Yorkshire Terrier is a very popular breed. Dogs are well known for their small size and sociable character. Keeping pets in an urban environment is quite simple, and this is one of the reasons why the choice so often falls on them.
However, the owners should not relax and forget about the health of the pet and the diseases of the Yorkshire Terrier: after all, the sooner you manage to recognize the symptoms of the disease, the easier it will be to defeat.
Retinal Dysplasia
Most often this is a congenital disease of dogs, in which the retina does not develop correctly during the growth of the animal and has folds, but sometimes dysplasia also appears in puppies that have undergone viral diseases in the process of development. Without a timely call to the veterinarian, a Yorkshire terrier disease such as retinal dysplasia can lead to blindness of the animal.
Symptoms of dysplasia are not always easy to notice, because there are not so many:
- enlarged pupils even in bright conditions;
- low vision in the twilight;
- in puppies, symptoms appear before the age of two years.
A full diagnosis should be carried out by a specialist using an ophthalmic examination. The sooner the owners turn to him, the more the success of the upcoming treatment increases. It is extremely undesirable to treat dysplasia on your own - this can lead to the most sad consequences.
Legg Disease - Calve - Perthes
This Yorkshire Terrier disease is also called aseptic necrosis of the femoral head. The reasons for its development have not yet been identified: both heredity and an excessive load on the hip joint can affect this. As the name implies, a Yorkshire Terrier breed disease can lead to aseptic necrosis and destruction of the femoral head due to a reduction in its blood supply.
Symptoms of Perthes disease occur in puppies between the ages of six and twelve months, but caring owners are not too hard to spot. It:
- lameness, which over time is becoming increasingly common;
- the puppy's desire to save his paw and walk only three;
- restriction of motor activity, for example, a dog may stop jumping.
A specialist can make this diagnosis after examination and radiography.
Treatment of the Yorkshire Terrier disease can be both therapeutic (but only in the early stages with not too severe damage), and surgical. With therapeutic treatment, the dog is prescribed drugs that will relieve inflammation, reduce physical activity for several months. It is also possible to use physiotherapy. Surgical intervention usually occurs with a fracture or destruction of the femoral head. After surgery (resection arthroplasty of the hip joint), antibiotics and rehabilitation are prescribed.
Hypoglycemia
This Mini Yorkshire Terrier disease associated with low blood sugar can have many different causes: from malnutrition to bacterial infections.
However, most often symptoms only appear in puppies at an early age (about three to four months) due to the characteristics of the body, which is unable at a young age to control glucose levels.
Hypoglycemia and symptoms of Yorkshire Terrier disease:
- loss of appetite;
- lethargy and weakness;
- tremors, cramps;
in extreme cases, it can reach blindness, stupor and even coma.
If some of these signs appear in the puppy, you should immediately consult a veterinarian who will be able to conduct all the necessary tests and make a diagnosis.
The treatment of hypoglycemia is prescribed by a specialist. Puppies need special feeding with balanced food every 3-4 hours and limitation of physical activity. Serious dogs are usually hospitalized and kept in a hospital.
Tracheal collapse
Like other dwarf dogs, Yorkshire terriers are very susceptible to this disease - there are genetic prerequisites for this, and the dog may also have an inherited cartilage defect. Due to the softening and flattening of the tracheal rings, the trachea loses its rigidity and acquires a C-shape instead of an O-shape.
Sometimes it happens that a disease has no symptoms until a factor is added that provokes its development. These factors may include:
- respiratory tract infections;
- obesity;
- an increase in heart size.
In such cases, the symptoms are clearly visible to the hosts. Usually this:
- coughing, persistent or vomiting;
- difficulty breathing through the mouth, shortness of breath;
- uneven breathing and increased heart rate.
The specialist can make a diagnosis based on x-ray or tracheobronchoscopy, through which you can determine the stage of development of the disease.
There are four of them:
- subsidence of rings by 25% - the first stage;
- 50% - the second;
- 75% - the third;
- the fourth stage occurs when the upper wall touches the lower part of the trachea.
Treatment can be therapeutic only at the first stage - in this case, the factor that triggered the development of the disease is removed, for example, infections and obesity are treated. In addition, the dog’s presence in dusty air, next to cigarette smoke and other harmful gases and substances, is limited.
From the second stage, surgical treatment is usually prescribed when the therapeutic is useless. In this operation, a stent is placed on the dog, in simple words, a special tube in the narrowing section of the trachea. This helps the pet breathe freely.
It is impossible to cure the collapse of the trachea, but the owners may well control it with the help of the advice of veterinarians.
Portosystemic Shunt
Shunt is a vessel that connects the portal vein and systemic circulation bypassing the liver. The danger is that without detoxification in the liver, harmful metabolic products enter the bloodstream and poison the body. This disease can be either congenital or acquired, and shunts are intrahepatic and extrahepatic, but among the Yorkshire terriers, the second type is more common.
In the case of a genetic predisposition, symptoms appear in puppies up to one year old, however, it is not easy to recognize them.
Most often it is:
- excessively calm character of the puppy;
- slow growth;
- after eating - lethargy, weakness, depression;
- diarrhea, vomiting;
- blood in the urine;
- in extreme cases, convulsions, fever, blindness, and even coma are possible.
Therapeutic treatment is aimed at normalizing the metabolism of a pet, so various antibiotics, adsorbents and a low-protein diet are used. More often, surgery is prescribed when a special ring is placed on the shunt, which gradually closes the vessel.
This disease is very dangerous for the dog, therefore, at the first symptoms, you must consult a veterinarian.
What diseases do the Yorkshire Terrier still have?
In addition to diseases characteristic of dwarf breeds, Yorkshire terriers can also become infected with parasites against which they have no immunity, but there are many ways of infection.
Worms
Parasites in the Yorkshire Terrier can be both flukes, round and ribbon worms. Without examination by a veterinarian and determination of a specific type of helminths, a dog should not be given any medications, as this can bring not the most pleasant consequences for it, even death.
Symptoms of infection with worms are quite obvious:
- the pet is trying to scratch the floor or teeth at the anus;
- a sharp change in appetite - refusal to eat or, conversely, overeating without satiety;
- dull hair, generally depressed and inactive;
- mood changes, such as sudden aggression;
- tense and swollen belly;
- alternating diarrhea and constipation;
- a large amount of mucus in the feces;
- vomiting
If even several signs of the described York disease are detected, how to treat the Yorkshire Terrier in the first place? You should go to the veterinarian without delay, since procrastination can lead to rupture of the rectum. The diagnosis is usually made after analysis of feces.
Conclusion
Only a specialist (veterinarian) has the right to prescribe therapy to a beloved pet. You can also prevent the development of certain diseases in advance, but even in this case, you should first consult a veterinarian.