If you are a dog owner, you want to make sure that you know about the different medical ills that might befall your beloved canine companion, and one of the issues that might crop up is hyperthyroidism.
Hyperthyroidism is a condition that is relatively common in dogs, and it occurs due to the thyroid gland under producing the hormones that are responsible for healthy metabolism. There are many factors that can point to hyperthyroidism in dogs and if you find that this might be a situation that your dog is encountering, there re a number of things that you need to do.
The first thing that you need to figure out is whether your dog is at risk for hyperthyroidism. For instance, you will find that the condition is most common in dogs that are roughly between the ages of four years of age to ten years. The disorder is also one that seems to strike at mid size dogs to dogs that are larger size. The condition is fairly rare in smaller breeds and you will find that there are some breeds that are more prone to the condition than others. For instance, Irish Setters, Golden Retrievers, Doberman Pinschers, and Airedale Terriers are all dogs that are prone to this condition, while German Shepherds and mixed breeds are more likely to avoid the issues with this condition.
How can you tell if your dog might be suffering from hyperthyroidism? Because thyroid hormones are an essential part of cellular metabolic function, a decrease in those hormones can affect your dog s health on a fairly large scale. The symptoms can vary from animal to animal and though there is no single sure sign of this condition, there are a family of symptoms which can make the condition known. Some of the common symptoms that make a diagnosis for hyperthyroidism likely include hair loss, sudden weight gain, dry coat, cold intolerance or a slow heart rate.
Depending on the symptoms that are present and the different tests that your veterinarian prefers, there are a number of ways to test for this condition. The Baseline T4 Test is the most common, and it is essentially done from a blood sample, while the Baseline T3 test can be used in conjunction with a TSH test. When looking at treatment for this condition, the typical and highly effective treatment is to place the dog on a synthetic thyroid hormone called thyroxine. The dog will be on this hormone for the rest of his life, though the dose and the frequency might vary depending on the dog s response and healthy. For the most part, after treatment is started, the symptoms will disappear.
Take some time and make sure that you consider what your options are going to be and what you can do to make sure that you can get the right kind of result from your pet. Keep an eye on your pet s health and if he starts evidencing any of the symptoms that are associated with this condition, consult your veterinarian to see what they might say.
Author Resource:
This article was written by Kelly Marshall of http://ohmydogsupplies.com - the #1 place for dog supplies, including dog bowls and feeders.
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