17 Reasons Your Dog May Be Pacing, Panting, and Restless

In most cases, panting and pacing is just a common reaction to your dog being a little unsure of their environment. If there's been a recent ... Information17ReasonsYourDogMayBePacing,Panting,andRestlessIfyourdogispantingandpacing,youmightbecuriousastowhy.Whilewealwaysrecommendyoucallyourvet,here's17commonreasonsforrestlesspups. AmberLaRock LastUpdated:March18,2021|13minread Thisarticlewaswrittenbyaveterinarytechnician,butitshouldnotsubstituteascontactwithyourveterinarian.Ifyourdogappearsmorerestlessthannormal,contactyourlocalvetimmediately. Haveyounoticedyourdogpacingaroundyourhomewhilepanting?Perhapsyourpupjustappearsrestless,oranxious?Whileoccasionalpantingmaybenothingofconcern,pantingandpacingwithnoendmaycauseyoutothinktwice.Sowhatcanthisbehaviormean?Whenisittimetocallthevet? Inmostcases,pantingandpacingisjustacommonreactiontoyourdogbeingalittleunsureoftheirenvironment.Ifthere’sbeenarecentroutinechange,thiscancausethemtoappearrestless,andtakeonotherphysicalsymptoms,likeexcessiveshedding.Itcanalsobesomethingalittlemoreseriousthatrequiresacalltoyourvet. Inthisarticle,we’lldiveintothe17mostcommonreasonswhyyourdogmaybepantingandpacing.Again,thesecouldbetotallynormalbehaviorsdependingontheiroverallhealth,breed,andotherenvironmentalfactors.We’lldoourbestinthearticlebelowtohelpyouidentifywhenit’stimetocallyourvet,andwhenitmightjustbesomenervesoranxiety.Let’sjumpin! Contents1Exercise2Anxiety3Nerves4HeatExhaustion5Obesity6BodilyInjury7RespiratoryIssues8JointPain9BackPain10AbdominalPain11ToothPain12OtherPain13LaryngealParalysis14Seizures15Toxicity16CardiacDisease17NeurologicalIssues18WhenToSeeYourVet19FinalThoughts Exercise Physicalexerciseisthemostcommonreasonadogmayberestless. Themostcommonreasonbehindpantingandrestlessnessindogsisheavyexercise.Vigorousactivitycancauseadogtopant,similartohumansbeingwindedafterstrenuousexercise.Whileextendedpantingtimescanbedecreasedinactivedogs,theystillmayexperiencepantingafteratoughworkout. Ifyourfurryfriendispantingafteragameoffetch,thisisusuallyprettynormal.Theymaycontinuetopantforawhile,especiallyifit’shotoutside.Ifyourpupisstillpantingexcessivelyforsometimeaftertheirplaysessionhasended,it’sbesttocontactyourveterinarian. Anxiety Somedogsarejustanxious,whichleadstopantingandrestlessness. Justlikeus,ourpupscanstrugglewithanxiety.Withbeingunabletovoicetheirfeelings,wewilloftenseeanxietyindogsintheformofpanting,pacing,shaking,whining,pawing,andmore.Infact,thisisoneofthemorecommonreasonsthatdogswillpant,pace,andjustlookalittleunsureaboutwhat’sgoingon. Dogscanexperienceanxietyfromanychangeintheirnormalroutineorenvironmentandcanbecomeextremelyrestlessasaresult.Ifyourfurryfriendisexposedtochangeswithinyourhomeorroutine,theirpantingmaybeduetoanxiety.You’llalsonoticethemstarttofollowyouplaces,whichcanalsobealittleunwelcome. Nerves Somedogsarejustmorenervousthanothers. Somedogswillpantandpacewhentheyarenervousaboutanupcomingeventoranewsurrounding.Thisiswhysomanypupspantonthewaytothevet’soffice,orwhentheystepintoanunfamiliarsetting.Anervousdogmaypacebackandforth,pant,shake,whine,andanyotherbehaviorthatindicatescaninestress. Ifthereisachangeinyourroutinethatcancauseyourfurryfriendtobecomenervous,thisislikelythereasonbehindtheirpanting.Ifnervesaretrulythecausebehindtheirpanting,itshouldresolveoncetheyarebackintheirnormalenvironment.It’sworthnotingthatsomebreedsarejustmorenervous,whichispartoftheirpersonality. HeatExhaustion Heatexhaustionisseriousindogs.Doallyoucantosureyourdogremainscoolinhotweather. Pantingisadog’smainmethodofattemptingtocooloff.Ourcaninecompanionsdon’tsweat,leavingthemwithonlypantingtohelpregulatetheirbodytemperature.Becauseofthis,adogexperiencingheatexhaustionorheatstrokemayexcessivelypantorpace.Thisiswhyit’sextremelyimportanttomakesureyourdoghasotherwaysofkeepingcoolinhotweather. Ifcaninecompanionispantingforlongperiods,appearsweak,isdrooling,oranyotherconcerningsymptomsafterbeingintheheat,it’sbesttocontactyourveterinarianimmediately.Youshouldalsoremovethemfromthehotenvironmentandbringthemintoacoolsettingassoonaspossible. Obesity Canineobesitycancauseyourdogdiscomfort,aswellasmanyotherphysicalsymptoms. Extraweightonourfurryfriendscancausethemtohuffandpuffafteranytypeofexercise.Notonlycanobesitycauseyourcaninecompaniontopantafterphysicalactivity,butitcanmakenormaltasksmuchmorechallenging.Obesityindogscancausepantingafterexercise,adecreaseintheiroverallactivity,increasedjointpain,andmore. Thereareplentyofwaysyoucanhelpyourcaninecompanionloseweight.Healthycanineweightlosswilllikelyincludeanincreaseoflowimpactphysicalactivity,alongwithastrictlowercaloriediet.Ifyouthinkyourpuphaspackedonafewextrapounds,it’sbesttodiscussahealthyweightlossplanwithyourveterinarian. BodilyInjury Adogthathasaphysicalbodilyinjurymaypace,orpant. Suddeninjuryinourcaninecompanionscancausethemtobecomeextremelyrestless.Adogthatisinpainmaypantorbreatherapidly,andevenpaceiftheyarestillableto.Sinceourfurryfriendsareunabletovoicetheircurrentachesandpains,it’suptoustobeawareofthepossiblesignsofinjury. Ifyourpupispanting,pacing,limping,bleeding,appearingguarded,oranyotherabnormalbehavior,theymayhaveinjuredthemselves.Itcouldbeathornorweedthat’sbeenstuckinapawpadorsomeothertypeofligamenttearthat’slessvisible.Whileusuallynotlife-threatening,it’sworthlookingyourpupovertoseeanyobviousphysicalsignsofinjury. RespiratoryIssues Dogswitharespiratoryillnessmaybreatheheavierthannormal. Respiratoryillnessisanotherpossiblecauseofpanting,pacing,andrestlessnessinourcaninecompanions.Whilerespiratoryissueswillusuallyinvolvelaboredbreathingoranincreasedrespiratoryrateaswell,adogmayappearrestlessiftheyarehavingdifficultiescatchingtheirbreath. Respiratoryissuessuchaskennelcoughandpneumoniacancauseincreasedrespiration.Thiscanbeconfusedwithpantinginsomecases.Werecommendspeakingwithyourvetifyourpup’spantingisaccompaniedbylaboredbreathing,coughing,oranyotherrespiratorysymptoms. JointPain Asourcaninecompanionsage,jointpainusuallyfollows. Jointpainisanothercommoncauseofpantinginourfurryfriends.Asourdogsage,theycanbegintodevelopachesandpainsthatcomealongwithgettingolder.Notonlycanageimpactourpups,buttheycanbegintosufferfromcaninearthritisandotherpainfuljointconditions.Becausepantingisasignofpainindogs,thiswilloftenbeseenwhenadogisexperiencingjointpain. Othersignsofjointpainindogsincludedifficultygettingupanddown,slowingdown,limping,changeingait,stiffness,andanyotherchangeinphysicalactivity.Ifyourpupisdisplayinganyofthesignswementionedalongwithpanting,theymaybeexperiencingjointpain. BackPain Backpainusuallyaccompaniesdogswithageandcancauserestlessness. Unfortunately,backpaincanbeexcruciatingforourcaninecompanions.Somedogscanexperienceacuteinjuriesfromexerciseoraccidents,whileothersmayexperiencechronicpainduetospinalabnormalitiesandinflammation.Nomatterthecause,backpaincanbesevereenoughtocauseadogtopantandpace.Oneofthemostreportedsymptomsofbackpainindogsisexcessivepanting,andisacommonreasonownersknowtobringtheirdogintothevet. Ifyourpupisexperiencingpanting,appearingtense,reluctanttoparticipateinnormalactivities,cryingout,oranyotherabnormalbehaviors,theymaybestrugglingwithbackpain.Becausebackinjuriesaresopainfulandcanbeserious,it’sbesttoseeyourvetifyourdogisdisplayinganyoftheabovesymptoms. AbdominalPain Dogswithabdominalpainmaydisplayitbyrestlessness,orpanting. Ourdogscanfallvictimtomanymedicalconditionsthatcancauseabdominalpain.Whetheryourpupatesomethingtheyshouldn’thaveorisstrugglingwithaninfectiousdisease,apainfulbellycanbetheresult. Abdominalpaincanalsocomefromsomethingassimpleasthewrongdogfoodformula.Ifyourpupexhibitsabdominalpainaftereating,itmaybetimetohavethemtestedforafoodallergy.Manydogshaveaneasiertimeeatingalimitedingredientdogfood. Gastrointestinalcomplicationscanleadtoseriousstomachdiscomfortforourfurryfriends.Itmaycausepantingandpacingastheytrytoworkthroughtheirpain.Ifyourdogisexperiencingpanting,pacing,diarrhea,vomiting,oranyotherabnormalbehavior,abdominalpainmaybethecauseoftheirpanting. Ifyouownalargebreedthat’sshowingsignsofbloat,thisisamedicalemergency.Thistypicallyhappensafteryourpuphaseaten,andhasexercisedhard,causingtheirstomachtoflip.Thisisafatalconditionandwilllikelyneedsurgeryimmediately.Again,ifyouthinkyourpuphasbloat,callyourvetrightaway. ToothPain Ifyourdoghastoothpain,theymayexpressitthroughrestlessness. Dogshaveahardtimeexpressinganytypeofpain.Toothpainfromaninfectedtooth,orpoorlycaredforteethmaycauseyourpuptoappearmorerestlessthannormal.Youmaynoticeotherbehaviors,whichincludeavoidingtheirfavoritechewtoysorevenavoidingfood. Whilenotserious,toothpainissomethingthatwilllikelyneedveterinaryintervention.Thismaycomeintheformofdoingarootcanalorpotentiallyremovingatooth.Yourpupmayevenendupwithatitaniumorceramiccrowntocovertheirtooth,ifarootcanalwasperformed. Infectedteethareimportanttosolveinatimelyfashion,asteethinfectionscanmoveintoyourdog’sjaw,causinglongtermhealthproblemsintheprocess.Youcanpreventtoothdecaybybrushingyourdog’steethweekly,orutilizingseveralDIYmethodstokeeptheirteethclean. OtherPain Ifyourpuphasotherseriousillnesses,itcancauserestlessness,pacing,andpanting. Whenwesay“otherpain,”thisisbasicallyacatch-all.Thisisanytypeofpainthatcouldcomefromsomeotherseriousillness,includingcaninecancer.Whendogsexperiencesometypeofinternalpainthat’sintheirotherorgans,itcancausethemtobecomerestless. Whilethiscanbecommoninolderdogs,asmorehealthimpactsmayshowup,itcanreallymanifestitselfasasymptomforanydogthathasapainthat’snotobvioustothenakedeye.Usuallydiagnosingthecauseofthispainisrequiresatriptothevet,wheretheywilldoanultrasoundoranX-Ray,whichwillshowanypotentialgrowths,oranyinternalirregularities. LaryngealParalysis DogswithlaryngealParalysiswilloftenpantmoreheavily. Thelarynxplaysahugeroleincaninevocalizationandfoodintake.Thelarynxshouldopenandclosewhenadogisbreathing.Thisallowsthemtobarkwhentheychooseandpreventanyfoodinhalationwhentheyareeating.Whenadoghaslaryngealparalysis(alsoknownasLARPAR),thelarynxispartiallyparalyzedfromitsnormalfunction.Thismeansthateitheroneorbothofthevocalcordsdonotopenwhentheybreathe,andtheyhaveachanceofaspiratingtheirfoodduringmeals. BecauseLARPARinvolvesthelarynxandthenormalbreathingprocess,youmaynoticeexcessivepantinginthiscondition.Theirpantingmayevenbelouderthanusual andcanbeaccompaniedbyahonkingsoundwitheachbreath.DogswithLARPARcanevenappearanxiousduetotheincreasedefforttobreathe,andtheymaypacebecauseofthis. Ifyourdogisexperiencingexcessivepanting,changeinbarksound,loudbreathing,honkingsounds,shortnessofbreath,coughing,oranyotherabnormalbehavior,LARPARmaybethecauseoftheirpanting. Seizures Unfortunately,seizureshavemanysideeffects,includingheavypanting. Seizuresareoneofthemostreportedneurologicalconditionsinourfurryfriends.Epilepsyisfairlycommoninyoungdogs,andcancausealonglistofabnormalbehaviors.Notonlycanourdogsstrugglewithepilepsy,buttheycanalsofallvictimtootherseizuredisordersastheyage.Theseconditionscancauseadogagreatdealofdistress,resultinginrestlessness. Oneofthemostcommonsymptomsofcanineseizuresisalteredbehaviorbeforeoraftertheseizureitself.Aseizureorneurologicalepisodecancauseseriousconfusioninourfurryfriends.Thismayleadthemtoexperienceanxietyinthemomentsfollowingtheepisode.Aseizurecanalsocauseadogtoshakeandconvulseviolently,resultinginheavypanting.Ifyourpupispantingheavilyandisexperiencingalteredbehavior,theymayberecoveringfromaseizure. Seizuresindogscanalsopresentintheformoffacialtwitching,chewing,drooling,jerkingmovements,disorientation,vocalizations,hallucinations,full-bodyconvulsions,lossofconsciousness,andmore.Ifyouseeanyofthesesymptomsinyourfurryfriend,it’sbesttocontactyourveterinarianforfurthercare. Toxicity Dogswithtoxicitysymptomsneedtoseeaveterinarianimmediately. Dogsareoftenexposedtopotentialtoxinsintheworldaroundthem.Ourpupsarealsoknowntogettheirpawsonthingstheyshouldn’t.Thisopensupthepossibilityofpotentialtoxicitiesthatcanimpacttheirhealth.Itemsrangingfromnormalfooditemstohouseholdcleanerscancauseourdogstobecomeextremelyillwhentheyareconsumed,leadingtoanarrayofconcerningsymptoms. Toxicitiesindogscancausesymptomsrangingfrompanting,laboredbreathing,hyperactivity,pacing,vomiting,diarrhea,abdominalpain,andmore.Ifyourdogisexperiencinganyofthesesymptomsandhasconsumedsomethingtheyshouldn’thave,it’simportanttocontactyourveterinarianimmediatelyforfurthercare. CardiacDisease Cardiacissuescansometimesshowupinrestlessness,pacing,andpanting. Unfortunately,ourcaninecompanionsarenotimmunetocardiacdisease.Cardiacdiseasecandevelopindogswhentheyreachtheirsenioryears,oreveninyoungpupswithcardiacabnormalities.Nomatterthesourceoftheircardiactroubles,thisdiagnosiscanhaveadrasticimpactonthelungs. Wheneveradog’sheartisnotfunctioningproperly,excesspressurewillbuildupwithintheheart.Thispressurewillcauseanaccumulationoffluidinthelungs,makingitextremelychallengingtobreathe.Becauseofthis,youmayseepantingandothersignsofrespiratorydistressinthesefurryfriends. Asidefrompanting,cardiacdiseaseindogscancauseothersymptoms.Dogswithcardiacdiseasemayexperiencecoughing,laboredbreathing,coughingupfoam,coughingupbloodyfoam,weakness,collapse,andmore.Ifyourdogisexperiencingpantingalongwithanyoftheseothersymptoms,contactyourvetimmediatelyforfurthercare. NeurologicalIssues Caninedementiaandotherneurologicalissuesmorecommonlyariseinoldercanines. Similartohumans,ourdogscanfallvictimtoanumberofneurologicalconditionsthatcanimpacttheircognitivefunctions.Rangingfrominvasivebraintumorstocaninedementia,eachneurologicaldisordercancauseadogtoexperiencearangeofabnormalbehaviors.Theseconditionscanleadtodisorientationandstress,oftencausingrestlessnessasaresult. Forexample,caninedementiaisknownforcausingseveredisorientationindogsastheconditionprogresses.Dogswiththisconditionwilloftenpaceforhoursonend,appearrestless,pantexcessively,wanderaimlessly,andmanyothersignsofimpairedawareness.Ifyourpupispantingtirelesslyandexperiencingotherabnormalbehaviors,theymaybesufferingfromaneurologicalcondition. WhenToSeeYourVet Sowhenshouldyouseeyourveterinarianforyourdog’spantingandpacing?Pantingcanbenormalbehaviorinourfurryfriends,makingitchallengingtoknowwhenit’stimetoseekoutprofessionaladvice.Tohelpyoubetterunderstandyourdoggoingforward,let’slistafewtipsonwhenitmaybetimetocontactyourvet. Yourpupisstillpanting30minutesto1hourafterphysicalactivity. Youseeexcessivepantingandrestlessnessafterspendingtimeintheheat. Ifitseemsliketheyareexperiencinganyrespiratorydistress Yourpupispantingandpacingwithoutparticipatinginanyphysicalactivity. Younoticesignsofanxietythatareinhibitingtheirdailyroutine. Theiranxietyiscausingseverebehavioralissuesordestructivebehaviors. Ifyourpupappearswindedafterlightphysicalactivity. Yourpupappearsweakorcollapsesduringphysicalactivity. Ifyourdog’sactivityislaboredduetotheirweight. You’venoticedsignsofpainalongwiththeirpantingandpacing. Youhavenoticedgastrointestinalsymptoms. Yourdogisdisplayinganysignsofrespiratorydistressorlaboredbreathing. Yourpupingestedaknowntoxin You’venoticedyourdogdisoriented,slow,oroff-balance. Ifyourpupisexperiencinganyoftheabovesymptomsalongwiththeirpantingandpacing,it’sbesttocontactyourveterinarianimmediatelyforfurthercare. HelpingYourDogAtHome Ifyourdogispantingandpacingathomewithoutanyoftheconcerningsymptomswementionedabove,westillrecommendyoucallyourvet.Thereareafewthingsyoucandoathomeaswelltohelpcalmyourdogbeforeyoucall. Step1:StopPhysicalActivity First,it’simportanttopullthemawayfromanyphysicalactivitythatiscausingthemtobecomeworkedup.Iftheyhavebeguntopantandappearoverworked,it’stimetocallitquits.Youcanalwaysresumetheplaysessionatalatertime. Step2:BringYourPuptoaCoolerClimate Thenextfactortoconsideristhetemperatureintheircurrentenvironment.Ifyourdogisoutdoorsonahotdayandtheybegintopant,it’simportanttobringthemintoacoolerclimatetohelpthemcooldown.Youcanalsoofferthemcoolwateraswell. Step3:RemoveAllStimuli Onceyouhavepulledyourpupfromtheactivityandbroughtthemintoacoolenvironment,it’sbesttoremoveanystimuliandallowthemtocalmdownwithoutanydistractions.Thiswillhelpthemcalmdownatafasterrate.Hopefully,itwillalsostoptheirpanting,pacing,andrestlessness. **Ifyouhaveperformedtheabovetasksandyourdogisunabletostoppantingafter30minutesto1hour,contactyourveterinarian.Ifyourdogrecentlyate,andthenexercisedandisshowingsymptoms,donotwait.Thiscouldbebloat,whichisapotentiallyfatalconditionindogs.** FinalThoughts Asyoucansee,therearemanyfactorsthatcouldcauseadogtopantandpace.Inmostcases,panting,pacingandrestlessnessmayjustbeyourdog’swayofshowingyoutheyareconcernedabouttheirenvironment.It’stypicallynotsomethingtobeconcernedaboutunlessthebehaviorisconsistent. Author'sSuggestion HowToStopYourDogFromEatingWood,Sticks&Debris LeaveaComment CancelReply PostComment MoreFromInformation InformationWhyDoDogsSit,SleeporLayonYourFeet?Here’s8Reasons! 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