving or responding. She was also urinating and defecating on herself while laying there. By the time I got home, her body was limp, she had a very weak heart beat and within that hour my dog was gone. I'm so lost. I don't know what I did wrong. Can someone please tell me what happened to my dog. She was 10 years old. She was perfectly fine earlier that day.
Normally the first signs of parvo is a dog who has diarrhea and is vomiting. You were right to give her something because when dogs vomit they get dehydrated. It almost sounds like the dog never fully recovered from what happened a month ago and it got worse.
Hi,
I would doubt that your dog would have had the same illness she had before. I am wondering if she had a bad reaction to something, or got into something. She passed so fast, and it is hard to tell, sometimes, why. It could have been bloat, or it could have been a heart attack. With all the food recalls on dog food, one never knows what can happen. I am so sorry you lost your sweet dog.
---Robyn
It would be hard for anyone to tell you what happened. Sadly like people, dogs get sick and pass unexpectedly. Going the bathroom while passing is very common so that gives no indication of what happened.
Did you have the dog to the vet when she was sick the first time? Did the vet indicate what was going on then? It is possible she had continuation of that issue.
Be easy on yourself and allow yourself to grieve your loss. They take a piece of your heart with them when they pass.
May your sweet pup's memory always be a blessing. Prayers for you and your family!
My 6 year old German Shepherd, Cherokee, died this morning. He was fine when I let him out to use the bathroom. When he came in he seemed fine. About 15 mins. later he was making a moaning sound and white foam was coming out of his mouth. He died immediately. What could have caused this?
This almost sounds like the dog was poisoned. Can you go and look around your yard and see if anyone threw something in there that the dog could have eaten. Normally, if an animal has ingested poison this will be the immediate reaction. One of my dog's was poisoned and it was so quick there was nothing I could do about it.
Dogs are attracted to the sweetness of ethylene glycol (in auto antifreeze), which is very toxic. I do not know how fast it acts, though. Perhaps someone had a coolant leak or drained their antifreeze to replace it and your dog drank it.
Or could it have been a seizure? Sometimes when an animal gets hit on the head, or if the animal falls off of something, it can hit it's head so hard, this can cause that to happen too.
I saw that happen once, my mom came over to visit me when I was in my 20's. She had her little Terrier dog with her, and my roommate had a cat. My mom's dog went nuts when he saw the cat, and the cat jumped up on the table, and so did her dog. When the cat leaped off the table, so did her dog, but her dog
landed on the hard tile floor on his chin, which was devastating, and that caused the foaming and there wasn't anything the veterinary hospital could do.
I'm so sorry for your loss. Take care.
My Shih-tzu of 8 yrs, one morning sounded like she was gagging or ready to vomit. I suspected she was going to vomit, because she made that choking sound when she did. She was on my bed when I heard her and told her to go outside. I followed her to the door and there she collapsed.
So sorry to hear of your loss; it makes it even worse when you don't understand what happened. The same thing happened to me several years ago; I was awakened one morning by the sound of my 2 year old Maltese retching at the foot of the bed. She threw up and collapsed. I located a 24 hour vet and rushed her there; all this time she was totally unresponsive. The vet did all he could for her, (her tongue was hanging out too, by this time), but she died. I could not figure out for the life of me what made her collapse, so when the vet asked if I wanted her autopsied, I agreed, if nothing else but to find out what happened. Turns out she had a congenital heart defect that caused a heart attack. Her loss was made better by knowing what happened to her; I was consumed by guilt, wondering what I could or should have done. My heart goes out to you for the loss of your pet. God bless. Carole
I've been looking everywhere, but I could not find a proper answer. She was a healthy dog, but she died a really sudden death. She was having her dinner before and then I heard her cough. Moments later, she started urinating uncontrollably while walking around and then she collapsed right after.
When I went up to her, her muscles felt stiffened and her stomach felt contracted and she wasn't breathing anymore. I just wished I knew what happened to her because my family did not agree on a post mortem.The dog could have chocked on her food or had a heart attack. This is common and happens now and then. It is so hard when you lose an animal you love. The symptoms you describe is more of a heart attack than chocking on her food. It appears that her heart just gave out.
It could of been atrial fibrillation where the heart beats rapidly or to slow.t happens to humans to.Sorry for your loss.
Oh my. You have my deepest and heartfelt condolences on your loss.
Have you checked with your vet? Most people cannot afford a post mortem, so I understand not doing one. Also they are often inconclusive which just makes things worse (in my opinion).
Sadly this could have been anything from choking on the food to a massive heart attack or stroke to any other large number of health issues. What you describe is very common with peeing uncontrollably at the time of passing, so that offers no clue.
It is so hard, but beating yourself up and trying to find a why is only going to make you crazy. People and pets alike sometimes just pass suddenly and only G-d knows why, and as my late friend always said, and he isn't telling until we meet him and it will all become clear.
My best advise, and it comes after losing my beloved fur baby suddenly, is to turn your memory into a blessing. Be easy on yourself and if you find you are having problems with your grief, seek help.
The grief is very real and can be paralyzing. If you need help, talk to someone!! Our local animal rescue has programs and so does a local funeral home (it is for people who have lost a loved one--human or fur or feathered or scaled).
Sending up prayers for you and yours!!
While on vacation, my sitter took my dog in to the vet to have a lump looked at on his right hindquarter, that I noticed before I left. She was told it was a hematoma. They drained it, but said it may need to drained again. When I returned, I took him back to the vet for aftercare. The suggestion was to have a drain put in. I agreed.
When time came to pick him up, the vet wanted to keep him overnight, because the drain site was bleeding more than the vet liked. I agreed. Next morning, I was told when they checked on him the night before, he was doing fine. The bleeding had stopped. But when employees checked on him in the morning, he had passed. What could cause that?
I am so devastated, but would like to know exactly why he died. He was an 11 year old terrier mix. He was running around like a pup with no pain. You would not know he was 11. Now all of a sudden he's gone. I have requested a necropsy for my own sake. I am so heart broken.
What would cause my 1 year old pup to die in 3 days when just Sunday he was running around and playing? He started pooping blood on Thursday and passed this morning.
The vet give him some medicine but I guess it was too late. I miss my pup so muchMy dog was a perfect, very fit 7 year old Amstaff. We woke up this morning, and nothing was wrong. I gave him his breakfast, he ate it with a healthy appetite as normal. 10 minutes later he was dead. I just saw him lying on the floor, with urine next to him.
He was not sick, very active and happy 10 minutes before we found him lying there. The vet said it was a heart attack. I just can't seem to make sense of this.This can happen and there is no sense in it at all. One minute the dog is playing and in good spirts and all of a sudden the heart just gives out. This could have been an issue from birth that the vet had missed during his regular check-ups.
It is so hard when a pet or person passes suddenly. At least the vet had a reason. Many people have no idea what happened. Not that it makes it any easier.
Know you gave your pup an amazing life. Know your pup loved you.
Prayers for you and your family! May your pup's furry memory always be a blessing!
My nearly 11yo Schnauzer left us last night on the way to a 24hr vet. Before passing, his tongue was out, he drooled, and dry heaved in the car. 15 minutes prior he seemed largely unresponsive to our calling other than panting.
These last two days hehad been vomiting 5-7x a day, he couldn't keep food down. He had a complete loss of appetite ever since the night two days ago. I had to stuff food down his throat with my fingers as the vet said he needed food to take his medication (NSAID for a leg injury, appetite enhancer, omeprazole).
A month back, vet ruled a torn ligament on the hind left leg, bones were very healthy via X-ray, blood test showed fully functioning liver, kidney etc. However, after the left leg looked nearly healed, his right leg acted up and he started limping again.
The visit to the vet two days ago indicated very low heart rate (48, compared to 70-100 of a normal dog), previous visits a month ago were said to be normal heart rate.
He has a history of (chronic) pancreatitis and we thought this could be related but doesnt seem like it now. He also has a growth near his spleen / liver that we decided not to test for 4 years ago.
He was a very healthy looking boy and was in better condition than many of his same aged peers when we visited the vet for his vaccination two months ago. This all happened so quickly that I cant believe its real. I thought I could still feel a shallow heartbeat but the vet said his heart stopped beating before we arrived.
Im sorry if this was too much information, but Id like to hear the possible reasons from different people in the community as the vet did not provide any cause of death for my baby boy.
I had a 10 old Shih Tzu and she was healthy. She just passed a few hours ago and I can't understand why. She didn't have any signs of being sick she played outside, ate, her normal stuff. Went out one more time before bed. A few hours later I heard her cry out twice and went to check on her. I found her on the floor not breathing with her tongue out.
We moved her and nothing, we picked her up we listened for a heart beat and nothing. I don't know what happened to her. It was too late to take her to the vet. Her tongue was blue and her eyes stayed opened. Please help if anyone has been through this I need to understand why, at least for my kids.
My very healthy 13 year old Shih Tzu with no passed health issues passed away suddenly last week. The Thursday he was throwing up three times throughout the day I fed him plain rice and he was eating fine and drinking lots. Friday he was his normal self jumping around barking. Saturday morning he woke up soaked. Ir seemed like a fever and he was foaming from his mouth. We took him to the vet and hewas still foaming and bc of covid we had to wait in our cars for a while, but I demanded he had to go in right away.
They told us he had high sodium levels and they were going to put him on an IV to rehydrate him since he hadn't eaten anything Saturday. We weren't allowed inside the vet's office. The next thing we knew was when they called us and said he had passed. What happened? I'm so distraught and can't get passed this. My poor little baby boy.
I was walking her, and as we are going back to the house, my dog just started shaking and vomiting something white. Then she was shaking for like 15 minutes and then died.
I know she didn't eat anything, she was on my leash all the time. What could that be?This is so sad and I am so sorry you lost your dog so suddenly.
Like you said that your dog didn't eat anything so you can rule out poisoning. However, this could be a number of different reason your dog died like they did.
Heart disease
Trauma
Gastrointestinal disease
Neurologic disease
Respiratory diseases
Urinary disease
These are all the causes of sudden death in a dog. It is so hard to say which one actually killed your dog. I would ask your vet to examine the dog and see what he can determine is the cause of death.
