The Poodle has their share of Poodle health problems even though they are often ranked as one of the ten most popular breeds. Poodles are most at risk for problems that affect the eyes. The most common condition for Poodles is progressive retinal atrophy or PRA. The photoreceptors found on the retina in the eye are destroyed because of this condition. Basically that means the retina shrivels up until the dog goes completely blind. The condition will get progressively worse as a dog ages but can be found in dogs anywhere between two to eight years of age. The most common symptom to look for in a dog with this condition is a sudden appearance of being afraid of the dark. Also the PRA gene can remain dormant in a line of dogs for several generations before showing up in a dog. This makes it very difficult to predict which dogs are at risk of getting PRA and there is no cure for this condition currently.
There are other Poodle health problems that you want to be aware of which don’t affect the eyes. There are a wide variety of Poodle health problems that can affect your dog. One of these is Von Willebrand’s Disease, which is a bleeding disorder that changes the proteins in the platelets. As a result the normal adhesive properties of the platelets are lost and they won’t be able to stick together in order to stop bleeding. Therefore, the blood can continue to flow out of any injuries. Often the condition is unnoticed until the dog has surgery or experiences a traumatic injury, which then usually causes the dog to bleed out before treatment can be done.
For miniature Poodles there is a condition in which the long bone cartilage in the leg hardens as a result of their abnormally short legs known as achondroplasia. The common bone problem for the larger standard Poodle is hip dysphasia in which there is a malformation of the hip socket and femoral head. There are also skin conditions that appear on the face and feet as a result of allergies. Some of these conditions cause the skin to become itchy, other cause the skin to become moist and smelly while still others will cause pustules to appear.
Other Poodle health problems include bloat, which can occur in the standard Poodle. Any large breed that is deep chested can get this condition. It is unknown what the exact cause of this condition is but the results are always quick and fatal. An excessive amount of gas and stomach fluids fill up the stomach with this condition, which causes the stomach to blow up like a balloon. This buildup occurs when the stomach flips over on itself and causes both ends to twist close. This condition can only be cured by surgical care from a veterinarian within a few hours. The dog will die without care from a veterinarian and it will be a very painful death. While the bad news is that even with surgery the dog doesn’t have a high chance of survival, the good news is that the successful surgeries will often correct the problem for the life of the dog.
Proper Poodle care involves being aware of conditions that can affect your pets health. Understanding health problems can help you to know when to seek emergency care for your Poodle.