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Our Jack Russel overworked herself running is she ok?

We went to the dog park and she was chasing her ball for a while. When we left she was panting very heavy and her legs were spazeming and shaking. She was fully responsive and eventually cooled down but was spazeming in her legs for about 10 minutes

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Dogs will sometimes run themselves sick. They are not like people who will take a break when they are tired. Make sure she takes mini-breaks while playing. Give her water & a place in the shade to cool off & recover. One cue is the "lizard tongue" where it looks like their tongues are too big to fit in their mouth. It is tough to make a high energy dog take a break, but it is for her own good.

Wiley answered on Jun 21st.

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If this ever happens again, you need to calm her down and get her to a shaded area or a building with air conditioning and have her lay down. She may have just been over-excited, but it could have been that your Jack Russell was getting too hot or too tired. If she doesn't get vigorous excersise, and you notice her doing this, you may want to get a veteranrian to look at her.

Buckeye answered on 6/20/10. Helpful? / 0

If you are sure that was the only problem, then the next time you take her out, take along some water, dab some around her neck and paws. This will help cool her quicker. Maybe take a break every 15 minutes or so to get hydrated and cooled off.

If she hasn't made a full recovery by morning, you had better take her in for a check up. If she gets worse through the night, you may need to find an emergency vet. She could be too severely dehydrated and need IV fluids, but it sounds like she just over did it a bit. Hopefully she will be just fine.

Good luck!!!

Gidget answered on 6/20/10. Helpful? / 0

Dog parks are great for excersize, fun and socialization but I think that a 30-40 minute span is just right for the length of visit (most dogs). If your dog is extra-active at a dog park, consider taking a calm walk before your visit to the dog park and keep your visit to 15-20 minutes. My dog is not as excited at the dog park. She loves other dogs and plays in an open field or on leash, but is always the submissive one and seems to believe she is near the bottom of the totem poll in any dog park. Some dogs get crazy-excited, but you have to watch and make sure they don't over do it. That's all it sounds like to me. Think about when you or I lift something incredibly heavy; our muscles can twitch for a few minutes too. Sounds similar to me. : )

Poky Little Puppy answered on 6/23/10. Helpful? / 0

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