Emergency & Urgent Care Vocabulary

Difficult, labored, or painful breathing indicating an inability to ventilate lungs or oxygenate blood adequately.

A sudden, temporary loss of consciousness and postural muscle tone followed by spontaneous, rapid recovery.

An uncoordinated, clumsy, or stumbling gait caused by sensory or neurological dysfunction without weakness or paralysis.

A catastrophic medical and surgical emergency where the stomach fills with gas and twists on its mesenteric axis, cutting off blood supply.

A life-threatening bacterial infection and pus accumulation inside the uterus of intact female animals.

An informal yet universally recognized veterinary clinical shorthand for "Ain’t Doing Right," denoting vague, non-specific malaise or illness without localized signs.

A clinical demeanor assessment indicating that an animal is conscious and responds to stimuli, but is calm, subdued, timid, or mildly lethargic.

A clinical demeanor assessment denoting an animal that is mentally alert, visually interactive, and energetically engaged with their environment.

A clinical medical chart abbreviation indicating that an anatomical structure, organ system, or laboratory test value falls completely within expected healthy parameters.

A yellow discoloration of the skin, sclera (whites of the eyes), gums, and mucous membranes caused by high levels of bilirubin in the blood.

An emergency diagnostic and therapeutic procedure in which a needle or catheter is inserted through the chest wall into the pleural space to evacuate fluid or air.

A diagnostic or therapeutic puncture of the abdominal wall using a needle or catheter to aspirate free peritoneal fluid.