Is your horse’s coat getting more and more shaggy over the years? Is the coat becoming curly? Your horse might possibly have Pituitary Pars Intermedia Dysfunction – commonly abbreviated as PPID and also known as Equine Cushing’s Syndrome.
More than 20% of all horses over 15 years old develop PPID. In the early 1970s, the prevalence of PPID among about 4,000 horses treated by veterinarians was estimated to be between 0.075 percent and 0.15 percent. Some numbers today indicate that about 20% of all older horses, ponies, and donkeys develop the disease. PPID can affect horses and donkeys of all breeds and types, while ponies and Morgan horses are at higher risk. There seems to be an equal risk of PPID in mares, stallions, and geldings.
PPID develops over time and is usually diagnosed in older horses. PPID can be challenging to detect because the disease develops over many years. Therefore, it is usually older horses – between 18 and 23 years old – that are diagnosed with PPID. Although more and more horses have been diagnosed and treated for PPID in recent years, there is no evidence that there are actually more horses getting PPID. When more cases are detected, it is probably because veterinarians have become better at diagnosing PPID, and more horse owners are aware of the disease, noticing the long and curly coat, for example.
Symptoms of PPID
PPID is a syndrome disease, meaning it consists of a wide range of different symptoms that can vary from horse to horse. This makes it harder to detect the disease, as mentioned, since it develops over time. Here is a list of the most common symptoms of PPID:
Long and curly hair:
A common symptom of PPID is long and curly hair that doesn’t shed – initially, the hair may only grow on the lower jaw and other parts of the limbs. Over time, the horse can develop more and more hair, and the color of the coat can change.
Bad mood:
PPID is a disease of the pituitary gland, which is part of the brain. Therefore, the disease affects various substances and hormones. One of them is dopamine. Just like in humans, a lack of dopamine affects the mood in horses, so a symptom of PPID can be that your horse appears depressed.
Sweating problems:
Two-thirds of horses with PPID experience sweating problems – especially over the neck and shoulders.
Weight loss:
Weight loss is common in horses with PPID. In addition to actual weight loss, the horse loses muscle mass, especially in the hindquarters. Weight loss can be a difficult sign for you as a horse owner to notice. This is because weak and stretched abdominal muscles often mean that the belly continues to look round, effectively hiding the weight loss. Even if your horse is losing weight, you may still perceive its appetite as normal or even increased. There is often fat deposition along the crest of the neck, over the tail base, in the sheath of male horses, and above and behind the eyes.
Increased thirst:
Increased thirst and more urination are symptoms in between 33 and 75 percent of horses with PPID.
Bad teeth:
PPID can cause dental problems that can lead to painful chewing, resulting in reduced feed intake, which in turn causes the horse to lose weight.
Fatigue:
Fatigue and poor performance often affect horses with PPID, which may become excessively calm and even more pain-tolerant than healthy horses.
Wounds and infections:
Wounds in horses with PPID heal worse than in healthy horses, and the horse can be affected by various infections. This is often an overlooked symptom of PPID.
Chronic laminitis:
Chronic laminitis might be the most serious symptom of PPID. Some research suggests that chronic laminitis affects more than half of all horses with PPID. Chronic laminitis is a painful condition that sometimes leads to hoof abscesses and can become so severe that the horse has to be euthanized.
How the veterinarian diagnoses PPID
In practice, the veterinarian determines if your horse has PPID by examining its coat and checking for a range of other symptoms. The vet can also conduct various clinical tests. However, these are unfortunately not entirely reliable.
How PPID is treated
Treating horses with PPID requires, first and foremost, that you take good care of your horse’s grooming and health. Your veterinarian will also prescribe prescription medication to help your horse. In the early stages of PPID, where increased hair growth and sweating might be the primary symptoms, it might only be necessary to clip your horse’s coat. Since many affected horses are older, regular grooming and dental correction are important. You should also consider what feed your horse should have. It might need a special diet – preferably not sweet feed with a high soluble carbohydrate content – unless, of course, it is the only thing the horse will eat. Since it’s hard to see how much weight the horse is losing and how much muscle mass it’s losing, it might also be necessary to weigh or measure it regularly. One of the worst complications of PPID is, as mentioned, recurrent or chronic laminitis, so regular hoof care is essential to reduce the risk of it getting worse. You should also talk to your vet about medical treatment that can help your horse.
Prognosis for horses with PPID
Once your horse has PPID, it has the disease for life. However, PPID can be effectively managed with a combination of changes in care, grooming, and medication.
Sources:
Schott, H. C. (2002). Pituitary pars intermedia dysfunction: equine Cushing’s disease. Veterinary Clinics: Equine Practice, 18(2), 237-270.
Did you know that it’s quite common for sterilized female dogs to become urinary incontinent? If your female dog has started dribbling urine indoors, it might not necessarily be due to behavioral issues. It could simply be a physical problem, a side effect of the sterilization process.
In fact, research shows that between 5 and 20 percent of all sterilized female dogs suffer from urinary incontinence. Urinary incontinence is rarely seen in male dogs compared to females, and it occurs just as often in intact males as in neutered ones. Some studies have shown an increased risk of urinary incontinence if your female dog is sterilized before her first heat cycle, and especially before 3 months of age. Therefore, it might be worth considering letting your female dog mature a bit before getting her spayed. Your dog’s veterinarian can guide you on the best timing for the procedure.
There’s also a higher risk of urinary incontinence in larger dogs weighing over 15 kilograms. In fact, the risk is seven times higher. Breeds such as the Doberman, Boxer, Rottweiler, Weimaraner, large Schnauzer, and Irish Setter are more frequently affected. Small dogs are not affected as often.
Your veterinarian can sterilize your female dog in different ways: ovariohysterectomy involves removing both ovaries, fallopian tubes, and the uterus, while ovarioectomy involves removing only the ovaries. Regarding urinary incontinence, the type of sterilization your veterinarian chooses doesn’t make a difference.
If your sterilized female dog dribbles urine, you should first consider whether it’s a behavioral issue. For instance, it could be a symptom of separation anxiety. If your sterilized female dog is secure and well-balanced, the urinary incontinence probably has a physical cause. You can discuss this with your veterinarian, who can guide you on the various treatment options.
Sources:
Reichler I, Hubler M: Urinary incontinence in female dogs: an update. Reprod Domest Anim 49 Suppl 2:75-80, 2014.
Arlt et al: Arlt et alKastration der Hündin – neue und alte Erkenntnisse zu Vor- und Nachteilen,
Tierärztliche Praxis Kleintiere 4/2017
Forsee, et al: Evaluation of the prevalence of urinary incontinence in spayed dogs: 566 casis(2003- 2008). Javma 2013, Vol 242
Stocklin-gautschi, N.M., M.hassig,et al: The relationship of urinary incontinence to early spaying in female dogs. J reprod fertil Suppl 2001;57: 233-6.
Van Goetham et al: Making a rational choice between ovariectomy and ovariohystrectomy in the dog: a discussion of the benefits of either technique. Vet Surg 2006;35:136-143.
Arnold et al 2009: urinary incontinence in spayed female dogs: new insights into the pathophysiology and options for medical treatment. Report Domest Anim.2009 Jul; 44 Suppl 2:190-2 Proceedings
Sometimes, you have to leave your dog and let it be alone. Maybe you have to go to work. Maybe you need to exercise. Maybe you have to visit family, friends, or acquaintances where the dog can’t come along. That’s just a part of ordinary human life. Unfortunately, it’s also a part of a dog’s life to react inappropriately when you leave. In fact, separation-related issues are among the most common behavioral challenges that dog owners face.
Separation anxiety affects all kinds of dogs, regardless of gender, breed, or age. To find out exactly how your dog’s separation anxiety manifests, it might be a good idea to record a video of it when it’s home alone. Additionally, you can take notes to get a clear picture of what actually happens and when.
Here’s how you can tell if your dog has separation anxiety:
Your dog barks, howls, or whines when you leave – and might continue for a shorter or longer period after you’re gone.
Your dog damages doors and windows by scratching them or trying to dig underneath.
Your dog destroys things (shoes, pillows, toys, etc.) by gnawing and chewing on them.
Your dog drools excessively, vomits, hyperventilates (breathes very quickly and shallowly), or its heart beats very fast.
Your dog defecates or urinates around the house when it’s alone. It might do it in random places in the house.
Your dog paces around the house – it might almost circle like a lion in a cage.
In short, it’s really unfortunate for your dog if it suffers from separation anxiety. It’s also distressing for you because it’s probably heartbreaking to leave a dog that isn’t doing well. If it becomes really severe, you might see no other option than to part with your dog. Studies show that at least 40 percent of dogs surrendered to English animal shelters were given up due to behavioral problems. Since separation anxiety is one of the most common behavioral problems, it’s reasonable to assume that a significant portion of dogs’ inappropriate behavior simply results from separation anxiety. For some dog owners, it gets so bad that they choose to have their dog euthanized.In fact 7.1% of the dogs euthanized in England in 2016 were euthanized due to behavioral problems. Among shelter dogs, behavioral problems were the cause of 50-70% of euthanizations.
This is why your dog becomes anxious and upset when you leave:
Why do some dogs get anxious when their owner leaves them? Today, we know quite a bit about this. It’s also good for you as a dog owner to know, so you can better prevent it.
If your dog’s parents had separation anxiety, there’s a greater risk that your dog will too.
Your dog has too few early experiences of being alone at home. It should ideally learn this from puppyhood.
Situational anxiety means your dog becomes scared, for example, because there’s noise and commotion. It can happen during a storm or when garbage trucks roam the area with noisy vehicles.
Changes in your work schedule or daily routine.
Moving to a new residence.
A new owner or family.
Age – like dementia, for example.
Changes in the family structure, such as the arrival of a baby or the death of a family member.
Generalized anxiety.
Illness and health problems, such as chronic pain.
Once you recognize the symptoms of your dog’s separation anxiety and perhaps begin to understand the cause, you can do something about it. A good advisor is often your veterinarian, who can guide you on the appropriate treatment for your dog.
How you can help your dog:
However, there are also considerations you can make on your own. Nowadays, for example, “behavior modification” is advocated as a treatment, and we know more about how to help the dog. For instance, it used to be recommended that, as a dog owner, you should sneak out without the dog noticing. Today we know it’s better to create predictability so the dog finds comfort in knowing what’s going to happen.
British expert Dr. Sarah Heath developed the CALM program. It consists of four steps that prevent and manage separation anxiety in dogs. Here’s a brief overview of the program:
Step 1: Boost your dog’s self-esteem
Consider your dog’s behavior when it’s not alone – the ability to control its emotions helps it cope with periods of loneliness.
Anxiety is associated with low self-esteem. Work on increasing your dog’s ability to handle new experiences and changes.
You can encourage your dog to play with toys on its own and reward calm and relaxed behavior.
Avoid using a loud or angry voice, and it’s also a bad idea to punish the dog for accidents it made while alone at home.
Step 2: Change the expectation of interaction
You love your dog’s company, and it’s tempting to spend every minute together when you’re home. However, this can give your dog unrealistic expectations, making it reliant on your presence to feel secure.
When puppies are very small, it’s important for them to spend some time alone with appropriate toys so they learn to keep themselves happy and occupied.
When dogs are insecure, they seek comfort and often try to obtain it from people through behaviors like leaning, nipping, pushing, sniffing, and licking. If they become dependent on this form of reassurance, they’re more likely to be anxious when you’re not there.
You shouldn’t reward your dog when it seeks your attention in this way. Instead, you can praise it when it stops licking your hand or when it gets up after rolling on its back. That way, you reward it for becoming more self-assured.
Step 3: Show your dog that you leave – and that you come back
Predictability and control help reduce anxiety, so it’s important to allow your dog to predict that you both leave – and come back.
You should provide a visual cue that you’re not available and remove the cue when you return.
Introduce the cue for the dog slowly and gently. You do this by leaving for short periods and leaving it in a place where you think it feels safe, comfortable, and relaxed. When you come back, remove the cue before petting and talking to your dog.
Step 4: Talk to your veterinarian
Have you tried everything? Talk to your veterinarian. Today, there are solutions such as supplements and medications that can reduce your dog’s separation anxiety.
Sources:
Pegram, C., Gray, C., Packer, R. M., Richards, Y., Church, D. B., Brodbelt, D. C., & O’Neill, D. G. (2021). Proportion and risk factors for death by euthanasia in dogs in the UK. Scientific Reports, 11(1), 9145.
Salman, M. D., Hutchison, J., Ruch-Gallie, R., Kogan, L., New Jr, J. C., Kass, P. H., & Scarlett, J. M. (2000). Behavioral reasons for relinquishment of dogs and cats to 12 shelters. Journal of Applied Animal Welfare Science, 3(2), 93-106.
Your horse’s face reveals pain
Did you know that Danish research shows that your horse’s face reveals whether it is in pain?
That knowledge supplements already existing knowledge about how you assess whether your horse is in pain.
The Danish research team Karina Gleerup, Björn Forkman, Casper Lindegaard and Pia H. Andersen are behind the discovery. They studied six horses that showed very specific changes in their facial expressions when exposed to pain. The pain to which the horses were subjected was induced using the same method used in human pain research. Simply put, it’s a cuff, as you know it from blood pressure measurements, with chili paste underneath.
Pain is perceived differently
To videnskab.dk, one of the researchers behind the experiment, Karina Gleerup, said that as a veterinarian and horse lover, it was a big challenge to expose horses to pain, and that it therefore took place with many reservations:
“I first tested the sources of pain – which are frequently used in pain research on humans – on myself. Two types of pain were needed to see if the pain signs were the same. In addition, I had trained the horses a lot beforehand, so they were completely comfortable with the situation. Then I was also sure that it was pain and not, for example, stress, that I could read in their faces”, she says.
The experience of pain is very individual. What hurts you a lot may hurts me less. Or the other way around. What hurts a lot today hurts less tomorrow. It is the same with horses.
The experiment also showed that there was a difference in how clearly the horses’ faces revealed their pain. There was both a difference from one horse to another, and between the same horse from trial to trial.
How to look at your horse’s face to see if it is in pain
The ears:
If your horse is in pain, it has a greater distance between the ears, and they get an outward rotation – i.e. out to the sides. It may also be that the ears are asymmetrically positioned. If the horse puts its ears back, it can also be a sign that the horse is in pain.
Forehead and eyes:
A “frown forehead” or “worried expression” in people is often interpreted as a sign that everything is not quite as it should be. The same applies to horses.
We see it as a worried expression on the horse’s face, but it is probably in reality, a tension in the horse’s eyes, so that they get a slightly triangular appearance. At the same time, the gaze is not present but more inward.
The nostrils:
When a horse is in pain, its nostrils may become dilated and tense. When the horse breathes in, the nostrils expand into a square shape. Normally, the nostrils are round when the horse takes a breath.
It is an important sign of pain, because it can be seen, even if the horse otherwise seems to be breathing normally.
Mule:
When the horse is in pain, it tightens the muzzle so that it becomes more square in shape – normally it is soft and rounded.
Other discoveries in the study on pain in horses
The horses in the experiment wanted to be with the researcher, even if they were in pain. It is different from previous research. Here, the horses have been more hesitant to interact with humans when they were in pain.
The difference is perhaps that in this experiment, the horses were trained before the study, and the researcher was a person they knew and associated with something positive.
It is worth noting. Because perhaps horses that feel in a safe environment seek more contact when they experience mild or acute pain.
Research shows: This is why we must speak properly to horses
According to new research published in BMC Biology, studies show that horses, pigs and wild horses can not only distinguish between negative and positive sounds coming from their own species, but they can also recognize the difference when humans speak to them .
It emphasizes the importance of how we communicate with animals and how our tone can affect their perception of us.
The pigs and their wild relatives, the wild boars, were carefully studied, and the results showed that, like horses, both wild and tame, they clearly respond to emotionally charged sounds of their own kind. Interestingly, the animals also showed the ability to distinguish between human speech. Although the responses were more subtle, they could clearly distinguish between positively and negatively charged tones – except for the wild boars, which showed less variation in their responses.
Better well-being of the animals
The newly discovered knowledge not only raises ethical questions about our relationship with animals, but it can also represent a concrete opportunity to improve the animals’ daily well-being. Those who work with animals can benefit from this insight and use it as a practical tool to create better conditions and well-being for animals.
What does a horse feel? Do they even feel anything?
New research reveals emotional responses in horses through headband technology.
It has been known for a few years now that certain EEG waves can signal depression, anxiety and satisfaction in humans, but researchers have now moved on to also investigate it in animals. EEG studies of rodents and pets, meanwhile, have revealed how they respond to being touched by a human or being under anesthesia, but a way to record brain waves in moving animals has still not been found.
In short, this is because it requires placement in certain positions on the head, and the cables must be connected to a machine.
Therefore, this has most often meant that animals are either restrained or anesthetized during measurements.
Neurophysicist Hugo Cousillas has spent six years developing a device for horses that only has four electrodes, whereas those for humans have far more.
Once he had developed the new device, the experiment began by taking EEG recordings of 18 horses. Here, half of the horses lived in individual stalls in a classic, closed stable, while the other half roamed in herds in open fields.
It turned out that the two groups had very different EEG profiles. The horses in the stable showed an average of 2.5 times more “gamma” waves in the right hemisphere of the brain. In humans, it is often a sign of anxiety, distraction or depression. The horses that spent most of their time outdoors showed twice as many “theta” waves from the left hemisphere of the brain, which is generally a sign of a calm and alert mind.
You can read more about the research project here.
This is how you know if your cat is in pain
How do I tell if my cat is hurting or in pain?
That’s a good question, because it’s not easy to tell if your cat is in pain. In fact, research shows that most of us can’t tell if a cat is in pain.
In many cases, it will try to hide it.
It is of course, not to be overlooked if your otherwise cuddly cat turns its head and hisses at you, bites or runs away when you pat it down the back. But cats, like people, can have pain that is not related to a specific injury.
And how do you discover if the cat has pain in the head, bones or muscles? Or if it has a stomach ache?
How to tell if your cat is in pain
If we ask science, the safest thing to do is look at your cat’s behavior and body language.
If your cat is in acute pain, it may appear depressed and quiet, as well as not wanting to move.
It may seem tense and try to hide. The cat does not respond to petting or attention. Some cats become manic and aggressive, growling, hissing and rolling around.
Many of the signs that your cat is in pain are subtle. And because they don’t come from one day to the next, you might think that they are just signs that your cat is no longer quite young.
Here are some signs to look out for:
The cat stops grooming its own fur. It hesitates to jump up on its favorite spots. It starts feeding outside its litter box. Some cats start to limp. It sleeps more and more.
How to help your cat with less pain
If your cat is in pain, you can help it in several ways until the vet’s pain treatment works. Because just as for humans, care has an effect on how much the cat thinks something hurts.
Pain is an emotional and subjective state. A cat that is freezing, wet, scared, hungry, thirsty or unable to empty its bladder suffers more than an animal that is warm, comfortable, well fed and safe.
If your cat has to go to the animal hospital, you can give it its toys or blanket from home. The same if it has a favorite basket it usually sleeps in. Because a safe cat has less pain than a scared cat.
If your cat has symptoms, you should take it to the vet. The vet can investigate whether your cat is doing something wrong that is causing it chronic pain.
You may not realize how impaired your cat was until you see how well it does after receiving the proper treatment from the vet.
Did you know cats decode our movements through sounds?
In the interesting world of the cats’ senses, there is still a lot to discover. New research has revealed that cats are able to create ”mental charts” with guidance from sound signals. This discovery sheds light over the deep and complex ways that cats understand the surrounding world.
Recent researchers have found interesting insights that reveals that cats create a ”mental chart” to identify where humans are located based on sound. The tests involved playbacks of humans who called the cats name and after which the same sounds were played through a speaker that was located in another place and created the impression that the sound came from a more distant position.
Surprisingly, the cats reacted when the well-known voice came from a place, they didn´t expect based on earlier sound impressions. This discovery indicates that cats use sound signals to find out where their owners are, earlier this was an unknown cognitive ability in cats.
The cat’s mental chart
Generally, the cats showed the biggest surprise when their owners familiar voice seemed to teleport from one place to another. This indicates that cats had created a mental picture of their unseen owners and mapped their locations based on where they first heard the voice.
To have the ability to create a mental picture of the surroundings is an important characteristic in complex thinking and these results give new insights that can inform future research in cat cognition.
You can read more about the research project here.
Is my dog in pain?
Are you worried that your dog is in pain? Maybe you think it’s stomach hurts? Or do you wonder what symptoms a dog with a hurting back has? Do you know if the dog’s paw is hurting, if the shoulder is in pain or maybe the back part?
We understand your worries because it is not easy to see whether the dog is in pain.
Acute pain is easiest to discover; nobody is in doubt if the dog is in pain if it’s leg is in an awkward position, or it has a large wound.
Sneaking pain is the hardest pain to discover and assess.
Pain is a perception, and not an objective, physiological reaction. What hurts on one dog may not give another dog pain.
Your dog’s behavior reveals pain
Pain assessment and treatment of animals’ pain is an area that has developed a lot in the recent years. There are different methods to assess if a dog is in pain.
Even though the methods are developed for vets that assess whether your dog is in pain after ex. an operation, we also believe they can be useful for you as the dog owner. These methods can help you assess when you should take your dog to the vet.
Hereby, you as the dog owner can help the vet assess the dog’s pain because you know the dog’s daily routine. Ex. maybe your dog sits differently when it begs for treats.
This can be a sign that your dog has an illness that means its physiological and physical functions are changed or impaired.
How to assess if your dog is in pain
Look at your dog’s position without approaching your dog.
Does it seem to be:
Stiff
Relaxed
Tense
Neither of the above
Look from a distance at your dog’s behaviour. Does it seem to be:
Restless
If your dog makes a sound when approaching is it:
Barking
Howl
Now try to approach your dog and call the dog. While you do it keep an eye on its behavior and especially see if it acts differently than normal. Does your dog seem to be:
Aggressive
Depressed
Not interested
Nervous, anxious or scared
Quiet or indifferent
Happy and satisfied
Happy & lively
Next step is to assess how your dog reacts when you put the lease on, walk the dog and ask for sit and to get up. Assess if your dog:
Has stiff movements
Is slow or unwilling to get up and to sit
Lags
None of the above
The last step is to assess how your dog reacts when you touch it, optionally where you think it has pain. What did your dog do when touching it:
Beebed
Shook
Snapped after you
Growled
Tried to protect it self
If you think your dog is in pain, please see the vet.
Do you know the “Yellow dog”?
Have you met a dog who has a yellow bow or bandana and wondered “was does it mean”?
The message is very clear: This dog needs space.
The yellow bows arose in connection to an international campaign back in 2012 (The Yellow Dog Project), which now has spread to over 16 countries around the world.
The yellow color means that you shouldn’t approach the dog or its owner.
When a dog carries the yellow color, they have communicated that the dog does not want to be close to other dogs or humans.
What reasons are there to use a yellow cord?
There are a lot of reasons why a dog is walked with a yellow cord. It is important to notice that to carry yellow doesn´t mean a dog is aggressive or dangerous. It is used as a visual reminder that the dog requires space, carefulness, or consideration.
Some of the reasons to carry a yellow cord can be:
Illness
Term
Uncertain or frighten
Is in a training session
Can have a contagious disease
The dog has had bad experience with other dogs
Has impaired vision or hearing
When are you to close?
Only the dog or the dog’s owner knows it so give them time to move and keep a distance.
It eases life for the dogs who have special needs and need space. It can be a shorter or longer period of their life.
