Pets need regular medical attention for serious or minor ailments like their human versions. While skin allergies and infections are infrequently deadly in dogs, they can be unforeseen and even pricey to deal with. Cats and dogs are subject to many health issues similar to humans, so healthcare maintenance must be absorbed by all pet owners. Now, let’s know the common health issues in dogs.
Five Medical Conditions for Dogs
A pet owner should understand the signs and symptoms of common disorders to get the proper medical attention for their pet as soon as possible. Here are five canine medical conditions every pet owner should know.
1. Urinary Tract Infection (UTI)
Like how painful it is for humans, UTIs in household pets mean the same. Urinary tract infections in pet dogs are downright dangerous and uncomfortable at best. Canines get UTIs when gastrointestinal (GI) tract flora and normal skin get past their urinary system defenses and enter the urine. These bacteria spread to the urinary tract, leading to an infection. A common cause of UTIs is E. coli, but some fungi and several bacteria can cause infections too.
2. Periodontal disease
Periodontal or gum disease commonly happens to pets with bad oral hygiene, diet, and nutrition. Some aspects that can add to having gum disease are environmental contributors like grooming habits, misaligned teeth, and unclean toys. Tartar and plaque buildup on a dog’s teeth can cause tooth loss, gum infections, bone loss, and other dangerous health problems.
Routine oral checkups with your veterinary dental practitioner and thorough at-home dental care can help keep your canine’s teeth healthy. Maintaining your canine’s oral health will help keep their eating manners healthy and prevent systemic conditions that may come with it. You may check websites like ambassadorpet.com to know more about the necessary veterinary and dental care for your canine.
3. Kidney disease
Kidney issues or conditions in canines can be chronic or acute. It only takes several days for acute kidney failure to occur, whereas chronic kidney failure takes much longer. Acute kidney complications are often associated with canines who consume hazardous substances or chemicals like home antifreeze, cleaners, or bad food.
Chronic kidney illnesses are more common in older canines. Most pet owners usually overlook and neglect symptoms of chronic kidney illnesses because they are moderate in nature. CKD commonly stems from oral infections, cancer, diabetes, genetic factors, or autoimmune diseases.
Even with kidney disease, an animal internal medicine professional can still help improve your beloved pet’s wellness through advanced diagnosis services and treatment plans for conditions affecting their internal body systems.
4. Cancer
Nowadays, most canine foods are hard to digest, so canines do not get some of the few nutrients they need. This is what causes cancer in dogs. Dogs have much shorter intestines than human beings, which means their digestive process occurs in the stomach, while human food digestion happens in the intestines.
As stated by the Veterinary Cancer Society, 1 in 4 canines might have cancer, and fifty percent of pet dogs may develop it at age 10 above. Some common cancers in pet dogs are malignant melanoma, mast cell tumors, bone cancer, lymphoma, and hemangiosarcoma. Veterinary surgeons or animal facilities with advanced medical technologies can help cure a canine’s cancer through surgeries and other treatments when caught in its early stages.
You may visit their surgery page to know more about the conditions that will require surgical attention.
5. Skin allergies
Common skin allergies in pets include food allergies, flea allergy dermatitis, and environmental irritants. Some pets can be allergic to grooming products, food, and other things in their surroundings, like insect bites or pollen, which makes them allergic. A dog with allergies might scratch their skin relentlessly, and a look at their skin often indicates an ugly rash.