The outdoors can be pretty dangerous for your pets when discovering new surroundings and even in your back yard you might find things that are threatening to them. One such problem is the presence of bees which can be very harmful to them, so here is our guide on how to treat bee stings on pets.
The first thing you need to do is make sure the sting was that of a bee and not something else (if you didn’t witness the event with your own eyes). Redness, swelling and a large bump is what you should see at first and if these symptoms are present then you should start taking care of the wound.
For dogs the most widely used medicine is Diphenhydramine and the veterinary doctor will probably give the pet a shot of it since this way it acts faster to relieve the pain. This medicine is found on the market under different names depending on your region and it treats allergic symptoms.
Most pets don’t have more severe reactions to the bees, but this isn’t always the case. You must carefully watch your pet for the following days to see if other problems come up that might be a reaction to the sting.
The hints that your pet might be allergic to bees are seen with sudden diarrhea, severe itchiness and hives. These reactions lead to weakness, drooling, cold limbs and even an anaphylactic shock so if you see any of these reactions you should immediately seek veterinary attention.
If a simple pill or shot of Benadryl would work in the usual cases, the severe reactions will require some steroid shots to calm the inflammation and if there is an anaphylactic shock IV fluids as well as support for breathing will be required. This means that you will have to leave the pet for a few days to be monitored and receive continued treatment.
There is quite a low frequency of severe reactions to bee stings so you don’t need to be alarmed, but if you go through such an event you will probably want to keep your pet away from such curiosities in the future.
The threat of spiders and bees isn’t something that should keep you and your pet from exploring parks or woods and in some cases you might not even notice the sting. The only thing that is required is to be prepared and know what could happen and why you should seek a vet when seeing some of the symptoms described above.
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