PAPILLON HEALTH & WELL BEING

HEALTH: Some Problems That May Occur

INNOCUULATIONS:
I have put this at the top of the list, as it is probably the first thing that you will have to deal with, when you acquire your new puppy/dog. Some pups may have been vaccinated or are part-vaccinated already. The dose for each Dog/Puppy is for a Great Dane, no matter what the size of dog (unless you can find an understanding vet, who will lower the dose, but good luck finding one!) and Papillons have been known to get a reaction from them, varying from being quiet, swellings on the neck, convulsions and even death, although fortunately, this does not happen often. There are some breeders, who prefer to Homoeopathically vaccinate their puppies, especially, when younger as it is far less obtrusive and I have, yet to hear of any side effects, but it is far more bother and the very fact that you have to administer it orally, can put some puppies off, especially when they are teething and their mouths are sore. It is certainly more work and inconvenient. I must add that Homoeopathy has never been scientifically tested, although you can now find many more vets that are predisposed to treat homoeopathically. If you have a computer, simply Google,for more information and wish to try it. You can also send away for your vaccinations and do them at home. Whilst on the subject of computers, there are some very good canine health sites that you can get obtain various items, such as wormers etc. far cheaper that at your local vets, but please use a reputable dealer.

Since writing about innoculations, there has been a worrying problem with the Lepto4 Vaccine and I personnaly know of Papillons that have died from having it and will only use Lepto2 and then only when they are over 12mths old. I personally treat my pups with Homoeopathy. This is my decision, but I do urge you to do your own research and therefore you will be making a decison based on your knowledege and not what your vet thinks is best. Then your concience can be clear as to the decision you should make. I always say that your damed if you do and damed if you don't, when dealing with animals and remember that their life is your hands. Good luck on your decision.

DENTAL:
I have put this second on the list, because the next thing your pup will do, other than maybe have a tummy upset, is to start teething. Normally things go swimmingly and the old teeth come out. It is a good idea to have an old pair of tights, tied in knots, to encourage them to play tug of war and dog chews of various sorts. Personally mine like the hide shoes, rings and hooves, which can be easily obtained from your local pet shop. Very occasionally your pup may develop an infection, while teething, which may need a course of antibiotics, but fortunately this is very rare. Before your pup starts teething, it’s wise to make a habit of looking in its mouth on a regular basis, so he/she will get used to you cleaning them regularly when it is older. Always make it fun for the pup and not a chore. The best time to start doing this is when the pup is tired and not full of beans and wanting to run off and play. The table, with a special non-slip mat is good, because you have more control, incidentally if you are hoping to have a go at showing your pup, it to hoped that your breeder has been doing this from about the age of 4 weeks old! Beware, because I have heard of Paps that have jumped off the table, with dire cosequenses. Always have titbits handy and reward them, when they behave. It is wise to lay off this, when they are teething as it can be painful for the pup and may well put them off having their mouths looked at. Table training will also help because he/she will be used to it. While on the table it is wise to check the ears and make sure they are clean. Check claws nails as well. It is always wise to get your pup used to you doing them and far cheaper than your vet. Most Paps wear their nails naturally, If you can’t see the quick, only trim the tip. It is especially hard if it has black nails and can be painful if cut into. You can always purchase a sander, which is safer for the dog and much better for your nerves.

PATELLA LUXATIOTION OR PL
Patella Luxation is common in most small dogs and toy breeds, and should be tested in Papillons from about 12 months of age. If you have a bitch, it is wise, not to test while she is in season. This is because when in season, the muscles in the back-end tend to stretch, which will not give an accurate result. In some breeds, dogs are given aesthetic and graded. Personally I cannot justify the possibility of losing a perfectly healthy dog under anaesthetic, when I can have a vet manually test her, with no harm to the animal, but I can also appreciate that it a problem in some breeds and drastic measures have to be enforced.
Luxating means out of place, or dislocated. The patella is the equivalent to the human kneecap and part of the stifle structure, and therefore a luxating patella is a kneecap that moves out of its normal location. The patella normally moves up and down in a groove in the lower femur bone called the trochlear groove. In patella luxation the groove is often shallow and this shallow groove prevents the patella from sitting deeply, predisposing it to dislocation. A patella that is not stable but does not slip out of joint is said to be subluxating, while one that comes out of joint on its own is said to luxate.
In layman’s terms, if you Pap’s kneecap has a shallow groove, there is far more likelihood of it, getting slipping Patella. Although it is still possible for a Pap with a far deeper groove to its kneecap, to get Patella from an injury, it is far less likely to happen with a deeper one. This is why it is important that breeders test for it after the animal is 12 months old. When and if, it has tested clear, it is wise to get a certificate from your vet, stating the dog’s details and microchip, if it has one. It is not the end of the world if you have purchased the bitch, with the intention of breeding. It obviously has some bearing, because your bitch would carry extra weight with carrying puppies. But if the Patella Luxation is minor and remember, she could have easily obtained it through injury, all is not lost, but you must inform the stud dog owner and most importantly the potential sire should have a certificate stating that he is clear of PL and hopefully his parents have also been tested clear of PL. Lastly you should be prepared to be honest with the potential owners of your puppies. Personally I do not breed from dogs or bitches with Patella Luxation, but I can appreciate if someone has bought a bitch with the intention of breeding, it can most disappointing for them and for all you Stud Dog owners, who do not agree with me, just think if you turn people away, with bitches with PL, unless it really bad, can you justify it, knowing the bitches owner is far much more likely to go to a stud, who hasn’t been tested and most likely has it. What happens to the progeny and more importantly, what happens to breed if it keeps happening!

PROGRESSIVE RETINAL ATROPHY
Progressive retinal atrophy (PRA) is a hereditary disease of the eye that causes blindness. The retina is the tissue lining the back wall of the inside of the eye and is composed of two classes of photoreceptor cells called rods and cones; the rods function in dim light, and the cones in bright light. A dog affected with PRA begins to have difficulty seeing in dim light, (often called night blindness) then gradually loses the ability to see in bright light, eventually becoming completely blind, although in some cases, some owners of effected dogs have stated that their dogs were not completely blind. As the vision fails, the pupils become increasingly dilated, and may take on a shiny or iridescent quality. When properly trained and managed most dogs can adjust to blindness well.
PRA in Papillons is a late onset form of PRA, night blindness usually occurs from 1 to 5 years, progressing to total blindness any time after 3 years of age. A Papillon can be eye tested for PRA, from 3 years of age and if you are thinking of breeding of from your Papillon, then the all breeding stock should be tested after the age of three years, if we are to retain the health of our lovely breed. I personally test my dogs, yearly from three years of age, although, if you have any intention of using that dog at stud and accepting a stud fee then I see no reason why that dog should not tested for all eye conditions at a younger age. My bitches are tested every other year. I have spoken to one of the leading eye specialist as to what age, to cease testing and his answer was 10 years old. So that is the age that I cease testing. A lot of dogs, as they get much older, loose their sight. This is not PRA, it may be may get cataracts, although they can be removed, although it can be costly and you have to weigh the age and intrusion of the dog, as to whether it is beneficial to do so.

SNORTING OR ASPIRATORY PARAOXYSMAL RESPERATION
Snorting is a phenomenon observed in dogs whose exact cause is unknown but may be due to nasal or sinus irritation, such as an allergy, or the dog's attempt to remove mucus or becoming too excited. They also get it when too drink too fast. It is characterized by rapid and repeated forced inhalation through the nose, accompanied by snorting or gagging sounds (also called, reverse sneezing). It is an alarming sound to most owners and may be distressing to the dog, but is not known to be harmful to the animal. Most dogs are completely normal before and after episodes. In addition most dogs will have repeat episodes of it during their lives. Dogs may experience it following play, exercise, or meals, but most of the time episodes are completely random. Smaller dogs seem slightly more susceptible to it; however any dog can develop it regardless of size. A common remedy is to pinch the dog’s nose and scratch their throat. Lightly blowing in their face may also help. The dog will swallow a couple of times and then stop the snorting. While most dogs do not require medication, antihistamines and steroids may help if the problem is serious, chronic, and allergy-related. Some Papillons will suffer from this as puppies, but grow out of it at 12 months. They also more inclined to do so, when grass is being cut, especially when living in the country.

PORTOSYTEMIC SHUNT
Though relatively rare, or possible not reported. I am not sure which. Quite a few years ago I tried to keep records the occurrences of liver shunt, but I am afraid that other than a few people that had bought a Pap as a pet and it had, unfortunately got it, I did not receive any data from individual breeders, possibly, because we were trying to establish if it were hereditary and I am afraid some breeders like to put their heads under the sand, until it becomes a major problem that needs to be attended to and by then, it usually too late for the breed concerned.
Portosytsemic shunt, is an abnormal vessel that allows blood to bypass the liver. As a result the blood is not cleansed by one of the bodies filter; the liver. Generally the bile acid levels (after feeding a meal) in patients having a shunt are higher than 100. Less severe cases can be helped by a change in diet and it is possible to have the dog operated. Sometimes it is the only option a shunt. Apparently the overall success rate is about 85%, but you must be aware that it an extremely expensive operation and after paying that price and putting, what could be a very poorly dog under the stress of undergoing surgery and still lose them is a hard decision that you will have to make.
How do they get it:

When the puppy (foetus) is in the womb, the shunt is present to bypass the blood away from the liver to the placenta so the dam can cleanse it for the fetus.
Once the foetus is born the shunt closes within three days after birth and the puppy’s liver must clean the blood. Sometimes the shunt does not close off. A portosystemic shunt, therefore is an abnormal vessel that allows the blood to bypass the liver. As a result the blood is not cleansed by one of the bodies filters; the liver. These dogs also have much less blood that flows to the liver, which causes the liver to remain small.Clinical signs are abnormal behaviour after eating.
Pacing and aimless wandering. Pressing the head against the wall, episodes of apparent blindness. Seizures. Poor weight gain. Stunted growth. Starining to urinate due to bladder stone formation. Some may show many of these just one of these symptoms, while others may show just one. Some dogs do not show any signs until they are older.

DISCLAIMER:
A lot of the things I have written about are from my own experiances and of others. If you have any problems with your Pap and are not sure, then seek advice from your vet, as soon as possible. I have written a very small part of what could happen to your puppy, but I intend to add links to the various sites that will give you much more information about each individual subject, than I can possibly write about in this article.

My grateful thanks to Mrs Joan Savage (Abbeyton) for allowing us to use this link, below to her blogspot.

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I borrowed this from the Opti-Gen site, to gie
ve you some idea as to:
PAPILLON PRA1

For breeds: Papillon and Phalene

Progressive Retinal Atrophy in the Papillion and Phalele breeds, Pap_ PRA1, is a late onset inherited eye disease characterized by a slow degeneration of rod photoreceptors. The affected dogs start to show clinical signs of the disease and poor vision in dim light between 4 and 6 years of age.

A mutation in the CNGB1 gene associated with the Pap_PRA1 has been identified in the Papillion breed (1, 2). The Pap_PRA1 is inherited in an autosomal recessive manner, meaning that two copies of the mutation must be inherited in order for disease to occur.

The Pap_PRA1 test results are reported as one of three outcomes:

Normal/Clear—These dogs do not carry the Pap_PRA1 mutation. They will not develop the form of PRA due to the Pap_PRA1 mutation. These dogs may be mated to any other dog and no offspring affected with Pap_PRA1 will be produced.
Carrier—These dogs carry ONE copy of the Pap_PRA1 mutation. They will not develop the form of PRA due to the Pap_PRA1 mutation but they CAN pass the mutation on to their offspring. They should only be mated to a dog that is genetically Normal/Clear to avoid producing PRA1-affected progeny due to the Pap_PRA1 mutation.
Affected—These dogs carry two copies of the Pap_PRA1 mutation and it can be expected that they will develop PRA1 in their lifetime.

Breeding recommendations:

It is recommended to test dogs prior to mating and to ensure that at least one parent is Normal/Clear of the mutation to avoid production of affected progeny.

Expected results for breeding strategies using the Pap_PRA1 Test
Parent 1 Genotype	Parent 2 Genotype
Parent 1 Genotype	Normal/Clear	Carrier	Affected
Normal/Clear	All = Normal/Clear	1/2 = Normal/Clear 1/2 = Carrier	All = Carrier
Carrier	1/2 = Normal 1/2 = Carrier	1/4 = Normal/Clear 1/2 = Carrier 1/4 = Affected	1/2 = Carrier 1/2 = Affected
Affected	All = Carrier	1/2 = Carrier 1/2 = Affected	All = Affected

Note: There is more than one form of PRA occurring in the Papillon and Phalene breeds. Unfortunately, only one form, caused by the Pap_PRA1 mutation, is currently detectable by DNA testing. Ongoing research will hopefully identify other mutation(s) responsible for PRA in the breed. If you know of any PRA-affected Papillons that have been diagnosed by a veterinary ophthalmologist, please encourage the owners to contact OptiGen to learn about Free DNA testing for these dogs and the ongoing PRA research.

This is a relatively new disease and thankfully I have never come across the condition and as far as I knew, has not been heard of in the UK, but that must be incorrect, because I have now read online that the disease was first reported in 1995 in England and since then it has been sporadically observed in Papillons dogs worldwide. I must be honest that, until reading that, I was under the impression that this was a problem overseas, especially in the USA. It would be very interesting to know the breeding of the first dog reported in the UK. I shall try and find out. This disease is better known as NAD, which obviously is far easier to remember.

Signs of NAD in Papillons can occur at an early age, typically from 1-4mths of age. The spinal cord and the brain swell and the clinical signs are when the affected pups initially develop head tremor, a wobbly gait, inability to stand and walk, along with blindness and deafness and most do not survive beyond 7-8 months of age. In fact I haven’t heard of a single surviver.

If, like me, you are interested and would like to see exactly what to look out for, there is a video of a puppy suffering from this awful condition. It can be found in the Hereditary Diseases In Papillons group on Facebook and is well worth watching.

The up side on this disease and the only one that I can see, is that there a DNA test for this and I believe is a must for everyone, if you are thinking of breeding.

Now I know that testing can be an expensive and I am in the process of getting all my dogs done, but if needs be, if you are thinking of using someone’s stud dog, make sure that he has had the relevant tests done, so that as with PRA1 & NAD, it takes two carriers to produce an affected pup, so by using a clear stud dog, you are lessoning your chances considerably by doing so and if you think about it, always test your oldest dogs, even if they aren’t being bred from any more, as if they are clear, you may not possibly have to test your younger stock at all, because their parents are clear, especially if you always use tested stud dogs.

I have added this chart, which I borrowed from the Octigen website in order to give you more insight into NAD and what they have written in italics.

To avoid producing NAD-affected puppies, breeders are encouraged to test their dogs before they are bred, and to refrain from breeding two carriers to each other. The table below highlights in yellow the breedings that will NOT produce affected pups. These matings include at least one parent proven "Normal/Clear" by the OptiGen NAD test.

Expected results for breeding strategies using the NAD test
Parent 1 Genotype	Parent 2 Genotype
Parent 1 Genotype	Normal/Clear	Carrier	Affected
Normal/Clear	All = Normal/Clear	1/2 = Normal/Clear 1/2 = Carrier	All = Carrier
Carrier	1/2 = Normal 1/2 = Carrier	1/4 = Normal/Clear 1/2 = Carrier 1/4 = Affected	1/2 = Carrier 1/2 = Affected
Affected	All = Carrier	1/2 = Carrier 1/2 = Affected	All = Affected

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Chocolate contains caffeine and theobromine which fall under the methylxanthines category. When we hear the phrase “the darker the chocolate, the more dangerous,” it’s because white chocolates contain fewer methylxanthines. Thus, less toxicity.

If eaten by a dog, chocolate can cause vomiting, dehydration, abdominal pains, severe agitation, muscle tremors, irregular heart rhythm, elevated body temperature, seizures and death.

Consumption of milk could lead to vomiting, diarrhea and other gastrointestinal problems. While it’s not immediately life-threatening, it can contribute to serious bacterial exposure in dogs that could eventually lead to disease.

Like milk, cheese also has sugars and fatty components that dogs don’t have the necessary enzymes to break down.

Cheese, and other dairy products, can cause problems if consumed in excess. Symptoms like gas, diarrhea and vomiting can all occur if a dog eats too much cheese.

Like milk, cheese also has sugars and fatty components that dogs don’t have the necessary enzymes to break down.

Cheese, and other dairy products, can cause problems if consumed in excess. Symptoms like gas, diarrhea and vomiting can all occur if a dog eats too much cheese.

Onions can damage red blood cells in dogs causing them to become weaker and move around less. If enough onions are consumed, a blood transfusion might be necessary.

One of the more recent discoveries, Macadamia Nuts can be incredibly harmful to dogs if eaten.

The specific chemicals found in macadamias are still unknown right now, but they are known to cause a toxic reaction to dogs if ingested.

Dogs will develop weakness and an inability to walk, specifically in their hind legs. Vomiting, staggering gait, depression, tremors and hypothermia.

Like the chocolate rule, the stronger the onion the more toxic it can be. Since garlic is part of the onion family it’s even more dangerous to dogs than onions per ounce. Garlic contains compounds that are strong in toxicity.

While the effect of garlic consumption to red blood cells won’t appear for a few days in dogs, they will be tired and reluctant to move. The dog’s urine will be orange to dark red in color. Like with onions, a blood transfusion might be required in severe cases.

While its currently unknown what chemicals and compounds are in grapes that cause toxicity to dogs, the results of consumption can be pretty devastating.

Grapes and raisins can cause rapid kidney failure. While it varies between dogs, symptoms may not show up in them. Other than kidney failure, dogs can also develop vomiting or diarrhea as well as a lethargic state. Dogs will also develop dehydration and lack of appetite. Death from kidney failure may occur within three to four days.

Avocados can have toxic effects on dogs depending on the variety. They can cause upset stomachs in dogs, breathing difficulties, fluid buildup in the chest, but the most dangerous thing for them seem to the be the pit. Since it’s slippery, the pit can accidentally be swallowed by dogs, leading to obstruction of the gastrointestinal tract.

Methylated xanthine stimulates the nervous system in dogs, causing vomiting, restlessness, heart palpitations and even death.

While most people try to avoid eating the core of an apple, it’s actually much more toxic to dogs. Along with a few other fruits, you should definitely be careful not to leave apple cores laying around for dogs to get their paws on.

The core of an apple (as well as plums, peaches, pears and apricots) contain cyanogenic glycosides which is also known as cyanide.

Some of the symptoms that come from ingesting the toxin are dizziness, struggling to breath, seizures, collapsing, hyperventilation, shock and even coma.

The raw yeast dough from making bread can ferment in a dog’s stomach, becoming toxic.

Aside from the toxicity from alcohol being produced in the stomach, yeast dough can also expand in your dog’s stomach or intestines and create a large amount of gas in the digestive system. This can lead to severe pain and a potentially ruptured stomach or intestinal tract. Vomiting, abdominal discomfort and lethargy can also occur.

Foods rich in fat, like bacon, can lead to the disease pancreatitis in dogs. Once a dog has developed pancreatitis, their pancreas’ become inflamed and stop functioning correctly.

PAPILLON HEALTH & WELL BEING

I borrowed this from the Opti-Gen site, to gieve you some idea as to:PAPILLON PRA1

I borrowed this from the Opti-Gen site, to gie
ve you some idea as to:
PAPILLON PRA1