My dog crashed after surgery. What does this medical term mean?

First off, I'm so sorry Choko died! It sounds like you were seeing agonal breathing, which can occur right before death. It's a sign the body is not receiving the oxygen it needs, and is indicative of cardiac arrest. More than likely, his heart rate was pretty slow at first so that it was hard to detect, and then Choko entered his final stages of life before passing away. This can happen in animals as they pass away, and I've personally seen it myself. It can be upsetting to see, but it is considering a natural behavior if that makes sense. It doesn't mean he died twice, so you don't have to worry about that. Again, I'm very sorry for your loss, please accept my condolences.

Hello. I am so sorry for your worries with your pet. There are any number of medical reasons that might explain this, but the most likely would be a seizure (not all are classic grand mal), or a heart issue. The best way to determine the cause is to let your veterinarian do a full exam & blood work to rule out any metabolic or otherwise obvious reasons for the episode. Then, if any treatments or medications are indicated, your veterinarian can discuss all options with you. Thank you for contacting Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach.

Hi, thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach! Wow! How scary for you! You stated that he is a mix breed but can you specify what breeds? Some breeds are genetically predisposed to have over long soft palates, which can cause an upper airway obstruction. We may never know what caused this episode. An ischemic event is possible or a brief vestibular event or even seizure (focal) since he seemed mentally inappropriate. Watch him closely and god forbid if he has another episode try to catch it on video to show to your Vet. I wish you the best!

Thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach! I am so sorry to hear about your pup. These are very general signs that could have happened due to many different conditions such as ones affecting the heart or it could have possibly been due to internal bleeding. It is hard to know with just a brief description provided but those are some things that can affect a dog suddenly. So sorry to hear this again.

I am so very sorry that Sassy's heart stopped in surgery! Unfortunately, this can happen in surgery, and oftentimes there is no known reason for it. Some reasons that this could occur include development of an abnormal heart rhythm, low blood pressure, low body temperature, or anesthetic depth resulting in inadequate respiratory depth or frequency. Anesthesia and surgery both carry risks, and while it is not common to lose a patient during a routine procedure such as a spay on a young and healthy dog, it does happen. I am very sorry for your loss, please accept my condolences.

I’m so sorry for your loss. CPR is not very successful even in a veterinary hospital where there is access to oxygen and drugs. Less than 6% of dogs and cats will be resuscitated following CPR and survive to discharge. Even if you had known CPR I doubt it would have changed things for Neda. If you don’t know what was wrong and want to try to determine a cause of death you could ask your vet about a necropsy (autopsy).

I'm very sorry to hear about the loss of your dog. It's possible that he may have had a stroke or blood clot secondary to his heart disease that traveled to his brain. Or, if he was regularly having collapsing episodes due to his heart (syncope), what you saw may have been one of these that was especially severe, as this is a common cause of sudden death in dogs with severe heart problems. If you want to try to get a more definite answer on what the cause of death may have been, you would need to have an autopsy done, called a necropsy in animals. Your veterinarian should be able to let you know where you can have this done, if it's something you want to pursue. Again, I'm very sorry for your loss.