Dog in freezing water for 15 minutes

beanie2010

Hi,

Just wondering if someone can answer a question for me. In work today a man came in with a spaniel that had been in a lake for 15 minutes, the water was freezing. He was looking for a vet but it's a large animal practice & all vets were out & not due back for hours. As it's large animal they probably wouldn't have the equipment to treat the dog anyway. So I advised him to travel to a small animal clinic nearby.
The dog was shivering & whimpering a lot.

How dangerous is this for a dog?

I tried to google it but I'm not coming up with much. I'm just curious to know what treatment needs to be given & how fast you need to get treatment started.

By the sounds of it I think he encouraged the dog to jump in the water by throwing a stick in

sharkbite1983

Aww poor dog. Depends on the breed, I saw a lab fall through the ice and sat in the water for about 15 mins, once as he got out he was grand.

Not sure about spanials though. Don't warm him up too fast, get a blanket around him, and try to keep him moving, get his core temp up, that's what were told in survival I'd
imagine it's the same for a dog. Even try to put a lead on him and get him running up and down stairs.

beanie2010

He had a coat wrapped around him but had to carry him in. The shivering & whimpering was worrying though.

daenerysstormborn3

I would assume it's the same as if it happened to a person, as long as there is no internal damage (I would still ensure the dog sees a vet today or tomorrow), just warm him up slowly.

falabo

he was in water for quiet some time so you need to raise his body temperature slowly. if he had been in the water for a very short period of time, it would be the opposite

let us know how the lad gets on please

beanie2010

It's unlikely I'll see the owner or the dog again but if I happen to find out anything I'll post it.
Thanks for the replies.