It can be very hard to know when to take your dog to an veterinarian. Dogs are very tough animals and are known to be able to endure a lot of different ailments. However, dogs do need great medical care when it comes time to take them to the veterinarian. It can just be hard to know when to take your dog to the vet. Here are a few of the most common times that you should take your dog to the veterinarian.

First-Year Puppy Shots

During the first year of your dog's life, you are going to want to make sure that you are able to get the dog's shots. There are multiple times that you should get the shots, and during each trip, the veterinarian is going to give you dog a new shot. It may seem like a lot of shots and vaccinations, but just imagine how terrible you would feel if your dog did get kennel cough or parvo. When you get your dog's shots through the year, you will be able to rest easy knowing that your dog has been taken care of very well. 

Getting Fixed

There are multiple reasons to get your dog fixed before it first goes into heat if it is a female, and before puberty for a male. One of the biggest benefits is that you will no longer have to worry about any of the reproductive cancers that kill a lot of dogs. However, you will also notice that dogs that have been fixed tend to behave much better. This is especially true of male dogs. Once the testosterone is removed from the system, they no longer have the insatiable desire to breed. They will also not pee on everything in sight. 

Bloat

There are emergencies that will call for medical treatment. If your dog starts to act different in any way, you may want to consider going to an emergency veterinarian. Bloat is one of the most common reasons to take a trip to the emergency veterinarian. This occurs when a knot happens to develop in the intestines or when there is an obstruction in the digestive system. Some of the ways you can tell that your dog has bloat are restlessness and failure to vomit although trying to. This is a very serious condition and needs medical attention as soon as possible to save the dog's life. 

For more information, contact a veterinarian at an animal hospital such as Metzger Animal Hospital.