Signs your pet needs a vet now

Cornell's Feline Health Center calls urethral obstruction a true medical emergency that needs immediate veterinary attention. A blocked cat strains, keeps trying to urinate and produces little if any urine, and becomes more and more distressed, often crying in pain. Male and neutered male cats are at greater risk. Cornell warns that the time from a complete blockage to death may be less than 24 to 48 hours.

PDSA's advice is not to watch and wait to see whether the symptoms improve. Owners often mistake straining for constipation, because the cat squats in the tray and nothing seems to happen. If a cat, especially a male, is going in and out of the litter tray and passing nothing, go to a vet now.

Bloat, or gastric dilatation and volvulus, is when the stomach fills with gas and can twist. The Merck Veterinary Manual describes it as a life-threatening emergency that mainly affects large, deep-chested dogs, and names the Dobermann, German Shepherd, Great Dane and Saint Bernard among the breeds most often affected. Signs include restlessness, apparent discomfort, fast breathing, a painful, swollen belly, repeated dry retching and drooling.

Merck advises seeking veterinary care immediately, because prompt treatment improves the chance of survival. PDSA also lists continuous retching with a bloated tummy as a life-threatening emergency. Do not wait to see if your dog passes wind or settles.

These are Petym's practical steps. The clinical rule behind them is the RECOVER guidelines' advice to go to the nearest open veterinary clinic as soon as possible after first aid.

• Save your own vet and the nearest 24-hour vet in your phone today. Petym's vets directory lists 24-hour vets we have checked, city by city.
• Call ahead on the way. PDSA advises ringing so the clinic can prepare for an emergency case.
• Know how you will travel: your own car, a neighbour with a car, or a cab or auto that will take a pet. Not every driver will, so have a second option.
• Keep a carrier for a cat or small dog by the door, and a blanket that can be used as a stretcher for a big dog.
• In a housing society, tell the guard you are leaving in a hurry so the gate and lift are not a delay.
• Take your pet's vaccination card, any medicines it takes and, for a poisoning, the packet or plant.

Because some of the most serious injuries do not show at first. The Merck Veterinary Manual lists severe pain, uncontrolled bleeding, breathing trouble, eye injuries, suspected broken bones and poisoning as emergencies needing immediate care. A dog that walks away from a scooter can still be bleeding inside, and a cat that falls from a balcony can have chest injuries that only show as faster breathing later.

The 2026 RECOVER guidelines put it simply: every animal that needs first aid should be seen by a vet as soon as possible. If you are in two minds, phone the vet and describe what happened. Let them decide whether it can wait.

Pets meet snakes in long grass, overgrown gardens and construction sites, and many Indian monsoon walks pass all three. The Merck Veterinary Manual calls a venomous snakebite a true emergency and says owners should not spend time on first aid beyond keeping the animal quiet and limiting its activity. Cutting the wound, suction, ice, tourniquets and electric shock do not work and can harm.

Merck also notes that with cobra-family bites, pain and swelling are usually minimal, so a lack of swelling does not mean a bite was harmless. If you saw a snake near your pet, or your pet yelped and is now weak, drooling or wobbly, go to a vet now. Take a photo of the snake only if you can do it from a safe distance.

Every Petym sitter completes pet first-aid training before their first booking and has a named 24-hour vet within reach. If a sitter sees an emergency sign, the sitter will call you and take your pet to the nearest 24-hour vet on the city's list. The daily photo update and the pet's plan, logged as it happens, help a sitter notice when something has changed.

Before you travel, add your vet, the nearest 24-hour vet and any known health conditions to your pet's care sheet, and say how the sitter can reach you at any hour.