Health

One might think that growing up in Illinois, Ohio, and Wisconsin would have inured me to the effects of bitter cold, hip-deep snow drifts,...

After consulting with three veterinary surgeons, it was decided that the best course of action for my dysplastic dog was a triple pelvic osteotomy (TPO), where the hip is reformed to create a socket. This procedure was considered experimental 10 years ago when Oak was much in need of it. Today, it is a common surgery for hip dysplasia.

The symptoms of marijuana toxicity will vary based on the dog, but general symptoms in dogs include depression, vomiting, urinary incontinence, ataxia (wobbliness), tremors, stupor, and bradycardia (slow heart rate). However, Dr. Wismer explains about 25% of dogs exposed to cannabis will become stimulated instead of depressed and show agitation and high heart rate. Dogs with severe marijuana toxicity can develop low blood pressure and coma.

It can take a village to care for a special needs pet. When Catherine Prystup from Texas offered to foster Kanuk, a dog who could not use his back legs, she relied on the "Team Kanuk" approach.

Kanis Fitzhugh, a member of the Almost Home organization, knew she had to rescue Pandy, an extremely thin and seemingly vicious four-year-old Dachshund. Pandy had been relinquished to a shelter in Orange County (California), who turned her over to Southern California Dachshund Rescue. Deemed people- and animal-aggressive, Pandy appeared to have been starved, and weighed just 13 pounds. Fitzhugh thought the dog deserved a break, and brought Pandy home in May 2007. During the first couple of weeks in her new home, Pandy managed to pull a chicken down from the counter and proceeded to eat the entire bird, including bones, plastic tray, and grocery bag, in less than the 10 minutes that Fitzhugh was out of the room. Pandy was rushed to the vet and emergency surgery was performed, as the bones had ruptured her stomach lining in three places. Luckily, she survived. Pandy's voracious appetite, large voluminous stools, and aggressive disposition were all caused by a medical condition called exocrine pancreatic insufficiency (EPI). With Fitzhugh's loving care, including enzyme supplements and a change of diet, Pandy stabilized. Within a year, Pandy had transformed into a beautiful, funny, 26-pound Dachshund who gets along great with all the human and animal members in the Fitzhugh household. Exocrine Pancreatic Insufficiency, or EPI, also referred to as Pancreatic Hypoplasia or Pancreatic Acinar Atrophy (PAA), is a disease of maldigestion and malabsorption, which when left untreated eventually leads to starvation. One of the major difficulties with this disease is in the prompt and accurate diagnosis. Astonishingly, visible symptoms may not appear until 80 to 95 percent of the pancreas has atrophied.

Immune-mediated hemolytic anemia (IMHA) is a potentially deadly condition in dogs. You may also see it as autoimmune hemolytic anemia (AIHA) or autoimmune anemia.

Dogs can get herpes, and have their own form of the herpes virus. Canine herpesvirus—also known as canine herpes—is a disease that is nearly...

and then waits for Tater to offer an approximation of "dead." (Above) Once Tater offers "dead

Brachycephalic dog breeds, while incredibly cute, are the result of repeated passing on of genetic defects of the bones of the face and skull. While these anatomical defects create the cuteness we can’t resist, they also cause a multitude of problems.

Prevention of mastitis involves keeping the nursing environment as clean as possible. It’s wise to try to prevent trauma to the mammary glands by eliminating sharp objects in the whelping box and trimming the puppies’ toenails. Make sure the puppies are nursing from all the teats to keep the glands drained (in small litters, rotate through each of the teats).

Water intoxication in dogs is the result of sodium levels being too low or too high. Either due to ingesting too much water in too short of time, or ingesting sea water leading to too much sodium.

Corticosteroids are perhaps the most enigmatic of all the drugs in the western medicine man's arsenal. It has been said by many practitioners that they are the most used and most abused of all our medicines. Corticosteroids are a necessary component of a healthy physiology and they can be life saving ... or they can cause multiple adverse side effects that can be devastating to a dog's health and well-being.