posted by Tess on Jan 6
What is Cushing’s Disease?
Cushing’s disease is also known as hyperadrenocorticism and is characterized by the over-production of hormones from the adrenal glands. The extra high levels of these hormones in your pet’s body can cause varied and serious symptoms.
Function and definition of the adrenal glands
The adrenal glands are two, small bean-shaped structures situated above each of your pet’s two kidneys. They consist of two separate regions: an inner adrenal medulla surrounded by an outer adrenal cortex.
The adrenal glands release a wide variety of hormones. The medulla is responsible for producing epinephrine and norepinephrine (adrenaline). These hormones control the body’s reaction to stress and affect blood pressure and heart rate. The adrenal cortex produces hormones such as cortisone and aldosterone which are necessary for balancing fluid and electrolytes (salt) in the body as well as regulating the use of dietary protein, fats and carbohydrates and controlling inflammation.
What are the symptoms of Cushing’s Disease?
High levels of corticosteroids in the body can cause a number of health problems in pets including:
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posted by Tess on Jan 5
Question:
Our dog has an itching problem. We have taken him to the vet, tried many home remedies, changed his diet and tried over the counter remedies for him. I see the dry skin and feel it is eczema, psoriosys or something along those lines but the vet say no. Do you have a product that may help his itching? He is a very important part of our family and my heart is breaking that we cannot find something to help him. We will be playing and he will have to stop and scratch for minutes at a time…not just a casual “hold on I have an itch” kind of scratch.
Thank you for your time,
Jill
Answer:
Hi Jill
Thanks for your query. There are two things that we can recommend to help your dog.
Firstly, our Skin and Coat Dr will address any tendency to eczema as well as improve the condition of your dog’s coat and skin.
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posted by Tess on Jan 4
Anything that irritates the air passages causes sneezing and coughs. The cause can be anything from a foreign substance to an infection or even a medical condition like tuberculosis.
Coughing by itself is self-perpetuating and causes dryness in the throat, which in turn causes more coughing. Coughs may occur in spells and abruptly or may even be chronic. Coughs are also classified as dry, moist, wheezy, choking and weak.
Dog coughing is a problem that pet owners face every now and then. However, since there are various causes of canine cough it becomes difficult to pin point the exact reason for the coughing bouts that your dog might be experiencing. Sometimes, it helps to keep a note of how and when the dog coughs to establish the real cause behind the condition.
Coughing when the dog is resting may indicate problems with heart function, trachea and lungs. On the other hand coughing when excited or while drinking water indicates irritation in the trachea. A problem with the voice box (larynx) or esophagus usually leads the dog to cough during or after meals. An overweight small dog whose cough sounds like a goose is a symptom of tracheal collapse.
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posted by Tess on Jan 3
The decision to have your dogs ears cropped is a matter of preference. Some pet owners believe that a boxer looks much better with cropped ears and therefore opt for a surgical alteration in the structure. Others feel that the soft floppy ears give a soft look to their pet.
Many who are sensitive to animal suffering explicitly voice their dissent about this cruelty that is being meted out to some breeds of dogs. I personally feel that the boxer has been provided by the floppy ears by nature to actually cushion the otherwise gloomy expression that the breed has.
But there are people who prefer to crop the ears of their boxer pets to allow easy cleaning of the ear and prevent dog ear mites. They normally want to do this because drooping ears aid in creating a favorable environment for ear mites to breed. Let me explain how it happens.
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posted by Tess on Jan 2
Prednisone is a synthetic corticosteroid used by many veterinarians to treat a wide variety of conditions in dogs including:
* Disorders of the central nervous system.
* Endocrinal disorders like Cushings disease and Addisons disease.
* Neoplastic conditions that is growth of tumors.
* Immune mediated diseases.
* Emergency situations like spinal chord trauma.
* Inflammation related respiratory and bowel disorders.
Side effects of prednisone depend directly on the quantum and duration of the drug administered. Short term use of prednisone is less likely to cause any damaging side effects. It is only when the dose reaches an immunosuppressive level when the side effects start causing concern.
Overdose of prednisone can cause suppression of normal adrenal functions, Cushing’s disease in dogs and destabilization of metabolism if withdrawn abruptly. Short term use can cause excessive urination abnormal hunger and an increase in the appetite for dogs. Prolonged use, even in recommended dosages may cause:
* Diarrhea.
* Gastrointestinal ulcers.
* Inflammation in the pancreas.
* Muscle degeneration.
* Vomiting.
* Weight gain.
* Diabetes.
* Behavioral changes.
* Skin and hair coat problems.
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posted by Tess on Jan 1
Your pet depends on you for feeding, playing and discipline among other things and you as a pet owner depend on it for companionship and a connection with the animal world and in case of dogs, for household security and protection. Your pet is very special to you as you are to him. For these reasons and more, you should protect your pet from harm, and yourself from loss, by getting him a tag, lest it gets stolen or strays.
A pet tag is generally a small flat tag worn on collars or harnesses by household pets like dogs and cats, usually with identifying information such as the owner’s telephone number so that the owner can be notified if the dog is lost or strays. Dog collar tags hang on your dog’s collar and provides all the necessary information for calling your dog, contacting you as the owner, and alerting people to your dog’s dietary restrictions if it gets lost or strays. Some dog tags also include vaccination information, such as when your dog last received shots and when is the next one due.
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posted by Tess on Dec 31
A simple sugar, glucose, is what the body needs the most to supply energy to the various body cells. This is provided through a complex process known as metabolism. One of the most important functions that go on in the body is to transfer the body’s main fuel, glucose, from the blood stream to the cells.
For transferring glucose to different cells, the pancreas in the body secretes insulin that acts in three ways.
* It prevents the liver from producing excess amounts of glucose.
* It helps the body in storing sugar for use in the future.
* It creates pathways to deliver glucose to the cells so that they get the energy they need to grow.
A defect in the pancreas due to inflammation, infection, injury or otherwise can hamper this process and the resultant condition that leads to high levels of blood sugar is known as diabetes mellitus, or simply diabetes in cats, dogs and other animals. Of the two types of diabetes mellitus, insulin dependent diabetes is more common in dogs.
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posted by Tess on Dec 30
A puppy’s teeth start appearing when he is about four weeks old. These are deciduous (temporary) or baby teeth that do not have roots. By the time the young dog is about six weeks old, most of the deciduous canine, incisive and molar teeth are in place. As puppies are liable to bite their mother’s nipples, puppies are generally weaned as soon as the first set of teeth start appearing.
Being deciduous teeth, these teeth start falling off as the roots of the permanent teeth start pushing upwards. The process of replacement is usually complete by the time the dog is about eight months old. The incisors are the first deciduous teeth to fall off and the molars are generally the last.
When the deciduous teeth are being replaced by permanent ones, is when dog owners start observing the first signs of canine bad breath. Bad dog breath in puppies during this time is normal and can be easily addressed with a dog oral breath spray.
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posted by Tess on Dec 25
While pursuing longevity for domestic pets, the medial fraternity did not probably bargain for the accompanying risks of cancer, which is mostly seen in older pets. Moreover, as long as we feed an unnatural diet to our pets and abuse the environment, pet owners are likely to continue facing problems with cancer in their pets.
Seeing pets die slowly killer diseases like dog liver cancer and lymphoma in cats is indeed not something that any pet lover would want.
Many of us do not realize that it is natural for animals to resort to ‘self treatment’ in the wild. Most of them nibble at things that are actually not their natural diet. It has been seen that this happens only when the animal is not completely healthy and therefore is actually a means of herbal self medication. This forms the basis on which herbal and natural medicine for pets is based.
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posted by Tess on Dec 23
As in humans, skin is the largest organ in your pet’s body too. But unlike humans your pet’s skin is concealed by a coat that hides any changes that may be occurring beneath it. And though humans easily detect small changes that may occur on the skin, certain pet skin ailments can only be detected by understanding pet behavior.
Excessive itching and scratching is the first give-away symptom that can help you to understand that there is something wrong with your pet. Most of the times, it is this behavior that turns minor problems like cat dandruff and feline acne into serious skin problems like excessive feline hair loss and eczema.
Dogs run an increased risk and dog skin problems are among the most common health disorders that dog owners have to deal with.
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