Tumors of the urinary bladder or urethra are relatively rare in dogs, but are often malignant. In most cases, they are transitional cell carcinomas. Older female dogs are primarily affected. A higher incidence has been observed in Scottish Terriers, Airedale Terriers, West Highland White Terriers, and Beagles.
Transitional cell carcinoma develops from degenerated cells in the constantly renewing mucous membrane lining of the bladder or urethra. Undetected, untreated, or chronic bladder infections can therefore trigger tumor development. However, the exact cause of cell degeneration remains unclear.
In most cases, clear symptoms of the disease are only noticed at an advanced stage. Initially, the symptoms resemble those of a bladder infection, and the two conditions are therefore often confused. Affected animals show difficulty or pain when urinating, frequent urination in small amounts, bloody urine, and, as the disease progresses, weight loss. If the tumor has already spread to the lungs, liver, or even bones, general discomfort or lameness may also occur. If the tumor blocks the urinary tract, urine accumulates and can lead to life-threatening kidney damage. If the animal suddenly stops urinating, a veterinarian must be consulted immediately.
Due to the identical symptoms, a urinary tract infection is often diagnosed initially and treated accordingly. However, if treatment only leads to a short-term improvement and the symptoms continue to recur, further examinations should be carried out. An ultrasound examination is very well suited to visualising the bladder wall and the size and location of a possible tumour. X-ray examinations with contrast medium injected into the bladder can provide information about its filling status and any changes in the wall.
Endoscopic examination, also known as cystoscopy, allows your veterinarian to look directly inside the bladder and urethra. This enables them to identify narrowings, bleeding, or growths and take tissue samples directly. However, this examination should only be performed by a specialist. An accurate diagnosis and determination of the exact type of tumor can only be made with the help of a biopsy (removal of a tissue sample), which can be performed either surgically or endoscopically via the urethra. To determine whether the tumor has already spread to other organs, it is also advisable to perform X-rays of the chest, a comprehensive ultrasound examination of the abdominal cavity, and appropriate blood tests.
In cases of urethral narrowing and difficulty urinating, catheterization of the urethra can be used as a first-line treatment to ensure that the animal can urinate without pain. The possibility of surgical removal depends greatly on the location and size of the tumor and how well it is separated from healthy tissue. Due to the often late discovery and invasive growth of bladder tumors, complete removal is therefore not possible in many cases. Parts of the tumor can be removed by laser treatment during a cystoscopy.
In the case of inoperable tumors, and especially if metastasis (spread) has already occurred, special chemotherapeutic agents are used to curb tumor growth. In addition, painkillers and anti-inflammatory drugs may be used depending on the extent and severity of the disease.
There is no prospect of a cure, particularly in the case of malignant bladder tumors, and the prognosis is therefore generally poor. However, with the help of modern medication, the affected animal can still enjoy a relatively pain-free and comfortable life for a certain period of time. The prognosis depends largely on the type, location, and extent of the tumor, the time of diagnosis, and the potential for metastasis.
Kidney disease is relatively rare in horses, but its symptoms are often nonspecific and therefore not always immediately recognized, meaning that treatment is often delayed. In many cases, kidney disease is a concomitant or secondary condition of other diseases.
This disease, often mistakenly referred to as feline leukemia, is caused by the feline leukemia virus. However, since the virus causes many other serious symptoms in addition to malignant tumors of the lymphatic tissue, the name is somewhat misleading
They are cute, lively and can provide lots of fun. But first, a word of warning: ferrets are not for people with sensitive noses. There are not many ways to mitigate the strong smell of these cute and sometimes cheeky pets.
Legg-Calvé-Perthes disease is also known as aseptic (= without the involvement of pathogens) femoral head necrosis (= death of the femoral head) and describes a non-inflammatory growth disorder in young dogs. It mainly affects miniature dog breeds and small dogs between the ages of three and ten months.
It is something very special to buy a horse when it is still young or even a foal. Untrained and completely inexperienced, young horses need a lot of attention and knowledge, but ultimately it makes us riders very proud to work together with our beloved animals to become a great rider-horse team. However, any horse owner who plans to break in the horse themselves should first ask themselves critically whether they have the necessary riding skills and whether they have the time available. In any case, you should work hand in hand with a trainer to find solutions to even minor problems together. After all, it's about laying the foundation, which is essential for the horse's further training. Another option is to give the unbroken horse to a professional who has the necessary routine and experience in breaking in young horses. Often, just a few months are enough, and you can then bring the horse back and continue training it together with a trainer.
Since the liver has a very high regenerative capacity and functional reserve capacity, most liver diseases in horses initially progress without visible signs of disease and are only diagnosed at an advanced stage.
Just like us humans, our pets may also require surgical or diagnostic procedures that cannot be performed on an awake animal. Most operations and some diagnostic procedures, such as endoscopies or dental treatment, require anesthesia (a medically induced state of sleep), which carries certain risks even in healthy animals and during routine procedures. We will explain what you need to bear in mind before and after such a procedure in order to minimize these risks and what complications can arise during anesthesia.
Lens dislocation, medically known as luxatio lentis, is an eye condition in which the lens becomes detached and displaced from its natural position. By obstructing the flow of aqueous humor, this condition can quickly lead to a dangerous increase in intraocular pressure. If not treated in time, it can result in blindness.
The weather is beautiful this weekend and you are going for a long ride on your horse. But right at the start of the first gallop, the horse suddenly becomes very stiff and starts sweating unusually heavily. It hardly wants to move and is pressing its back down. However, these signs seem too severe for simple muscle soreness, especially since you haven't done anything with the horse in the last few days. Avoid any further movement of the horse and always contact a veterinarian immediately in such cases, as the symptoms described above are very painful and may be the first signs of a cross-ties. As this muscle disease occurs frequently after horses have not been worked for one or more days with the same feed ration, it is also known as "holiday sickness" or "Monday morning disease." However, horses that are worked regularly can also fall ill. Young horses of heavy breeds are particularly at risk. This disease was greatly feared in the days when carriage and work horses were heavily used. Today, it only occurs sporadically, mostly in easy-to-feed horses with good nutritional status.
This condition, which has been known since the Middle Ages, is a movement disorder that exclusively affects the hind legs of horses. When the horse is being presented, one or both hind legs are bent excessively and jerkily so that the fetlock almost touches the belly and is then brought down again just as abruptly. The staccato gait is reminiscent of a rooster strutting, which is where the name comes from.
Mycoplasmosis is the most common respiratory disease in rats. Also known as murine respiratory mycoplasmosis (MRM), this disease is caused by a bacterium that is very common in pet rats and is chronic and progressive.
Anthrax is an acute, often fatal infectious disease that mainly affects cattle and sheep, but horses are also highly susceptible. The disease gets its name from the "burnt" appearance of the spleen in infected animals. Anthrax is found worldwide and is considered a zoonosis, as it is also dangerous to humans. It is a notifiable animal disease, but is now rarely observed in Germany. The anthrax bacterium is considered one of the most dangerous pathogens and could also be used by terrorists as a biological weapon.
