 |
     |
||
|
|||
We have always wanted a Bull Dog. One of our dog sitters knowing how much we wanted one, went on a mission to find a responsible breeder. Upon finding the breeder we were screened as much as they were by our dog sitter. The breeder wanted to insure that we were aware of all of the probable and possible health problems with the breed. Upon showing that we are responsible pet owners, who have researched the breed, we were finally allowed to bring one of the puppies home. She was born on November 6, 1996. We named her Linda Louise after a good friend that had passed away in her early thirties. Our friend was tall, blond and beautiful and could always make us laugh and bulldog Linda Louise was short, fat and ugly and made us howl. Since we had our 130 pound delicate flower Goldie (a great dane mix) at home, we wanted to be careful in introducing the two dogs - Goldie could be dog aggressive. We decided upon neutral territory - away from the home or that is away from 'Goldie's territory. With us out of the picture our dog sitters introduced the two dogs and then loaded them into our car for the trip home. It was less stressful for both of the animals, which did not mean that there wasn't any jealousy, there just wasn't any blood. Dogs will be dogs and have to establish their pecking order in the home. We always remind folks that dogs are descendants of wolves. And like wolves, dogs need to establish a pecking order in the pack - our Goldie was definitely an 'alpha' female. Just be sure that the human occupants are at the top of the pecking order otherwise you could have some serious problems including aggression. That first night home with Linda Louise gave us a true understanding of what we were in for with our Bulldog. Linda Louise was obviously a bit scared about being taken out of her 'home' and that night seemed to only settle down when she was in our bed with us - oh my! She wanted to be very close to me. She wanted her 'butt' right on my check. Every time she fell asleep I would gently move her a away but she kept moving back! Then throughout the night I got, in my face, what I would like to call SBD (silent but deadly) 'fanny burps'. It brought tears to my eyes and roaring laughter from my husband who was saved from the assault. Nothing like bonding with your dog. Please note folks that the fanny burps do not stop, it seems to be a characteristic of the breed - something you learn to love and your friends tolerate. The next day, we took Linda Louise to her first doctors appointment with our family vet in Marina del Rey, California. It was love at first sight with the entire staff. The actual exam only took 15 minutes but it took us another 1 1/2 hours to get out of there so that everyone had a chance to hold her. Bulldog puppies are just the cutest! Because they are difficult to breed bulldogs tend to be one of the most expensive pure breed dog. Note: that a responsible breeder will take one and on very rare occasions two litters, out of a bitch. Along with the initial cost everyone should realize that bulldogs can be very high maintenance. We jokingly tell people, when they express an interest in the breed, that they better have a large disposable income. Following are some of the problems that we encountered with Linda Louise, while some of these are common in the breed others can be occur in any breed of dog.
We received a call from the breeder a few days after we brought Linda Louise home. The breeder wanted to inform us that a good friend of theirs had adopted a dog from the animal shelter a few weeks before and the dog had been diagnosed with Sarcoptic Mange. The problem was that immediately after adopting the dog, their friend brought the dog over to their home and they let the dog play with the puppies. This was before a vet looked at and checked out the dog. As a result, the puppies were exposed to the Sarcoptic Manage - which Linda Louise ended up getting. To make matters worse, we had been taking Linda Louise, daily, to our dog sitters for puppy day care. Our dog sitters take in a carefully selected number (2 to 3) of puppies during the day for day-care and socialization. Therefore, not only was Linda Louise exposed to mange, (along with our Great Dane mix Goldie) but also the two other puppies and our dog sitters' five dogs as well!!! We will tell you up front that this was not only an embarrassing but an expensive problem as well. We could not expect our dog sitters to pay to treat their own dogs much less their clients dogs - we felt it was our responsibility. It could have ruined the dog sitters business! We were lucky because the other owners were very understanding and appreciated our honesty and offer to treat their dogs. Our dog sitter then needed to take their own dogs, along with their clients' puppies, to our vet for the 4 weekly treatments that were required to combat the mange. Note that not one of the other dogs exhibited any symptoms.
Highly magnified Sarcoptic Mite Sarcoptic mange (or also known as scabies) is one of the most itchy skin diseases of dogs. It is caused by a small mite which burrows in the outer layer of the skin. Sarcoptic mange many times causes lesions on the edges of the ears, eyes, elbows, hocks, paws and or trunk. It is easily transmitted from dog to dog and can also to transmitted to people. When people get the mite from dogs it usually causes itchy red bumps on the arms, chest and abdomen. Most dogs are diagnosed with sarcoptic mange that have been at shelters, dog parks or in contact with infested dogs - as ours was. To check for sarcoptic mange a skin scraping needs to be examined under the microscope. Because it takes relatively few mites to cause severe itching, it may be difficult to find them and false negative results can and do occur. Therefore you may choose to treat your pet even when the skin scrapings are negative if you strongly suspect sarcoptic mange is a possibility. If you have several dogs you should treat them all even if only one has the symptoms. There are several ways to treat sarcoptic mange. Each has its advantages and disadvantages - with each treatment a weekly bath with Sebalyt shampoo is helpful to soften and remove any scabs and or crusting. Ivermectin: This is the most effective and desirable treatment for dogs and the one that we used. It is given by injection, weekly, for 4 weeks. Even though this is not approved by the FDA for this use it is the standard treatment used by veterinary dermatologists. (Ivermectin is FDA approved at a lower dose for the prevention of heartworms.) Caution - it is not given to Collies, Shelties, English Sheepdogs, Australian shephards and their crossbreds or related breeds (herding-type dogs) because it is reportedly toxic to them, causing depression, pupil dilation, tremors and sometimes even coma. Lime Sulfur Dipping: Lime Sulfur is very effective for killing the sarcoptes mites. It is safe for all breeds and ages however, the disadvantages are the odor and that it stains wood and jewelry. The dipping needs to be repeated every 7 days and it often takes 6 - 8 dips to be rid of the mites. Paramite Dipping: Paramite is a strong insecticide that is used as a flea dip and is also effective for many cases of sarcoptic mange. This also needs to be repeated every 7 days and may take 6 - 8 dips as in the Lime Sulfur Dipping. FYI - the mites only live a few days if they fall off the dog, so your home being contaminated is not a major concern however, it is still wise to treat the house with a flea premise spray during the second week of treatment to minimize the chances of re-infection. Also note that the itching does not stop immediately with the treatment, it usually takes till the second week to stop. Cortisone is sometimes helpful also, oral antibiotics are sometimes given for any secondary bacterial infection of the skin that can occur.
When Linda Louise was just 7 months old we were out walking in a open area down the street from our home. Sniffing around she got a foxtail up her nose. We tried to get it out, but it broke off and the majority was still in her nose. My husband immediately went to get the car so that Linda Louise would not be exerted and minimize the risk having the foxtail getting further into her nasal cavity. Of course this required an immediate trip to the Vet. Because Bulldogs have a short face foxtails can cause more damage in a shorter period of time. We went to our family vet and she was immediately seen by. Linda Louise was anesthetized, her nose scoped, the foxtail found and removed. The foxtail is a native grass plant in the Western United States. The grass is common in weedy areas around roads, paths and open areas. It is an annual and is soft and green from January through March or April when its heads starts to dry. As they dry they become dangerous and they are so throughout the summer and early fall. The foxtail is an ideal seedling because of its construction. Foxtails have sharp points at one end and microscopic barbs, so that they easily move in the direction of the point, but not the other way. They work in but they will not work themselves out. They can become imbedded in the hair, paws, ears, nostrils and even the eyes. As they work themselves into your animal they cause infection (abscess) and if left untreated can be fatal. Foxtails have been found inside the brain, anal glands, eyes, ears, jowls, feet, spinal cord, lungs and vagina. Any foxtail that enters a dog, if ignored, has the potential to travel anywhere in the dogs body. Severe injury, even death, can occur if the foxtail reaches the brain, spinal cord, heart or lungs. Following are the symptoms and suggested treatments for the more common areas of foxtail penetration: |
||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|
||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Growths in the Eye Socket In July of 1997 Linda Louise (who was 7 months old at the time) developed a growth in her left eye socket which resembled cauliflower and was obviously irritating her eye. Our family vet removed the growth using general anesthesia. The growth was benign and was diagnosed as a Viral Papilloma. Two more similar growths appeared in August and September of 1997. Even though we were sure that these were also benign we felt they needed to be removed because they were again irritating her eye. Our family vet removed these two growths. Since Linda Louise had been under general anesthesia in July, our family vet decided, prudently, to use a topical anesthetic in these two procedures. Then in October another growth appeared in Linda Louise's left eye. Since this was the 4th time in as many months our family vet decided that we should visit a specialist and referred us to Dr. Elizabeth Chambers of the Animal Eye Clinic in Marina del Rey, California. Dr. Chambers, using general anesthesia, removed the viral papilloma. However, this was not the end, in January of 1998 another growth appeared in her left eye along with the development of Cherry eye in the same eye. This time Dr. Paul Jackson of the Eye Clinic for Animals performed the surgery for both the growth removal and cherry eye. Again Linda Louise was put under general anesthesia. We thought that this would be the end of the growths however, again in May of 1998, Linda Louise developed another growth. This time Dr. Jackson decided to 'crush' the growth to try to get Linda Louise's immune system to kick in and stop the recurrence of the growths. Otherwise we were going to have to work with a dermatologist who would take one of her growths and make it into a 'vaccine'. Well the sixth time was the charm they never returned. Viral Papillomas are small round skin tumors that are commonly referred to as warts. They are round with a rough surface and have the appearance of what we thought was cauliflower or can also resemble a sea anemone. Generally they appear, in groups, on the lips and muzzle of young dogs (usually less than two years of age) and can occasionally be seen on the eyelids (as in Linda Louise's case), the surface of the eye or between the toes. Usually they are harmless however, to be on the safe side, they should be biopsied to confirm their identity. The viral infection is transmitted via contact with the papillomas on an infected dog. The incubation period is 1 - 2 months. It can only be spread between dogs and is not contagious to other pets or humans. They will usually go away on their own once the dog's immune system develops a resistance to them. Normally, since the growths will usually go away on their own in one to five months no treatment is necessary. However, at times so many growths will develop or their location is such that it affects the dogs ability to eat or, as in our case, affects the dog's eyesight. The viral papillomas can be removed surgically or frozen off cryogenically. Another treatment, that was used on the sixth occurrence with Linda Louise, is to crush the growth to stimulate the dog's immune system. Interferon has been used in severe cases on dogs much like it is on humans with severe cases of warts. The last option, which has had mixed results, is to remove a growth and have a vaccine made from it. Please note that you should not attempt to remove, crush or 'freeze' a growth yourself - these treatments should be performed by your veterinarian.
On December 6th, 1997, Linda Louise, being a typical bullheaded bulldog, ran headlong into the bushes. In doing so she scratched her left eye in a couple of places. Since it was her eye and she immediately started showing discomfort we took her to our family vet. After using a special fluorescent stain, it was confirmed that Linda Louise did in fact scratch her eye. Our vet prescribed a topical antibiotic to be administered 4 times a day along with Atropine 1% drops as a pain reliever. We were asked to return for a recheck in a week. After a few days however, even after diligently administering the drops, the eye did not seem to improve, in fact two areas on the eye started to look 'cloudy' and she was in pain. We immediately took Linda Louise back to our family vet and were quickly seen (note: eye injuries are always considered emergencies). We found out that the scratches were not healing and ulcers had developed. Our vet felt that conjunctival pedicle grafts needed to be performed ASAP or Linda Louise would lose the eye. Our vet referred us to Dr. Paul Jackson of the Eye Clinic for Animals - we jumped into the car and went directly to Dr. Jackson's office. Time was ticking away - there was a huge risk of the ulcer perforating the cornea completely and therefore loss of the eye. The graft consisted of transplanting a piece of conjunctiva onto the corneal defect - the ulcer. The advantage of this is that it provides an immediate seal to the ulcer with a healthy piece of ocular tissue. The tissue usually is to remain in place for a period of 4 to 6 weeks after which the graft may be trimmed under local anesthetic. Linda Louise never had the graft trimmed. The recovery was harder on us. Following the surgery, Linda Louise was to have some kind of medication every 1 1/2 hours for the next 2 days then it went to every 3 hours for a few days. It was worth it - Linda Louise's eye healed!
Cherry Eye or prolapse of the tear gland of the third eyelid is very common in bulldogs. This is also common in Boston terriers, Cocker spaniels, pugs and beagles. The normal canine eye receives its tears from two tear producing glands. One gland is located above the eye and the other is found within the dog's third eyelid. With the above mentioned breeds and other similar breeds the third eyelid is not strongly held in place. The gland prolapses out to where you will notice a reddened mass - the gland in this position can not circulate blood properly and then may swell. Originally, this condition was treated like a small tumor and the gland was completely removed. In doing so the dog will most likely develop 'dry eye' where you would have to daily treat the dog - which would be time consuming for you and uncomfortable for your pet. Currently the only really acceptable treatment is to replace the gland. The gland is gently sewn back into place. Do not be surprised if the gland re-prolapses and needs to be replaced again. Dr. Paul Jackson of the Eye Clinic for Animals performed the surgery on Linda Louise on January 12, 1998. We have been lucky because so far the gland and has not re-prolapse.
In September of 1998 Linda Louise began experiencing problems breathing. She had gurgling noises, was snoring more then usual and was seeming to strain to get air, so much so that we took her to a 24 emergency veterinarian in the area (since it was well after normal business hours of our family veterinarian). The doctor placed Linda Louise into an oxygen kennel and injected her with Prednisone with a follow-up of 5 mg. oral meds. This seemed to give her relief however, the next morning Linda's head started bobbing up and down (she look like the toy dogs you see in the back end of cars). We took her to our veterinarian and they could not figure out why the Prednisone, which is a steriod, would cause this. Considering the symptoms they our family vet thought that we should take her to Animal Specialty Group. We were seen by a Dr. Michael Huber who diagnosed Linda Louise with brachycephalic syndrome (also referred to as Chronic Airway Obstruction or CAO) and took thoracic radiographs and found her to have a hypoplastic trachea, everted laryngeal saccules, and an elongated soft palate. This condition is common in all short-faced breeds ie, English Bulldogs, French Bulldogs, Pugs and occasionally seen in other breeds such as Greyhounds, Bull Terriers, Staffordshire Bull Terriers, Collies, Labradors, Chihuahuas, Cavalier King Charles Spaniels, Cocker Spaniels, Poodles, Beagles, Australian Cattle Dogs etc. Hypoplastic trachea is congenital where the tracheal cartilages are abnormally small and or abnormally shaped. Affected dogs with hypoplastic tracheas may have other congenital abnormalities such as an elongated soft palate and everted laryngeal saccules as in Linda Louise's case. Treatment for hypoplastic trachea consists of symptomatic medical therapy (ie. antibiotics, cough suppressants) and correction of the other airway obstructions (ie. resection of the palate, saccules) however, since the entire length of the trachea is usually involved, surgical correction is not feasible. The elongated soft palate and the everterted laryngeal saccules increase the respiratory effort and can be further complicated with overheating or collars (a harness is a must for a bulldog in our opinion). Dr. Huber recommended that her soft palate be shortened (staphylectomy) and a bilateral laryngeal saccule resection using a CO2 laser be performed. On October 1, 1998 Linda Louise had soft palate resection surgery. Possible complications of this surgery could be post-operative swelling in the throat (pharynx) and voice box (larynx), Bleeding (hemorrhage) or too much or too little of the soft palate is cut out. None of which happened to Linda Louise. Linda Louise had a post-operative recheck with Dr. Huber and no mention of the removal of the everted laryngeal saccules was mentioned. Obviously Dr. Huber thought that her recovery was going so well that the removal of the laryngeal saccules was not necessary at that time. Linda Louise did not develop any real further breathing problems until May of 2001. See the section below on the Laryngeal Sacculecomy. Please note that dogs with the brachycephalic syndrome (or Chronic Airway Obstruction) should be under the care of your veterinarian. If treatment is delayed a fatal situation most likely result. As we have mentioned before, always know your family vets hours of operation and have the location of an after hours or 24 hour veterinary hospital handy. In Southern California we use and recommend All-Care Animal Referral Center in Fountain Valley California.
Linda Louise developed a recurrent limp. Upon taking her to Bay Cities Veterinary Hospital and getting a thorough examination, Linda Louise was diagnosed with Bilateral Stifle Arthritis, or that is arthritis in her elbows. This same diagnosis was confirmed during a later visit to Animal Specialty Group, where we were informed that Linda Louise had begun getting arthritis in her rear legs as well. As it turns out most large dogs will develop arthritis as they age, however Linda Louise was just over two years old. Although there are no miracle cures, much can be done to make their lives more comfortable and improve the quality of their lives.
|
||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|
||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Fairly early in Linda Louise’s development she began to exhibit lameness in her front right leg. We would ask our vet about it and during a physical exam found nothing wrong and suggested that we temporarily limit her activity. That would work for a while and then after resumption of normal activity she would begin limping again. Since she would continue to limp we were advised to try Adequan injections. While these seemed to help she continued to exhibit periodic lameness. Then on December 2, 1999 Linda Louise could barely move and was in obvious discomfort. We rushed her to a 24-hour emergency hospital in West L.A. where she was diagnosed with a possible ACL injury in her knee. We made an appointment with Dr. Michael Huber at the Animal Specialty Group where they took X-rays and gave her a physical exam on December 18, 1999. An ACL injury was ruled out. We were stumped. Then on January 13, 2000 we had another appointment with the Animal Specialty Group where they did a Centesis (took fluid out of her joints and analyzed it) and she was diagnosed with Bilateral Stifle Arthritis. We were told to continue the Adequan injections, we were given some pain meds to treat the pain, told to watch her weight and restrict her from any strenuous exercise/activity. However, she seemed to only continue to get worse and we were concerned about her level of pain. On July 16, 2000 we had a post-surgical appointment at with Dr. Robert Rooks at All-Care Animal Referral Center with our dog Goldie (she had surgery in her lower back on July 4, 2000). We called All-Care and asked if Dr. Rooks could also see Linda Louise during our visit. We were told to bring her on down. All we told Dr. Rooks was that she had been exhibiting intermittent lameness in her front right leg. He did a physical exam, checked her range of motion and then had us walk her a short distance up and down a hallway. He then said that he needed to get X-rays. Upon review of the X-rays with us, Dr. Rooks informed us that Linda Louise did indeed have arthritis but it was caused by her having Bilateral Elbow Dysplasia in BOTH of her legs, with her left leg actually in worse shape then the right and that she was in pain. We could even see small bone fragments in both her elbows (no wonder she was limping and in pain). He suggested that we have Arthroscopic surgery performed. The surgery was performed on July 31, 2000 with great success. While Linda Louise is still treated to tri-monthly Adequan injections to treat the arthritis that she has in many of her joints she no longer exhibits any lameness and is relatively pain-free. overview | development | clinical signs | diagnosis | treatment
On the evening of May 7, 2001 while I was working on my computer, Linda Louise was on the couch in the office sleeping away (her favorite pastime). I started to hear some strange noises. Not wanting to get excited or scare her I waited to see if she was having a bad dream or something. She suddenly got off the couch and had what I would call a seizure. Her eyes were wide open and she did not seem to have any control of where she was going and was moving around leaning and veering to her left. My husband was in the other room in the middle of a meeting with one of his associates when he heard me yell for help. We all immediately decided that she needed to be seen STAT. We put her in the car and I off I went to All-Care Animal Referral Center. On the way down she settled down however, her breathing was still what I would called ‘distressed’. We were immediately seen at All-Care Animal Referral Center by Dr. Robert Righter, another great vet at All-Care, who treated her with Baytril, Clavamox and Valum and placed her in an Oxygen cage. I was asked to keep her there overnight for observation because by now, with meds and oxygen, she was no longer in distress but they wanted to make sure she was not going to have a recurrence. She did not. The next day we picked her up and told that there could be a number of things that could have caused the problem including epilepsy, we were told to watch her and to schedule a recheck within the week. We made an appointment to see Dr. Robert Rooks on May 13, 2001. When we arrived and saw Dr. Rooks he immediately started examining her throat area (he had reviewed her chart from the previous visit and had already conferred with Dr. Righter). He diagnosed her with probable Laryngeal Saccules. These Saccules could literally be in the way of her airway and blocking the flow of air into her lungs – therefore she would not be able to breath. What looked like a seizure was actually her struggling to breath. If Linda Louise did have these saccules Dr. Rooks recommended a Laryngeal Sacculecomy. He also suggested that Dr. Clare Gregory of his staff do the procedure. Along with performing surgeries at All-Care, Dr. Gregory is in charge of small animal surgery at U.C. Davis Veterinary School and comes to All-Care Animal Referral Center once a month to do ‘soft tissue’ surgeries. The only way to determine if there are saccules they needed to put a scope down her throat and she needed to be anesthetized. If there were saccules then they then can be removed, however, only one at a time. Only one can be taken at a time to minimize any complications from surgery – including too much swelling. We scheduled the procedure for May 29, 2001. Dr. Gregory took a look into her throat and indeed there were two saccules – the size of cherries! We were informed by his assistant of the saccules and told that he wanted to remove the left one first and he also wanted to perform rhinoplasty (a nose job). He felt that her nostrils were too small and opening them up would help her get more air. Anything to improved her quality of life is okay with me – we gave it a go. The left saccule was removed first and the rhinoplasty was performed. Her recovery was uneventful and we scheduled to have the right saccule removed on his next visit to All-Care on June 16, 2001. Again, an uneventful recovery and a healthier, happier dog! overview
| symptoms | stenotic
nares (closed nostrils)
As with everything else about our pets we have always insured that they were properly vaccinated. Whenever we received a vaccination notice from our vets we would immediately get our pets in for their shots. However, Linda Louise began to get what we called 'site episodes' from her shots. These site episodes looked and felt like she was either bitten by something or had developed a cyst. They did not go away in a few days, more like, they lasted for months. We obviously became concerned. Initially we did not realize that these 'bumps' were from the vaccines. We would put topical antibiotics or topical cortizone cream on the areas - neither of which worked. Then to be on the safe side we had our vet do a needle aspirate to make sure it was nothing more serious. The results of the aspirate came back that the 'bumps' were a result of the vaccines and that they should go away with time, but that we were to keep an eye on them. The question is, is it really necessary for all these vaccines? As babies and toddlers we are vaccinated for hepatitis, polio and influenza and are given booster shots until we hit puberty. Then we are done. Why is it that our pets need to be vaccinated throughout their life? Many veterinarians believe that the practice of annual vaccinations is unnecessary and can contribute to such diseases as allergies, seizures, anemia and even cancer. They say instead of building up immunity we are overwhelming our pets' immune systems. Please realize that the drug manufacturers have made the recommendations for the schedule of vaccinations in our pets and not independent veterinarian professionals. There is a known connection between the increase in the number of sarcomas (cancerous tumors) and vaccinations in cats. This was found both at the University of Pennsylvania in 1991 and shortly after, at the University of California at Davis. Further investigating led researchers at UC Davis to estimate that the prevalence of vaccine-induce sarcomas to be as much as one cat in 1,000 or up to 22,000 new cases of sarcoma a year. As a matter of fact we lost our cat Skipper in 1998 to just such a cancer. Some veterinary professionals have begun to suspect that vaccinations are a risk factor in other serious auto-immune diseases such as auto-immune hemolytic anemia in dogs, and thyroid disease, allergy, arthritis and seizures in cats and dogs. Linda Louise has since been diagnosed with a hypothyroid which she takes two pills a day for. Our great dane mix Goldie also had a hypothyroid and our domestic short hair cat Sailor had a hyperthyroid disease that she was treated for. Could these thyroid conditions be a result of the vaccinations? The Journal of the American Veterinary Medical Association, in 1995, had an article that concluded there is "little scientific documentation that backs up label claims for annual administration of most vaccines," and that the only vaccine tested routinely for duration is the rabies vaccine. In addition, the article suggested that though some vaccines should be given annually, giving others only every few years would be sufficient because of potential risks associated with them. You can ask your vet to give annual titers, or tests, to check the level of antibodies in the blood to determine if boostering is necessary. We are in no way recommending that you not vaccinate your pet after they are fully grown. We believe that there is no conclusive evidence as to the length of actual immunity of any individual vaccine but we believe that before you give your pet boosters shots, after they have fully grown, you talk to your vet about what is best for your pet. In our case, Linda Louise will not be getting any more boosters except for the rabies and only after a test to determine that it is called for. In regards to our puppy Bobbie Lee, she will get her shots on schedule until she is fully grown and then we will have titers performed before she is vaccinated again. Our cat Sailor is 19 years old and we feel that any senior pet should not be put in any danger by unnecessary treatments including booster shots. Again, you and your vet need to determine what will be best in insure the quality of life for your pet. for more information on this topic please visit The Pet Center's website on vaccination.
Linda Louise has a screw tail/inverted tail. We spent, over the years, hours trying to keep that tail area clean. We used a Q-Tip in an attempt to keep it clean. However, we were never completely successful – she always seemed to be very sensitive in her tail area. We thought that maybe it would be best to remove her tail but thought that we might be ‘over the top’ and kept up with our cleaning attempts. Then, when we were at All- Care Animal Referral Center (www.acarc.com) for a re-check Dr. Robert Rooks suggested that we remove her tail. Which we did. After her surgery Dr. Rooks came out to tell us that she did fine in the surgery and that he had to commend us on our cleaning attempts. Her tail was a good three inches in – much farther than we could have imagined – and the area had to be carefully cleaned before he could ‘close her up’. Dr. Rooks felt that she will definitely feel better and will more then likely have fewer ‘bad’ days – where she did not feel well. We learned later that up to 50% of Bulldogs have their tails removed – especially if they have a screw tail. A true bulldog tail is a dream to look after, ideally he should have a nice straight spiked tail, moderate in length, that can be easily lifted away from the body - however, screw tails in bulldogs are not uncommon (many people assume the bulldog should have a screw tail which is not correct) and this and/or an inverted tail (where the tail is growing back into the body) can cause your bulldog a few problems – including interfering with your ‘kid’s’ bowels. You should try to keep tight tails clean and DRY, but if this proves to be a problem you should consult your vet for possible removal. Bulldog tails ARE NOT docked and come in a wide variety of shapes and sizes, pay particular attention to tightly screwed or close fitting tails as these will need regular attention in order to prevent infection, some tails sit inside themselves (what I call a thumb in a belly button) and can look like there is no tail at all until you look closer. Following are description of the types of tails of Bulldogs: Inverted Tail Often these tails go un-noticed as a quick glance looks like there isn't a tail. I call these tails "Thumb In A Belly Button" as often the tail bone is hidden inside a pocket. You need to ensure the pocket is kept clean and dry and if this proves to be difficult or painful amputation may need to be seriously considered.
Tight Tail As with Inverted tails, you need to make sure that the underside of a tight tail is kept clean and dry. If you cannot get your finger up under the tail you may find that you will seriously need to consider amputation as the area will quickly become sore and infected, especially during the Summer. After a bath, this area should be dried thoroughly. Tails which press tightly against the anus will quickly become dirty and may in the most serious cases cause internal nerve damage within the rectum. It's worth keeping an eye on pups with tight tails as they invariably get tighter as the dog grows bigger.
Screw Tail Or Pig Tail. Sadly many newcomers to the breed assume these tails to be correct. A tail which simply curls will probably cause no problem whatsoever, but a tail the screws tight round on itself should be treated the same as an inverted or tight tail.
Spike Tail A Spike Tail is a correct tail. Measuring approximately 3" in length, tapering to a point a Spike Tail can be easily lifted away from the body but is not carried above the dogs top line. These tails require very little attention and are pleasing to see as the dog is able to wag his tail.
Bun Tail A Bun Tail sits almost on top of the dogs back, often they are tightly screwed or inverted. Gay Tail A Gay Tail will almost definitely be straight, but will be carried above the dog's top line. Although incorrect for the show ring will cause the dog no problems and will require very little attention. Curved Tail A straight tail that decided against becoming a screw tail. Sometimes there is a kink which may get a bit sweaty but on the most part these tails cause little problems.
Bald Tails Bulldog tails tend to go bald at some stage, I understand that this is due to the gland in the tail packing up and fur growth stops. The age this occurs varies from dog to dog, some are quite old before the tail goes bald whereas other start losing fur on the tail quite young, there is little that can be done and in most cases the problem is purely cosmetic.
Short Tails Bulldog tails are never docked but it's not unusual for a bulldog to be born with a short stumpy tail. These dogs usually wag their entire back ends when attempting to wag their tail.
Interdigial Cyst on Linda Louise’s paw We noticed a swelling on Linda Louise’s front right paw. Being who she is we had to have it checked out. We went to our vet and upon a quick exam – he diagnosed an Interdigital Cyst. We were advised to soak her paw in Epsom Salts and put her on a series of antibiotics. Which did the trick. Interdigital Cysts are actually a cellulitic form of deep tissue pyoderma (skin infection). Cellulitus is a condition in which inflammatory fluids are forced into the tissues, rather than being discharged on the surface. Interdigital cysts are characterized as a firm, nodular thickening of the interdigital web. These cysts generally exhibit active stages of deep draining tracts of large pustules in one or more interdigital spaces. Interdigital pyoderma tends to be chronic in nature, therefore a thorough search for the underlying cause is essential. This search can consist of skin scrapings, bacterial cultures and sensitivity tests. Most often the causative factors are found to be infection with staphylococci, ingrown hairs or blockage of a sebaceous gland. Though in some cases a genetic predisposition is suspected, which will necessitate intermittent lifelong antibiotics to control the symptoms. In some cases, the cyst is removed under general anesthesia followed up by appropriate antibiotics. In many cases, interdigital cysts can be eleviated, if only temporarily, by home treatment. Home treatment should not be attempted by novices, it is however a step available to those experienced in dogs and the possible repercussions of interdigital cysts. The following is a brief outline of one fairly successful home treatment course.
Periodically, Linda Louise develops ring worm. We could never figure out where she gets it since our Great Dane, Goldie nor our Jack Russell, Bobbie Lee ever get it - combined with the fact that Linda Louise does not go out in ‘public’ a lot. She would be tested at the vet with a fluorescent light of infected hairs under a special light and or Culture of the hair for the fungus. The last method is the most accurate, but it may take up to 2-3 weeks for the culture to become positive. Then she would have to suffer a Lime Sulfur dip and go home with a topical antifungal cream. After a while we discovered our own cure (but as with everything – check with your vet first) and that was using some of the over-the-counter anti-fungal products (think athletes foot). If you read the label you will notice that many of them also treat ‘ringworm’. What is ringworm, and what causes it? How long does it take to get it?
What should I expect from treatment? Treatment will not produce immediate results. The areas of hair loss will get larger before they begin to get smaller. Within 1-2 weeks, the hair loss should stop, there should be no new areas of hair loss, and the crusty appearance of the skin should subside and the skin look more normal. If any of these do not occur within two weeks, your dog should be checked again.
Coming soon!
In early April 2004, Linda Louise was at VCA All-Care Animal Referral Center VCA All-Care Animal Referral Center for an ultrasound after a bout with severe vomiting - her stomach which had shown some inflammation the week before. During the exam one of the Vets , Dr. Michael P. Moore, DVM, MS noticed a growth on her rear left paw. From a distance it looked like it was part of the pad of the paw but upon closer inspection it looked like a black scabbed over wart about ¼ inch around. Dr. Moore suggested that we do a needle biopsy to find out exactly what it was. The following day we received a call from Dr. Anne Masloski to inform us that the biopsy had returned and it looked like a Cutaneous Histiocytoma and it should be removed. We scheduled the surgery for May 1, 2004. The surgery took no time at all and she was home recovering and happy the same day. Now a little background on the histicytoma. Cutaneous histiocytomas are commonly referred to as button tumors because they are normally a distinctive red, raised or dome-shaped appearance. Typically they are shiny, hairless and frequently ulcerate. Linda Louise’s was black and would ulcerate and bleed. Histiocytomas can appear on the face, eyelids, head (especially the ears), on the front legs and on the paws. Rarely, histiocytomas may arise in multiple sites. They commonly affect dogs and can arise at any age, but most commonly occur in dogs up to three years old. Certain breeds are more likely to develop these tumors, including flatcoat retrievers, English bulldogs, Scottish terriers, greyhounds, boxers, Boston terriers, dachshunds, cockers spaniels, bull terriers, great danes and shelties. Purebred dogs tend to develop these tumors more frequently than mixed breeds. Single lesions are most common, but clusters or groups may also occur. The cause is unknown. The metastatic potential of histiocytomas has not been studied directly, but reports of tumor metastasis are rare. Death due to cutaneous histiocytoma has not been reported. It is generally accepted that this tumor does not readily metastasize, and should be considered benign.
Histiocytomas tend to grow rapidly and subsequently regress. Regression typically occurs over several weeks to a few months. Microscopic tissue studies have shown that a characteristic lymphoid inflammatory infiltrate into the tumor occurs with regression of the mass. Apoptosis may play a role in tumor regression. Apoptosis is a process in which a cell altered by a tumor-forming or other disruptive process will self-destruct. As a result, many cutaneous histiocytomas resolve without treatment. (many tumors will have begun regressing by the time you wish to investigate or to take action). However, the tendency for these tumors to ulcerate, drain and scab and then cause secondary problems like infection justifies removing them surgically. Removal is by excision; superficial lesions may be frozen off with cryosurgery. Histiocytomas recur only infrequently after surgery or spontaneous regression. Some malignant round cell tumors, such as mast cell tumors or solitary cutaneous lymphoma, can mimic the appearance of cutaneous histiocytoma. For this reason, some oncologists recommend removal of benign hyisticytic tumors since it is not always easy to distinguish them from malignant tumors. Due to the high rate of surgical cure and the probability of spontaneous regression, few studies have been done addressing alternate forms of therapy. As with all issues we discuss on MyDogWontEat.com your vet is the best person to consult with to decide any and all treatment options for you kid. Note: Treatment of animals should only be performed by a licensed veterinarian.
On Monday, December 13, 2004 Linda Louise began to experience an increased lack of appitite, vomiting, we noticed that her eyes were turning yellow and she was losing some hair in spots on her head. Assuming that the hair loss was ring worm - which she has had before - we called VCA-All-Care Animal Referral Center. Top of Linda Louise's head - note hair loss
Please note that Linda Louise had a developed an acute fear of going to the vet, so much so that she needed to be sedated. We are blessed with wonderful vets both our family vet and the vets at All-Care that understand the situation and will do anything to minimize any stress to Linda Louise. I was able to speak to Dr. Michael Moore, who after I described the symptoms Linda Louise was experiencing and after he was able to review, via e-mai, digital photo's of the trouble areas, decided that it was best that we bring Linda Louise down and he would examine her in the car. Dr. Moore and staff were able to take blood and take skin scrapings and send us home without her ever having to step into the hospital. Trouble came later that same day. Dr. Moore called to say that Linda Louise's blood work had come back and that her liver enzymes were off the chart. He needed to have her come back the next day so that he could do an ultrasound, get an x-ray and perform a needle biopsy of her liver. Something was going on and we were getting scared. Early the next morning we were up, sedating Linda Louise, and driving down to All-Care. Linda Louise was immediately taken in and once she was coming out of anesthesia whe was brought back to the car to minimize her stress. We were prepared with ice packs and oxygen in case she started to get upset. (Note: when Linda Louise got nervous her temperture would jump - to as high as 107 - and she would have trouble breathing due to her Hypoplastic Trachea). After the procedures she started to look more jaundice, but then started to get back her color. Everything went fine and we were given the all clear to take her home. Now the heart ache begins. Later that same day we received a call not from Dr. Moore but from Dr. Robert L. Rooks to inform us of the results of the ultrasound and needle biopsy. It looked like there was a mass in her liver, her gall bladder looked very odd and her spleen was enlarged. They were thinking cancer. Dr. Rooks, after discussions with Drs. Moore (Internal Medicine) and Ravi Daliwal (Oncology) came with the conclusion that exploratory surgery was needed. Granted there was the option of doing nothing but, due to the size/location etc. and other organs being affected, they feel that we would more than likely lose her in 2-3 weeks. For those of you that know Bob Rooks you know they high level of respect that he has in the veterinary field and that he is a fighter. We could not have a better advocate for our pets. Dr. Rooks wanted to do the surgery on Friday morning (December 17th). Linda Louise, just so you know, was not able to keep anything down now. We were giving her boiled, boneless, skinless chicken breast (the only thing that she would show interest in eating) and she would vomit it up within an hour of eating. Her eyes were becoming more and more yellow. We decided that either we did the surgery or watch Linda Louise starve to death. So on December 17th we woke up early, sedated Linda Louise again and made the drive to VCA-All-Care Animal Referral Center. We were met at the car by Dr. Robert Paddleford, anesthesiologist, who took her straight into surgery with Dr. Rooks - then we waited. We did not have long to wait. Dr. Rooks came out to inform us that the growth in Linda Louise's liver was blocking her bile duct and it was inoperable. He gave her days to live. We immediately (with many tears) decided it would be best that we let her go. To make her last days full of pain would be in-human. To write this final entry of our 'Pig Dog', our beauty, still makes me cry. Our hearts are broken. Thank god for that typing class in high school so I do not have to see the key board to write this. Lastly, the most wonderful thing was done for us. One of the lovely techs (Jill) at All-Care made a plaster cast of our Linda's paw for us. So when we picked up Linda Louise's ashes it was there for us. For some people this may seem strange but it is a treasure to us and we can not thank the staff enough for that gift.
© copyright My Dog Won't Eat.com 2002. Last updated May 2, 2005. All rights reserved. home
|
||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
