Passion For Pibbles: March 2015

Friday, March 20, 2015

Dog Health – Canine Good Citizen

‘CGC’

Sponsored by the Animal Kennel Club (AKC). Dogs may participate no matter pedigree or breed*. It’s administered by local dog clubs, private trainers, and 4H clubs. Rules on what is to be expected can be found at their website akc.org. (Can also be accessed in the downloads section at dogchannel.com.)

· Must be well groomed

· Good manners

· Must know sit, stay, come, down

· Allow strangers to approach

· React appropriately to dogs and distractions

· Walk nicely on loose leash

· Sit politely for petting

· Move through crowd without going wild

· Calm down after play or praise

· Sit still for exam by judge

*This is an excellent way for APBT (and their owners) to show off just how wonderful these dogs are.

Disclaimer – In no way am I claiming to be an expert on these topics. These are only informational articles written to help dog owners. It’s recommended that you always do your own research and consult with your veterinarian for more detailed information.

Dog Health – Poisons & Dangers

House

· Rx and non Rx meds Dietary supplements Household cleaners

· toilet bowl sanitizers Cosmetics Perfumes

· electric cords wires trash cans

· pest control coins some children’s toys

· pins tacks needles

· small objects string or thread some fabric

Yard

· Pesticides Herbicides Insecticides Weed killers Rodent traps slug bait

· Beetle traps plants snakes Spiders insects scorpions

· Broken fence loose fence stray animals wild animals broken glass nails

Garage

· Antifreeze gasoline paint Car cleaners

· fiberglass cellulose Paint thinner insulation

· sharp blades tools other gadgets

Dog Health – Poisonous Foods

· Chocolate onions tobacco

· Raisins grapes caffeine

· Avocado alcohol macadamia nuts

· Baby food raw egg raw meat

· Garlic milk yeast bread dough

*Some foods listed may not be actually considered poisonous. However some experts don’t recommend them for dogs for varying reasons. When in doubt the best thing to do is seek your vet’s advice. (It’s better to be safe than sorry.)

Dog Health - Poisonous Plants

· American blue flag Bachelor’s button

· Barberry Bog iris

· Boxwood Buttercup

· Cherry pits Chinese arbor

· Chokecherry Climbing lily

· Crown of thorns Elderberry berries

· Elephant ear English ivy

· False acacia Fern

· Foxglove Hellebore

· Herb of grace Holly

· Horse chestnut Irish bulbs

· Japanese yew Jerusalem cherry

· Jimson weed Lily of the valley

· Marigold Milkwort

· Mistletoe berries Monkshood

· Mullein Narcissus

· Peony Persian ivy

· Rhododendron Rhubarb

· Shallon Siberian iris

· Solomon’s seal Star of Bethlehem

· Water lily Wisteria

· Wood spurge Yew

Dog Health – Chronic Hip Dysplasia

Although the APBT often are adept at hiding their pain symptoms they can be affected by this chronic issue just like any other dog. It happens to be the number one genetic issue in dogs. (No matter the breed or type of dog.) Hip Dysplasia is basically a loose hip joint. What happens is there is abnormal rubbing in the joint surfaces. In time not only can this cause pain due to the inflammation but arthritis as well. Typically signs that there might be a problem are when their gait is altered; they may have issues going down stairs, or even have a lack of interest in playing. Depending on the severity and the dog’s age there a several treatment options. Talk with your vet to determine which one your dog may respond to best.

Treatment options (milder cases):

· Weight control – Keeping your dog within the proper weight range may help to decrease or in some fortunate cases end join point completely.

· Diet – Sometimes genetics is not the cause of the issue. Overfeeding can be a major cause (hence controlling their weight) and too much or too little of supplements such as calcium, carbohydrates, and/or phosphorus. It’s important to have an appropriate diet for your growing dog. It can help reduce risk in both puppies and adult dogs. Discuss options with your vet on what will work best for your dog and their needs.

· Regular exercise – This is important in all dogs. It helps to maintain strength, tone, and range of motion. A low impact activity like walks on a leash at the speed and distance the dog can handle can help. Be sure that they stop the walk before stiffness or lameness sets in. That would have the reverse effect on what you’re trying to accomplish. Another excellent type of low impact exercising is swimming. Like humans that use swimming as part of their rehabilitation it can have positive effects on dogs. Join your dog during their exercise regimen by dancing. Simply pick up their front legs and step backwards causing them to come forward. Don’t allow them to go backward because it could possible cause pain while the hip is in an extended position. Not only is this fun but it can help strength their gluteal muscles. By doing so it can help reduce arthritis.

· Joint RX food – There are many dog foods available that focus on helping to improve the function of joints. They are diets rich in omega-3 fatty acids.

· Pain reducers – Your vet may prescribe medication to help ease the dog’s discomfort. Since each dog is different they respond differently. Therefore more than one type of medication may have to be tried before finding the one that best suits your dog.

· Glucosamine/Chondroitin – These supplements are often used by humans to promote joint health. There’s been encouraging evidence that suggests that this also works with dogs.

Treatment options (more severe):

· Transcutaneous Electrical Nerve Stimulation (TENS) – Pain is reduced by electric impulse. Typically these treatments only take about 20-30 minutes.

· Extracorporeal Shockwave Therapy (ESWT) – This device often gives dogs with minor cases relief for up to 2 years. For the more severe cases relief can be found for several months. It uses sound waves.

· Juvenile Pubic Symphysidesis (JPS) – Most puppies aren’t symptomatic at a very young age. However, if a puppy is diagnosed before they’re 14-16 weeks old this invasive procedure may be tried. It’s typically performed in conjunction with early spay/neuter surgery. A tighter hip joint is created by cauterizing the growing cartilage cells in the lower pelvis area. This procedure can be beneficial to high risk ABPT or loose hipped puppies.

· Triple Pelvic Osteotomy (TPO) – This treatment is best if performed on young puppies with minimum or no issues with arthritis. Three cuts are made in the pelvic bone. Then it’s repositioned so that the femoral head is secured.

· Femoral head and neck incision – The femoral head is removed forming a false joint. This procedure is recommended for 50lbs or less.

· Hip Replacement – This procedure is similar to the one performed on humans. The downside is the cost and long recovery time. However, the now artificial hip is more functional and there’s overall improvement. Depending on the severity of the case the prognosis varies. In cases where the dog was given more conservative treatments for a long time prior the outlook is often good to excellent.

American Pit Bull Terrier

There’s no such breed as the ‘pit bull’. This is a general name most common for the American Pit Bull Terrier (APBT), American Staffordshire terrier (AmStaff), and the Staffordshire bull terrier (Staffie). However other ‘bully’ type of dogs are sometimes referred to as ‘pit bulls’ such as Bull Terriers, Boxers, American Bulldog just to name a few.

Dogs are social animals and the ‘pit bull’ is no different. Neglect and isolation can prevent a dog’s cheerful personality from thriving. They may become aloof, ornery, and timid. An APBT that doesn’t interact with humans may feel threatened and become defensive when in the company of them. Unreasonable harsh discipline can also spark anxiety causing a dog to bite out of fear. Knowing this it’s recommended that only positive reinforcement be used when training or during discipline. It’s important to gain your dog’s trust no matter the breed or type.

Human aggression is rare in the APBT. Some unscrupulous members of society like the ‘bad’ image and status that owning a ‘dangerous’ or ‘vicious’ dog brings. Unfortunately friendly puppies and dogs are often trained by these types of people to show aggressive behavior to others – including humans. This taught behavior goes against the true nature of the ‘pit bull’. However, being people pleasers that will literally do anything for their owners and being the easily trainable dog they are they can and often do become as ‘dangerous’ as their owners train them to be. This and sensationalized stories by the media don’t help the reputation of the dogs.

These beautiful dogs are accused of biting more people than any other type or breed of dog. The truth is accurate records are seldom kept to prove such a theory. In the ‘80s a suburb in Texas concluded that from 1980-1987 out of 1593 dog bites only 30 were caused by ‘pit bulls.’ Of course it’s quite likely that this stat is even lower than that due to the many ‘bully breeds’ that look like the ‘pit bull.’

Though often compact dogs they are strong. Not only are they physically strong but mentally as well. Once their minds are set on something they seem to put their all into it. Another reason these dogs have been exploited and misused through the years. The APBT as a whole generally carries the gameness trait. Over the years and through various breeding sadly this characteristic has been somewhat diluted and usually only seen in certain lines now. Gameness is the willingness to continue its task no matter the stress, pain, or even ultimate death, whether it’s fighting, pulling, hunting, or even defending its human. This has nothing to do with the bravery or viciousness of the dog but more to do with its heart and its determination to keep on no matter what it encounters. The ‘pit bull’ is often known for its do or die attitude. This a trait that its fans and owners often admire and yes sometimes exploits.

Myth – APBT have locking jaws – sometimes even to the death.

Truth – This is simply untrue. They do not have any physical characteristics that would cause such a phenomenon. However, their stubbornness, determination, and tenacity may be the reason they ‘lock’ on and don’t let go.

Myth – All ‘pit bulls’ and ‘bully breeds’ should be banned because they’re all dangerous.

Truth – Any dog type or breed that isn’t properly socialized, bred, or trained has the potential to be a problem in society. Sadly Dobermans, German Shepherds, Rottweiler, and now the ‘pit bull’ are just some of the dogs that are often thought of as dangerous or bad. Banning a specific type of dog doesn’t work because it doesn’t focus on the dog owners and responsible dog ownership instead it focuses only on dog types, breeds, and in most cases stereotypes.

Characteristics:

Energetic	Desire to please	Protect family
Intelligent	Protective toward family	Good with kids
Center of attention	Highly trainable	Loving
Affectionate	Trusting	Play for hours
Loves humans	Discerns when to rough house	Entertaining
High pain tolerance	Doesn’t misdirect aggression	Tolerate of kid’s rough play
Least human aggressive	Competent guardian	Devote life
Loyal	Companionship	Discerns when to show affection