When a puppy comes into our home, it is normal for us to ask ourselves basic questions, especially if it is our first dog. Questions such as how long it will take for him to learn to relieve himself on the street, or how long it will take for him to reach his final size as an adult, are perhaps the most raised when we go with him to our veterinarian's office.
However, sometimes we notice a difference in growth compared to other puppies we know or come across on a daily basis, and wonder "Why doesn't my dog it grows?"In this article on our site we will explain some of the diseases that can prevent your puppy from developing normally.
Poor feeding management
This section includes those pathologies that we cause with our ignorance to the puppy, which can cause delays in its growth.
If we want to give a homemade diet, very fashionable in recent times, we run the risk of not calculating adequately the needs of each and every one of the nutrients (protein, carbohydrates, fats, ions…), and in a critical stage such as the first months of life, may lead to unrecoverable alterations.
The most striking may be growth retardation, along with hypertrophic osteodystrophy caused by calcium supplements. We all remember "rickets", which although it was always related to a lack of calcium and phosphorus, rather it usually occurs due to a lack of vitamin D (without it an adequate metabolism of calcium is not possible).
Regardless of our good will, we must understand that although we make our homemade diet with great care and care, sometimes certain foods included prevent the absorption of the nutrients of others, and it is that not always a food with a lot of protein it brings benefits (everything depends on the biological value of that protein, and the excesses end up being paid for by the kidney), and that sometimes the problem is that we cannot maintain an adequate relationship between the different trace elements.
How to avoid nutritional deficiencies in puppies?
If we want to offer our puppy homemade recipes, it is essential to go to a veterinary nutritionist who will prepare a specific and appropriate diet for our puppy Otherwise, we run the risk of suffering from the aforementioned he alth problems. However, the ideal is to offer specific feed for puppies that contains the "nutritionally complete" sign on the package label.
We must refrain from offering nutritional supplements, since all commercial preparations (ie feed) of medium-high quality have an adequate calcium-phosphorus ratio, as well as digestible protein, percentage of fats, fatty acids unsaturated fats, etc.
Our puppy will not grow bigger or better (maybe just the opposite) because we give them extra supplements. It is evident that they will be necessary if we opt for homemade diets, but we should avoid them in this critical period, due to the many advantages they could offer in the future.
At least in the first 12-18 months of life, depending on the type of dog breed, we should opt for a quality commercial diet, in which the daily amount they should take and how to distribute it is even detailed.
Congenital hypothyroidism
If our puppy suffers from congenital hypothyroidism we should know that our dog is born with an inability to produce enough thyroid hormones. This leads to obvious alterations:
- Stunted growth.
- Dullness, loss of appetite, lethargy…
- A little active, clumsy puppy.
- Coat dull, puppy-like, alopecia.
- Lack of ossification in certain parts of the bones.
At first the lack of coordination of movements and the constant drowsiness are attributed to his condition as a puppy, but with the passage of time it becomes evident. If we meet other siblings from the same litter, we can notice how after a few months they reach normal development, while ours continues with its appearance of a chubby and inactive puppy.
Diagnosis
A complete analysis, where the production of thyroid hormones and the production of hormones that force the thyroid to produce hormones are determined (TSH and TRH), will guide our veterinarian about our puppy's pathology.
Treatment
The only option is the delivery of thyroid hormone (thyroxine) every 12 hours, for life. Periodic reviews are essential, in order to adjust the dose, as well as complete blood tests to control possible metabolic alterations.
Pituitary dwarfism
Luckily, it is really rare, although almost all veterinarians with more than a decade of experience will have had to deal with a case. It is the congenital deficiency of growth hormone (somatotropin), which is produced at the level of the pituitary gland. Hence its common name of "pituitary dwarfism".
As its congenital condition indicates, it is a hereditary alteration, typical of certain breeds, and the German shepherd is undoubtedly the most affected. To a much lesser extent, cases have been described in spitz and weimaraner.
Symptoms
From two months we begin to notice that our dog does not develop like the rest. As time goes by, we find certain characteristics of this disease:
- Persistence of puppy hair and later, alopecia.
- Pyodermas, skin infections.
- Body proportions are maintained (they are like an adult, but smaller).
- The gonads suffer atrophy (the testicles, in males, look very poorly developed).
- The fontanels, that is, the junctions of the skull bones, remain open much longer.
- The puppy teeth remain for a long time, there is an obvious delay in the transition to the permanent teeth.
If we cannot remedy it, after a variable time, the effects of growth hormone deficiency and lack of other hormones will appearpituitary (hypothyroidism), something that often happens after one or two years. In fact, practically those who suffer from pituitary dwarfism develop hypothyroidism after this period of time.
- Hypothyroidism: inactivity, loss of appetite, lethargy…
- Kidney disorders: due to the lack of thyroid hormone thyroxine, causes this damage.
Diagnosis
The clinical evolution in our puppy's regular check-ups will make our veterinarian suspicious, who will perform a blood determination of IGF-I (it is the Insulin-like Growth Factor), that is, something that the liver synthesizes by direct order of the growth hormone or somatotropin. It is easier to detect this than the hormone itself), and will determine its absence. However, it will first rule out other types of alterations, such as metabolic or poor management, before starting treatment.
Treatment
There is no exclusive option and these dogs survive for fewer years than a normal dog, but they can have a good quality of life for a while if they are treated.
- Growth hormone (human or bovine). It is complicated to purchase and expensive, but applied 3 times a week for a few months can give good results.
- Medroxyprogesterone or proligestone: Analogs of the hormone progesterone. Before starting to treat with any sex hormone, it is necessary to castrate both males and females. Quite used, especially the first.
- Thyroxine: As everyone develops hypothyroidism after a couple of years, thyroid function is usually measured every few months, and when you notice its decrease in the analytics, medicate for life.
Heart problems
Sometimes inadequate blood flow can cause growth retardation. It is common to observe in numerous litters some individual that grows less than the rest, and detect a heart murmur in it on auscultation.
Sometimes it is a stenosis of a valve (it does not open properly), so that the blood ejected by the heart to the organs is not the same and the most characteristic symptom is a somewhat more inactive puppy with delayed growth. It is a congenital pathology, which is why the parents of that puppy should stop reproducing and their littermates too.
Other times it is a persistent ductus arteriosus, it is a conduit that is present in the fetus before birth, through which venous and arterial blood (oxygenated and non-oxygenated) are mixed. Nothing happens to the fetus, since the mother is in charge of providing it with oxygen, but if it does not atrophy before birth as it should, the consequences will be:
- A puppy that is not growing, with symptoms of loss of appetite.
- Weakness, tachypnea.
- Position to try to breathe better (head extended).
- Collapses, total exercise intolerance…
Diagnosis of the ductus arteriosus
Auscultating a continuous single at the base of the heart (upper zone) in a puppy that is not growing, along with weakness and exercise intolerance, usually indicates this pathology. If it is also of a susceptible breed (M altese, Pomeranian, German shepherd…), we will be on the track. It will be necessary to perform plates, electrocardiogram and possibly ultrasound
Treatment
The ductus is easy to resolve through relatively simple surgery, but which involves approaching the thorax. The conduit is tied off, and the heart begins to work normally. It is a somewhat painful postoperative period, but the dog can complete its normal development and grow like any adult of its breed. Of course, it depends on the degree with which it is detected, and on the previous damages that the heart has suffered before being operated on.
A valve stenosis (Aortic, Pulmonary, etc.), is something much more complicated, heart valve surgery is not as developed as in humans.
Other pathologies
There are a large number of metabolic or structural problems that our puppy can be born with and that can lead to a delay in his growth. Next, we will briefly summarize some of them:
- Hepatic disorders: The liver purifies the body and its malfunction due to congenital or acquired problems can lead to abnormal growth.
- Intestinal problems: Calcium is absorbed at the intestinal level, and its metabolism is directly related to vitamin D levels. Any failure in the enterocytes (cells of the intestine), it can alter the absorption of calcium.
- Kidney problems: All calcium and phosphorus homeostasis depends on proper kidney function.
- Diabetes mellitus: Insufficient insulin production from birth can cause abnormal growth.
