The Poodle is is a very intelligent, good natured, very elegant in apperance, and sturdy dog with a long life span. Depending on the lines in the poodles pedigree, life expectancies average between 10 to 18 years. I have heard of some poodles (all three sizes) living up to 21 years. The three sizes mature at different rates; the Toy at 7 months, the Miniature at 12 months and the Standard at 18 to 24 Months.
Like all purebreed dogs, the Poodle has its share of inheritable health problems. The Toy and Miniature seem to share the same disorders, while there is some variation in the Standard's disorders.
Genetically based disorders in the Toy and Miniature include:
Progressive Retinal Atrophy a disorder of the eye in which the light cells in the retina wither and die due to insufficient blood supply. the diesase progresses Gradually, results in blindness and has no known cure. Its onset in the Poodle is between 5 to 6 years old. The presence of PRA can be detected by ophthalmoscopic examination by a veterinary ophthalmologist. As a result, screening by the Canine Eye Registration Foundation, which maintains a registry of dogs that are certified free of inheritiable eye diseases by the American College of Veterinary Ophthalmologists,is advisable. This certification must be done annually.
Legg-Calve'-Perthes - a disorder in which noninflammatory avascular necrosis of the femoral neck and head result in one of both of a young dog's rear leys becoming lame. Irritability and pain are other primary symptoms. Some dogs recover function without treatment, but in severe case surgical removal of the femur head is indicated.
Patella Sub-luxation- or slipped kneecap, a condition in which the patella slides in and out of the groove where it is normally held in place by ligaments. This causes hopping or favoring of the leg until the kneecap slips back into place. In some cases, in can be surgically corrected.
Epilepsy - a neurological disorder marked by recurring seizures that follow episodic, abnormal discharges of electrical impulses by nerve cells in the brain. As in humans, it is controlled with drugs such as phenobarbital or Dilantin.
Hypothyrodism - a condition resulting from an inadequate production of thyroid hormone. Also treated with drug therapy, its symptoms include a coarse, brittle coat that falls out, thickening and discoloration of the skin, lethargy, obesity, mental slowness and irregular heart cycles.
Cryptorchidism - or undescended testicle, a condition in which one or both testicles are retained in the abdominal cavity. Hormone injections, given to stimulate testicular descent, sometimes are successful. When the treatment is unsuccessful, removal of the testicles is recommended because cryptorchid testicles may become cancerous.
The Miniature is also subject to:
Hip Dyplasia - a conditon in which the head of the femur fits improperly into the hip joint socket, causing Pain and lameness. Pain killers and/or surgery are the usual treatments. Hip dysplasia screening by the Orthopedic Foundation for Animals is recommended
Genetically based disorders in The Standard Poodle include:
PRA, Epilepsy, and Hypothyroidism (same as with the Toy and Miniature above.)
Hip Dyplasia (see above, same as Miniature. The Toy does not seem to suffer from this one.)
Von_Willebrand's Disease - a disorder that involves a tendency to bleed easily, is caused by a deficiency in the von Willebrand factor, a protein found in the blood plasma. As with PRA and hip dysplasia, VW testing is recommended.
Addison's Disease - a disorder caused by a deficiency in adrenocortical hormones most commonly occuring in young and middle-aged dogs. Symptoms include weakness, vomiting, diarrhea, anorexia and general physical deterioration. In the event of an adrenal crisis, corticosteroids, fluids and glucose may be needed to stabilize the animal.
Sebaceous Adenitis - a chronic skin disorder resulting from abnormal and/or inflamed, or in some cases a total absence of, sebaceous glands. Symptoms include hair loss, formation of silver-gray scales and secondary skin infections with an offensive odor. Therapeutic baths and antibotics for secondary infections are the recommended treatments.
Standard Poodle Cancer Registry -
The Standard Poodle Cancer registry has been established to gather information on the many types of cancer affecting the breed today.An estimated 40% of all Standard Poodle deaths are from cancer. However, since reporting is not required, it is difficult to say which types of cancer are most common, or determine whether the predisposition to any is inherited
Squamous
Cell Carcinoma - SCC" is a
malignant tumour that originates in the nail-bed epithelium.The
etiology of digital tumours is unknown, although trauma and contact
with carcinogenic compounds have been proposed. "SCC" tumours in many
dogs were preceded by chronic nail-bed infections.
Most dogs with "SCC" of the digit are examined because of the lump
itself, although concurrent lameness, ulceration, and breaking or
splitting of nails are also common complaints.
Digital "SCC" is often misdiagnosed as Pyoderma (skin inflammation
with pus) or Paronychia (inflammation involving the folds of tissue
surrounding the toenail.)
Black, large breed dogs such as Labrador Retrievers, Giant Schnauzers and Standard Poodles appear to be predisposed. In these breeds, multiple digits may be involved over a course of two to four years..
Poodle D.N.A. Project - This project is entirely confidential (no names of owners or dogs will be used in any future research studies), and can only be beneficial to our beloved breed. The information gathered from this ongoing project will be invaluable in the future, if we can prove some types of cancer are inherited. The more normal dogs we can bank, and even more important those dogs with known malignancies, the faster we can make progress.
Bloat/Gastric Torsion - a life Threatening condition that occurs when the stomache swells with gas and then twists cutting off its blood supply.
To further understand the diseases and genetic anomalie that affect the Poodle, THE Poodle Club of America, Inc. established a nonprofit foundation in 1989 whose primary goal is to fund research. Hopefully one day this research will gather the knowledge necessary to eliminate inheritable diseases in the breed. These grants are funded by the Tax deductible Contributions of people who love Poodles and are matched by the PCA. Current research being funded by the foundation is on PRA, Sebaceous Adenitis, and Bloat.
PCA recommends breeders list thieir dogs with the Genetic Disease Control (Registry) (GDC) is a databank of genetic history for any breed of dog( at present has more than 600 Poodles registered). In an open registry like the one maintained by GDC (Institute for Genetic Disease Control in Animals) owners (potential breeders), veterinarians and scientists can trace the genetic history of any particular dog. GDC has divisions for genetically based orthopedic disorders as well as genetically based skin and eye disorders.
Canine Eye Registration Foundation (CERF) is the Canine Eye Registration Foundation CERF was founded by a group of concerned purebred owner/breeders with a goal of eliminating heritable eye diseases in purebred dogs through registration, research, and education
The
Orthropedic Foundation for Animals, Inc
(OFA) has divisons for;
Hip
Registry The purposes of the registry are:
to provide a standardized evaluation for hip dysplasia and to serve
as a database for control of hip dysplasia through selective
breeding. To date the OFA maintains the world's largest data base on
hip conformation.
Elbow
Registry The purposes of the registry are:
to provide a standardized evaluation of elbow joints for canine elbow
dysplasia, whether due to an ununited anconeal process, fragmented
coronoid process, osteochondrosis, or any combination thereof; and to
serve as a database for control of elbow dysplasia through selective
breeding. Thyroid
Registry ,The Purpose is to identify those
dogs that are phenotypically normal for breeding programs and to
gather data on the genetic disease - autoimmune thyroiditis
(Hashimoto's Disease).
Congenital
Heart Registry , The Purpose is to gather
data regarding congenital heart diseases in dogs and to identify dogs
which are phenotypically normal prior to use in a breeding program.
For the purposes of the registry, a phenotypically normal dog is
currently defined as: 1) one without a cardiac murmur, or as 2) one
with an innocent heart murmur that is found to be otherwise normal by
virtue of an echocardiographic examination which includes Doppler
studies.
Nonmalignant Tumors of the skin and soft tissues This Article covers Viral Warts, Cysts, and othe Skin Problems in Poodles
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