Shivering, tremors, or shaking in dogs can occur throughout the healing process. Learn why and when we should be concerned.
There are a few common reasons why dogs tend to shiver:
- They are excited or nervous or have excess energy to burn off
- They are in pain. Typically there will be other signs of pain to go along with this.
- They are cold.
Dogs Shiver from excitement
Shivering from excitement or an excess of energy is the most common reason that dogs will shiver, especially among toy breeds and smaller dogs. Shivering can become a trained behavior with toy breeds and smaller dogs. For example, they might get excited about food and then start shivering whenever they think they will get fed. Or they might shiver around one person in the family due to excitement or nervousness but not shiver around others. If your dog is shivering frequently, it is most likely a learned behavior; some training can help correct this. If you have recently changed your dog’s diet to the natural canine diet it is very common for them to have a lot more energy and not know how to burn off this excess energy, so shivering becomes a way that they burn off the excess energy. Giving your dog a longer walk or more play sessions can correct this excess energy issue.
Dogs can shiver when they are in pain
Dogs can also shiver if they feel discomfort. So if we see our dog shivering and it’s not obviously due to excitement then we should check them over. Check their teeth, paw pads, and ensure they don’t have a thorn in the foot or a bramble, etc. Check their mouth for injury if you can do so safely. Check their walk to make sure they are not limping and check their tummy to see if they have gas or bloating.
Shivering could also be due to stomach upset if they are not digesting food well. If they have gas and are shivering then it’s very likely that their meals are too large or you are combining too many ingredients leading to fermentation and gas. If you think this is the case you should decrease the portions or simplify the meals. Sometimes as their digestion heals we need to start them off with smaller meals and slowly increase the meals over time. If you have noticed any gas, bloating, lip licking, scooting, or loose stool then adjust their meals to smaller portions which will improve digestion and avoid any gas or fermentation from undigested foods.
Dogs can shiver when cold
If the weather has turned colder, or you have the air conditioning on in your house your dog might simply be cold. Try putting on a sweater, giving them a blanket or a heated bed or dog safe heated pad to lay on.
If your dog has recently lost some weight this can cause them to shiver as the loss of body fat means a loss of insulation. It can take a little time for the body to adjust and the thyroid to maintain temperature more effectively, so sometimes when dogs lose weight they can shiver until their body adjusts to their new weight and is able to better manage their temperature.
Shivering can also result from eating cold food. If you are currently feeding their fruit or meat meals out of the fridge you might try warming them on the counter or in a zip top bag submersed in warm water. Feeding right from the fridge can be another cause of shivering.
Shivering as a result of detox
When the body is healing, sometimes our animals will go through periods of discomfort, just like when we humans experience a cold or a flu detox healing event. Just like a cold or flu puts our body in a state of discomfort while it cleans and heals our body, when our dogs and cats are healing they can go through periods of mild to moderate discomfort. When this happens they may sometimes shiver. This type of shivering is usually accompanied by some level of fatigue as well as other detox symptoms like itchy skin, mucus, coughing, sneezing, or lack of or limited appetite, or picky eating. If you notice growing fatigue then this would be a good time to fast so the body can focus all of its energy on the healing processes.
Have more questions? Want to get answers about your dog or cat’s specific health issues or concerns? I offer consultations, learn more about them here: https://www.therawkey.com/consultations/
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