Ear Infection

 

Ear Infection: Ear infections in dogs are common and most dogs suffer from this painful condition. If your dog has ear infection you may notice a yeasty smell which is mainly due to the multiplication of infectious cells.


Symptoms:

• Head tilt 
• Circling
• Ear Discharge
• Smelly Ears
•  Nystagmus
• Pawing and scratching the head 
• Red and swollen ear canal  

Causes: Most ear infections in adults are caused by bacteria and yeast, though ear mites are a common cause in puppies. Environmental changes and various allergies lead to severe or controllable ear infections.

Treatment: Your veterinarian will take a sample from the affected ear(s) and examine it under the microscope to help identify what microorganisms are present. Vet would perform various lab tests and mostly antibiotics and pain killers are recommended by doctor. Some dogs have outer and some have middle ear infections so to diagnose he will perform physical check up.

Distinguishing whether your pet has an outer ear infection, a middle ear infection, or both helps your veterinarian choose the most effective treatment.

Anemia

Anemia: Anemia is defined as deficiency of red blood cells in the circulatory system. This condition is caused by the loss or destruction of a large amount of red blood cells, which may happen as a result of internal or external bleeding or  a disease such as an immune-mediated disorder or cancer. 

Symptoms:

• Lethargy
• Exercise Intolerence
• Tiredness
• Pale Pink to White Tongue
• Paleness of Eyes
• Weight Loss

                               KINDS OF ANEMIA
Anemia is of three types.

1. Hemolytic Anemias
2. Immune-Mediated Anemias
3. Blood Loss Anemia

Treatment: In case of anemia resulting as a result of chronic or acute blood loss blood transfusion is recommended for survival. In severe case if transfusion don`t help various lab tests are performed including complete blood picture, urine tests, radiology for cancer known as Oncology.
Its is highly recommended to consult your vet as soon as you realize your dog is anemic. 

Cataract

Cataract: Cataract is opacity in the lens of dog`s eye its a visible whitish to black membrane covering lens. Thin opacity don`t cause any disturbance but un-treated cataract may lead to blindness. Cataract can develop from disease, trauma or as side effect of any other medicine. For example diabetic dogs has more chances of developing cataract. It develops as an aging effect as well. 

Symptoms: Symptoms may include blur vision, visible redness of lens.

 Treatment: Treatment includes laser surgery. For surgery if your dog is diabetic or hypertension it is must to control sugar level and blood pressure. Uncontrolled sugar level or increase  blood pressure  may lead to complications in surgery.  

Cough (KENNEL COUGH)

Kennel Cough: It is a complex infection both viral and bacterial effecting the upper respiratory system of canines and causes inflammation of dog`s windpipe and voice box. Its a form of bronchitis. 


Causes: 

• It is an air borne disease
• Contact with Contaminated Objects
• Direct contact with Infected Dog 
• Food    

Symptoms:

• Fever
• Dry Hacking Cough
• Lethargy
• Sneezing
• Snorting
• Vomiting
• Gagging

Cough may last for 10 - 20 days or even more.

 Treatment:
 
As soon as you realize your dog has cough give him first aid. As a part of first aid BLACK TEA can be given three times a day after or before food and you may also give any available syrup. If your dog has fever with cough consult vet as soon as possible.
 Vet will physically examine your dog and may perform various lab tests for proper treatment. Mostly medicines and a few injections  help your dog to recover soon.
 

Diabetes Mellitus

                                                        

Diabetes: It is estimated that 1 dog in 500 has diabetes . Pancreatic disorders lead to low rate of certain secretion called Insulin which lead to high to high rate of sugar level in blood and in many cases in urine. Its causes may differ from dog to dog some have genetic or inherited disease some develop in later part of life.

Symptoms: 

• Increased Urination
• Excessive Water Intake
• Polyphagia 

Diagnosis 
       Signs of diabetes mellitus are also seen in other diseases. For this reason your dog needs to be examined thoroughly by your veterinarian he/she will perform various tests and physical examination.
  
 Cataract
      It occurs mainly due to the high sugar level in blood stream in which a visible membrane can be seen around the lens of dog. however, it can be treated with proper medical treatment.
 
Blood Sample
        Vet would take blood to examine sugar level in blood. If sugar level is high in blood it means your dog is suffering from disease.

Urine Sample
        Urine is also examined as a part of check up for the confirmation of disease.                                                                                                                                                
Treatment
        Vet would recommend medicine as per the need of your dog. Some dogs can be treated by giving tablets whereas in some cases dogs need insulin injection one, twice or thrice a day depending on the need of dog.Regular checkups of sugar levels may help in recovery. 

Side Effects
        Diabetes effects the internal organs specially kidneys and eyes mostly diabetes causes high blood pressure as well and liver enlargement.

                  

Cushing Syndrome

Cushing’s syndrome is a disease caused by long-term exposure to high levels of glucocorticosteroids, either manufactured by the body or given as medications. High levels of cortisone leads to gastrointestinal disorders and hypertension. This disease effects all organs and parts of the body however, skin and kidneys are the most effected by this disease. Dogs that are given prednisone or similar drugs can develop signs that look like Cushing’s disease (called iatrogenic Cushing’s).

Symptoms
Signs of cushing vary from dog to dog most commonly observed symptoms include

• Slow healing of Wounds
• Acne
• Pink or Purple stretch marks on the skin of the abdomen,
• High Blood Pressure
• Crusty Skin
• Atrophy of the Tongue
• Hard Skin Lumps                                                                                                                                  
  Diagnosis 
  Treatment may  include various physical and lab tests most commonly performed test for diagnosis are urinalysis, blood cp etc . Mostly antibiotics and muscle relaxants are given for treatment of cushing(cs). X-ray and ultrasound imaging can show 50 percent of adrenal tumors, and can be quite helpful in differentiating PDH from AT. if required further radiography`s and lab tests are performed.

Endocrine Disorder

Thyroid

Your dog’s thyroid gland is a small butterfly-shaped organ in his neck, with one lobe on each side of his trachea. Hypothyroidism is a disorder in which the thyroid glands are underactive and don’t secrete enough thyroid hormone.
 In response to this attack, the thyroid will first try to compensate by producing greater and greater amounts of the thyroid hormone Thyroxine. But after awhile, the gland becomes depleted. It’s at this point your dog develops symptoms of the disorder and is diagnosed with hypothyroidism.

 Symptoms

• Weight gain without an increase in appetite 
•  Depression; also significant behavioral changes like aggression, head tilting, anxiety, compulsiveness, seizures 
•  Skin changes – dryness, hair loss, discoloration or thickening, bacterial infections   

Treatment

  Various tests can be performed to diagnose Thyroid or Hypothyroidism such as free T3, free T4, T3, T4, AAT3, AAT4 and TSH. Usually by the time your pet has enough auto-antibodies to be measured on a blood test there has been irreparable thyroid damage and synthetic hormone replacement is almost always inevitable.

Hot Spot

Hot Spot: Hot spots are also known as Pyotraumatic dermatitis or superficial Pyoderma. It occurs mainly due to over population of certain kind of natural bacteria. Hot spots often occur in dogs with under-performing immune systems. Any dog can develop hot spots, but they’re much more common in dogs with thick coats, dirty and/or moist skin, and dogs with allergies, including fleas.
Hot spots can be very painful for your dog and quite sensitive to the touch. Itching, discharge of watery liquid and in severe cases pus can observed. This disease is not only common in dogs but cows, buffaloes, goats etc can also be victims of hot spot. 


Symptoms

•  Itching
• Fever
• Hair Fall
• Laziness 

Treatment

 If your canine companion develops a hot spot, you’ll need to do two things:
 

• Treat the wound
• Identify the underlying cause 

Treating the wound includes disinfecting the wound, shaving the wounded area, checking the wound for any parasites. Various liquids such as Povidone-iodine, Piodine, Distilled Water can be used.Applying a topical solution. After you clean the wound you can apply a topical solution like colloidal silver, or raw aloe, or a thin layer of manuka honey, which is a raw honey made from the tea tree plant. You can also use a cool chamomile tea bag against the wound to provide a soothing effect.
 Repeat the disinfecting procedure and application of a light, natural topical soothing gel afterwards until the wound shrinks in size, the infection clears and your pet is no longer bothered by the hot spot.

Now the question arises how to identify the underlying cause of this disease for example if your dog digs or chew a body part several times a day it can develop a hot spot. Sometimes there are underlying mental or emotional causes for your dog’s hot spots, such as obsessive compulsive disorder, separation anxiety, or even boredom. Allergic sensitivities are also the cause of hot spot environmental changes, food change and water can cause hotspot.

If hot spot keep on spreading various tests can be performed such as blood cp, skin testing etc

Epistaxis

Epistaxis: Medical term for nosebleed. The nose is a part of the body that is very rich in blood vessels (vascular) and is situated in a vulnerable position on the face. It is very common in dogs which live in hot or hot temperate kind of climate. In severe cases medical treatment is required but in most cases first aid at home can help.






Causes

• Nasal tumor or Infection
• Severe hyperglobulinemia
• Hypertension
• Nasal Tumor 
• Hemostatic Problem 
• Dental Disease  
• Climatic Changes
• Food
• Deficiency of Vitamins  

Signs
      
 Bleeding from nose, may be associated with other respiratory signs, eg sneezing. stridor, sturtor or blindness in rare cases.

Treatment

As soon as, you find your dog`s nose bleeding first of all you need not to panic. As a first aid use water or ice bag if using water thoroughly sprinkle water over the dog`s head and make sure dog`s nasal cavity is all wet Or if using ice bag massage your dog`s nasal cavity and head.

As a part of first aid you can do the following things to avoid continuous bleeding

• Muscle Massage
•  Half liter milk mixed with water and sugar ( this helps to reduce bleeding)
• Multi-Vitamin Syrups can be given 

When to consult Vet?

If first aid not effects your dog condition with in 12 hours you should conCsult a vet. Mostly vet suggest for water or ice bags or just to sprinkle water. Other treatments may include X-rays, Blood Cp , or injections of Vitamin K. 



 Epistaxis may be associated with black or dark brown stool of dogs. 

 Outcomes 

Prognosis

• Depends on underlying etiology.
• Many causes are treatable and prognosis is good (eg foreign body, dental disease).
• Guarded for nasal tumors or unidentifiable/untreatable underlying cause.

Expected response to treatment

• Cessation of epistaxis.
• Improving vital parameters.
• Increasing hemocrit/hemoglobin levels if low at diagnosis.
• Improvement in other clinical signs, eg appetite.

Reasons for treatment failure

• Incorrect or incomplete diagnosis.
• Underlying disease untreatable.
• Relapse of underlying disease.
• Progession of underlying disease

  

Diarrhea

How to treat Diarrhea


Its very common for dogs to get diarrhea. It is believed that dogs get diarrhea at-least once in their life time. In rare cases excretion of ring worms is observed which occurs because of unhealthy eating habits. Most cases of dog diarrhea are not serious and will resolve without requiring veterinary care depending on your canine`s condition and health, the problem can be unpleasant for both the dog and its owners so it's important to know what to do when your four-legged friend is suffering from diarrhea. This article will tell you how to treat minor canine diarrhea.

 Above is the picture of dog suffering from severe diarrhea. 

 Symptoms 
  

1. Lose stool
2. Vomiting 
3. Belly stiffness 
4. Decreased Appetite  
5. Fever 
   

 How do I treat Diarrhea?
 
Its the first question that arises in mind how should you treat your canine. Firs of all first aid should be given at home. All food items should be removed form dog`s bowl and dog should not be given meal at-least for 12-24 hours and should be kept under observation for vomiting and any other symptoms. Dog can be given ORS or Intox as first aid . If dog don`t show improvement vet can be consulted for further guidance.

Prevention

There are several ways to reduce the occurrence of diarrhea in dogs:

• Do not suddenly change his diet.
• Do not give the dog bones as toys (nylon chew toys are a better choice).
• Do not give the dog small objects to play with.
• Do not feed your dog table scraps.
• Do not allow your dog to scavenge.
• Always keep him up-to-date with his deworming sessions