Vet Check: Your K9 Partner's Annual Wellness Exam

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Vet Check YOUR K-9 PARTNER’S ANNUAL WELLNESS EXAM

By Dr. Alexis Newman

E

very handler knows that their K-9 partner needs an annual exam and blood work, but what does that mean? What do the exam and blood work entail? What do we learn? Let’s start with the basics.

The first step is to review your partner’s history with the veterinarian. Don’t underestimate the importance of your input in your partner’s health.

It is important to share any changes or concerns with the veterinarian. These may include changes in behavior, water intake, appetite, vomiting or diarrhea, or energy level. Any of this information can be as important as the physical exam. I recommend making a list of any of any these changes you have noticed prior to meeting with the veterinarian.

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The Physical Exam We’ll review an overall physical exam and what this might tell about your partner’s health. Before focusing on specific areas of the body, we need to evaluate two big-picture aspects - weight and behavior.

Monitoring your partner’s weight is important.

As is true with a handler, a dog’s weight can change dramatically (although they are typically on a more strict diet). Changes in weight - a significant increase or decrease - can indicate underlying disease. It is important that unexplained weight changes are evaluated. Since you are always with your K-9, you may not notice these changes, so it is very important you weigh your him or her at each veterinary visit.

Prior to even starting the physical exam, watching the K-9’s behavior is also important. I watch my patients closely while speaking with the handler. Is the behavior appropriate? Is he curious about his surroundings in the hospital (which is normal), or is he quieter that he should be? Is he typically a friendly dog, but is apprehensive or aggressive during this exam? Or even the opposite - a K-9 who is typically very aggressive may be passive because he feels sick or weak. An unexplained change in behavior can indicate pain or discomfort or an underlying illness.

Next, we begin the physical exam - both visual and tactile examination of the systems.

Let’s Start at the Head: Eyes: The corneas should be clear. Any cloudiness can indicate disease. The whites of the eyes can be a little bit reddened due to the stress of the veterinary visit, but if the redness is severe, this can indicate infection or inflammation. There are some changes that can develop in aging dogs, such as pigmentation (darkening) of the edges of the eyes of a German shepherd. However, any changes must be evaluated as to whether they are acceptable changes or something concerning.

The lens in the middle of the eye should be clear in young dogs, but older dogs typically have some cloudiness of their lenses, similar to the appearance of a cataract. If a young dog has these changes of the lens, this can indicate the presence of a disease such as diabetes.

Ears: It is not unusual for dogs to have waxy debris in their ears, just as people do. The ear canals are an extension of skin, so if your partner has skin allergies, these can manifest themselves as ear infections. The ear canals should be a normal color and free of any abnormal tissue. If the canals are reddened, or if there is any abnormal tissue present, this may require further testing. Signs of an ear infection include redness, odor, discharge, or pain. Ear infections can be frustrating to treat, so keeping on top of these is extremely important.

Mouth (Oral Cavity): Your partner’s personality will determine how thorough this portion of the exam will be. A thorough exam allows for evaluation of the teeth, gums, tongue, and the inside of the lips to assess for any abnormal tissue. If your partner must be muzzled to be examined, then this portion of the exam may not be able to be performed. You may be able to assist if you are able to lift your partner’s upper lip to expose teeth for visual exam by the veterinarian.

Most dogs will have some dental tartar, but if it is moderate to severe, or if there is evidence of gingivitis (inflammation and redness of the gums), then a dental cleaning may be recommended. Some dogs need a dental cleaning every year; others only require a few cleanings throughout their lives. This varies among dogs, based on the bacteria in the individual’s mouth, as well as diet and chewing habits.

Below the Neck Working our way back from the head, a veterinarian will likely check your dog’s thorax, abdomen, genitalia, musculoskeletal system, nervous system, and lymph nodes.

Thorax (Chest): Visually monitor how your partner is breathing. Panting is normal during an exam, but coughing is not.

Listening to the heart and lungs with a stethoscope is called auscultation. It would be unusual to pick up abnormal lung sounds on a dog that is not showing any obvious signs of respiratory disease. Ausculting the heart is an important way to check for a murmur or arrhythmia (irregular beat). Either of these can indicate underlying heart disease. If any abnormalities are present, the next step(s) may be x-rays of the chest and possibly an echocardiogram (ultrasound) of the heart to determine the underlying cause and treatment.

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Abdomen: Within the abdominal cavity, of course, are numerous organs, including the liver, gall bladder, spleen, kidneys, intestinal tract, adrenal glands, pancreas, prostate (in males), ovaries (in females), uterus (in non-spayed females), and the urinary bladder. Palpation (feeling the texture, size, and location of certain body parts with the hands) is performed to assess for pain, masses, or enlargement of organs.

It is common for many K-9s to be very tense during a physical exam, which can make palpation difficult. It is important to go slowly to try to calm the dog. If a dog is too tense, or very large, adequate palpation is sometimes not an option. The location of any pain response or enlargement of organs within the abdominal cavity can help us to localize the problem to particular organ(s). For instance, the liver is tucked up under the rib cage, whereas the urinary bladder is located closer to the pelvis.

Depending on your partner’s sensitivity, it may or may not be easy to differentiate where the problem is located, based on palpation alone. If palpation is at all abnormal, the next step(s) would typically be x-rays, and possibly an abdominal ultrasound and blood work.

External Genitalia: This exam varies of course depending on the gender of the dog.

Males: If a dog is intact (not castrated), then the testicles are palpated for symmetry, pain, or any masses. The penis and the prepuce (the fold of skin covering the penis) are sometimes examined, especially if your partner has shown any problems with his urination.

If a K-9 is showing any symptoms that may indicate prostate disease, gloved rectal exam may also be performed to feel the prostate. In older intact males, the prostate is frequently enlarged due to the effects of testosterone. This is referred to as benign prostatic hyperplasia (BPH), which is essentially enlargement of the prostate due to hormones.

Symptoms of prostate disease can include straining to urinate or defecate, or blood in urine or feces.

Females: This exam is more limited and typically would only be visualization of the vulvar region to assess for any enlargement or discharge. If any problems are seen during the exam of the external genitalia, x-rays and an abdominal ultrasound may be used to further assess.

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Musculoskeletal System: This is your partner’s overall body condition, as well as his muscle mass and ability to walk. This can be affected greatly by age and conditioning. Just like their handlers, wellconditioned dogs will be more athletic and able to perform their job without becoming overexerted.

An aging dog may show evidence of osteoarthritis. This may be manifested by difficulty or pain when jumping or rising.

Osteoarthritis in older working dogs is very common, and I feel it is extremely important to treat this proactively. Once a K-9 does develop pain or clinical signs, these symptoms must be treated aggressively both to help slow progression and improve quality of life by decreasing pain. I believe that if arthritis is well managed and treated aggressively, a dog’s quality and longevity of his working life can be extended for a significant amount of time.

If there is lameness or swelling in a particular limb, then that limb will be thoroughly palpated to check for pain, change in a joint’s range of motion or crepitus, which is a ‘crunching’ feeling associated with bone rubbing against other bone.

Often the hind limbs are extended in order to assess for the presence of any pain, which may indicate arthritis of the hips.

Nervous System: Issues with a dog’s nervous system may manifest in symptoms ranging from personality changes (from disease within the brain) to difficulty walking due to problems affecting the spinal cord, or hind-limb weakness due to degenerative myelopathy (DM).

The latter is a progressive disease of the spinal cord, similar to ALS. Most common in German shepherds, the disease may manifest as a progressive weakness in the hind limbs.

Discussion of DM is beyond the scope of this article, but additional information can be found at VeterinaryPartner.com or ofa.com which is the Orthopedic Foundation for Animals.

It is important that difficult walking be evaluated to assess whether the changes are due to pain or weakness (or both). The underlying causes of which may be treated very differently.

Abnormalities of the nervous system may require advanced imaging, such as an MRI, to further assess the disease.

Lymph Nodes: There

are lymph nodes that can be palpated in several different regions of your K-9 partner’s body. Enlargement of lymph nodes can indicate infection, inflammation, or certain types of cancer (especially lymphoma). If enlarged lymph node(s) are palpated, further testing, including a needle aspirate or blood work may be recommended.

Skin and Hair/Coat:

The skin is actually considered an organ of the body. The skin is extremely important as it can serve as a protective barrier to the rest of the body. Changes in the skin or hair can indicate underlying disease. Skin is evaluated for changes in color, masses, or comfort.

Skin infections can lead to itching and discomfort which can absolutely affect the working performance of your K-9. Skin masses may be benign or malignant, and they may or may not cause any discomfort, but it important that these be evaluated for any treatment recommendations. As an extension of the skin, the health of the footpads is also very important. Injured or diseased footpads can significantly affect the comfort and health of your K-9. Any pain associated with the feet can affect your dog’s working performance.

This area is examined for any changes in color, texture or masses, or even changes between the toes.

Blood Tests Annual blood work most commonly consists of several tests, which include:

Complete Blood Count (CBC): This test gives information on different types of cells within the blood: red blood cells, white blood cells, and platelets. These cells are primarily created within the bone marrow. If the cell counts are not normal, then the determination has to be made whether the bone marrow has disease or if there is disease in another part of the body.

Chemistry Panel: A routine chemistry panel measures enzymes that reflect the overall health of the body and the organs. Most chemistry panels show liver values, kidney values, protein levels, and other enzymes that can reflect disease of the biliary tract, muscles, etc.

Thyroid Panel: Typically, we are assessing if you partner’s thyroid function is normal or low (hypothyroidism).

Hypothyroidism is not uncommon in middle-aged to older dogs, and is treated with daily medication. A low thyroid hormone level can affect your partner’s energy level and put him or her at risk for weight gain, even with a normal to lower appetite. With treatment, this disease has a good prognosis.

The annual veterinary medical exam and blood testing are very important.

Recommendations for additional exams and diagnostics will certainly vary based on your department’s requirements and of course the age and overall health of your partner. Findings should be compared to the previous year(s) so that any changes can be evaluated as to whether they may be concerning. It is important to have communication with your veterinarian regarding any concerns or changes you might notice with your K-9.

Dr. Alexis Newman received her Doctor of Veterinary Medicine degree from Iowa State University in 1998. Following veterinary school, she completed a Surgical and Emergency Internship at California Animal Hospital in West Los Angeles. She has worked with police and working K-9s for many years and understands the needs of the K-9, the handler, and police departments. Her passion of working with police dogs and their handlers led to starting Partners and Paws Veterinary Services in June, 2013. Dr. Newman also enjoys working with sporting groups, rescue groups, and civilian dogs and cats.

For more information visit: partnersandpaws.com

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