All photos courtesy of Long Beach Animal Hospital. A typical vaccine reaction or bee sting showing swelling and redness.
When the immune system is working normally, it reacts to foreign “invaders,” which are things that could be dangerous to the body, such as viruses and bacteria. It creates antibodies to seek out, bind to and destroy these viruses and bacteria. This is the natural function of the immune system and it keeps us safe from a dangerous world.
The immune system can also react to foreign “invaders” like plant pollen, an insect bite or a type of protein in food. These little interlopers are not necessarily dangerous to the body in the way that viruses and bacteria are, but in some of these cases, the immune system responds to something it doesn’t need to respond to, causing an inflammatory reaction.
An inflammatory reaction to something harmless is an allergic reaction. This can be mild, and just cause swelling and itching. Typical examples are bee stings and vaccine reactions.
Pets with allergic reactions to a substance are treated with injections of steroids and antihistamines. Within 15 to 30 minutes of administration, the symptoms start disappearing. The patient may also be sent home with oral medication to use for a few days.
But in other cases, the allergic reaction can rapidly progress to a life-threatening anaphylactic reaction. During such a reaction, the blood vessels suddenly dilate, blood pressure drops, circulation is compromised, breathing passages constrict and shock ensues.
Symptoms of an anaphylactic reaction include weakness, lethargy, vomiting and rapid breathing. Upon exam, we will see pale or white gums (mucous membranes), a rapid and weak heart rate and labored breathing. These pets are in shock because their cardiovascular system has collapsed.
As part of our exam, we check the gums (mucous membranes) to assess whether shock is present.
Pets in anaphylactic shock are given epinephrine, steroids and antihistamines in addition to intravenous (IV) fluids, oxygen, supplemental heat and whatever is indicated by the physical exam and history. Bring your pet to the vet for this emergency care immediately if you see any of these symptoms. Note for your peace of mind that it is rare for our veterinary to have a pet to succumb to the reaction.
Pets in shock are treated with IV fluids and a special machine to administer the correct amount of fluids to counteract the shock.
Pets in shock are closely monitored by a special monitoring device that assesses heart rate, oxygen saturation, carbon dioxide level, respiratory rate, heart rhythm and temperature.
We follow important parameters every five minutes to determine whether the shock is worsening.
We keep a hands-on approach when pets are in shock—we don’t rely only on our monitoring equipment.