Intussusception — where one segment of intestine telescopes into an adjacent segment — is a painful surgical emergency in dogs that requires prompt diagnosis and treatment to prevent fatal intestinal strangulation.
Intussusception causes severe acute abdominal pain from intestinal strangulation. Dogs deteriorate rapidly from the point of obstruction — the combination of obstruction, bowel ischaemia, and spreading peritonitis creates escalating systemic illness within hours. Welfare outcomes are directly determined by speed of diagnosis and surgical intervention — dogs presented and operated on within hours of intussusception have excellent prognoses; those in which diagnosis is delayed face bowel necrosis, sepsis, and high mortality rates. Puppy owners and those with recently ill young dogs should be alert to signs of acute abdominal pain following gastrointestinal disease — prompt veterinary assessment is critical.