Dog not feeling well - not sure what's wrong?

[gnomesweetgnome]

My 8.5 year old dog has not been feeling well today.  He hasn't vomited or had diarrhea (that I'm aware of), but he's been very lethargic and not himself.  He seems reluctant to move around much, but when he does walk, everything looks normal.  He has also been shivering/trembling while laying down or when he gets up to walk around.  His abdomen feels hard - could he just be constipated?  I'm not sure what else could be the problem - his appetite seems fine - he ate all his food today.  Any ideas?

[incognitotoday]

Vet ASAP. What kind of dog? Mine had this. Turns out he was going thru a pancreatic episode. He was lethargic. His gums were black. Feel his gums! What color are they? Maybe he got into something when you weren't around. I hope he feels better soon. Nothing worse then our babies being sick and not knowing what's wrong!

[gnomesweetgnome]

His gums are pink around the edges and black in the middle. I can't remember if they normally have black patches or not. I was really hoping to avoid taking him to the emergency vet. Why do these things always happen on the weekend?

[incognitotoday]

Black is not good. That's how I knew something was not right with Linus. Sounds silly but google images of "healthy" dogs gums. You'll see there's a difference. It does suck that it happens on the weekends, but unfortunately your dog is showing signs that's isn't of their normal routine (lethargic). As long as you can get water in them for the evening; maybe you can a vet that's open on Saturday mornings. Mine is open only for 4 hrs. Good luck! Thinking of you guys with prayers for healthy update!!!

[midnightmare81]

I hope your boy feels better. What is he? Is his stomach distended? Could it be bloat?

[gnomesweetgnome]

He's pretty much the same this morning - he's eating, drinking, and going to the bathroom normally but still seems very uncomfortable. I emailed my vet about it last night and he thinks he's OK to wait until Monday, I'm just supposed to text and update him when I get off work this afternoon.

[Deleted]

Have you been taking his temp? If I were you I would do that every few hours and report to the vet if it's above 103 or so. We've had all sorts of problems with fever (unknown origin) and lethargy in our 8-year-old. It seems to have finally resolved for us, but shivering is a sure sign of fever in our dog. Someone once posted a list of symptoms, and gray gums were another symptom of fever. Our vet is OK with a temp of 104 for a day or two, but wants him in immediately if it's above 104 or if it stays at 104 for an extended period.

[midnightmare81]

OK, not bloat then. He would be much more serious right now. Shivering is either a sign of a fever (as PP mentioned) or extreme pain. I hope he feels better soon and it resolved itself!

[gnomesweetgnome]

Yeah, I don't think it's stomach thing any more, I think he was just tensing up when I would touch or carry him yesterday or today. He's kind of limping on one of his hind legs now and seems a bit unsteady, so I'm wondering if he just hurt his back or something. The vet thinks he's OK to wait until Monday to check him out, so we'll just wait and see.