Submitted January 17,2009 -- NEW

Q.) My seven-year old wirehair ate a deer carcass and got very sick. Her blood tests showed she had elevated pancreatic levels. They put her on amoxicillin for two weeks and a bland diet. She is a week into this and is good one day and then has no appetite the next. She drank a lot of water this morning before vomiting it up. I noticed she has a slight yellow color to the whites of her eyes, her ears and on her belly. Is the amoxicillin causing this or does she have a liver problem also? It's the weekend and I'll be taking her into my vet Monday morning.

A.) I would strongly suggest that the blood work be repeated, and that further diagnostics will also need to be performed, such as x-rays and an ultrasound. With the yellow change to the eyes I would be very worried that the liver is now significantly involved in the process. The amoxicillin should not have anything to do with these new changes.

It is possible that all of this is still related to the deer carcass. Sometimes dogs with pancreatitis can have changes that also affect their livers from the damage done by the leaking pancreatic fluids. Also, depending on how rotten the deer carcass was, it is possible your dog got an overwhelming load of toxins and the damage to the liver is becoming apparent. One other thing to factor is your dog's age, because certainly other potential issues will also be on the table as possibilities. It could be the deer carcass caused one problem and now you are seeing the effect of a second problem that may have been present prior to this current episode and was just smoldering below the surface and hadn't started to make your dog sick. Occassionally we will see dogs that get sick for an obvious reason (e.g. the deer carcass) and during the process we discover another issue.

One important point that your question illustrates is that when conditions change, or don't improve with treatment, it is important to stay in communication with your veterinarian. Unless otherwise noted, most of the time when we discharge a dog for home care they should be well on their way to improving, and if they are not in a day or two, a phone call to give an update and check in is a minimum. I have seen too many dogs where the owner waits just 3-4 days to follow-up, and the dog has taken an incredible turn for the worse. With sick dogs sometimes a day or two is the difference between life and death treatment options.

You've made the right decision in contacting your veterinarian. Although none of us likes to spend extra money, sometimes these things happen at bad times and an emergency visit is in order. Living organisms don't follow man-made schedules and accidents and diseases don't have business hours. With a sick dog don't hesitate to visit the local emergency hospital or have your vet paged. As I mentioned earlier sometimes a day or two can make all the difference in the world.

Submitted 08/04/08

Q.) Can liver enzyme levels become elevated because of food allergies?

A.) Liver enzymes are a tricky area of interpretation. There are a number of things that can influence them, and they must be interpreted in the context of symptoms, magnitude of increase, medications, age of the dog, etc. etc.

With a food sensitivity or allergy I would not expect to find elevated liver enzymes. Now, a food toxin is another matter. For instance, the toxins seen in some of the recent food recalls can and do affect the liver and cause elevations in liver enzymes.

My typical plan of attack with liver enzyme elevations is to evaluate the big picture to make my game plan for moving forward. If the dog presented because it is sick, I likely would pursue it aggressively right away. This can range from liver function testing (usually done with bile acid testing), x-rays, utrasound, and potentialy a biopsy. If the elevation was found on a pre-surgical profile or routine screening in an outwardly healthy dog with no other blood work changes, we may just wait a couple of weeks and repeat the values to see if there is a change. The key is interpreting the dog’s health as a big picture and not just as one symptom or one blood work value. Once you have the big picture in mind, you can proceed with a diagnostic plan.

The one footnote I will say is that sometimes liver enzymes can lead down a path of no answers and can be somewhat frustrating. We have several older dogs in the practice with slightly elevated enzymes that we have never been able to explain. The specialists will agree that there is a certain set of dogs with slightly elevated values that do not necessarily have a medical problem.

Submitted 10/11/07:

Q.) I own a four-year old lab. I bought my dog as a puppy from a gun dog trainer. She is a fantastic upland hunting dog and very athletic. I feel that it is important to keep her in good shape. This past summer I tool her to an open field close to our house to do some retrieving in the mornings while the temps were still cool. This particular morning we did our normal routine and walked home, on the way home Bailey was panting fairly hard and rather fast. I realized that she had probably gotten hot. When we got home I made sure she continued to drink water and watched her for quite a while. Besides the initial heavy panting she showed no other signs of any heat problems. After a few minutes of active cooling her panting had subsided. Bailey lives indoors with us so I put her inside in the air conditioning and kept an eye on her the rest of the day. Bailey acted completely normal, no vomit, diarrhea and she was full of energy. I really didn’t think much more about it until about a week later we had a storm go through the area in the evening and the temps dropped into the low seventies. I thought this would be a good opportunity to throw some retrieves in our back yard. Bailey worked for probably ten or fifteen minutes. I stopped to talk to the neighbor for a few minutes and when I turned around Bailey was sitting in a strange position. I called to her and she came, but when we walked inside I noticed she didn’t walk quite normal. She never lost her balance but was just not normal. I realized that this is sometimes a sign of heat stress. Did I overdo it on these occasions or could it be something else?

A:
Your story illustrates a couple of different points about working with dogs in heat, and I’m going to address those first and throw out some other possibilities last. If you take a look in the library section of the site I have a couple of articles dealing with first aid kits and heat stroke. I think your example shows why having a digital thermometer is so vitally important in situations like these. Had you been able to take your dog’s temperature, you would have a much better picture about what was going on with your dog. It is also important to establish what is normal and what is abnormal for your particular dog, and while it may seem odd it is better and easier to do this during off-season training sessions rather than during hunting season.

Second, you mention working your dog in the water; too often people associate a wet dog with a cool dog and this isn’t always the case. Too frequently the water during the summer months is also warm, which can create a situation similar to working a dog in a hot tub. If the outside temperature is warm, the water is shallow, or both, you still have to be extremely careful when working dogs in water during the summer months. I know of more than one professional lab trainer that has lost “wet” dogs to heat stroke.

Lastly, the one temperature you referenced was that the temps had cooled to the seventies. Seventy feels cool during the summer months when we’ve had a streak of 90+ temps; however, it is still a pretty high temperature for working a majority of dogs. During hunting season 70 can feel like a scorcher, and with some dogs anything above 60 degrees can be highly suspect.

Now, those would be all the points that make me highly suspicious of heat stroke, and to be quite honest it would be very high on my list. The fact that she had two of these episodes, particularly if they are heat related, would concern me greatly about future episodes as many of these dogs lose their ability to regulate their body temperature accurately. Thus a dog that had a heat event at 70 degrees could have one at a much lower temp in the future. Until you get to the bottom of the situation I would certainly want to monitor her very closely in the field.

With that being said there are also other conditions that could cause the symptoms you witnessed. Low-blood sugar, or hypoglycemia, certainly can cause collapse or ataxia and also can lead to heat stroke. Certain metabolic problems like Addison’s disease (an adrenal gland that is not working normally) would also be on the list. At the top of the “other possibilities” list, especially with a Labrador would Exercise Induced Collapse. It is a condition that is being researched and for which there is a genetic test available. Here are a couple of links on the subject:

• http://medicine.ucsd.edu/vet_neuromuscular/cases/2002/may02.html
• http://www.teamchesapeake.com/EXERCISE%20INDUCED%20COLLAPSE.htm

The second link contains a contact at the University of Minnesota, if you are interested in pursuing testing I would pass this information on to your veterinarian and have them contact these individuals, as they have been very helpful in coordinating testing.

Submitted 2/06/07:
Q:
I am looking for a remote temperature device with the monitor installed inside where the dogs are kenneled. I am looking for a device with will record the temperature and send the reading back to a hand held device when I’m inside my pick up truck while traveling. I also want to be able to send the temperature reading to the same hand held device to relay the temperature reading inside the kennel box while I’m out hunting. This will allow me to monitor the temperature at the vehicle early season to keep an eye on the dogs still in the truck.

A:
I’m posting this because it is intriguing to me as well, and if any of the visitors to the site have some suggestions, please drop me an email. I currently have a remote temperature sensor that transmits to a small handheld unit in the cab. This is a cheap unit I got at Wal-Mart, but it works very well in letting me know the temperature under the topper while traveling. Its range is very limited and would not fit the “out hunting” part of your equation.

The other item I would like to see is a remote CO detector. It would give me greater peace of mind knowing those levels under the topper while traveling as well. I have a CO detector under the topper now; however, I have no way of monitoring it while in transit.

I guess I’m looking to those that frequent the site for a little help if you use any monitoring units that may help in these situations.

Submitted 10/22/05:
Q:
On the third day of three days of hard hunting for South Dakota pheasants, my lab’s tail is hanging limp. It also is tender, but I don’t think it is broken but does hurt when I try to move it. A lab with a limp tail is a sorry site! What should I do?

A:
Likely you are dealing with a situation that goes by several names, including limber tail, cold-water tail, lab tail or happy tail. We see this quite frequently in practice and it can be quite a disturbing event for many owners, as the dog is painful and often it appears as though the tail is broken.

Essentially what has happened is that the muscles of the tail have become inflamed, likely from working harder than the body could clean up the by-products of exercise. Thankfully this is a condition that usually takes care of itself in a matter of a few days. I would recommend not “monkeying” with the tail too much and to give the dog a couple of days of rest. If she is extremely painful sometimes anti-inflammatories (through your vet) will need to be used.

Typically we will see this in two groups of dogs, dogs that do a lot of swimming (like our retrievers) or dogs with animated tails in the uplands. In my experience most dogs have one episode of this and it is rare to have another, even when performing the same original activity. We went through this during Emma’s first duck season, and thankfully in the last six years have not had to go through it again.

Keep an eye on things but likely she’ll be back out chasing roosters in just a matter of days.

Submitted 9/11/05:
Q:
I was looking at your site for further information on vaccination frequency. Our previous vet had studied the info on vaccination schedules and decided that DHPP could be done every three years. Now we have moved and our vets recommend every year, saying that otherwise wee would have to use a three-year approved vaccine. Is there such a thing? We also did opt for the lepto to be included in the vaccine this year because of the old farm sites we may hunt around---they have never had it before. In your reply to the 10/13/04 vaccination question you say, in regards to frequency; “In general I would say that the recommendations for hunting dogs are no different that for other dogs in a given region; with the possible exception of diseases like lepto and Lyme’s.” What is it about lepto? Should it be given yearly? I have also read that the cases of lepto that have been classified from infected dogs are not the strains in the vaccine!

A:
You raise some very good questions and also caught me doing my best to play the middle ground on a sensitive subject. To answer your first question on frequency, yes there now are starting to be three-year approved products on the market. There is also evidence that some of the current products are good for three years. The problem is that there is a lot of grey area and some studies that need to be done before we can write more of these recommendations in stone. The problem is that outside of rabies, most of these products only needed to show efficacy out to a year, and not actually how long they were protective. The other aspect is that not all vaccines are the same; some contained Modified-Live Viruses while others contain killed products.

Currently I discuss the options available with clients, but at this point still vaccinate my own dogs annually, though if you ask me in another year that may change. Also, in regards to rabies particularly, many times local regulations will supersede practice recommendations…and in some states like South Dakota…accepted practice knowledge.

As far as lepto and Lyme... first with Lyme, after practicing in an endemic area for a couple of years, I feel that any dog traveling to tick country should be vaccinated, hunting dog or not. Lepto is a different animal all together. In all honesty I have never administered a lepto vaccine to my dogs, and in the different practices I’ve worked in or relieved for I can think of only one that had lepto in the vaccine protocol. This seems to be an extremely individual vet choice. In my opinion I haven’t seen anything convincing to add it to my protocols, and in fact it seems to be one that actually may cause a number of problems, at least historically. You are correct in that many of the serovars (strains of lepto) that were beginning to appear most commonly in dogs were not even in the vaccines, though that has changed with a few of the products. Typically we thought of this as a disease of hunting and rural dogs, though in the last year that picture has changed. A recent study identified the highest risk factor for developing lepto to be a dog living in a new housing development that is less than five years old. In the last few years the positive cases I’ve had, or talked with colleagues about, have all been in non-hunting, city dogs. In my opinion Lyme and lepto are two diseases that need to be thoroughly discussed between owner and veterinarian when making a decision about vaccination.

Submitted 6/06/05:
Q:
My 9.5 year old Brittany has been experiencing seizure type symptoms where she’ll begin huffing and puffing and she begins to stagger. It has gone so far as collapsing. I just returned from the vet and they say that she has anemia and they need to send her blood sample of for further tests. My question is what type of conditions can I expect to be the cause of her anemia?

A:
There are a number of types, classifications and causes to anemia and that is likely the reason the sample is being sent off for further analysis. You don’t mention if other bloodwork was done? Sometimes other diseases in the body can cause an anemia, from just generally being sick (anemia of chronic disorder) to things like kidney failure. There are many infectious diseases, especially the tick-borne diseases, which can cause a dog’s red blood cell count to be low.

Certainly in a little bit older dog, like yours, the dreaded c-word (cancer) would also have to be on the list of possibilities. Unfortunately anemia is a very vague indicator of a number of diseases and becomes just a starting point to look for deeper causes. Those causes can range from the extremely simple to very complex.

Submitted 6/10/05:
Q:
We will be hunting in Eastern Washington in the fall and I’m trying to so some homework on snakebites and dogs. It is my understanding that there is a rattlesnake vaccine available. What is your opinion on this? What would be the course of action if our dogs were to experience a rattlesnake bite?

A:
I've had a couple of people contact me or express interest in the new rattlesnake vaccine. The company presented some information at the Western States Veterinary conference and this is where most of the following info comes from.

The company is out of California, Red Rock Biologics, and there is some information on their website (www.redrockbiologics.com)

It is designed to protect against envenomation by the Western Diamondback, but they state it cross-protects against many US rattlesnakes. The initial series is a two shot series (3-6 weeks betweens shots) with an annual booster AND a potential booster every 4-6 months during the snake season depending on the size of the dog.

At this time they have had no anaphylactic reactions or death from this vaccine, though my guess is it has been used on a relatively small number of dogs as up until recently it was only available in California.

They state that dogs develop protective antibody titers comparable to the capacity of 2-3 vials of anti-venom. It is still very important that these dogs seek veterinary care and observation after a snake bite. The basic idea is that vaccinated dogs appear to present with fewer and less severe symptoms than similar sized unvaccinated dogs but they still require hospitalization and care.

It also appears from their literature that larger dogs will have more total antibody than smaller dogs and thus have the potential for neutralizing a larger dose of venom.

Basically the dog will still need veterinary care, but the treatment MAY not be as aggressive and if anti-venom is not needed much less expensive.

This is a very new product that I have no experience with personally, but one I find interesting. I would definitely recommend talking it over with your veterinarian before moving forward with vaccination. Just posting up some of the info I received for those that requested it. I'll post more if I hear more.

The biggest thing is to remember even if your dog is vaccinated you will need to get them to a vet ASAP. None of the old wives tales treatments work (suction, cutting the wound, electricity, etc.); basically these dogs need to be hospitalized and monitored. With some venomous snakes the major concern is more from the bacterial infection that results rather than the venom. If you know or suspect your dog has been bitten seek veterinary care as this is one of those cases that you shouldn’t take the sit and wait approach.

Submitted 3/1/05:
Q:
My seven-year old Lab was feeling lethargic and ceased eating. He was drooling and his right ear seemed sensitive, but had no signs of an infection. It hurt him to have his mouth opened. Our vet said it was an infection of unknown origin, but that we had nearly lost him. He has been on antibiotics for three days and seems to be recovering. It has been suggested by a friend that he may actually have masticatory myositis. Is that plausible?

A:
If he is responding to the antibiotics it is likely an infection. With the symptoms you are describing my thoughts are that it was a retro-orbital abscess. Basically the area behind the eye where the lower jaw is hinged becomes infected (hence the pain on opening of the mouth). Most commonly this occurs when a piece of plant material migrates through a soft area behind the last tooth. If it reoccurs, the area may need to be opened and flushed... if it can be determined which side is affected. Masticatory myositis is considered an autoimmune disease and responds to anti-inflammatories, particularly corticosteroids as an effective treatment and the dog would not be improving with antibiotics.

My recommendation would be to make sure the full course of antibiotics is given and that you closely monitor the dog for signs of the infection coming back once they are discontinued. I have dealt with a few cases of this condition that proved to be rather long and protracted by the time everything was cleared up.

Submitted 1/4/05:
Q:
I have a 7.5-year-old GWP. She is a great housepet and hunter. I have noticed at about four years old she developed a fatty lump on her front right leg. (I had talked to a highly respected GWP breeder and he told me that fatty lumps are common in the breeding and as long as the lump is not hard and creates no pain when touched that it is no problem). About a year ago, I had noticed another lump in her midsection on her side. Again, it is soft and doesn’t hurt her when I touch it. Now I have noticed a third lump the same scenario, soft and no pain, this one is near her teat. There is no difference in her eating habits and no difference in her activity; she still acts like a puppy. I was wondering if these lumps are really not much to worry about or should I have them looked at? The breeder that I talked to has five GWPs and three of them have similar lumps. What do you suggest?

A:
I would, without a doubt, recommend a veterinarian look at them. Fatty tumors (lipomas) are indeed common, but there are many, many tumors that may be mistaken for lipomas. Most cancerous tumors are also non-painful to the dog, and so using this as a judging factor is not accurate. Also, you mention her activity level, etc. being the same…this is a good thing even if the masses are cancerous. If she were down and out, then the chances of effecting a cure would be less and less. The fact that she now has a lump in her mammary region would also be of great concern, and I would want to look at it sooner rather than later. There are numerous things that your vet will be able to do to help determine what type of lump you are dealing with from simply feeling it, to taking a needle sample and/or removal.

I would guess that more than 90 percent of the lumps we see are benign growths, and a majority of them are fatty tumors. However, if one of these four lumps falls into the other category, the sooner you have it removed, the better. Lumps are not normal and should be looked at, and while some may be harmless and just need to be monitored, others can present a very serious situation.

Submitted 12/19/2004:
Q:
We have been to the vet several times with a very strange occurrence that our two-year old lab is having when pheasant hunting. She gets “birdie” and hunts great, and then suddenly her back end goes out. Legs out to the side and flaccid. She is still trying to fetch, her nose and upper body still on the bird. After a bit of rest and water she rebounds and gets to the car herself.

She has had her blood work checked for electrolytes and glucose and the x-rays of her spine and hips are also perfect. We did the ACTH test for Addison’s, which was borderline/non-conclusive. She did a course of steroids and hunted on the fourth day and it still occurred. We are stumped. Any thoughts before seeing an internal medicine specialist?

A:
There are a couple of things that come to mind with collapse in hunting dogs, and especially labs. I would say I see with regularity hunting-dog hypoglycemia, which is a low blood sugar. The problem with testing the levels in the clinic is that they have usually returned to normal by the time you get to the clinic. Sometimes we reach this diagnosis based on description of the event and response to treatment in the field. I would talk this possibility over with your vet and the next time out be prepared with KARO syrup or dextrose to see if the dog responds.

It sounds like your vet has looked at some of the other possibilities I would think of, such as seizure disorders, injuries, etc; however, the one possibility you didn’t mention that I would have on my list of possibilities would be Exercise Induced Collapse in Labrador Retrievers. This is a complicated disease that is still being worked out. I cannot do it justice here but would recommend visiting this article for a more detailed explanation: EIC Article. I would guess a majority of veterinarians not involved with sporting dogs may overlook this possibility. If your vet suspects this, there are some things that can be done to help further the research if he/she would contact one of the groups listed.

Unfortunately, because there is no set diagnosis, you still may want to visit a specialist before coming to any conclusions.

Submitted 12/20/2004:
Q:
I have a five-year-old English Setter and if you hunt her in weather above 70 degrees, after about 20 minutes she can not breath and she lays down; however, if it is 60 or below she can hunt hard all day long. Now, we have another two-year-old English Setter that is doing the same thing.

A:
There are a couple of possibilities I’d suggest. The first, and by far the most common, would be simple heat intolerance. My Chessie, for instance, is a dog that cannot handle even mildly elevated temperatures and just does not like to perform in heat. Some of this you will never be able to change, while other dogs can be conditioned to a certain degree to be able to hunt in higher temperatures.

The other possibility would be a rather uncommon condition called exercise-induced hyperthermia. Basically a condition similar to heat stroke, but instead of outside temperatures being the root cause, the dog’s body is to blame, as it doesn’t have the ability to effectively get rid of heat. Many of these dogs are able to hunt for short intervals or when the weather cools, but have difficulty hunting during mild days. This can be difficult to diagnose and would require you to frequently take your dogs' temperature in and out of the field to establish what is normal for your dogs.

If I was to guess I would wager you are simply dealing with a heat intolerance issue that you may or may not be able to work through.

Submitted 10/22/04:
Q:
I have a 20 month old female English Pointer. 3 weeks ago during the weekend opener of the chucker season I took her out. We hunted for approximately 1 hour in very steep grades. My female gets extraordinarily excited about hunting and seems to hunt at a "full out" pace at all times. As temperatures were nearing 80 degrees, I carried a lot of water with me and I gave her approximately 1.5 liters of water during that hour. After about an hour, she had slowed considerably -- and so had I -- so we called it quits. She was not overheated, just very tired.

When we arrived home (approximately 2.5 hours later) I noticed her urine had a brownish tint to it and she seemed to be lethargic and very stiff. Fearing that something was wrong, I immediately took her to the emergency hospital where they ran tests and determined she had a high amount of Myoglobin? in her urine. She was admitted and stayed for two days where she was hooked up to an IV to flush her system out. The vet gave a diagnosis of Exertional Rhabdomyolysis - a.k.a. "exercise induced rhabdomyolysis" or "exertional myolysis" - in horses it is called "tying-up". She recommended that we not hunt the dog anymore.

A couple of things. She probably was not as conditioned as she could have been. Prior to the opener, I was taking her out to the fields near our home for approximatley 30 minute runs three times a week (I have a busy career, two kids...I know not a good excuse) so that probably contributed to her lack of conditioning. Aside from that, she "jogs" with my wife 2-3 times a week, no more than 2 miles.

Second, we typically don't hunt that type of terrain. We mostly hunt for pheasant or huns on level ground.

My question is, have you ever heard of something like this happening? She wasn't in good shape, but she's thin (you can see her ribs) and certainly is no couch potato. She did not overheat. We only hunted for an hour. Will proper conditioning prevent this from happening in the future? I'm hesitant to take our vet's advice that she not be hunted again. The vets in Seattle have little to no experience with hunting dogs. Can you offer some advice? Thank you.

A:
First a quick summary on the condition: exertional rhabdomyolysis is a metabolic disorder reported in sporting breeds following vigorous exercise. It presents as varying degrees of inflammation of the muscles of the back, which become swollen, tense, hot and extremely painful to the touch. The muscle cell breakdown leads to myoglobinuria (the dark urine you indicated), difficult and painful movement and, in untreated cases, will cause the rapid onset of renal failure that results in a high mortality rate in untreated cases.

Thankfully this is not an incredibly common disease in sporting dogs, but one that does occur in performance dogs. I think a few of the things you mentioned about your situation may have predisposed your pup to this episode, they include being out of shape for the exercise performed, being excited prior to the activity, and being hot (80 degrees in an unconditioned dog can be extremely warm)…my chessie starts pegging out when it climbs above 70 degrees. That’s the bad news; the good news is, it sounds like the condition was handled exactly as it should have been once you left the field. The key with these cases is to get them to a veterinarian immediately so that they can begin supportive care. In this particular situation the major concern is that the dog will develop acute renal failure and possibly death.

As far as return to function, I would let the dog be the guide and definitely would continue follow-up care and bloodwork with your vet. The key to a full return will hinge on how much damage was done to the muscles, particularly the muscles along the back. Because it sounds like care was given immediately, your prognosis is better. After a suitable period of kennel rest and soft bedding you can slowly start testing the waters with a gradual return to walking or swimming. With any dog that has suffered from an exercise induced condition, I always prefer to error on the side of being too cautious and definitely take the long slow road back to recovery. Let your vet know that you would like to return this dog to hunting and that you would like their help in guiding you through the recovery; I would wager they will be more than helpful if they understand your level of dedication.

* * *

In response to this post on exertional rhabdomyolyis, I received the following comments from a veterinarian who also runs working dogs. I love our gundogs, but it is hard to beat the herding dogs when it comes to intelligence.

"I was enjoying through your column when I read the mesage from 10/22/04 dealing with Canine Exertional Rhabdomyolysis (CER). I'm a vet in the Northwest and train and work herding dogs. I have a 4 yr old Kelpie that has done the same thing. He is quite fit but like the dog in the message, gives 110% while working and is very intense. After treating the acute bout, I researched CER to find a way to prevent future attacks. I learned that providing a dog with enough protein and fat can help prevent episodes. In fact, dogs can be conditioned to use fat (actually circulating free fatty acids) as their main source of energy. This is called Fat Adaptation. Mushers use this knowledge to keep their dogs going during those grueling sled races. Bottom line, I changed my dog's diet to 30% protein/20% fat and mix in an additional fat supplement depending on his exercise level. Six weeks after the initial episode, we placed in the top 10% of a very competitive cow dog trial.

Upon further reflection, I've come to believe that this dog had many minor episodes of CER in the months preceding the diagnosis: He was sore after working despite a good conditioning program; he seemed to "hit the wall" after short but intense works; he lacked the endurance he previously exhibited (when he was younger, he could work all day). Now, he's been on the higher protein/fat diet for 6 months and it's almost impossible to tire him out.

Lastly, a few rules of thumb that I follow:

• High protein diets can be contraindicated in dogs with underlying diseases such as renal compromise. Be sure your dog is healthy before starting such a diet.
• Dogs fed such a concentrated energy source can get fat! You may have to feed dramatically smaller volumes of food. You must monitor your dog's weight, especially in the off season.
• Some dogs are sensitive to high fat diets and can develop colitis or pancreatitis. These diseases can be serious. Talk to your vet to determine if your dog may be sensitive.

Thanks for letting me share my experience. I love seeing dogs do what they were bred to do... Happy Hunting!"

As always, I welcome input from site visitors, as the best way to further our knowledge of these wonderful breeds is to learn from each other. Thanks for the response. For more on performance diets take a look at the "Proper Diet Encourages Overall Gundog Health" article in our library section.

Submitted 10/24/04:
Q:
I do a lot of training with many different breeds of bird dogs. If at some time one of the dogs would get into some poison and I wanted to immediately make the dog throw up what could I give the dog to make this happen safely?

A:
This is a great question and one that has made me make some additions to my own first-aid kit. I deal with these types of situations fairly regularly but have never carried anything with me to induce vomiting. Today while pheasant hunting my Chessie ate something putrid (likely feces) and your question made me think, what if it had been a coyote bait or rat poison???

I typically use two different common household items to induce vomiting. Choose one and stick with it, don’t mix and match. Also, if you can’t get the dog to vomit after two doses, don’t continue to give them, as they can cause further problems. Get the dog to a veterinarian, there are medications that we can give to get a dog to vomit. The first product I use is 3% hydrogen peroxide (dose of 0.5-1 ml per pound) with a maximum dose of 2 tablespoons (30 mls). If the dog does not vomit in 15 minutes give a second dose of half the amount of the first and only give the two doses. You can administer this with a syringe, or if you don’t have one a turkey baster or something similar works well. I will also occasionally use table salt. For a medium to large dog I would use a tablespoon. Again, if the dog doesn’t vomit repeat the administration only once.

One key thing to consider here is that there is some poisons that you don’t want the dog to vomit back up. I would recommend carrying your veterinarian's phone number with you to touch base, and if they recommend inducing vomiting you will be ready to go. There is also an Animal Poison Control Hotline (1-888-232-8870). They do charge a fee up front for information; however, it is very reasonable and your vet can consult with them throughout treatment of your pet for no further fee after the initial one. Another note is try to identify the specific poison your dog may have ingested to help your vet in the treatment. For instance, not all rat poisons are identical, so if the packaging is available have it ready when you talk with your veterinarian. Lastly, even if you get your dog to vomit, touch base with your veterinarian for any follow-up instructions.

Submitted 6/24/04:
Q:
Could you please provide some insight into the appearance of megaesophagus in the Gordon Setter as recently appeared in a litter of puppies brought to Iowa State University College of Veterinary Medicine. What is the prevalence of this condition in the Gordon Setter? Should other pups from this litter that have not been affected (yet?) be used for breeding purposes? What is the likelihood of an apparently unaffected pup later showing symptoms? I realize this is a sensitive question, but what are the ethics involved in a breeder selling these pups for other owners to possibly breed? Your comments are greatly appreciated.

A:
Well, this type of question does open a big can o’ worms, and I tried to do as much digging as possible to find a very complete answer. The first major issue is whether this condition is genetic or not. On this front I could find nothing where mega-esophagus is described as a genetic condition in Gordons, nor were the internal medicine specialists I spoke with aware of it being a known condition in Gordons. Certainly it is a possibility, as we are dealing with a fairly small breed, and not every condition has been mapped out. There are other issues that can lead to the development of these type of conditions, from chemicals to environmental factors during gestation and development. The most helpful piece of information would be if any cause was identified when the dogs were presented to Iowa State. Without that information, all I can say for certain is it sounds like a congenital condition with unknown cause. One important point to remember is that genetic disorders are congenital, but not all congenital conditions are genetic.

My standard answer to breeding is that the only reason to do so is to better the breed, or if you have a certain individual that epitomizes what the breed should be and you want to further those genetics. In a situation like this I think all involved would need to be open with current and future owners about the history of these dogs and that they may have a condition that may or may not be hereditary. As a breeder you have to be prepared that you potentially could get one of these problem dogs back, be asked to replace a dog that died or was put to sleep, and potentially have your reputation tarnished for continuing to breed these dogs. If this was a known genetic problem, I would more thoroughly answer the ethics portion of your question, but because this represents a grey area, I really don’t think there is a concrete right or wrong answer as long as those involved are upfront with potential owners.

As far as your question about the likelihood of unaffected littermates developing the condition…again not to dodge the question but a lot will depend on the underlying cause.

I hope this helps, I still have some feelers out for more information and if I get any updates I’ll repost this question and answer in the new posts section. One interesting note, I see on the Gordon Setter Club webpage the breed club is conducting a health survey; it is possible that when this survey is tallied, certain prevalent conditions may be explored more in-depth, so until then stay tuned.

Submitted 5/16/04:
Q:
I recently read an article about studies being done on dog vaccinations; it said that vaccinations are probably good for 3 to 5 years and that we are really over vaccinating our dogs. What is your opinion?

A:
This is a very hot-topic in veterinary medicine that likely will not be completely sorted out for the next couple of years. You hit the problem on the head with your statement “probably good,” unfortunately the research is just starting to come out to verify this.

Historically the only real studies that have been done concerning vaccine duration related to rabies, and the only reason they were done is because rabies can be transmitted to humans and is fatal. These duration of immunity studies take a lot of time and money. So, many companies did just enough to get by, proving their vaccines to be effective for one year in order to receive FDA approval. Therefore, because they're only proven effective for one year, they must be labeled for yearly boosters.

With an increase in the human-animal bond has come increased scrutiny on previously accepted practices. There is increased concern, some real some unfounded, that over-vaccination may be causing an increase in health risks to some pets. With increased pressure from the pet-owning public to come up with answers, veterinarians, along with vaccine companies, have started to change vaccine protocols to match individual animal needs. Unfortunately many of our professional organizations have come out with vague recommendations that have served to further cloud the issue rather than provide clarification. Without standard guidelines to follow, the private practice veterinarian still must rely on label guidelines when making recommendations, because deviating from these labels opens him or her to potential litigation if the client is not fully educated on the risks. Once the studies of the actual duration of these vaccines becomes more complete, the issue will sort itself out more readily. I truly believe we will get to a point where we vaccinate less and less, but until the science is there to back it up, there are still many issues to resolve. I much prefer to practice medicine and treat individual animals, but until we have these answers, many dogs will continue to need annual vaccinations to ensure they are protected against these diseases.

A few things to consider before altering your dog’s protocol are its exposure risks. For example, it is likely in my part of the country that we will never have a canine distemper outbreak, and thus, it may be easy to assume that we could begin to eliminate it from our vaccine protocol. But what happens when one of my clients travels to southern Texas where they still have distemper outbreaks? What about the risks when they return home? Until we understand the basics of how long these vaccines last, we will not be able to start making blanket recommendations across the country for vaccinating dogs, especially with the mobile society in which we live. Basically you need to discuss these issues with your veterinarian, and set up a protocol that fits your dog’s individual needs--a protocol that allows for the safest, most effective protection. With more and more information becoming available, this will likely be a discussion you will need to have annually.

Submitted 5/14/04:
Q:
I have a three-year old, male, yellow lab that seems to be having a reoccurring problem. There is a local lake that I take my dog to in order to do some water training. The lake is not stagnant but in some locations moss can be seen growing near the banks. Other than that it is quite clear. After the last three training sessions my dog has become sick. He develops the dry heaves and eventually does vomit. I know humans are warned about drinking untreated water while in the outdoors but what if anything can be done about dogs? Is there an antibacterial pill that can be given prior to dogs working and training around water?

A:
This is a complicated question, as there are a lot of potential scenarios. Definitely there are things in water that can cause dogs to vomit and may range from bacteria and parasites to chemicals and algae. You noted you were from California, and I am unfamiliar with all the potential water-borne hazards you may encounter. I would definitely talk with your veterinarian about this issue, and due to the consistency of it happening, I likely would not recommend swimming your dog in the water until a cause is determined. If a dog is getting sick from the water there isn’t any pill that will prevent future occurrences that I’m aware of for use. If your dog is still sick after removing him from the water he may need medications to clear whatever is causing the irritation.

As far as other causes for this problem, sometimes overworked or overheated dogs will vomit after workouts, and it’s important to remember that a dog can definitely overheat while doing water work. It also may be possible that during the retrieves or while playing around he is ingesting a large amount of water, and it alone is causing irritation due to the quantity of water and causing him to vomit.

Submitted 2/5/05:
Q:
We have a three year old, spayed, female Pointer with Addison's. She was diagnosed at 18 months and is currently on DOCP and prednisone. On several occasions when we have taken her to the field for training and trials she has developed a skin reaction. The reaction consists of red bumps usually filled with a pus-like fluid. The bumps come up on her neck, chest, stomach and legs, and, in my opinion, appear very rapidly—within 5-15 minutes of being out in the field. We treat with allergy creams and watch for signs of infection – the rash goes away after about 10 days and doesn’t appear to cause itching. This has happened under different temperatures and weather conditions and at different field locations. We're guessing it is an allergic reaction but are concerned that it takes so long to go away afterwards. Our vet's opinion is that her normal dosage of prednisone would take care of it. Our concern is that it is Addison's elated and not an allergic reaction after all. Also, chest protectors can help during training, but we can't use those in competition. Are we worrying about nothing? Do you have any preventative suggestions?

A:
Unfortunately Addison's disease can be a difficult disease to control, especially in dogs undergoing stressful situations or competition, as it is during these times the body is most dependent on the adrenal glands' responses. [Note: Addison's Disease is a metabolic disease in which adrenal glands fail to secrete at their normal levels of both corticosteroids and mineralosteroids.] To me it does sound like it is an allergic reaction, especially if the chest protectors appear to help the problem. The overreaction of the skin though could be related to the Addison's. My first recommendation would be one you are already doing, which is to increase the prednisone dose during performance or stress. One thing you may want to discuss with your vet is going at the higher dose maybe the day before and the day after the training, as opposed to just the day of, though this may not be enough to prevent the reaction. If possible I would recommend washing or rinsing the dog immediately upon finishing in the field to remove any of the irritants that may be causing the reaction.

Basically these dogs with problems such as yours don't follow the book when it comes to treating their conditions, and they often need to have their protocols "tweaked" in order to ensure they are being treated effectively.

Submitted 7/17/2007:
Q:
I have a 14-month old female English Setter who has not come into heat yet. I intended to have her spayed at 7-9 months of age but found out when she was seven months old that she has a recessed vulva. It has been recommended by three vets (one a reproduction specialist) to let her go through her first heat in order to avoid infections and longterm problems. She is muscular and active and not gained any weight in 2-3 months. I could not have missed her cycle as she sleeps indoors and we spend a lot of time at a dog park with many intact male dogs who show her no interest. Her first heat seems very late. Could something serious be worng?

A:
First, I would agree with the other vets’ assessments about having a bitch with urinary/reproductive tract issues go through a heat cycle. The estrogen stimulation helps with the body’s defense mechanisms, and it is one of the few health-related reasons I strongly recommend having a non-breeding dog go through a heat cycle.

As to the heat cycle, at 14 months I still wouldn’t be too concerned. My three females (two of which are now spayed) ranged in first heat onset from seven months to 18 months. If she is otherwise healthy, I would not be too concerned. Some bitches will have silent heats or minimal first heats. If you are overly concerned you could talk with your vet at your upcoming appointment about doing some hormone assays, but I would even hold off on those.

Submitted 11/3/04:
Q:
What is the average life expectancy of a spayed female German Shorthair---hunting dog, lives indoors with the best of care?

A:
My general answer on dog life expectancy is usually pretty general. For small dogs I usually think of any time after 12 years being bonus time and with larger dogs, any time you get with them after 10 years of age. Now many dogs will live beyond these age ranges, but these are the averages I usually go with.