The dog’s kidneys are powerful filters that continuously purify the blood of nitrogenous substances. The load on them throughout life is quite high. And if you add to this improper diet and poor water quality, kidney problems can begin even in a young animal. In order to notice the symptoms in time and consult a doctor, you need to know how pyelonephritis manifests itself in dogs.
general description
Almost everyone knows that the kidneys regulate water-salt metabolism. But that is not all. In addition, they filter blood and remove toxins, are responsible for maintaining blood pressure and synthesize hormones. If these organs for one reason or another can not perform their functions in full, the concentration of toxins in the blood increases sharply. The body is poisoning. This can lead to a malfunction of all organs and systems, and even to the death of your pet. Pyelonephritis in dogs is a serious illness that requires an immediate response.
Definition and features
Most often, this disease is associated with the presence of insoluble sediment in the kidneys, or sand. But this is not an exact definition. Pyelonephritis in a dog is an infectious inflammatory disease of the renal structures, that is, the pelvis, parenchyma and calyx.
The cause of the development of the disease is the ingress of pathogenic bacteria directly into the kidney of the animal through the ureters, blood and lymph vessels. Pathogenic microflora and determines the development of the disease. It multiplies in the renal tissues, releases toxins and causes an exacerbation of the inflammatory process. It is usually accompanied by swelling and enlarged kidneys.
Treatment of pyelonephritis in dogs should be timely. At this stage, the problem is completely reversible, competent therapy allows you to completely stop the disease.
What is the danger
Often, the owners do not pay attention to minor changes in the state of their pet until it is impossible to ignore them. However, procrastination is very dangerous. With a prolonged course of the disease, irreversible lesions of the renal structures occur. Ultrasound clearly shows that tissue scarring, kidney reduction and the formation of abscesses occur. In this case, only surgery can help.
How is the disease manifested?
Symptoms of pyelonephritis in a dog are quite difficult to identify, but it is still possible to pay attention to some changes. The main thing is to watch your pet every day and spend time with him. The main difficulty is that different forms of the course of the disease are characterized by peculiar symptoms. The most difficult thing is to identify a sluggish, chronic disease. Symptoms in this case will be blurry. Moreover, periods of deterioration will be replaced by periods of remission, which further complicates the task of the owner.
Main symptoms
- In acute course, it is very easy to identify them, since they are visible with the naked eye. In this case, there is a strong thirst and frequent urination. The pet cannot endure for a long time and often asks outside. And on a walk he behaves differently. When urinating, it begins to hunch, push, obviously experiencing pain. At the same time, sometimes all attempts lead to nothing, and urine does not pass away. Additional symptoms are blood clots in the urine, lethargy and fatigue, lack of appetite. Often against the background of pyelonephritis, fever, pain in the lower back and swelling are observed.
- Chronic pyelonephritis in dogs is characterized by a gradual deterioration. The dog begins to lose weight, after a while she has the smell of acetone from her mouth. Often you can observe vomiting, lethargy and dehydration. This leads to loss of strength and exhaustion.
Causes
There are also a lot of them, so let's look at them in more detail. The causes of primary pyelonephritis can be Escherichia coli, enterococci, staphylococci and salmonella. Viral and fungal lesions also often lead to complications in the form of pyelonephritis. That is, a disease of almost any etiology has a negative effect on the dog’s kidneys. Pyelonephritis, if left untreated, will become chronic. In this case, you will have to carry out maintenance therapy twice a year.
Secondary pyelonephritis
Any organism can quite successfully fight bacteria. And even if they are present in the body in a small amount, immunity has enough strength to restrain their growth. But there are factors that contribute to the fact that they begin to multiply at high speed. It can be:
- Hypothermia.
- Poisoning.
- Oncological formations.
- Diabetes.
- Cystitis.
- Prostatitis.
- Purulent inflammation of the uterus.
That is, without a comprehensive diagnosis can not do. It is advisable as a puppy to register the dog in a good clinic and regularly undergo an examination, and if necessary additional examinations. Then the doctor will have a detailed map at hand, and in the event of a worsening condition, he will be able to quickly help.
Diagnostics
If the pet’s behavior has changed, he has begun to turn away from food, is not going to take a walk with you and is weakly happy about the return of the owners from work, you need to see a doctor immediately. Such symptoms may be characteristic of a good dozen serious illnesses, and it is almost impossible to figure it out without a doctor. Even if you are sure that this is pyelonephritis, you should know that with the rapid course of the acute phase, the animal may die.
But most often, pyelonephritis kills slowly. If you do not pay attention to periodically appearing symptoms, this can lead to nephrosclerosis, that is, compaction and wrinkling of the kidney, sometimes the organ completely stops functioning. To make a diagnosis, a urinalysis is required. Urine culture is necessarily performed to clarify the sensitivity of microflora to antibiotics. In addition, you need to do a general and biochemical analysis of blood, ultrasound of the kidneys and bladder.
Treatment
Symptoms of pyelonephritis in dogs will develop until they lead to disability or death of the animal. Therefore, the need for treatment is beyond doubt. All measures should be aimed at destroying pathogenic microflora and restoring the body.
That is, the appointment of antibiotics is mandatory. To remove intoxication, intravenous droppers are prescribed. In addition, diuretics, antispasmodics and analgesics are used. Combination therapy gives a good result even in the later stages of the disease.
Instead of a conclusion
If you took a dog for yourself, then your direct responsibility is to take care of it, the pet should be properly fed and treated as necessary. If you notice the slightest deviation in the condition of the dog, you should immediately consult a doctor and follow all his recommendations. This will be the key to her long and happy life.