Sick Puppy

Question
Hi Dawn,

I have an 8 month old German Shepherd mix that has been suffering from diahrea for about 4 days now. I came home today and I noticed that the sides of her mouth were swollen and that she could not open her mouth all the way. I already made an appointment at the vet but if you could give me an idea of what she may have I would appreciate that.

Thank you.

Answer
Hi Alex, it sounds like she is probably dehydrated.  You can figure this out by pulling up the fur on the back of the neck and then releasing it.  If it doesn't go down fast, then she is dehydrated.  If it just stays up, then she is severely dehydrated and you need to get her to a vet asap.   There are a lot of things that could be generally wrong with the puppy with her having diarrhea.  Has she had all her vaccinations, has she been wormed?  Could she have gotten into anything?  Like I said there is so many things.  I would need more information to try and figure out what could possibly be the problem.  Meanwhile definitely check her for dehydration. Hope this helps.

Dawn