# Pale gums



## Safzola (Jan 14, 2013)

Hi there ..,we have just noticed that Zola`s gum are looking really pale today,normally they are lovely and pink but not today,,,should we be worried ? What do others think ?..Thank you


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## JeanKBBMMMAAN (May 11, 2005)

Call the vet now.


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## Safzola (Jan 14, 2013)

Waiting for them to ring me...thank you


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## JeanKBBMMMAAN (May 11, 2005)

Let us know - great catch on your part. If they say just monitor, I'd want an appointment anyway, and blood work.

http://www.veterinary.ie/go/pet_care_notes/dogs/how-to-recognise-if-your-dog-is-healthy

http://www.dummies.com/how-to/content/what-your-dogs-gum-color-tells-you.html

--> http://pets.webmd.com/dogs/symptoms-and-treatments-of-anemia-in-dogs


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## Safzola (Jan 14, 2013)

Have you any idea whats going on Jean


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## JeanKBBMMMAAN (May 11, 2005)

I don't. But that Webmd article has a list - it could be something like anemia. She's a young girl right? 

Do you have ticks there?

ETA - also be thinking food toxins like a recent ingestion of onion or garlic or food that had that in it + regular toxins that we think of as poisons + medications (hers or yours), supplements (including natural things) 
Good list: http://www.aspca.org/pet-care/animal-poison-control/animal-poison-control-faq

I'd maybe even want a urinalysis with that full blood panel - just to check. 

Hopefully it's just a good to be cautious kind of thing.


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## Safzola (Jan 14, 2013)

Just got back from emergency vets.........By the time we got her there ,her gums had gone back to a lovely pink colour which the vet said was perfect...we had totally forgotten the fact that,while out walking last week Zola had cut herself on something ,just small but bleeding,,telling this to the vet she came up with this...........Zola had a period of stress causing her gums to go pale,this may have being due to the cut ,an infection had started and although she didn`t seem in pain,the cut would of being painful,,,heart was checked and all was well,,so,,,,,,,we were given antibiotics and a pain killer,...Thank you for your posts Jean she`ll be fine now ( my wallet however isn`t )


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## JeanKBBMMMAAN (May 11, 2005)

Came back on to check on her! Glad to hear she's doing well now. I would like to lighten your wallet a bit more  by suggesting you look at info on von Willebrand's and clotting/bleeding time, just in case it's something that might be good to follow up on. I'm not sure it would be, but worth reading and checking into. The most basic test is not that expensive but it's also not diagnostic. I think Cornell's website may have information on clotting/bleeding. Again, glad things are looking good now! You are very observant!


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## Anna123 (Jun 18, 2013)

When my puppy had diarrhea the vet was checking her gums for dehydration. I asked vet about it, and she said pale gums means dehydration, once she was hydrated the gums went back to normal.


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## selzer (May 7, 2005)

Pale, greyish gums can be some really bad stuff. I'm glad it is not, and your girl is ok. I would have said check her other vital signs, is she running a temperature? Does her skin spring back when you pull it on the top of the neck? Can you push the gum so that it is white, and how long does it take to refill? Is the nose wet or dry? Had she eaten today, is she drinking, did she poop? That sort of stuff. 

But sometimes paying for peace of mind is good money spent. I have been known to take one of mine in because she just seemed a bit off. 

Some of the things that will show pale in the gums, and people who know more than I can correct me if I am wrong, but I think hemangiosarcoma can, if she is bleeding out; bloat; heart problems -- most of these though are when the dog is in an emergency crisis phase. So if the vet checked your girl out, and the gums are back to normal now, it is unlikely for any of these to be a problem.


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