Duane Hull Webboard User Reg: 09-23-2011
Posts: 2692
Loc: Marrero, LA
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A friend of mine lost a young (about 1yo) GSD a short while ago, and there were a lot of similarities to the loss of Becky and Steve's dog, Ivo. The pup was in a ventilated kennel, and his water was not empty. There were no signs of any trauma, and no symptoms prior to his passing. The son came home from school and found the pup in his kennel.
There was no indication of anything amiss, but a necropsy was not done. The supposition was, of course, heat stroke. I had wondered about snakebite, but of course did not want to mind my friend's business while he was grieving.
These passings are odd to me. I know many, many dogs that are left outside year-round, and the summer here has been anything but extreme. I sure wish there was a better understanding of these occurrences. If any of you can offer something useful, please reply.
Usually if a necropsy is done, you can find "something" to explain it. I've seen brain bleeds, undiagnosed cases of heartworm where a worm got tangled up in heart valves, pancreatitis, torsion, the list goes on. I just can't really buy heat stroke for Ivo, because he was in the shade, with access to a 3" deep pool of water to cool down in. Besides that, he was only unwatched for 4 hours, it usually takes longer than that for heat stroke unless they are closed up in a car/oven. Dogs have been fine in that kennel at 113 degrees and yesterday was only low 90's.
Carol Blumlein Webboard User Reg: 03-29-2012
Posts: 421
Loc:
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That was a very sad story. It reminded me of my friend's German Shorthaired Pointer. We live in a hot climate so many have pools. This dog would get up anytime of the day or night and swim.
He was a super athlete and only 2 1/2y/o, but one morning, they found him in his bed unresponsive. A necropsy was done and it turned out to be a heart attack.
Just like our young male athletes who suddenly drop dead. It can happen to anyone at anytime. Not everything is detectable.
"Not everything is detectable"
That is the truth. Sudden changes in cardiac rhythms are common following extreme heat, electrolyte disturbances, pre-existing unknown conditions exacerbated by weeks of panting.
This summer has been a real stress on everything from trees to birds to amphibians.
The statistics for sudden cardiac death in humans is in the neighborhood of 1,000 people a day in this country. I'm sure there are comparable numbers among canines. Sudden cardiac death is not the same thing as what is commonly called a heart attack, and autopsy/necropsy isn't necessarily going to show anything wrong with the heart.
We have all heard stories of perfectly healthy, superbly conditioned athletes who suddenly drop dead. The media often reports it as a heart attack, but it was more likely sudden cardiac death, which is caused by an imbalance in the heart's electrical rhythms and often has nothing to do with the individual's age or state of health.
I'm not suggesting this is what happened in any particular case, but it can and does happen, and I'm sure there are other mysterious and undetectable things that can happen. It's sad, but there just aren't always logical answers.
Ben McDonald Webboard User Reg: 05-25-2011
Posts: 439
Loc: Lawton, OK
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It's like how I lost my first dane. He was playing around outside in the SNOW for 10-15 minutes, trotted back inside for a bite to eat and a drink, collapsed on the floor at his water bowl and died. No necropsy was done, but congenital heart defect was thrown around as to the cause. He was only 10 months old, and in perfect health otherwise. RIP Orion.
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