Maintaining good oral health in dogs is not just envisioning a set of pretty white pearly teeth. Gums are the window to the dog’s overall health. Therefore, if you are a responsible pet parent, you must check your dog’s mouth from now and then.
Many health issues are connected with gums. So, if you notice pale gums in dogs, consider it as a clue and sign to investigate it further. Besides the visual change, it might indicate a serious health issue. Thus, you may notice a color change, increased moistness, or temperature.
Let’s discover why dogs have pale gums and educate more on this topic!
What Do Normal Dog Gums Look Like?
The main role of gums is to protect and support the teeth and other mouth structures. Healthy dog gums have salmon or pink color. Gums get this color because of the many tiny blood vessels under the surface.
Besides this, normal and healthy gums are moist and shiny, which indicates good hydration. So, gums should never be dry and sticky.
However, there might be variations in the gum color, so some dogs may have dark pigment spots. But there is no need for concern.
Let me tell you something interesting about one dog breed. Don’t panic if you see a Chow Chow with blue tongue color. It is a completely normal and physiological characteristic of this breed. Instead, consider your dog unique and different from other dogs.
When pressing your index finger on the gum surface, the gums will lighten to a pale pink or white color. After this, within seconds, gums should get their normal pink color. The time that it takes to return to the normal pink color is called capillary refill time or CRT.
Gum Problems in Dogs
Blue or Purple Gums
Blue gums in dogs occur when there is not enough oxygen through the circulation. In medical terms, this health issue is also known as cyanosis. Cyanosis is caused by many reasons, including pneumonia, pulmonary thromboembolism, congestive heart failure, low blood pressure, and many respiratory issues that cause a decrease in oxygenated blood.
Since there isn’t enough oxygenated blood, you can quickly notice blue gums caused by cyanosis.
Pale or White Gums
Pale pink or white gums are visible if there is a lack of hemoglobin or blood. This is the most common sign of anemia or acute blood loss.
Besides anemia, pale gums can be caused by trauma and blood loss. There isn’t enough circulating blood, so the normal pink gums fade and turn pale.
Bright Red Gums
If the gums look very red or bright pink, the underlying cause is either stomatitis or gingivitis. Another common cause is overheating, so dogs with heat stroke will have bright red gums since they attempt to cool their body temperature.
Also, bright red gums can be caused by some inflammatory processes and cause pain.
Growth on Gums
Seeing mouth growth around the gums can be stressful for both owners and dogs. Usually, these growths are benign, and they go away on their own.
In very severe cases, mouth growths are cancerous and can even be life-threatening. An example is Papillomatosis, a viral disease that is contagious in dogs.
The disease results in fleshy pink warts around the gums and other areas on the dog’s body. However, this disease is not as concerning as other tumors. The main issue is that dogs cannot eat and swallow properly, so they experience pain.
Red Gums
Red gums in dogs demonstrate high blood pressure, carbon monoxide poisoning, or heatstroke.
Yellow Gums
On the other side, yellow gums might be caused by liver problems, anemia, and damage to red blood cells.
Bleeding Gums
This is the easiest condition to spot. The gums start to bleed and need to be checked by a veterinarian as soon as possible. In such situations, don’t wait since stomatitis, gingivitis, and mouth growths can occur quickly after the bleeding.
Checking Your Dog’s Gums
To maintain good gum health in dogs, you should closely monitor and observe your dog’s mouth.
Fortunately, everyone can perform this check-up, but your dog might experience denial if it feels uncomfortable during the whole process. Although this is a simple process, some dogs are so stressed that they cannot handle the entire check-up.
The check-up shouldn’t include only teeth observation; it should also include gum monitoring.
You should just gently lift the upper lip and, at the same time, pull down the lower lip to observe the gum color. Remember that normal gum color is pink or salmon.
Then, gently touch and put pressure on the gums to feel the moisture. If gums feel sticky and dry, your dog probably is dehydrated and requires immediate hydration and a quick refill of the blood vessels.
Another tip to recognize dehydration is if, after 1-2 seconds dog’s gums don’t turn pink again.
It would help if you didn’t do this check-up on a daily basis. Once or twice a month is entirely enough to keep a record of healthy gums.
Causes of Pale Gums in Dogs
Many health issues can lead to circulation changes and pale gums. Below, we have mentioned some of the most common causes of pale gums in dogs:
Anemia
Decreased number of red blood cells (RBCs) leads to anemia. By itself, it is not a disease and experts describe it as a consequence of other health issues.
Dogs with anemia are tired and weak. They lose weight, have an increased heart rate, and breathe difficultly. Although it is not described as a disease, it can lead to many health issues if not treated properly.
Shock
Shock in animals happens after a trauma that causes internal or external bleeding.
The circulation plummets, and blood vessels constrict, so gums become pale. Dogs in shock breathe rapidly, have a rapid heartbeat, and have low body temperature.
From the abovementioned is clear that shock requires immediate veterinary treatment.
Kidney Disease
Kidneys have an essential role in blood circulation. They produce the substance erythropoietin (EOP), a precursor of red blood cells. Consequently, if there isn’t enough EPO, the number of RBC decreases, and soon you can notice pale gums.
Identifying a kidney disease as a dog owner can be difficult because it could stem from chronic renal failure. That is why we are here to help. It might indicate kidney disease if you notice excessive urination and drinking, vomiting, reduced appetite, diarrhea, and weight loss. Very often, while dogs have some kidney disease process, they feel pain while urinating.
Internal Bleeding
Internal bleeding occurs for many reasons, including trauma, organ disease, and stomach ulcers. The bleeding reduces the circulating blood flow, so consequently, it leads to pale gums in dogs.
Depending on the severity of the case, signs vary. However, this is a very painful condition for dogs.
Parasites
Parasites adore dogs! They feed from the dog’s blood and deprive dogs of vital nutrients. Fleas can easily land on the dog’s coat and “take their meal”. A heavy parasitic infestation can cause reduced blood flow and blood loss that leads to pale gums in dogs.
If you recently had a picnic and notice intense itching and hair loss, it is most likely due to a severe parasite infestation.
Both external and internal parasites can lead to many health problems. For example, intestinal roundworms can cause digestive issues like vomiting, diarrhea, and reduced energy and appetite.
Bloat
Bloating in dogs is a life-threatening condition in which the stomach fills with gas and becomes distended. Bloating can lead to many health problems and a dangerous cascade of circulation problems.
Since blood circulation is disturbed, dogs can have pale gums.
Blood Clotting Disorders
Blood clotting is a serious and complex process. The most common reason for blood clotting disorders is thrombocytopenia, which is a lack of platelets. This disorder can intricate the process and cause abnormal bleeding. So, pale gums in dogs can also occur due to abnormal bleeding.
Dog owners notice blood clotting disorder by the excessive bleeding caused by skin bruises.
Heart Disease
In cases when dogs cannot pump the blood properly, gums don’t get the proper blood supply to stay healthy, leading to pale gums.
Besides pale gums, dogs with heart diseases have reduced appetite, and additionally, they are lethargic, cough a lot, and their abdomen is filled with fluid.
Heavy Metal Toxicity
Unlike cats, dogs are not picky when it comes to eating. So, they might eat anything in front of them. And yes, that includes pennies or nails. Heavy metals like zinc have many side effects. One of the most common side effects is that there aren’t enough red blood cells, which leads to anemia and pale gums.
Cancer
Dogs are prone to many types of cancer. In cases of bone marrow cancer, the RBC production from the bone marrow is reduced, leading to anemia and pale gums in dogs.
Rat Poison Ingestion
If you had problems with rats in your basement, you’ve probably heard of the rat poison warfarin. If ingested, warfarin causes pale gums in dogs, difficulty breathing, coughing, black stool, or vomiting.
Pain or Anxiety
When dogs are put in a fight or flight stage, it can negatively affect them by inciting pale gums.
Diagnosing Pale Gums in Dogs
If you are worried about your pet’s health, act quickly and contact your vet immediately. Pale gums are usually abnormal, and they require further investigation by professionals.
In case your furry friend is critically ill from bloat, shock, poisoning, or traumatic injury with significant bleeding, your primary goal should be to treat it immediately.
Other causes mentioned above are not life-threatening emergencies, but your job is to give your pet adequate health support.
First off, your vet will ask you tons of questions before diagnosing the cause of pale dog’s gums. So, you will need to know the following:
- When did you notice pale gums
- How did gums look and feel like
- Other symptoms and changes in behavior
- History of trauma
- History of eating metal objects.
As soon as you provide your vet with more info, he will perform a physical examination to determine the underlying health condition. Usually, vets prefer routine blood tests to determine if there are any disorders with the red blood cells.
If this diagnosing procedure doesn’t help, the vet will perform X-rays and blood clotting tests.
Preventing Gum Problems in Dogs
There isn’t a specific preventive medicine for pale gums in dogs. However, we have a few suggestions that might help in keeping the dog’s gum color normal:
- Don’t smoke around your pet
- Treat acute blood loss and diseases that cause anemia on time
- Be careful about the dog’s body temperature
- Regularly brush your dog’s teeth to maintain healthy gums.
Remember that normal gums in dogs should have a bubble gum pink color, so any change requires medical attention.
Treating Gum Problems in Dogs
Treatment plans for pale gums in dogs vary depending on the underlying cause.
Respiratory conditions require immediate oxygen therapy combined with medications. In some severe cases of anemia or blood loss – blood transfusion is the only treatment solution.
On the other side, surgery is the only solution in cases of cancer. Other treatment plans include laser treatment and tooth extraction. Finally, if your puppy is overheated and has pale gums, you should cool it down to address this issue.
FAQ:
To Sum Up
Maintaining a good dog’s health is a challenge for many owners. But, what will it cost you to check your dog’s gums from time to time? Although this health issue can be resolved quickly, it can sometimes be life-threatening. So, our suggestion is to immediately seek veterinary care before it is too late and solve this issue in no time.
Related topic: Tetanus in dogs
*photo by dimarik – depositphotos