From: tittle@ics.uci.edu (Cindy Tittle Moore)
Newsgroups: rec.pets.dogs,news.answers
Subject: rec.pets.dogs:  Canine Medical Information FAQ
Supersedes: <dogs-faq/medical-info_721807216@athena.mit.edu>
Followup-To: poster
Date: 15 Dec 1992 18:59:47 GMT
Organization: University of California at Irvine: ICS Dept.
Expires: 28 Jan 1993 18:59:02 GMT
Reply-To: tittle@ics.uci.edu
NNTP-Posting-Host: pit-manager.mit.edu
X-Last-Updated: 1992/10/06

Archive-name: dogs-faq/medical-info
Version: 1.0
Last-modified: 6 October 1992

This is one (of ten) of the FAQ (Frequently Asked Questions) Lists
for rec.pets.dogs.  It is posted on a monthly basis: updates,
additions, and corrections (including attributions) are always
welcome: send email to one of the addresses below.

The ten parts are all archived at pit-manager.mit.edu (18.172.1.27) in
the directory /pub/usenet/news.answers/dogs-faq.  The files are:
introduction, new, health-care, medical-info, training, working,
AKC-titles, misc1, misc2, and references.  To obtain the files, first
try ftp to pit-manager.mit.edu and look under that directory.  If ftp
does not work from your site, then try the mail server: send email to
mail-server@pit-manager.mit.edu with

send usenet/news.answers/dogs-faq/introduction
send usenet/news.answers/dogs-faq/new
send usenet/news.answers/dogs-faq/health-care
send usenet/news.answers/dogs-faq/medical-info
send usenet/news.answers/dogs-faq/training
send usenet/news.answers/dogs-faq/working
send usenet/news.answers/dogs-faq/AKC-titles
send usenet/news.answers/dogs-faq/misc1
send usenet/news.answers/dogs-faq/misc2
send usenet/news.answers/dogs-faq/references

in the body of the message (leave the subject line empty).  If you
don't want all of them, include only the lines of the ones you want.
You do have to repeat the path information for each file.

Changes and additions indicated with |'s.

IV.  Canine Medical Information

  Prologue
  A.  Anal Sacs.
  B.  Anesthetics.
  C.  Breathing Disorders.
  D.  Bloody Stools.
  E.  Brucellosis.
  F.  Canine Parvovirus (CPV).
  G.  Chrondodysplasia (CHD or Chd).
  H.  Distemper.
  I.  Eye Problems.
  J.  Gastric Torsion (gastric dilation, torsion complex).
  K.  Heartworms.
  L.  Hip Dysplasia (HD, or C(anine)HD).
  M.  Infectious Canine Hepatitis.
  N.  Kennel Cough (Infectious Tracheobronchitis).
  O.  Kidney Failure.
  P.  Leptospirosis.
  Q.  Osteochondrosis Dissecans (OCD).
  R.  Thyroid Disorders.



Prologue.

Much of the information found in this article is summarized from
Carlson & Giffin.  I would like to thank them for their informative
and accessible information.  Any mistakes made in the summaries are my
responsibility and not Carlson & Giffin's.  I believe that I am within
copyright laws by using summarizations (no direct quoting, except for
the toxic plants section), my own organization of the material, and
precise acknowledgement where relevant.
                                                   Cindy Tittle Moore

An *excellent* resource that details all aspects of health issues for
dogs, and one that every conscientious dog owner should have is:

Carlson, Delbert G., DVM, and James M. Giffin, MD.  _Dog Owners's
Home Veterinary Handbook_.  Howell Book House, Macmillan Publishing
Company, 866 Third Avenue, New York, NY 10022 USA (1980).  ISBN:
0-87605-764-4 (hardcover).
  This comprehensive book is a complete guide to health care of dogs.
  It lets you know when you can treat the dog, or when you need to
  take it to the vet post-haste.  It lists symptoms so that you may
  inform your vet of relevant information about its condition.  The
  arrangement of the material facilitates rapid reference.
  Illustration of key procedures (pilling, taking pulse/temperature,
  etc).  Lists poisonous substances, including houseplants.


A.  Anal Sacs.

(summarized from Carlson & Giffin)

Normally, anal sacs are emptied when the dog defecates.  Some dogs
with overactive anal glands may require occasional help.  Your vet can
demonstrate the procedure.

Impaction: occurs when the anal sacs fail to empty properly.  This is
more common in smaller breeds.  Squeezing the sacs yourself as needed
will control the problem.

Infection: complicates impaction.  There is blood or pus in the
secretions, and the dog may scoot (drag its rear on the ground).  It
may be painful.  Check with your vet for an antibiotic you can apply
after you empty the sacs.

Abscess: Signs of anal infection, with a swelling at the site of the
gland.  It goes from initially red to a deep purple.  You will have to
have it lanced and cleaned by the vet.

Dogs whose anal sacs become repeatedly infected and/or abscessed will
need to have the glands removed.  Surgery is uncomplicated, although
the dog will have poor bowel control for the next few days after
surgery.  Try putting a pair of small boy's underpants, with the dog's
tail through the third opening, on the dog to contain accidents.


B.  Anesthetics.

Remember that this is not intended as complete information by any
means. Your best source for that is from your veterinarian. Don't be
afraid to ask questions.

1.  Why is anesthesia used for OFA X-rays?  

Most Xrays can be taken without any sort of sedation, but OFA Hip
X-Rays require an abnormal amount of stretching and twisting of the
legs to get the hips into a proper position. Most dogs will struggle
from the pain, and the resulting X-rays can end up blurred. While for
many cases this would be OK, OFA requires very sharp images. It is
possible (as has been mentioned here often) to get acceptable X-rays
without sedation, but it requires a lot of work and experience. If
your vet does not feel comfortable doing X-rays without sedation or
anesthesia you are probably better off getting an experienced vet to
do it.

2.  How dangerous is anesthesia?  

While anesthesia is not without risks, it is most certainly not
guaranteed death for your dog. Your vet anesthetizes dozens of animals
a week without losing them, and your pet should be no exception. There
are a number of different anesthetics available, each with thier own
benifits and risks.  Halothane is probably the most commonly used. It
is a good general purpose anesthesia which is simple to control. A
drawback is that it takes animals up to an hour to completely wake up
from it and they usually behave sedated for up to another 12 hours.
Metophane is less common. It allows very deep levels of sedation for
painful surgeries such as bone surgery or for very large dogs.  It
also has a long recovery time. If your vet uses either of these
anesthetics it is a good idea to schedule the procedure early in the
day so that your dog can be kept under observation for a longer period
of time. (Most vets do this anyway if at all possible). Finally there
is Isoflourane.  This is a quick acting anesthetic which makes it a
little more difficult to monitor, but also causes the least trauma. It
is also much more expensive, and may not be offered by every vet. It
is best used for shorter or nonintrusive procedures such as X-rays,
teeth cleanings and tattoos.

3.  What can I do to improve the odds?  

The greatest danger from anesthetics is improper processing of the
drug by the dogs metabolism.  All these anesthetics are eliminated
from the blood stream through the liver and kidneys.  Older dogs in
particular can have defects in these organs that can cause
complications under anesthesia. If you are concerned about this your
vet can do a preliminary blood panel to detect potential problems. If
your pet has a heart murmur or a respiratory problem make sure your
vet is aware of it. These are not neccessary problems during
anesthesia, but will allow your vet to make an informed decision
should a problem arise.  You should also ask your vet if sie knows of
any problems peculiar to your breed. Sighthounds in particular are
more sensitive to anesthetic and require lower levels to achieve the
same effect.  Make sure that you keep a complete medical history of
your dog and that you take a copy of it with you whenever you change
vets.


C.  Breathing Disorders.

Dogs that breath noisily may have a serious health problem.  For
example, some animals have an elongated palate, which prevents them
from breathing properly.  The animal can also have a hard time
drinking and eating.  This also can affect the heart since it has to
work extra hard to breath.

If your dog has this problem check with your vet.  There is an
operation that can correct the problem of elongated palates.  In any
case, dogs should not be constantly panting and breathing noisily, so
a vet check is in order.


D.  Bloody Stools.

Blood in the stool can appear in several ways, each indicating a
different problem.  Black stools mean bleeding high up in the
digestive tract, most likely a bleeding stomach ulcer.  Reddish stools
indicate blood further down the pipe, after the digestive juices have
been neutralized somewhat.  This can be anything from ulcers in the
small intestine to ulcerative colitis.  Red blotches/streaks on the
surface of the stools (with normal color otherwise) indicate bleeding
in the last segment of the large intestine or rectum, after the stool
has begun to solidify (the function of the large intestine is to
neutralize digestive juices and absorb liquid).  This can be
ulcerative colitis (or some other inflammatory bowel disease) or
bleeding hemorrhoids.  Each of these problems can be very serious, and
in some cases life-threatening (with the exception of hemorrhoids).

Coloring (natural or artificial) in food can also directly color the
stool so you can't be sure of anything without a chemical analysis. A
sudden diet change/addition can also affect stool color.

Get a sample to the vet.  


E.  Brucellosis.

Brucellosis is one of the few venereal diseases among dogs.  It is
associated with testicular atrophy.  It causes sterilization (sometime
obvious, sometimes not) in the male, embryonic reabsorption, abortion,
weak pups that die soon after birth and eventual sterility in females.
Males are contagious for months through their semen, females are
contagious for several weeks after the failed pregnancy.

*Brucellosis may be passed to humans.*  It can cause suppressed immune
systems and sterility in humans.

Diagnosis can be quickly made, although animals tested less than three
weeks after exposure will show negative.  False positives are
possible; followup diagnosis with more reliable methods should follow
any initial positives.

Treatment for brucellosis is not generally very successful and often
very expensive.  Extensive antibiotic therapy, evaluation and
additional testing will add up quickly, with no guarantee of success.
No vaccine is available.

Any animal with brucellosis should not be bred, and should be
eliminated from the kennel or other breeding stock before infecting
the entire colony.  Animals entering the breeding area, male and
female, should be tested for brucellosis PRIOR TO breeding.


F.  Canine Parvovirus (CPV).

This is a recent disease, first noted in the late seventies.  It is
highly contagious and puppies have the highest mortality.  There is a
vaccine available, and you should make sure your dog is up on its
shots.  In some areas where parvo is prevalent, you may need booster
shots every six months instead of every year.  

Parvovirus comes in several forms:

(summarized from Carlson & Giffin)

  * Diarrhea syndrome: Severe depression, loss of appetite, vomiting.
    Extreme pain.  High fever follows with profuse diarrhea.  No other
    disease comes close to matching the amount of diarrhea induced by
    CPV.

  * Cardiac syndrome: Affects the muscles of the heart, especially in
    puppies.  Puppies stop nursing, cry and gasp for breath.  Death
    can occur suddenly or after several days.  Puppies that recover
    often develop chronic congestive heart failure that may kill them
    several months later.

Dogs may have either or both syndromes.  Treatment is difficult,
requiring hospitalization; those who recover are immune.  The quarters
of an infected dog should be thoroughly sterilized; a solution of 1:30
bleach and water is recommended.  As with any use of bleach, make sure
you do not mix it with ammonia, which results in mustard gas and can
kill you and your dog.  Be sure to rinse the bleach off thoroughly
after application.

In the US, there is a current upswing in Parvo infections.  Make sure
your dog is up-to-date on its vaccinations.  Don't let a too-young
puppy roam where possibly infected dogs have been (for example, in the
park).


G.  Chrondrodysplasia


H.  Distemper.

(summarized From Carlson & Giffin)

Distemper is the leading cause of infectious disease death in dogs,
most commonly in unvaccinated puppies 3-8 months of age.  Among
infected dogs: half show little in the way of illness; many show mild
symptoms; and in a few the illness is severe or fatal.  Malnourished
and ill-kept dogs tend to show more acute forms of the disease.
Secondary infections and complications with distemper are common.
Prognosis depends on how quickly the dog is diagnosed and treated, and
which form of the disease the dog has.

There are two stages.  Symptoms in the first stage include fever, loss
of appetite, listlessness, and a watery discharge from the eyes and
nose.  It may appear like a cold -- but dogs do not get colds the way
people do; a "cold" is therefore much more serious in a dog than in a
person.  Within a few days the discharge will thicken: a primary
indication of distemper.  Dry cough, pus blisters on the stomach,
diarrhea (and associated dehydration) may follow.  At this point, the
dog may recover, or proceed on to the second stage which involves the
brain.  Dogs with brain involvement do not usually survive.


I.  Eye Problems.

There are three main eye problems in dogs.  These are CPRA (Central
Progressive Retinal Atrophy), GPRA (Generalized Progressive Retinal
Atrophy), and CEA (Collie Eye Anomaly).

CEA (Collie Eye Anomaly) is the most common form of eye problem found
in the collie, both rough and smooth variety.  It is also found in the
border collie, shetland sheepdog, and bearded collie.  It is believed
to by controlled by a genetic cluster, or large group of genes, and
thus, it is hard to control by breeding, and ranges in severity.

PRA (Progressive Retinal Atrophy) is common in MANY breeds of dogs
(including mixed breeds), and is not isolated to the collie like the
CEA tends to be.

THERE IS NO CORRELATION BETWEEN CEA AND PRA!

Generalized PRA affects the entire retina.  Most dogs with GPRA become
night blind at three and are usually totally blind by five.
Generalized PRA has been detected as early as six weeks in puppies,
and these puppies are usually blind by six to eight months.  An
electroretinography can be used to detect the early signs of PRA.
Animals to be tested in this manner are anesthetized while lenses are
placed on the eyes to record the retina's reaction to light. (Like
wearing contacts.)

ALL dogs affected with PRA eventually go blind.

GPRA is believed to be transmitted by a simple autosomal recessive
gene.  Studies have shown that both parents must be carriers for any
offspring to be affected.  Breeding PRA affected animals to PRA
NON-affected animals results in 100% carriers for the PRA gene.  The
most common form of PRA in the collie is generalized PRA and it is
detectable at an early age (6wks and over).

The other form, Central PRA, is uncommon and usually occurs between
three and five years old, but has been detected as early as three
weeks.  The mode of transmission is not known.  Animals with CPRA can
usually see moving objects because the peripheral vision is retained
longer, but often will collide with stationary objects.  An
electroretinogram is not able to detect the CPRA.

NOTE:  In October 1945 the Kennel Club of England added PRA to
the list of disqualifications from winning any award in the show ring.

For more information on Canine Eye disease contact:
CERF (Canine Eye Registration Foundation)
South Campus Courts C
Purdue University
West Lafayette, IN  47906

This section has been compiled by the wealth of information located in:

  * Rubin, Lionel F.  _Inherited Eye Diseases in Purebred Dogs_.
  * Vanderlip, Sharon Lynn, DVM.  _The Collie: A Veterinary Reference
    for the Professional Breeder_.
  * CERF pamphlets.

Please consult these books and others for more breed specific
information.


J.  Gastric Torsion (gastric dilation, torsion complex).

A condition more commonly seen in larger breeds.  Gas in the stomach
causes it to swell.  In some cases, the stomach rotates on its axis,
closing off both ends of it.  Digestive processes continue unabated
and the stomach swells up.  This is fatal untreated; survival depends
on understanding what is happening and getting the dog to the vet, the
earlier the better.

Some facts (from Carlson & Giffin):
  * Dogs who bloat are almost always at least 2 years old.
  * Two-thirds are male.
  * Larger, deeper chested breeds are affected.
  * They eat large amounts of dry kibble.
  * They exercise vigorously after eating and tend to drink water in
    large amounts after meals.
  * They may have a history of digestive upsets.
  * There may be a familial association with other dogs who bloat.

According to Carlson & Giffin, the symptoms are: excessive salivation
and drooling, extreme restlessness, attempts to vomit and defecate,
evidence of abdominal pain and abdominal distension.  History is
important: in nearly all cases, there is a history of overeating,
eating fermented foods, drinking excessively after eating, or taking
vigorous exercise after a meal (within two or three hours).

If your dog is able to belch or vomit, it is more likely a gastric
upset.  If it cannot, rush it to the vet or emergency care *now* for
emergency surgery.
    
If your dog is at risk for gastric bloat, you should discuss it with
your vet before a possible episode.  Your vet may recommend (and
demonstrate) some things you can try to do as life-saving measures
while getting it to the vet.  Feeding smaller portions of food and
preventing exercise immediately after eating are approaches taken by
many owners.


K.  Heartworms.

Indications may not appear until a full year has passed since
infection.  Because of this, the disease is often mistaken for another
problem.  The most persistant sign is a soft, deep cough.  After
exercise, the cough may be so severe that that the dog faints.  Weight
loss, discharge of bloody sputum, listlessness, and weakness are also
common (from Carlson & Giffin).

Heartworm is a very serious disease (parasite, actually).  It is
transmitted through mosquitos.  The heartworm larvae then travel
through a dog's blood stream to its heart and lungs where the worms
grow and grow and grow.  The only effective treatment once a dog has
contracted heartworms is arsenic.  Please be sure that your vet does
preliminary blood work on your dog prior to administering the
treatment--this will ensure that your dogs liver is healthy enough to
metabolize the drug.  Understand that it is a risky treatment, but it
is the only known effective treatment.

Dogs that undergo successful treatment recover completely provided they
go on heartworm preventive afterwards.  There usually are no long-term
effects if the disease was detected early in its development.
Sometimes a cough may linger.  You will need to keep the dog's
activity level to a minimum for quite a few months following treatment
to prevent any of the dead worms from clogging your dog's heart and
causing a heart attack.  Following the treatment, you will also want
to start your dog on the preventive medicine as soon as your vet says
it's possible.


L.  Hip Dysplasia (HD, or C(anine)HD).

An *excellent* source of information on hip dysplasia is:

                Hip Dysplasia
                A Guide for Dog Breeders and Owners
                2nd Edition 1989
                By E.A. Corley and G.G. Keller

A single copy is available for a donation and multiple copies are
$3.00 each at Orthopedic Foundation for Animals, Inc, 2300 Nifong
Blvd, Columbia, MO 65201, 314-442-0418.

The work is copyrighted and permission to reproduce the work was not
given, so only highlights from the monograph are presented here.

1.  In general
    
Hip dysplasia ("bad development") appears in people and many species
of animals. In some breeds of dogs, it is the most common cause of
osteoarthritis or degenerative joint disease.  Extensive research on
hip dysplasia suggests that CHD is a more complex disease than was
first thought.  There are no simple answers or solutions to the
problem.  The complexity of CHD results in research findings that
appear to be contradictory.  However, many aspects of the disease have
been repeatedly and independently documented and are generally
accepted by the scientific community. Three important ones are:

  * Canine hip dysplasia is caused by the presence of many genes
    (polygenic).  While no environmental cause has been found, many
    environmental factors contribute to its expression in a particular
    dog (phenotype).
  * The only current means for reducing the occurrence of CHD is by
    selectively breeding for normal hips.
  * Radiography is the accepted means for evaluating the hip status.

2.  Development

Regardless of what the initiating factor or factors may be, abnormal
looseness of the hip joint after 2 weeks of age seems to be the event
most commonly reported to result in hip dysplasia. However, there are
exceptions to this, and dogs with tight hips have developed hip
dysplasia.

The early changes are not easily detected.  Severe cases may be
diagnosed as early as 7 weeks of age; others may not show up in
radiographs until over 2 years of age.  This is why OFA only certifies
dogs over two years of age.

3.  Breeding

Most inherited traits in animals are polygenic.  These traits do not
follow patterns based on dominant/recessive pairs because polygenic
traits are affected by many genes. A simple example is two sets of
genes affecting the same trait.  If you assume two dogs with AaBb, the
probabilities in the offspring are:

Genotypes- AABB  AABb  AAbb  AaBB  AaBb  Aabb  aaBB  aabb  aabb
Frequency- 1/16  2/16  1/16  2/16  4/16  2/16  1/16  2/16  1/16

Notice that only 25% are expected to have the same genotype for a
trait as the parents. Some will have a more desirable combination
while others will have a less desirable pattern. As the number of
involved genes increase, the possible outcomes also increase.
Remember that it is also possible for different genes to have a
different level of influence on the trait, complicating the outcomes
considerably.  Predictions of a specific outcome from a particular
mating involving polygenic traits is currently impossible.

A dog with excellent hips but with more than 25% of its brothers and
sisters affected with hip dysplasia is a poorer breeding prospect than
a dog with fair hips and less than 25% of its brothers and sisters
exhibiting dysplasia.  This is true in general with polygenic traits.

5.  Clinical symptoms

(from Corley & Keller)

"...[T]he signs [of hip dysplasia] vary from decreased exercise
tolerance to severe crippling. They include: a reluctance or inability
to go up or down stairs, difficulty in rising from a sitting or prone
position, bunny-hopping gait when running, stiffness early in the
morning that improves as the dog warms up, change in disposition due
to pain, lameness after exercise, wobbly gait, a clicking sound when
walking, and many others. Many dogs will shift their center of gravity
forward in an effort to relieve weight and pressure on the hips.
These dogs generally present a front end that appears well-developed
relative to the rear end.

"In dysplastic dogs, the hip joint is a weakened structure that is
more subject to being injured by normal activity such as jumping off a
couch, or rough housing with a playmate. Frequently, this results in
an acute lameness that in the mind of the owner was caused by the
injury, whereas the underlying dysplasia actually made the joint more
susceptible to injury. Obviously, the normal hip can be injured, but
the radiographic examination can usually distinguish between a hip
problem due to dysplasia and one due to other causes.

"CHD can not be diagnosed by observing how the dog moves, acts, lies
down, etc. The clinical signs may be caused by other problems;
therefore, a complete orthopedic and radiographic examination is
required before arriving at the conclusion that the signs are caused
by CHD."

6.  Further references

Lanting, Fred L. _Canine Hip Dysplasia and Other Orthopedic Problems_.
Alpine Publications, Inc. Loveland, CO, 1981.  ISBN 0-931866-06-5.
  Available from RC Steele.

And many others are in the References section of the FAQ.


M.  Infectious Canine Hepatitis

(summarized From Carlson & Giffin)

This disease should NOT be confused with human hepatitis.  This is a
highly contagious disease transmissible only to dogs.  It affects the
liver, kidneys and lining of the blood vessels.  It can sometimes be
hard to distinguish from distemper as there are a variety of signs and
symptoms that range from mild to fatal.  Exposed dogs rapidly become
contagious and remain contagious throughout convalescence.

Fatal form: the dog becomes ill, develops bloody diarrhea, collapses
and dies.  Puppies may die without symptoms.

Acute form: High fever, bloody diarrhea, possibly bloody vomit.
Refusal to eat and painful movements.  The dog can become
light-sensitive.

Mild form: Lethargy, possible loss of appetite.


N.  Kennel Cough (Infectious Tracheobronchitis).

This is characterized by a harsh, convulsive cough.  It is persistent,
contagious, and often develops into secondary complications, such as
chronic bronchitis.  This disease can eventually be fatal.

"Kennel Cough" is a generic name for a set of symptoms caused by a
number of organisms. These include parainfluenza as well as
bordatella, as well as many others.  Dogs vaccinated with the
bordatella vaccine can still get "kennel cough" because of all the
bugs involved, but it tends to be much less severe.

Bordatella vaccine is squirted into each nostril of the dog and lasts
about a year.  Parainfluenza vaccine should be a normal part of your
dog's regular shots.


O.  Kidney Failure.

Acute kidney failure, or kidney failure, is sudden and extreme and
requires urgent care. Usually the dog recovers completely if it
survives at all.

Chronic kidney failure, or kidney disease, is common in old dogs. The
kidneys slowly wear out over a long time.  It can be diagnosed by a
blood test or urinalysis. Early signs include drinking and urinating
more, since the kidneys need extra water, and foamy urine is sometimes
seen.

Treatment is mostly dietary.  They need a very low protein diet that
is also low in certain minerals.  The kidneys are stressed by too much
protein and will wear out more slowly on a low protein diet.  Dogs
with sick kidneys should be given all the water they will drink.

The best known kidney diet is Hills K/D, but there is also Hi-Tor
Neodiet, Neura Kidney Diet, and others. Some "senior dog food" is low
in protein as well, but not as low as the kidney foods.

If you have any reason to suspect it, have the dog checked by a vet.
Many old-dog kidney cases live happily for years with no special care
other than the food.


P.  Leptospirosis.

(summarized From Carlson & Giffin)

In most cases the disease is mild.  Primary symptoms are fever,
listlessness, loss of appetite and depression.  Other symptoms involve
the kidneys: a "hunched up" look due to kidney pain, ulcers on the
mucus membranes of the mouth and tongue, thick brown coating on the
tongue, bleeding from the mouth or bloody stools, severe thirst with
increased urination.  The whites of the eyes may turn yellow.
Persistent vomiting and diarrhea are common.  This disease is more
prevalent in some areas than others.


Q.  Osteochondrosis Dissecans (OCD).

Osteochondrosis dissecans affects dogs of the large rapidly growing
breeds between the ages of four and twelve months.  It usually is
found in the shoulder joints, but rarely it can affect the hocks or
stifles.  It is due to a defect in the cartilage overlying the head of
one of the long bones.  A puppy who jumps down stairs might sustain
such an injury.  The tendency for cartilage to be easily damaged may
be hereditary.  Repeated stress to the joint perpetrates the
condition.  The signs are gradual lameness in a young dog of one of
the larger breeds.

Pain is present on flexing the joint.  X-rays may show fragmentation
of the joint cartilage, or a loose piece of cartilage in the joint.
Treatment: The condition can be treated by confinement, or by
surgical removal of the damaged cartilage.  Pain pills are not
recommended, as they are in most *traumatic* joint conditions,
because they encourage the dog to exercise.


R.  Thyroid Disorders.

Common symptoms are:
  * seeking warm places to curl up
  * lessened activity
  * slow coat growth, brittle fur
  * ring around the neck where fur won't grow, or loss of hair in trunk
  * loss of appetite/excessive appetite
  * dry, thickened skin
  * prone to skin infections
  * infertility

Dogs are often middle-aged or older, although this also occurs in
younger dogs.  According to the Merck Veterinary Manual,
hypothyroidism is common in all breeds and all sexes, although the
incidence is highest in spayed females.  Treatment involves daily
thyroid pills, a permanent regimen.

In the March '92 issue of Dog World is an excellent article,
"Autoimmune thyroid disease" by Dr. Jean Dodds DVM (a nationally
recognized expert on the subject) explains a lot about thyroid
conditions in dogs.  She also goes to great effort to explain that
dogs can be hypothyroid WITHOUT showing the "classic" signs.  She also
explains typical course of treatment and followups.  There's also a
long list of breeds that are "predisposed" to problems.

More subtle signs:
  * overweight despite controlled diets
  * thin coats (not hair loss)
  * smelling bad
  * chronic ear infections
  * seizures.

The article by Dr. Dodds points out that the "subtle" signs are just
now being recognized by the veterinary community.

There is another article about thyroid problems in the Sept or Oct
('91) _Dog World_.

----------------
This article is Copyright (c) 1992 by Cindy Tittle Moore.  It may be
freely distributed in its entirety provided that this copyright notice
is not removed.  It may not be sold for profit nor incorporated in
commercial documents without the author's written permission.  This
article is provided "as is" without express or implied warranty.

Cindy Tittle Moore
Internet: tittle@ics.uci.edu  UUCP: ...!ucbvax!ucivax!tittle
Bitnet  : cltittle@uci        USmail: PO BOX 4188, Irvine CA 92716
----------------