Prescription for Your Brittany's Health

Canine leptospirosis is a bacterial disease and is divided into two types-canicola fever which is spread through urine from dog to dog and is the more prevalent of the two. The second type which causes infectious jaundice is transmitted through the urine of rodents, especially rats. The incubation period is from five to fifteen days. It causes a varying elevation of temperature with loss of appetite, ulcers in the mouth, and finally depression and death in fifty percent of the untreated dogs afflicted, five to ten days after the onset. Although both types run similar courses, in­fectious jaundice as the name suggests, causes jaundice or yellowing of the membranes of the body. There is a preven­tive inoculation for this disease. If for no other reason than to keep infectious jaundice down to a minimum, the rat population of an area should be destroyed. If treatment is started early enough, it is usually successful.

In view of recent laboratory advancements in virus cul­ture which have brought to light forty new human viruses last year alone, it is expected many viruses which are af­fecting our dogs will be isolated in the next few years.

The Brittany has his share of the internal parasites; the four major ones being roundworms, hookworms, whip­worms and tapeworms. Roundworms are usually important only in puppies up to one year of age. These are the five to six-inch worms about the shape of an earthworm. They are white to pink in color and coil up like a spring when first expelled. The roundworms as well as the hookworms have part of their life cycle in the blood stream, lungs and in­testinal tract.

The hookworm is about three-quarters of an inch long and almost as thin as a human hair. It is virtually never seen in a stool, but the telltale eggs may be seen under your veterinarian's microscope. The whipworm is not found in young dogs as often as in those one year of age or older. This is perhaps the most difficult common internal parasite to control, since the eggs have been found to live for up to five years in the soil. With the roundworms, hookworms and whipworms, a routine stool check by your veterinarian will enable him to find any worm eggs present and to recommend to you the method for keeping these three pests down to a minimum or to remove them entirely. A symptom of hook­worm as well as roundworm infestations may be a dry cough but since a cough may be a symptom of more serious condi­tions, ask your veterinarian's advice.

The tapeworm is a common pest in the Brittany and is usually carried to the dog by fleas. While the adult worm is about eighteen inches long, only the last segment is seen on the stool or clinging to the hair around the anus. Often motile, the segment stretches and shrinks sometimes mov­ing one end back and forth in "cobra fashion." These seg­ments are about one-quarter to one-half inch when first passed, but then dry, contracting to much smaller tan, seed­like objects which also cling to the hair around the anus. Al­though not the usual cause, these segments may at times prompt a dog to drag his rear end along the ground.