Common Illnesses in Your Senior Pet– Kimberley Veterinary Clinic Group

Arthritis in dogs and cats

Arthritis is one of the most common ailments seen in middle-aged and senior cats and dogs, but it can often affect younger animals too. It can be painful and debilitating and if left untreated it can significantly affect your pet’s quality of life.

Spotting the signs of arthritis in your pet can often be challenging. As a pet owner you will often be best placed to notice subtle changes in your pet, here are 7 of the most common signs to look out for.

Difficulty getting up

You may find that your senior pet seems stiffer when getting up after being recumbent and that any difficulty when moving around seems to ease once they have warmed up.

Limping or lameness

Your pet might develop a limp or start favouring one leg over the other.

Muscle atrophy

Pets suffering with arthritis may also develop muscle atrophy due to lower levels of activity and decreased muscle use. Look out for thinner muscles and signs of weight loss.

Fatigue

Your usually active cat or dog might seem to be more tired, preferring to rest or taking shorter walks than usual.

Licking or chewing of joints

You may notice your pet licking the affected joints to try and relieve the pain. Sometimes this can result in inflamed skin, hair loss and in severe cases open wounds in those areas.

Reluctance to move

Perhaps your dog isn’t so keen on jumping into the car anymore, or your cat no longer jumps up onto high surfaces or starts having accidents in the house because they can no longer jump out of the window. These changes in behaviour could be a sign of pain and discomfort due to arthritis.

Irritability

A cat or dog with arthritis may become “snappier” when handled, particularly if it affects the affected areas.

Arthritis tends to affect older cats and dogs but it can also develop from an early age. It can be caused by a number of factors, including trauma, poor nutrition, age, obesity, diabetes, Cushing’s disease, infection in the joint or congenital joint disorders like elbow or hip dysplasia.

If you suspect arthritis, you should always consult your vet who will carry out a physical examination of your pet and will look for the following symptoms:

“Grinding” or “creaking” in the joints
Pain or swelling around the joint
Muscle wastage
Limited movement
Malformation of the bones

Unfortunately arthritis is rarely completely cured. It can be managed medically, nutritionally and even surgically, in severe cases, to help make your animal pain free and comfortable.

Physiotherapy, hydrotherapy or massage therapy may be advised to work on scar tissue and improve your pet’s mobility.

Your vet will also be looking for any underlying conditions that may have caused the arthritis as part of the overall treatment plan.

Whilst arthritis is a painful condition, the right care can help to make life more comfortable for your pet. This may involve some lifestyle changes to minimise any ongoing stress to the joints and to keep your senior pet’s muscles strong and healthy. In this area, diet and exercise is very important.

Keeping your pet at a healthy weight is essential, as any excess weight will put extra strain on the joints.

Fat also secretes hormones that increase inflammation!

Moderate exercise will help to strengthen the muscles around the joints so they give better support. Swimming is a great non-weight bearing exercise for dogs as it uses the whole body! Make sure your pet is getting enough rest too. Make sure they have a warm soft bed that is easy to climb into, and consider using a ramp to get your dog in and out of the car if they are too heavy to lift.

Your vet may advise appointments every six months or so to make sure that any medication is treating the arthritis effectively and monitor progress.

If you suspect your pet has arthritis or you are worried that your pet is in any pain or discomfort, it is always recommended that you make an appointment with your vet for a proper diagnosis and treatment plan.

Hip and Elbow Dysplasia

These two words terrify large and giant breed dog owners, but the truth is this can happen to any size dog. This condition can drastically reduce a dog’s quality of life. The good news is that embracing the responsibilities of being a pet owner and educating yourself about potential health conditions, such as hip dysplasia, can go a long way toward keeping your dog comfortable.

The hip joint functions as a ball and socket. In dogs with hip dysplasia, the ball and socket do not fit or develop properly, rubbing and grinding instead of sliding smoothly. This results in deterioration over time and an eventual loss of function of the joint itself and much the same goes for the elbow.

Several factors lead to the development of hip dysplasia in dogs, beginning with genetics. Hip dysplasia is hereditary and is especially common in large and giant breed dogs, like the Great Danes, Saint Bernards, Labrador Retrievers, Boerboels and German Shepherd Dogs. Factors such as excessive growth rate, types of exercise and improper weight and nutrition can magnify this genetic predisposition.

Large and giant breed puppies have special nutrition requirements and need food specially formulated them.

These foods help prevent excessive growth, which can lead to skeletal disorders such as hip dysplasia, along with elbow dysplasia and other joint conditions. Slowing down these breeds’ growth allows their joints to develop without putting too much strain on them, helping to prevent problems down the line.

Improper nutrition can also influence a dog’s likelihood of developing hip dysplasia, as can too much exercise – or too little. Obesity puts a lot of stress on your dog’s joints, which can exacerbate pre-existing conditions such as hip dysplasia or even cause hip dysplasia.

Owners of small dogs are not off the hook either. Small and medium breed dogs can also develop hip and elbow dysplasia, although it is less common.

Some dogs begin to show signs of dysplasia when they are as young as four months of age, while other dogs develop it in conjunction with osteoarthritis as they age. In both cases, there are quite a few symptoms associated with hip and elbow dysplasia that larger breed dog owners should be familiar with. These symptoms may vary depending on the severity of the disease, the level of inflammation, the degree of looseness in the joint, and how long the dog has suffered from dysplasia.

Decreased activity, decreased range of motion, difficulty or reluctance rising, jumping, running, or climbing stairs, lameness in the hind end, looseness in the joint, narrow stance, swaying, “bunny hopping” gait, “grating” in the joint during movement, loss of muscle mass/atrophy, pain and general stiffness of affected joints are all common signs to look out for.

At your dog’s regular check-up, your veterinarian will perform a physical exam. Sometimes this exam is enough for your veterinarian to suspect dysplasia. In other cases, it is up to you, as the owner, to let your veterinarian know that your dog is experiencing discomfort.

The definitive diagnosis usually comes with a radiograph (x-ray). Your veterinarian will take radiographs of your dog’s hips and elbows to determine the degree and severity of the hip/elbow dysplasia, which will help determine the best course of treatment for your dog.

There are quite a few treatment options for dogs, ranging from lifestyle modifications to surgery.

Depending on your dog’s case, the vet may suggest certain changes to be made, such as, weight reduction and diet changes to take stress off the hips, exercise restriction, especially on hard surfaces, physical therapy, anti-inflammatory medications or joint supplements and, in severe cases, surgery.

Not all cases of dysplasia can be prevented, but there are some steps you can take to reduce your dog’s risk of developing this disease.

Keeping your dog’s skeletal system healthy should start when your dog is young, feeding your puppy an appropriate diet, especially if you have a large breed puppy, will give them a head start on healthy bone and joint development and help prevent the excessive growth that leads to the disease.

As your dog grows, providing appropriate levels of exercise and a healthy diet will prevent obesity, which is a major contributing factor to hip dysplasia. Obesity also causes many other health problems in dogs, so hold off on the table scraps and other fatty foods!

As a prospective purchaser of a new dog, do your research on the breed of your choice so that you are prepared for breed-specific difficulties that may arise in the future.

Kidney Disease in Pets

The body has two kidneys, a left and a right one that are positioned near the back just above the pelvis. The kidneys are connected to a large blood supply, and these organs are vital to the health of the remainder of the body; humans and animals need at least one functional kidney in order to survive.
When the kidneys are not functioning normally, there is some degree of renal insufficiency. Multiple factors may cause damage or injury to the kidneys, resulting in various degrees of renal insufficiency. If the problem arises within hours to days, this is termed acute kidney injury (AKI). AKI may result from many different reasons: infection, toxins, poor blood perfusion to the kidneys due to a drastic and sudden dip in blood pressure, blood loss due to trauma or certain anaesthetic events.

AKI is typically characterized by a reduction in urination, or not urinating at all, high potassium levels in the blood and enlarged and painful kidneys.

Certain causes of acute kidney injury can be treated, resulting in a complete cure. Others result in such severe and sudden renal damage that death from acute renal failure may occur. Some of these cases go on to progress to chronic kidney disease (CKD). Both kidneys are typically affected. Such disorders include congenital anomalies (i.e. those present since birth), hereditary renal problems, chronic infection or inflammation, prolonged exposure to certain chemicals toxic to the kidneys and cancer.
CKD may arise from a variety of different causes, ranging from incurable acute kidney disease/injury (AKD), to complications due to infection and inflammation, to genetic disorders. Both dogs and cats may be affected, of any breed and age. The majority of CKD cases occur in older pets and age is certainly a contributing risk factor of CKD development. Geriatric felines are especially notorious for developing kidney disease, with a large proportion being affected to various degrees with advancing years.

At the very earliest start of kidney disease, clinical signs may not have develop yet, so there may be no outward indication that your pet has an emerging kidney problem. However, once the number of damaged nephrons increases, the following clinical signs will appear. Signs may also have an insidious onset, meaning they first occur subtly and gradually. At first, only a few signs may occur, but as the kidney disease progresses, subsequent signs will develop over time. These clinical signs of CKD include, excessive urination and increased water consumption, decreased energy (lethargy, depression), weight loss, poor appetite (inappetance, anorexia), vomiting and nausea, diarrhoea or constipation, oral ulcerations, uremic odour, weakness and pale gums, fluid accumulation in the abdomen (ascites) and limbs, Blood clots, multi-organ injury, seizures.

Unfortunately, CKD is non-curative and will continue to progress and worsen over time until the kidneys ultimately fail completely.

This end stage occurs due to irreversible scarring (or fibrosis) of the kidneys, in which chronic injury has eventually caused the functional aspects of the kidneys to be replaced with non-functional scar tissue.
Keep in mind, if CKD is diagnosed at an early enough stage, certain measures, sometimes as simple as a diet change, can be taken to ensure that your pet can have a chance at a longer life. In certain, more advanced cases, symptoms can be treated by medication to keep your pet as comfortable as possible.

Liver Disease

The liver is the second largest organ in a dog’s body (after the skin) and is the workhorse of their body. It’s a specialized manufacturing and pollution control centre and is what makes the body function properly. The liver processes food eaten, manufactures the necessary building blocks, detoxifies and recycles the blood, and gets rid of the waste created. Since the liver is connected so intricately to the biochemistry of an organism, it can make diagnosing canine liver disease difficult. Liver disease can affect many body functions and in turn the liver can be affected by many other organs and systems of the body.

If not too far advanced, the symptoms and disease may sometimes be reversed due to the liver’s ability to completely regenerate. However, the disease must be managed properly to allow this to happen. A dog’s liver can be damaged up to 80% and still function normally due to its reserve capacity; because of this capability, the disease may be too far advanced and untreatable by the time it’s diagnosed.

The largest challenge facing veterinarians diagnosing canine liver disease is that the symptoms are not predictable and may not be specific.

Any number of traumas to a dog may result in liver disease: a hernia to the diaphragm, being hit by a car, a bruise or heatstroke. A diet that’s too high in fats can affect the liver; females are more prone to this than males. A dog with chronic infections (i.e. tooth problems) can contract liver disease. Fungal and bacterial infections can cause liver disease, as can parasites like heartworms and roundworms.

Contact with toxins from pesticides, herbicides, insecticides, bleach, household cleaners and paint chips that may contain lead can all cause liver disease. Your dog could contract hepatitis, which is an inflammation of the liver.

Cancer can overwhelm a dog’s system or metastasize directly to the liver itself.

There are numerous symptoms for canine liver disease. Jaundice is the most recognizable; a tint from yellow to orange will appear. It is most easily seen in the sclera (white) of the eye, but is also visible in the gums and skin of an affected dog. You may see more frequent urination which may also be tinged between lemon yellow and bright orange. Your dog may be thirstier than usual or have an unquenchable thirst. Their abdomen may look distended and be uncomfortable to the touch. They may have a lack of appetite, chronic weight loss, recurring gastrointestinal issues or bloody vomiting. The faeces may be yellow or orange, a paler colour than normal, or they may have bloody diarrhoea with the above characteristics. You may observe strange behaviour, circling, lethargy, no interest in playing or walks, or accelerating depression.

If your dog is diagnosed with canine liver disease, your vet will put your dog on a special diet or prescribe a diuretic to control water retention. Your vet may suggest rest and confinement, which will allow the body to focus needed resources on the healing process. If caught early and the liver isn’t too compromised the condition is reversible. Being alert to symptoms of canine liver disease, a responsible pet owner can save their dog’s life.

Treatment of any hepatic disease is aimed at resting the liver and minimizing those functions that have to do with metabolism of fats, proteins, carbohydrates and drugs. When your pet has liver disease, it’s even more important to feed the right food. Feed your pet easily digested carbohydrates, high-quality fats and limited amounts of sodium to control on-going liver damage and improve liver function.

IMPORTANT:

The signs of liver disease are not very specific, making it difficult to recognize. If obese cats stop eating, there could be fatal complications. Cats that lose their appetite for two to three days may experience Feline Hepatic Lipidosis, a condition associated with a dangerous build-up of fat in the liver that impairs proper function. If your cat is not eating, consult your veterinarian immediately.

Dental Disease

Did you know that dental care can extend your pet’s life? Caring for our pet’s teeth should be a no-brainer. After all, we brush and floss our own teeth on a regular basis, visit a dentist whenever possible and spend considerable amounts when something goes wrong – so why aren’t we as diligent with our pets?

In fact, dental disease can potentially impact your pet’s major organs – heart, kidney, liver, lungs and even bladder. One of the biggest problems associated with poor dental health is infection. Plaque is soft and mostly bacteria, it forms just under the gum line (sub-gingival). It calcifies to form tartar and initially the body reacts to this as inflamed gums, but the supportive bone under the gums starts to resorb, loss of bone leads to gum recession, this is periodontal disease.

The reason this infection creates such health risks is that being at the gum line means that it can very easily enter the bloodstream and travel throughout the body causing problems.

While dental disease can even start in their youth, dental problems most often come to the forefront when our pets reach their senior pet years. This is partly due to years of build up, but it is also because older animals have diminished immune systems and may be less capable of fighting off the effects of bacteria.

Common signs to look out for include:

Bad Breath

The most obvious sign that your pet’s teeth need attention is odour. It is often an indication that bacteria is accumulating in the mouth.

Tartar

When plaque hardens it becomes tartar. While plaque can be brushed away, tartar cannot and may require dental cleaning to remove. Red gum lines or discolouration of the teeth can also indicate problems.

Behavioural changes

Additional signs that dental disease may be present can be seen in changes in the way your pet eats; do they favour one side, are they actually chewing or just gulping down their food? Are they drooling or dropping food? Or are they showing a lessened appetite? All could be signs of a painful mouth. Another sign that dental care may be required is a reduced amount of energy. Most times owners assume that since their pet is older, there is a natural slow down. Many times this lack of energy is caused by dental disease and the flow of bacteria throughout the body wearing them down.

One only has to think of how we feel when our teeth are affected to understand what our pets must be going through. The difference is, our pets are much better at hiding it. As the dental problems slowly worsen, they manage to cope with the increasing pain and go on. Most times, we won’t even know there is a problem until it becomes severe.

While regular brushing and other at-home care is recommended to help reduce the risk of dental disease, once present, the primary treatment method is dental surgery. When a pet is older, the challenge of treating dental disease escalates and many fear the risks associated with anaesthesia. We have to remember that the bacteria and infection in the bone is doing more damage to the organs than anaesthesia would do to your pet.

Basic at-home dental management:

Brushing Teeth

The value of brushing your pet’s teeth cannot be underestimated, just committing to brushing 1-2 minutes once a week may dramatically help decrease the amount of plaque and tartar from building up. While finger brushes can be purchased from most pet stores, a gauze swab wrapped around your finger to gently scrub all the vertical surfaces of your dog’s teeth would do just fine.

Dental Chews

Some off-the-shelf dental chews, oral gels and in-water additives have proven to be effective at reducing plaque and tartar build-up.

It is still recommended to take your dog to your vet for a complete physical and lab work on a regular basis.

Heart disease

Heart disease is commonly diagnosed in both dogs and cats. The diagnosis can be disturbing and confusing for pet owners. The differences between heart disease and heart failure are important to recognize.

Heart failure, also often referred to as congestive heart failure or CHF, is the end result of any type of heart disease. Dogs and cats that suffer from heart disease may eventually suffer from congestive heart failure if the disease within the heart results in an inability of the heart to function normally. When the heart is unable to pump blood effectively to other areas of the body, congestive heart failure results.
Dogs and cats can have heart disease without experiencing heart failure. However, when heart failure occurs, heart disease is present in one form or another.

Heart disease in dogs and cats can take many different forms.

It can originate in the muscle of the heart. Heart disease can be the result of ageing changes within the heart which cause the structures of the heart (such as the heart valves) to become malformed. It can be the result of a developmental abnormality which causes the structure of the heart or blood vessels to be abnormal at birth and remain abnormal.

Heart disease, depending on the type and the severity of the disease, may be asymptomatic, with the pet showing no symptoms of disease at all. However, it can also cause severe symptoms, which may be fatal for your pet. Symptoms of heart disease can also fall in the middle range, where the dog or cat has symptoms of heart disease but is able to live with the symptoms.

Symptoms of congestive heart failure in dogs and cats vary depending on whether left and/or right-sided heart failure is present. The most common clinical signs are decreased endurance and exercise intolerance, lethargy, coughing and difficulty breathing. In severe cases and/or those with right-sided heart failure, symptoms may include abdominal pressure with fluid accumulation (known as ascites), jugular vein distension and/or pulsation of the vessels of the neck and the gums. The lips and tongue may turn from a normal pink colour to a pale or bluish colour.

Your pet’s treatment will depend on what specific heart problem they have and what may be causing it.

Your vet may recommend medications to help the heart work and correct irregular heartbeats, medications to slow fluid build-up in the lungs. Surgery can be performed to correct a torn valve or to insert a pacemaker to correct the heartbeat. A commercial or prescription low-salt diet to help decrease fluid build-up in the body. Limiting activity and exercise while effectively managing weight without putting too much strain on your pet’s heart.

For more information on your senior pet and the ageing process, check out our blog – https://kimvet.co.za/pets-and-ageing/

Common age relate ailments in dogs and cats