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If your dog has had any illnesses or ailments, you can tell us about them at any time without having to complete the rest of the questionnaire. Simply login to your dog's profile by visiting www.dogslife.ac.uk and click on the link underneath your dog's graph.
Countryside access: the code for you and your dog
Using GPS to learn more about canine mobility
Dogs with runny noses: more than just a cold?
Prize winners!
Countryside access: the code for you and your dog
Many of us enjoy walking in the countryside with our dogs. To make sure your time outdoors with your dog is safe and fun, there are a few rules to take into consideration. Whilst they might seem obvious, and responsible dog owners do them without prompting, they are worth keeping in mind when you are out and about with your dog.
First of all, don’t let your dog get close to or pester farm animals (such as sheep and cattle), horses, or wildlife. If you are near any animals, it is best to put your dog on a lead and keep a safe distance from the animals, for your safety and theirs. It is important that you do not take your dog into fields or areas with animals that have young (e.g. lambs and calves) as the mothers may become aggressive in trying to protect them. If you are chased by an animal, it is better to let your dog off the lead so that they can run away to safety.
Another consideration is that some birds nest on the ground, so it is important to be extra vigilant during their breeding season (April – July) and keep your dog close by when walking in coastal, grassland or moorland areas so that any nests are not disturbed.
When walking in farmland, unless there is a clear path through a field of crops, do not walk your dog over the plants, and stick to the path if there is one. This is not only to prevent any damage to the crop, but also to make sure that dogs do not go to the toilet amongst the plants and soil fruit or vegetables which could end up in the food chain.
It is always a good idea to keep an eye out for signs where special rules may apply for dogs. For example, there may be restrictions in some areas limiting where dogs are allowed, or dogs may have to be on a lead in certain places at certain times of year (e.g. when animals are nesting or have young).
In public places, such as recreational areas and playgrounds, it is best to keep your dog at heel or on a lead so as not to concern other people who may be wary or frightened of dogs that they don’t know.
Even if your dog is well trained and returns on command, it is important to keep them in sight and close by, and make sure they don’t wander away from the areas where you are allowed access. The most effective way to keep your dog under control is by using a lead. Last but not least, always pick up after your dog (bag and bin it!) so as not to spread infection, and make sure your dog is wormed regularly.
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Using GPS to learn more about canine mobility
We all think that that our dogs exercise a bit more when they are allowed off their lead, but exactly how much more activity do they do? Researchers at the Royal (Dick) School of Veterinary Studies and The Roslin Institute have used Global Positioning System receiver (GPS) technology to characterize precisely how much further and faster dogs go during different outdoor activities. The team designed purpose-built collars incorporating a GPS receiver to monitor the exact movements of dogs when they were taken on a walk.
Healthy dogs were walked on a standard route on a lead, then again off the lead, and finally during playing activity (chasing a ball) whilst wearing the collar for five consecutive days. Analyzing the data recorded by the collars, the team determined how fast dogs ran, accelerated and decelerated during their activities. These measures of physical performance could differentiate between on-lead activity, off-lead activity and playing activity in the healthy dogs. Furthermore they revealed that the playing activity resulted in increases in many of the measures of activity beyond the limits which dogs naturally imposed on themselves when walking off the lead. The variation in the performance measures analyzed was greater between different dogs than for individual dogs on different days, suggesting that each dog tends to have its own performance limits within which it exercises.
Next the team attached the collars to a group of dogs with elbow osteoarthritis (OA) before and after treatment with an anti-inflammatory painkiller. Again, the performance measures could differentiate healthy dogs from OA dogs. When treated with painkillers, the OA dogs showed improvements in their physical performance, which returned to values indistinguishable from those of healthy dogs for nearly all the measures assessed.
The study team concluded that the GPS collars could be used to gauge the effects of disease and success of clinical treatments, which raises the possibility that they could be used to monitor the performance of healthy dogs and look for signs of ill health. Perhaps just as importantly, the study highlighted how specific stimuli (such as throwing a ball) can be used to modulate physical performance beyond the self-governed boundaries that dogs will naturally express when allowed to exercise freely without stimulation. If you want to find out more about the study you can read about it here.
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Dogs with runny noses: more than just a cold?
As winter ends, most of us will have been afflicted with a runny nose at some point; these signs are usually caused by inflammation of the nasal and pharyngeal cavities secondary to a viral infection. In dogs such infections also occur (due to canine specific viruses rather than human viruses).
Dogs naturally have wet noses as they have a small gland which produces a clear fluid which helps cool them down when they are too hot. A small amount of continuous clear nasal discharge is therefore completely normal. There are a number of other diseases which can cause more profound nasal discharge in dogs, particularly those which last for a significant period of time and/or which are bloody or purulent in their appearance. One of the most common causes is a non-specific rhinitis (inflammation of the nose). The underlying cause of the inflammation is often not identified, but the disease will tend to affect both sides of the nose (so the discharge occurs on both sides), and its diagnosis requires other conditions to be ruled out (for example with X-rays, a computed tomography (CT) or magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) scan). A biopsy of the tissues lining the nose will reveal the inflammatory changes. Treatments include anti-inflammatory or immunosuppressive medications, although sometimes the inflammation (and nasal discharge) can be difficult to control.
Foreign bodies (such as blades of grass or bits of sticks) are another common cause of nasal discharge in dogs (see picture on the right). The discharge will tend to occur only on the side where the foreign body is situated. Unless the material is metallic or bony it may not be visible on an X-ray, although there will be some non-specific general signs of disease on the affected side of the nose that are detectable. CT and MRI scans can provide more detailed information to identify the material, and a tiny camera (called a rhinoscope) can be used to look up the nose to locate the foreign body and remove it.
Nasal tumours are not common, but do occur, usually in older dogs. A number of different tumours can develop in this site. These typically result in discharge on one side of the nose, and they develop characteristic changes on X-rays, CT or MRI scans which are highly suggestive of the disease. Biopsy of the tissue in the nose is required to identify what the tumour is, so that the appropriate treatment can be given and a prognosis can be made. Other conditions which cause nasal discharge include fungal infections, which can be aggressive and result in profound destruction of the nasal cavity with time, and abscesses of tooth roots.
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Prize winners!
Congratulations to March’s prize winners! The following Dogslife members have each won £10 of Pets at Home vouchers: Mrs D from Cheshire, Dr C from East Lothian, Mrs B from Lancashire, Mr W from Morayshire, Mrs W from Aberdeenshire, Dr C from the Scottish Borders, Mrs K from Hampshire, Mr L from Perthshire, Mr M from West Sussex, and Mrs K from Edinburgh. We hope you enjoy spending the vouchers on your pet!
Don’t worry if you haven’t won a prize this time, by keeping your dog’s record up to date, you will automatically be entered into the next prize draw which takes place in June.
Thank you to everyone who continues to support the Dogslife project and helps us find out what keeps dogs healthy.
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