Content
Nosebleed is called "epistaxis" and, in dogs, it can have several causes, from the mildest ones, such as an infection, to the more serious ones, such as poisoning or clotting problems. In this article by PeritoAnimal, we will explain the possible causes of because your dog bleeds through the nose.
We must say that although see a dog bleeding from the nose tends to be alarming, in most cases epistaxis is caused by mild and easily treatable conditions. In other cases, the vet will be responsible for diagnosis and treatment.
Infections
Some infections that affect the nasal or even oral area can explain why a dog bleeds through the nose. Your dog may bleed through the nose and have difficulty breathing, noises when inhaling and exhaling. Sometimes you can also see your dog bleeding from the nose and coughing.
The inside of the nose is covered with a mucosa that is highly irrigated by blood vessels. Therefore, its erosion, due to different factors such as chronic infections caused by bacteria or fungi, can lead to bleeding.
Other times, the infection does not occur in the nasal region, but in the mouth. One abscess dental, for example, can cause bleeding from the nose. If this abscess ruptures in the nasal cavity, it causes a oronasal fistula which will show symptoms such as a unilateral runny nose and sneezing, especially after the dog feeds. These infections must be diagnosed and treated by the veterinarian.
foreign bodies
Another common explanation of a dog bleeding from the nose is the presence of a foreign body inside the dog. In these cases, it is common to see that the dog bleeds through the nose when sneezing, as the main sign that some material is lodged in the dog's nose is a sudden attack of sneezing. In the dog's nose it is possible to find foreign bodies such as spikes, seeds, bone fragments or wood chips.
Its presence irritates the mucosa and makes the dog rub your nose with your feet or against any surface in an attempt to get rid of the discomfort. The sneezing and sores that some of these foreign bodies can cause are responsible for the nosebleed that sometimes occurs. If you can see the object inside from the nostrils with the naked eye, you can try to extract it with tweezers. If not, you should go to your vet to have it removed, as an object lodged in the nostrils can cause problems such as infections.
if you notice any lump in the dog's nose, you should consult your veterinarian, as it may be a polyp or nasal tumor, conditions that can also cause nose bleeds, in addition to obstructing, to a greater or lesser degree, the passage of air. Tumors in the sinuses and sinuses occur more often in older dogs. In addition to bleeding and noises due to tamponade, you may notice a runny nose and sneezing. The treatment of choice is usually surgery, and the polyps, which are not cancer, can be recurrent. The prognosis for the tumors will depend on whether they are benign or malignant, a feature your veterinarian will determine with a biopsy.
Coagulopathies
Another possible cause of a dog bleeding from the nose is clotting disorders. For coagulation to occur, a series of elements they need to be present in the blood. When any of them are missing, spontaneous bleeds can occur.
Sometimes this deficiency can be caused by poisoning. For example, some rodenticides prevent the dog's body from producing vitamin K, an essential substance for proper coagulation. The deficit of this vitamin causes the dog to suffer nose and rectal hemorrhages, vomit with blood, bruises, etc. These cases are veterinary emergencies.
Sometimes these clotting disorders are hereditary, as can be the case with von Willebrand disease. In this condition, which can affect both males and females, there is a deficient functioning of platelets that can manifest as nose and gingival bleeding or blood in feces and urine, although the bleeds are often not noticeable and, in addition, they decrease with age.
THE hemophilia it also affects clotting factors, but the disease only manifests in males. There are other clotting deficits, but they are less common. Diagnoses of these conditions are made using specific blood tests. If severe bleeding occurs, blood transfusions will be needed.
Finally, there is a non-hereditary but acquired bleeding disorder called disseminated intravascular coagulation (DIC) which manifests itself in some situations, such as during infections, heat stroke, shock, etc. in the form of bleeding from the nose, mouth, gastrointestinal tract, etc., constituting an extremely serious disorder that usually causes the dog's death.
This article is for information purposes only, at PeritoAnimal.com.br we are not able to prescribe veterinary treatments or perform any type of diagnosis. We suggest that you take your pet to the veterinarian in case it has any type of condition or discomfort.