Picture taken from www.wilharman.co.uk
Hi and Welcome Everyone!
This is Sharda with Boston Terrier newsletter!
Today, let’s discuss more about Boston Terrier health problems that you need to be aware of.
DEMODEX
Your Boston Terrier Pets are susceptible to a few skin problems such as Demodectic mange, caused by a tiny mite called Demodex.
They live in the animal’s hair follicles and can cause hair loss ranging from a mild bald patch to large tracts of baldness, besides secondary bacterial skin infections in adolescent puppies or immune-compromised adults.
Demodex can also show up in small patches of sparse hair growth or total baldness on the face and legs but in some animals, it can spread so fast that it takes over the whole body.
This infection is common among Boston Terriers and should be viewed seriously if you spot a thinning coat.
If a vet conducts multiple deep skin scrapes of a few affected areas of the Boston Terrier’s body, it can detect Demodex.
Examining them under the microscope can then follow this up, though it could sometimes be difficult to find.
If the infection is mild, it will heal quickly and will need very little or no treatment.
But if the mange spreads, use medicated baths, dips and antibiotics for a few weeks or months to resolve the problem.
In extreme cases, drugs such as ivermectin or interceptor are tried out on the pet.
Demodex can be a major problem with older dogs where it is as debilitating as perhaps cancer, or any dog medicated with cortisone.
Not always, however, is Demodex contagious between dogs. There are times when it may be passed from a carrier female to her pups early in life or there may be a badly defined genetic predisposition to the problem.
MAST CELL TUMORS OR MASTOCYTOMAS
Yet another skin disease seen often in Boston is Mast Cell tumors or Mastocytomas.
Recognized as raised, button-like skin growths with raw pink surfaces, they are sometimes of irregular shape and outline.
This is an inherited skin disease from the breed’s earliest ancestors—the English Terrier and the Bulldog.
As the tumor develops, it can become raw and inflamed, and in time, malignant and spread internally. As a rule, if you are in doubt about any skin eruption or mass, it should be removed and biopsied.
CUSHINGS DISEASE
This skin disease has widespread effects among Boston Terriers.
This results when an over-active tumor of the adrenal gland or of the pituitary gland releases too much of cortisone-type hormone into the Boston Terrier’s system.
Alternatively, Cushings Disease is also due to an overproduction of a cortisone-type drug administered in the form of prednisone pills and shots, or even cortisonecontaining eye drops or ear ointments.
The symptoms of this disease include a thin, poor hair coat, potbelly and increased water intake and urination.
Even if your pet suffers from Cushings Disease, you will still find him cheerful, but if left untreated, this can ultimately cause diabetes mellitus or life threatening blood clots.
If checked in time, Cushings Disease is easily treatable.
That’s it for today.
I hope that you learned something from today’s Boston Terrier newsletter.
All the best and take care
Warmly,
Sharda Baker