Articles with dog conditions

PRP Treatment for Canine Arthritis: Cookie’s Platelet Rich Plasma Therapy

Many dogs end up suffering from arthritis at some point in their lives. It can become a crippling problem for your dog. Apart from weight management and physical therapy, the standard treatment consists of anti-inflammatory medications. While many dogs do well on these drugs, they can be damaging to the dog’s health. Further, sometimes the arthritis pain exceeds the ability…

by Jana Rade

Canine Allergy Blood Testing: Jasmine’s Allergy Blood Test Results—We Ruled Out Everything Else

For the longest time, Jasmine’s vet and us couldn’t agree whether allergies could be behind Jasmine’s episodes (and some of her other off-and-on issues) Allergies have always been one of the theories on the table, with our vet being quite convinced that this is at the root of the problem. Allergies might be the most viable theory we have, at…

by Jana Rade

Open Lipped Schizencephaly In Dogs: Cletus Does Not Have Epilepsy

Is Cletus really the only dog to ever suffer from open lipped schizencephaly? Or are there other dogs who are not diagnosed? My name is Douglas Silber and I am the proud owner of Cletus the Bloodhound, a 2-year-old Bloodhound mix who has the first reported case of open lipped schizencephaly in a canine. Cletus’ story I adopted Cletus when…

by Jana Rade

Death Cap Mushroom Poisoning: A Life-Saving Procedure?

The death cap is one of the most toxic mushrooms. If your dog ingests even the tiniest bit, it is a life-threatening situation. Symptoms of mushroom poisoning range from mild to severe and include: vomiting diarrhea weakness excessive drooling lethargy jaundice loss of coordination seizures coma Further information: Mushroom Poisoning in Dogs Mushroom poisoning is an emergency. The standard treatment…

by Jana Rade

Canine IMHA Complications: Daphne Didn’t Make It

Daphne, she was struggling with Immune-Mediated Hemolytic Anemia (IMHA). The path to her diagnosis was not straight. It took a visit to a specialist to determine what was behind Daphne’s symptoms. Daphne’s decline After she was started on the correct treatment, Daphne was showing signs of improvement but then the complications started. Daphne’s belly became distended. She was brought to…

by Jana Rade

Jana Rade

I am a graphic designer by day, dog health advocate, dog writer, member of the Dog Writers Association of America, and an award-winning author in my spare time. Jasmine, the Rottweiler of my life, was the largest female from her litter. We thought we were getting a healthy dog. Getting a puppy from a backyard breeder was our first mistake. Endless veterinary visits without a diagnosis or useful treatment later, I realized that I had to take Jasmine's health care into my own hands. I learned the hard way that simply seeing a vet is not always enough. There is more to finding a good vet than finding the closest clinic down the street. And, sadly, there is more to advocating for your dog's health than visiting a veterinarian. It should be enough, but it often is not. With Jasmine, it took five years to finally get a diagnosis for her initial issue. Unfortunately, other problems had snowballed for that in the meantime. Jasmine's health challenges became a crash course in understanding dog health issues and how to go about getting a proper diagnosis and treatment. I had to learn, and I had to learn fast. Helping others through my challenges and experience has become my mission and Jasmine's legacy. I now try to help people recognize and understand signs of illness in their dogs, how to work with their veterinarian, and when to seek a second opinion. My goal is to use 20 years of hard-earned experience to save others from the steep curve of having to learn things the hard way, as I did.

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