Dehydration decreases the effectiveness of the kidneys, which means levels of aspirin are likely to rise if you give your dog aspirin. This creates another vicious circle whereby the aspirin impairs the function of the kidneys, which can then lead to kidney damage.To tell if your dog is dehydrated, grasp a fold of his scruff between his shoulders and lift it away from his backbone. Let go of the skin and watch to see how quickly it springs back into position. In a well-hydrated dog this happens instantly. If the dog is dehydrated the skin "tents", which means it retains a peaked shape for a second or two, before drifting down to the normal position.
 Clotting disorders refer to an inability of the blood to form clumps and stop bleeding from occurring. One such disease is Von Willebrand’s disease.


Aspirin slows down platelet aggregation (the building blocks of a clot) which is bad news if the dog already has a tendency towards bleeding.
 This is because many heart diseases are treated either with furosemide or digoxin, both of which should not be taken with aspirin.


If your dog has epilepsy and takes phenobarbitone, you should also avoid giving your dog aspirin.
 Aspirin should never be given on an empty stomach, so do not give it to your dog if your dog has not eaten.


If you give your dog aspirin when he has an empty stomach, his risk of developing stomach ulcers increases.
Do not give aspirin to dogs that have diarrhea, as aspirin heightens the risk of complications such as gastric irritation and ulceration.
 If your dog is taking any of the following medications, do not give him aspirin.Aminoglycoside antibiotics: There is a slightly increased risk of renal damage if these two medications are given together.
Corticosteroids: Steroids cause aspirin to be less effective by speeding up its excretion via the kidney. To receive adequate pain relief, a higher than recommended dose is necessary and this promotes gastric ulceration.
Digoxin: Aspirin causes blood levels of digoxin (a heart medication) to rise which can cause toxicity leading to a heart attack.
Furosemide: Diuretics (drugs that cause fluid excretion) compete for excretion and so levels of aspirin can rise unexpectedly if the furosemide wins.
Heparin: Aspirin magnifies the anticoagulant effect of heparin (an anticoagulant) which can lead to bleeding problems.
NSAIDs: Never combine aspirin with NSAIDs since this is equivalent to doubling up and promotes kidney failure and gastric ulceration.
Phenobarbital: Aspirin increases the rate of excretion of phenobarbital, which causes a fall in blood levels of this anticonvulsant, which could allow seizures to break through.
If your dog is on a medication that is not listed above, always check with the prescribing veterinarian before starting aspirin therapy.
Never give aspirin to a dehydrated dog.
Do not give a dog aspirin that has a clotting disorder.
Make sure to avoid giving your dog aspirin if he has a heart condition.
Feed your dog before giving him aspirin.
Familiarize yourself with the drugs that do not react well with aspirin.
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