We humans feel dizzy when we feel weak or nauseated. This can happen with a dog too. Sometimes, their walking seems strange, which makes us wonder: Can dogs get dizzy?
Dogs can get dizzy easily when they face trouble with vestibular diseases. Besides, they stumble because of dizziness when their mental health is not good. As watchful guardians, we have to mark out the symptoms of sickness in our dogs and treat them properly.
Here, you will find all possible reasons and treatments for dogs when they feel dizzy.
What Is Dizziness?
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Dizziness is something when we feel staggering or disoriented by our mind. We lose our balance, and our heads become tilted to one side.
Dizziness can cause lethargy, loss of coordination, and so on. Besides, stroke, low blood sugar poisoning, trauma, etc. can make a person or animal feel dizzy.
Can Dogs Get Dizzy?
Like humans, dogs also face the conditions and symptoms of dizziness. Sometimes we see our dogs stumbling, losing track, and falling over again and again. This can be because they have vertigo issues, including vestibular syndrome, injuries, infections, and so on.
How Can Dogs Get Dizzy?
Dogs can feel dizzy when their health is not good. Some diseases include:
Brain Tumour
Usually, tumours occur when the growth of tissue is abnormal; they can be cancerous or non-cancerous. The level of cancer is different in different people and animals. However, older dogs are more prone to brain tumours. Breeds like Boston Terriers, Boxers, golden retrievers, and Collie suffer from brain tumours more often than not.
Stroke
Clogged or ruptured blood vessels do not allow blood to reach the brain. As a result, the brain doesn’t receive oxygen or blood and gets a stroke.
Trauma
Dogs usually get trauma from brain injuries, which can lead to dizziness. Maybe your dog fell from somewhere or a car hit them and caused the injury. This can be a big reason for him to face trauma. You may see your dog bleeding from the brain, ears, cuts, etc.
Idiopathic Vestibular Syndrome
There are no specific causes for the idiopathic vestibular syndrome. Older dogs mostly face it as it occurs with age.
Ear Infection
The ear infection can occur in the middle or inside of dogs. It occurs in yeast and bacterial infections. Your vet will recommend treating your dog in the early stages.
Low Blood Sugar
Low blood sugar, also known as hypoglycemia, is common in younger dogs. They suffer from liver disease, Addison’s disease, etc. However, low blood sugar can make your dog feel extremely dizzy.
Consuming Toxic Substances
Consuming toxic ingredients is probably the most common cause for dogs to feel dizzy. It can be from insecticides, chemicals, grapes, chocolates, artificial sweeteners, and so on.
How To Know If A Dog Gets Dizzy?
When your dog feels dizzy, he will give some signs. Usually, dogs can’t focus on anything when they feel dizzy. Also, he will stumble, whimper, pin his ears down, and walk funnily. Other symptoms include tiredness, laziness, fatigue, nausea, vomiting, and many more confused behaviours.
When you see your dog is feeling dizzy, see if he is having repetitive eye movement, trouble standing up, cocking his head, dis-coordination, etc.
What To Do When Dogs Get Dizzy?
Don’t think that dizziness is temporary, so you can skip treating your dog. Take your dog to the vet immediately after you find symptoms of dizziness in your dog. He may do some tests to see the overall physical condition of your dog.
For instance, he may do a urinalysis, serum chemistry panel, or CBC. He can tell you to bring reports of the MRI, EKG, and X-ray of your dog.
For ear infections and food poisoning, your vet may suggest some antibiotics. Again, for trauma, stroke, and tumours, he may hospitalise your dog.
Prevention Tips For Dizzy Dogs
As said before, dizziness can occur from ear infections, low blood sugar, trauma, stroke, etc. If you can prevent such issues in your dog, you can prevent him from having dizziness as well.
Ear infections mostly occur when the ears are dirty. When you wash your dog, clean his ears with cotton buds or wipes. Also, train your dog not to jump over a fence or get hit by any material.
Supervise your dog every time so that he doesn’t eat any toxic food. Another way to prevent dizziness in your dog is by adding syrup to his meal. Keep taking tips from your veterinarian to avoid physical issues in your dog.
Cost Of Treating Dizziness In Dogs
You won’t have to spend much on the treatment of your dog’s ear infection or injury caused by hitting a wall. Also, for food poisoning, the amount is going to be moderate, like $300 to $800. For brain injuries, like tumours, strokes, etc., the cost can be higher, i.e., $3000 to $4000.
Frequently Asked Questions: Can Dogs Get Dizzy?
Can dogs get dizzy after spinning?
Dogs like to remain active, so spinning won’t have any effect on them. They will only feel dizzy when you hit their vestibular systems.
What should you do when your dog feels dizzy?
When your dog is feeling dizzy, fasten a harness on him. This will help your dog not spill over. You can also use your hands to name his position upright and make him feel less dizzy.
Can a dog get dizzy from dehydration?
When a dog gets dehydrated, he feels nausea, which is a major cause of dizziness. So feed water to your dog when you think he is feeling dizzy.
Why does a puppy feel dizzy suddenly?
A puppy can feel dizzy suddenly when he is suffering from a vestibular disease. Such as tumours, injuries, ear infections, etc. If none of the diseases are reasons for your puppy’s dizziness, then it must be an idiopathic vestibular syndrome.
Final Thoughts
When dogs stumble and fall over again and again, their guardians think, Can dogs get dizzy? Well, it is no surprise for a dog to feel dizzy. He can go through diseases like ours, which make it difficult for him to walk.
Whenever you see any sign of sickness in your dog, try to make him oriented first by fastening a harness. Also, feed him some water. If this doesn’t work, ask your veterinarian if you need to give any medication to your door.
