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YOUR BULLMASTIFF'S HEALTH
The
information provided on these pages is to inform you of some of the
possible health issues you may face with your Bullmastiff.
This information should never be used in place of or against
Veterinary Advice.
If your dog is displaying any form of injury, lameness or
illness, consult your Veterinarian immediately.
Your Vet may offer alternative advice and treatments to what is
discussed here. The articles submitted by readers have been an
account of their own personal experience in the care and treatment
of their Bullmastiffs respective health concerns. Please
consult your Veterinarian before you commence any treatment on your
dog.
HOT
SPOTS
Hot spots or Wet Eczema
are puss-filled lesions that seem to suddenly appear on your dog. If caught
early, they can be cleared up relatively quickly in just a few
days. In the early stages, hot spots do not seem to cause the dog
too much distress, but it is strongly advised that you attend to hot
spots immediately. There are several home remedies for hot spots
but please check with your Veterinarian before applying these.
Your vet can
provide you with a wash and cream to clean them up efficiently if
home remedies donít work sufficiently for you. More stubborn
hotspots may also require antio-biotics as well.
Hot spots
more commonly occur in the summer months, when the weather is moist
and warm. Washing your dog may also incur this problem as you are
washing the natural oils from the dogs coat, resulting in dry skin.
A knick or scratch can also start one off. If hot spots become a
persistent problem for your dog, you may need to refrain from
washing your dog altogether and just rub him over with warm water
and disinfectant.
Although they
can appear anywhere on your dog, they are more commonly found around
the head, shoulder and neck areas.
BLOAT OR GASTRIC TORSION
Bloat is something that you should be VERY aware of.
Bloat is the sudden accumulation of gas in the stomach, which causes
severe stress, and can easily eventuate to death. Also known as
gastric torsion, it is most common amongst large, deep-chested dogs.
To help prevent the occurrence of bloat: -
-
Do not feed your dog an hour before or an hour after exercise.
-
Do not allow your dog to eat too quickly (guzzle).
-
Do not allow your dog to drink large quantities of water before or
after eating.
-
Discuss bloat with your
Veterinarian, they can inform you more of the
preventative and warnings signs.
ANAESTHESIA
Should your Bullmastiff require
anaesthesia
for any reason, it is of utmost importance that you and your
Veterinarian
understand that Bullmastiffs DO NOT tolerate Anaesthesia in the dosage
normally given by weight, and some particular Anaesthesiaís should be
avoided altogether. Incorrect use or dosage can result in death to
your dog. Ensure you discuss Anaesthesia with your Veterinarian
before any procedures are performed that may require it.
ENTROPIAN
This is a condition of the eyelid turning inwards,
and the eyelashes causing irritability to the eye. It can be
hereditary, or it may be caused from an obstruction or irritation to
the eye such as an ulcer, a scratch, dirt or bug in the eye.
Although this can be very irritating for the dog, it is not life
threatening, and correction is usually very simple, with either
medications or a simple operation to remove the rolling skin which
pulls the eyelid straight.
Some Veterinarians unfortunately are sometimes too quick to want to perform
an operation for this condition, without first trying to determine
the actual cause.
A 'spastic entropian' (for example) is usually caused by an injury
to the eye, causing the sudden onset of an apparent entropian.
Naturally, an injury causes swelling, and if the swelling is at the
level of the eyelid, it will cause them to turn in and rub on the
eye. In a case such as this, the condition of Entropian is not
genetic, and may be quite able to be corrected without major surgery
depending upon the extreme of the condition.
If the onset of an entropionated eye has occurred overnight, and
your vet suggests an operation, then a second opinion would be
advised. Please also contact your breeder to enquire whether this
condition has occurred in their lines.
DISTICHIASIS
Eyelash disorders are very common in the dog and less common in
other species. When abnormally positioned hairs contact the surface
of the eve, although they can cause pain and injury. There are a
couple of relatively simple procedures that can be used to correct
this condition.
HIP DYSPLASIA
As with many breeds of dogs, Hip
Dysplasia can be a concern to the bullmastiff.
CANCER
All
of us have been touched at some time or other with cancer in our
breed, either by experiences through our own stock or from friends
or acquaintances loosing their beloved Bullies. No one really knows
why these cancers are occurring so frequently and very few cancers
are curable.
ENDOCARDITIS
Endocarditis can occur
from a simple bacterial infection entering a dogs bloodstream via a
cut or even bacteria picked up from licking something on the ground,
eating something with bacteria on it, a hot spot and so on. In a
dogís life this is par for the course for as we all know, most dogs
will eat and lick anything and at some point in their lives can get
a bacterial infection even a mild one. This on itís own isnít life
threatening, but, if this bacteria were to make itís way through the
bloodstream and into the dogs heart and lodge there, then things can
become much more serious.
ALLERGIES
AllergiesÖwhere do you begin! Dogs just like humans suffer from
allergies and just like us dogs have allergies to certain things.
There are many things that can cause allergies the most common being
fleabite allergy plants and pollen, food and other allergies caused
by contact to different materials or chemicals. Pin pointing what is
causing an allergy is the hard task and really is a process of
elimination trial and error, unfortunately not all allergens are
identified which can be not only annoying to your pet but
heartbreaking for the owner. Allergies can be as common as using a
different soap powder to wash Fido's bedding to the grass in your
lawn where Fido plays. There are different symptoms that can help in
diagnosing what your dog may be allergic to but bear in mind you
will need the help of your veterinarian.
CRUCIATE INJURY
Ebony injured her left
hind leg doing 360ís and charging along our fence line at a stray
dog on the other side of the fence. She had a minor limp for 2 days
but seemed to recover with some rest.
Her movement
was fine and no lameness was visible after these 2 days.
LUXATING PATELLA (KNEE CAPS) IN DOGS
The
patella, or knee-cap, should be located in the centre of the knee
joint. The term "luxating" means out of place or dislocated.
Therefore, a luxating patella is a knee-cap that moves out of its
normal location.
EAR INFECTIONS
IN DOGS
Ear
infections are very common in dogs. Why? Because of the anatomy of
the ear in some breeds of dogs. It's longer and deeper than in
humans, for example. And in some breeds, covered by an earflap,
such as the Bullmastiff, that makes the inside of the ear canal warm
and moist. Like an incubator.
URINARY TRACT INFECTIONS AND URINARY STONES
The
Urinary tract consists of the Kidneys, the ureters, the bladder, the
urethra, and finally, the urethral opening at either the end of the
penis or just within the vaginal vestibule. In the male, problems
associated with the prostate gland, the seminal vesicles, and the
testicles occasionally affect the urinary tract as they share the
urethra. If you've forgotten what the ureters are, they're the
little tubes that connect each kidney to the bladder. You don't
commonly hear much about ureters, but every once in a while they are
damaged by trauma, passing kidney stones, surgical accident, or
cancer.
HEAT
STROKE
The
trouble with this disease is that all kinds of terrible things
happen inside the body when the internal body temperature rises over
4 degrees above normal. (Normal body temperature for both cats and
dogs ranges from 100-102 degrees F)
CONDITIONS THAT CAN AFFECT THE
ENTIRE BITCH
ORTHOPAEDIC CONDITIONS THAT CAN OCCUR IN THE BULLMASTIFF
Thank You
To Dr Roger Ross, DVM,
Animal Pet Doctor and the FoxNest Veterinary Hospital for allowing
Bullmastiffs Online to reprint some of the articles from his
informative website. Please
visit their website
for more interesting articles on pet health.
Thank you also to the people who have submitted their stories from
their own encounters.
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