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Being a dog parent is nothing less than being a human child’s parent if nothing more. Sometimes, it is more difficult to be a dog parent as dogs can’t express themselves in the same language as humans. The biggest fear any parent has is about the health of their child. When your child is a four-legged furball, the tension remains the same. So, what you need is an idea regarding ensuring your dog is perfectly fine daily on your own. That is where the dog tongue color chart enters.
Being a dog parent, one is always conscious that their dog is perfectly fine and healthy. For this, they try to ensure that they get regular health checkups done but that is not always possible. We go irregular with them due to various reasons.
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Introduction
Tongue color plays a very important role when it comes to predicting the health of your dog. The color of the tongue is an indicator of a lot of things. The changes in the color of the tongue can tell you a lot about your dog’s health.
Here in this article, we are going to help you in predicting the health of your dog just by observing your dog’s tongue color. This can save you and your dog from future health complications.
In the mouth of a dog, there exist a tongue, teeth, and gums. You need to keep an eye on them as they can be a good health indicator.
While going for the dog tongue color chart approach for their health, keep in mind that their tongue’s health does not signify their overall health but if you observe any color change, that surely signifies something about their health.
1. Why the tongue has a color?
The color of the tongue naturally is because of the mucus membrane. However, sometimes the change in color is because of the food that might leave color residue on the tongue, for example – beetroot or orange.
2. What is the natural color of a dog’s tongue?
Naturally, the dogs’ have a blue or purple-colored tongue or any shade of pink.
3. How to know if the tongue color of your dog has changed?
Notice the color of your dog’s tongue for 2-3 days. If it remains the same, which is different from their original tongue color, even after multiple meals, then surely it has changed.
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Which color signifies what?
Here is the dog tongue color chart and what it signifies –
- Pink – Sign of a perfectly healthy dog.
- Red – Sign of diseases like diabetes, kidney issues, bacteria, melanoma, etc.
- Yellow – Sign of liver or gall bladder problems. It can be a sign of jaundice too.
- Purple/Blue – A sign of lack of oxygen in the body, can be a signal of Hypoxia, cyanosis, and liver disease.
- White/Pale – Indicates a lack of red blood cells in the body, and can be a signal of Leukemia, anemia, internal bleeding, etc.
A few breeds of dogs have originally purple-colored tongues so, their purple tongue does not signify a lack of oxygen in the body. For eg., Chow-Chow and Sher Pei have blue-purple tongues.
Signals you might catch if your dog is dealing with some sort of tongue problems
- Your dog might be reluctant to eat or maybe eat less than its usual diet. They don’t enjoy food in such cases.
- The dog will chew the food abnormally because the normal chewing motion might be a little painful to them. Keep an eye on their chewing motion.
- Whenever you notice excessive drool, take it seriously. It might be a signal of something.
- Sometimes, you can see blood in their spit and drool. Just keep in mind that sometimes it can be because of some cut in their mouth. See to it carefully if it is because of the cut or not. If not, take it seriously and approach a vet.
- A bad smell from the mouth is also a signal of bad health. It shows that some undesirable bacterias might be growing on their tongue.
Conclusion of Dog Tongue Color Chart
Though, the dog tongue color chart is an amazing indicator but not a foolproof way to be sure about your dog’s health.
While the change in the color of the tongue of your dog can surely signify a few diseases, the absence of a change in color does not signify that your dog is perfectly healthy.
Don’t rely on the dog tongue color chart as a substitute for regular vet visits. The annual vet visits can help in detailed health check-ups which no human is capable of predicting just by observing the tongue color.
The dog tongue color chart is a supplement to the regular vet visits, not a substitute.