Why Is My Dogs Forehead Hot to the Touch - Learn Common Causes and What You Should Do!
Okay, so the other day, I was petting my dog, and I noticed his forehead felt kinda hot. It totally freaked me out! He was acting all normal, tail wagging, eating fine, you know, the usual stuff. But that warm head just didn’t sit right with me.
I started feeling his ears and paws, trying to figure out if he was hot all over or just on his head. My mind, of course, went straight to the worst-case scenario: fever! I mean, we all know a hot forehead can mean a fever in humans, so why not in dogs, right?
So, I did what any worried dog parent would do – I started digging around for answers. I found out that a bunch of things can make a dog’s forehead feel hot. Yes, fever is one of them, but it’s not the only thing.
- Fever: This is the obvious one. Just like us, dogs get fevers when they’re fighting off something.
- Infection or Inflammation: Turns out, any kind of infection or even inflammation can raise a dog’s body temperature.
- Dehydration: This one surprised me. If a dog isn’t getting enough water, it can actually make them feel warm.
- Just plain worked up: I read that when dogs get excited, stressed or something, their bodies try to cool down, and sometimes that means a warm head!
The thing is, it’s not super easy to tell if a dog has a real fever just by feeling their head. Their normal body temperature is higher than ours anyway. If you use a thermometer and their temperature is over 103F, you gotta call your vet. And apparently, anything over 106F is a major emergency.
Also I read that sometimes dogs just bump their heads against you because they want attention or love. My dog does that all the time! It’s like their way of saying, “Hey, I trust you, and I like being close to you.”
In the end, my dog was fine. I kept a close eye on him, made sure he had plenty of water, and the warm forehead thing went away on its own. He’s still bumping his head against me every chance, so I guess he’s just a lovey-dovey kind of guy. But I’m glad I looked into it because now I know what to watch out for in the future! I’m also definitely getting a doggy thermometer, just in case.
