Spoon Tongue

[Lucy & AnnaBelle's Mom]

Am I the only one that hasn't heard this phrase or wasn't aware of this sign?

We went to a seminar last night on First Aid/CPR in pets.  Right towards the end they were talking about different medical issues you might face.  When she was talking about Heat Stroke one of the signs that she mentioned was "Spoon Tongue" and then she showed a photo.  It was instant ... I've seen that tongue before.  But I had no clue it was showing me she was too hot.  You can see at the end of her tongue that it sort of gets wider like a spoon.  Another sign is that it will be hanging out the side of her mouth.

[Lori, Daphne, Lucy & Pippa]

I have never heard that before. Now I'm curious and need to look back at some photos to see if that's what I have been calling "pointy tongue".

[Karen, Jasper and Jackdoodle]

I've never heard of it before either, and would have had no idea that it was significant. Interesting. 

[Karen, Jasper and Jackdoodle]

Here's another example:

[Lucy & AnnaBelle's Mom]

Yep ... isn't it interesting.  I also read that many times they will hang it out of the side of their mouth (like AnnaBelle does) to get it out of the way for better airflow.

[F, Calla & Luca]

I'm yet another one who never heard of it.

[Melissa]

I've never heard of this before either! Thank you for letting us know what you learned!! Interesting for sure, and I will be on the look out with my 3 dogs when we are outside enjoying the summer heat!

[Carol and Banjo]

Wow!  I've seen that before.   Thanks for sharing!

[Adina P]

Rosco hangs his tongue out the side from merely a slow walk in 70 degree weather.  It doesn't take much.  I wonder if it needs to be combined with a few other signs to signify a true "problem."

[Haley, Yeti, and Phin]

Yeti's tongue does this and he pants like a crazy guy after only a couple throws of his ball. His tongue also hangs out the side of his mouth a lot so now I'm officially worrying haha. Does anyone have a general rule of thumb to follow when it comes to warm temps / outdoor activity? It's been in the low-mid 70s here so we have been able to play outside a lot but as it gets warmer I'm going to have to start taking him for his daily run in the morning. 

[Karen, Jasper and Jackdoodle]

I wouldn't worry too much about this. There's a huge difference between a dog being warm & panting after exercise, and a dog having heat stroke. Dogs can't sweat, panting is the only way they can cool themselves down. It's the same thing as you sweating after an aerobics class; we all do, and it's perfectly normal, it doesn't mean we have heat stroke. "Spoon tongue" or the tongue hanging out the side of the mouth are not mentioned in any of the veterinary articles I've found about symptoms of heat stroke in dogs. http://www.petmd.com/dog/conditions/cardiovascular/c_dg_heat_stroke

In fact if you google "spoon tongue dogs" all you find is articles about how dogs drink water, which are pretty fascinating. 

[Haley, Yeti, and Phin]

Thank you!! We always have water out for him and a lot of times he doesn't even want any. I figured if he was that hot / thirsty he would drink!