# Newborn and Young Baby: When to Call the Pediatrician or 911

> When to call the pediatrician or 911 for a newborn or young baby: fever under 3 months, breathing, feeding, jaundice, vomiting and behavior.

Stage: newborn - Topic: Health - Page: https://www.askcladle.com/guides/newborn/newborn-red-flags-when-to-call

Grounded in: AAP HealthyChildren symptom guidance ("Fever and Your Baby") and CDC guidance. This is general information and does not replace the pediatrician.

Reviewed: 2026-10

**Call now:** Under 3 months, a rectal temperature of 100.4°F (38°C) or higher: call the pediatrician now. Blue lips, trouble breathing, or a baby who won't wake: call 911.

## TLDR

- Call 911 for blue or gray lips, struggling to breathe, a limp baby who can't be woken, or a seizure.
- Under 3 months, a rectal temperature of 100.4°F (38°C) or higher means call the pediatrician right away, even if the baby seems well.
- Under 12 weeks, call before giving any medicine. Also call for poor feeding, fewer wet diapers, or fast or grunting breathing.

## Call 911

Blue or gray lips or skin; struggling to breathe, long breathing pauses or stopping breathing; a
baby who is limp, unresponsive or can't be woken; a seizure.

## Call the pediatrician right away, day or night

- Fever under 3 months: a rectal temperature of 100.4°F (38°C) or higher, or a low temperature
  (below about 97.5°F / 36.4°C). Call right away even if the baby seems well, and before giving any
  medicine. At 3-6 months the AAP threshold for a call is 101°F (38.3°C). Ear thermometers aren't
  reliable under 6 months.
- Breathing: fast breathing, grunting with every breath, flaring nostrils, or skin pulling in
  between the ribs.
- Feeding and diapers: feeding poorly, too sleepy to feed, refusing several feeds, or fewer wet
  diapers than expected.
- Skin: yellow skin in the first 24 hours, or jaundice spreading to the belly or legs; a rash with
  fever; redness spreading around the cord.
- Vomiting: green, forceful after every feed, or bloody; blood in the stool.
- Behavior: nonstop crying for more than 2 hours, a bulging soft spot, crying when touched, a weak or high-pitched cry, unusually floppy or
  very hard to wake.
- Trust your gut. If something seems wrong, call; the after-hours line exists for this.

## Medicine safety

- Under about 12 weeks, call the pediatrician before giving any medicine, including acetaminophen.
- Dose fever medicine by weight from the pediatrician's or the package's chart, use only the
  syringe that comes with it (not kitchen spoons), and don't combine products that both contain
  acetaminophen. No cough and cold medicines for babies.