Purebred Health

Just to clarify a few things so everyone knows:

Posts that violate LJ TOS will be deleted. Posts about engaging in illegal activity violate LJ TOS. Giving away prescription drugs is illegal and posts about doing so won't be tolerated, as they can get the community deleted. Giving away non-prescription items like vitamins and mineral supplements is fine. Anyone violating LJ TOS will be at risk for banning.

Thank you

June 5, 2007 2:09 pm

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration is investigating a Texas laboratory's finding of acetaminophen in dog and cat food, an agency spokesman said Monday.

"We're very interested in being able to test these samples ourselves to determine the levels of those contaminants," said FDA spokesman Doug Arbesfeld. "What's significant is these things are there. They don't belong there."

The pain medication is the fifth contaminant found in pet foods during the past 2 1/2 months and can be toxic or lethal to pets, especially cats. It is not known if any animals became sick with acetaminophen poisoning, or died from it.

"We were looking for cyanuric acid and melamine, and the acetaminophen just popped up," Donna Coneley, lab operations manager for ExperTox Inc. in Deer Park, Texas, told the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review yesterday. "It definitely was a surprise to find that in several samples."

At least five dog and cat food samples submitted by worried pet owners and pet food manufacturers contained varying levels of the pain reliever, she said. Only the food, not individual ingredients, were tested.

The medication was found most often with cyanuric acid, a chemical used in pool chlorination, Coneley said. Varying levels of melamine, a chemical used to make plastics, also were found among the hundreds of samples ExperTox tested, she said.

The contaminants were found in foods that are not among the more than 150 brands recalled since March 16, Coneley said. The highest level of acetaminophen was found in a dog food sample submitted by a manufacturer, she said. Coneley declined to identify the company but said its officials were given the results "well over a month ago."

Full story here: http://www.pittsburghlive.com/x/pittsburghtrib/news/s_510984.html

I'm asking this on behalf of a non-LJ-savvy acquaintance.

She's looking for a non-pharmaceutical way to acidify canine urine through diet. If anyone can include a "why it will work" along with the "how," it would be appreciated. :)

(Crossposted to spo_prevention and purebredhealth.)

Hello everyone!

I just joined this community specifically in hopes that I can find some answers to my questions I've been having lately. I have a Bichon/Cocker mix (not an intentional designer dog) named Jesse. She's 12 years old and is mostly Bichon in every way, in fact the only thing cocker about her is that they docked her tail for some reason. I hope its alright to ask about my mix breed here, as she is essentially a Bichon.

..which is unfortunate in one particular case...

She got kidney stones awhile back as I'm told the breed is likely to get. Beforehand she was eating NutroMax dog food but the vet suggested we switch her to Hills Science Diet C/D perscription formula to prevent kidney stones. She's been on this food for a number of years and no other problems have arisen.

But Jesse and I move around a lot, and with each move means we have to get a different vet, and each new vet insists that we get a full check up with THEM or else they won't give us her perscription dog food. I find this ridiculous as I've had cases where I even had the old vet fax the perscription over and they wouldn't give it to me, or would give it to me "just this once" and insist on a full check up next time. I'm convinced its to get my money, since why would I intentionally spend more money on dogfood I can only get at the vet?

I've been working at a pet store for the past year and learning about dogfood made me realize that I'm really not thrilled with all the by products in the ingredients in Hills Science diet. Why am I paying extra money and subjecting my dog to additional poking and prodding to give her dried bits of gristle and chemicals? Ideally I would like to just flat out start cooking for my dog, meat and rice and potato stews of sorts, leave the middleman out of the equation and give my dog something she doesn't resent eating.

But herein lies the problem, I don't know what it is exactly about the C/D formula that keeps her crystal levels down in her urine that cause the kidney stones. I don't want to cook for my dog only to have the fresh food I make her be riddled with the very thing that will make her have the stones again. I haven't talked to my vet about this yet as last time I talked to them about switching her food they said it was outright and that Hills Science Diet is the /only/ food for her (..i don't feel this is very likely..).

Firstly, what would you suggest I do? And secondly, what are some foods I can cook for my dog that won't lead to kidney stones?

Thank you :)

I just discovered the LJ communities--I have had a LJ account for a couple years, but never ventured away from my page and my friend's page. I have 4 purebreds in my home. I have a 10 yr old M/N red and white Pembroke Welsh Corgi and a 4 yr old F/S red-headed tricolor Pembroke Welsh Corgi. My male used to do sheep herding til he tore an ACL, and then after rehab, he hurt his back. :( My female was to be a show dog, but she never grew to size, and we also found out she has liver disease (NO history if it anywhere in her lines!), so we spayed her and she is now the queen of the bed. :) I also have a 10 yr old F/S blue merle bicolor Australian Shepherd who I got from rescue. She has two luxating patellas, a severely dysplastic right him, came to me almost hairless from flea bite dermatitis as well as 20 lbs overweight, and had heartworm disease. I got her at 3 yrs old. She's now completely spoiled and pampered and HW free. The last dog is an almost 7 yr old M fawn Pug, who was a show dog. A very successful one. :) So far, he's really got no health issues.

I just wanted to intro myself. I won't be posting much after today, because I'm leaving to go study abroad in Spain tomorrow, and won't be home til August! I will try to check in, though

I have a Siamese(see icon) with congenital Strabismus. More plainly... she's crosseyed. I got her as a 6 week old kitten and it was mild. She's almost 3 years old now and the condition is a bit more severe. You can't see the inisde part of her blue eyes(closest to her nose).

This past week she's had trouble getting on the cat trees we have all over the house, getting on the bed and pretty much anything that isn't ground level. It's like she can't properly judge distance and her aim is off. When she walks she veers right and she's wobbly. When she stops and tries to focus on something, she looks like she's doing her best effort at a Stevie Wonder impression.

I was wondering if anyone here had heard of strabismus getting worse or if it could lead to partial blindness or anything like that?

I've googled and have only come up with stuff saying that you shouldn't worry about the condition if it's a Siamese.

----

This is crossposted from spo_prevention. Minchkin is going to a regular vet at 11:15 this morning for an eye exam. If there's no luck there, I'm going to see about getting her an appointment with a specialist.

Does anybody here use Vet Pet insurance (petinsurance.com)?
If so, have you had any problems? Is it pretty reliable?
Thanks in advance.

(x-posted)

My 7 month old Shar Pei puppy has bleeding where his dew claws used to be. They were removed before we got him (nothing recent). What could have caused this? Should I be concerned? The only thing I can think may have happened- was we went to the dog park, and it was really cold- do you think the cold could have caused bleeding?

Being a owner of a wonderful nine year old Scottie boy named Hamish, I've been studying the health of the breed for many, many years (and before I got him). I thought this would also be of interest to those who are studying the lifespans of breeds, etc.

http://www.tartanscottie.com/pages/GSM_2005_Health_Survey_Report_1column.pdf

Knock on wood, my boy has been very healthy breed-specific wise, save for a reoccuring bacterial skin problem which may or may not be related to his breed. He'll be seeing a dermatologist next week.

Scotties are prone to Atopy, bladder cancer (moreso than others, and it's believed to be caused by herbicides/pesticides and/or a "genetic bottleneck"), Scottie Cramp (muscle cramping disorder believed to brought on by stress), Von Willebrand's Disease (bleeding disorder also common in Dobes), Cushing's Syndrome, Hypothyroidism, epilepsy and Craniomandibular Osteopathy (abnormal growth of the jawbone).

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Hello all!

I am new here, and wanted to share a few things about my favorite breed.
I have two male Italian Greyhounds, ages 13 and 14. IGs (aka Iggies) are great pets, but are definitely not for everyone. They are petite versions of the Greyhound, but are an equally ancient breed, dating back to the ancient Egyptians. They became known as "Italian" during the Renaissance, due to their popularity there, and they are featured in many artworks of the time. OK, 'nuff of a history lesson! They can be quite energetic dogs, and are great jumpers, to the point that you would think they are part cat. My smaller one, before he was broken of the habit, could jump from the floor to the top of the dining room table with no effort at all. They don't like cold weather, and prefer to sleep under a blanket. They bark very little, require very little grooming, and their hair is so short, that shedding is not a problem. They also don't seem to get that typical "doggy aroma." Many have housebreaking problems - ours are paper-trained, which is practically essential.

As a breed, they are prone to breaking legs when jumping off of furniture and such, especially the smaller ones. IGs generally range from 8-15 pounds, with the smaller ones naturally being more fragile. One of my two boys is 15 pounds at about 15 inches, while the other is a very oversized pet-quality 18 pounds at about 18 inches.
The breed is also prone to some other orthopedic problems especially dislocating patellas.
Skin problems can also be seen, especially a type of alopecia or hair loss in those of blue or fawn coloring.
Like most toy breeds, they are also prone to dental problems. And like the rest of the sighthounds, they have can have problems with anesthesia.

I've been fortunate with my two fellas - no broken legs or ortho problems, or skin problems. They both have signs of cataracts and both have had to have some teeth pulled, but considering their ages, I don't think this is abnormal. They are both very spry, racing up & down stairs & on & off furniture like they are still pups - no signs of arthritis at all.

My 13 year old was diagnosed with transitional cell carcinoma of the bladder 3 months ago. We are treating him conservatively, with Piroxicam. We decided against surgery, since the cancer could only be partially removed due to its location. He is doing very, very well and has improved to the point where he is currently showing no symptoms at all. He is his usual affectionate, mischievous self! We know this is only temporary, but are happy to have it.

I've done some research, but haven't come across anything about this condition in IGs at all, or even heard of anyone who had an IG with this condition, so I don't know how common it is.

We love our IGs, which my husband calls "the weird little dogs."