Does temp have to be taken for 3min?

Question

I have read that temp needs to be taken for at least 3 min but the therm. that I use reads and stops in 60sec. Also a rectal temp is usually 1 degree higher in humans is it this way for dogs too? Or do I take the temp for face value of what it says. I am using a digital therm.

Answer 1

i took a health class in school and we took temp. for 60 sec... hope i could help!

Answer 2

Dogs should have their temperature taken rectal as it is the only way to accurately get a good temperature. The range of an acceptable temperature for a dog is about 100 degrees to 102.5 degrees.

If the thermometer you use stops at 60 seconds, then that's when you stop. You can get inexpensive digital rectal thermometers that beep when they are ready. I would recommend using one of those.

Answer 3

It depends on the thermometer. Old fashioned mercury thermometers need 3 min. due to the low (by modern standards) rate of heat transfer. Digital thermometers may only need 10-30 sec. Ear thermometers (the infrared type) may require only 3 seconds. There's some wacky new temporal thermometer which is supposed to take about a second, but I'm not familiar with it.

When in doubt, follow the directions for the individual product.

Answer 4

1 minutes is perfectly long enough! 3 minutes is not necessary.
For dogs the rectal temp is truly the rectal temp. As far as I know its the same for humans. I've never heard of the 1 degree thing before and usually 1 degree difference isn't going to matter too much anyways!
and just for you to know normal temp for dogs is 99.5-102.5 degrees!

Answer 5

take the temp at face value, that is how all dogs are evaluated. it doesn't have to be for three mins, just make sure the therm. is angled to come in contact with the wall, instead of just fecal matter.