The Boys, originally uploaded by Tobyotter.
Dachshund lovers know that wiener dogs come with three types of coat: wire-haired, long-haired or short-haired, according to their genetic make-up. Now researchers have learned that wire-haired wieners have the RSPO2 variant, long-haired Doxies have the FGF5 variant, while short-haired Dachshunds have neither.
A study of the canine genome has identified the genes that together account for the seven common styles of dog coat, which are present in about 90 per cent of pedigree breeds.
As well as offering insights into the evolution of the 209 distinct dog breeds, the findings have implications for understanding human genetics.
The researchers believe that similar techniques should illuminate human traits and diseases with similarly complex genetic roots, such as diabetes and cancer.
A summer barbeque turned life threatening for a North Carolina Dachshund:
A great time was had by all – until one of the kebabs landed on the ground. The Princes’ 2 1/2-year-old, 15-pound dachshund, Rommel, rushed in and gobbled down a roasted onion.
Big mistake: In no time, the dog was deathly ill. The Princes had to rush Rommel to the Animal Emergency and Trauma Hospital of Wilmington, at 5333 Oleander Drive.
This story ends happily, Rommel made a total recovery. To do so, however, the dog spent several days at the emergency hospital and at Topsail Animal Hospital. Meanwhile, a quick Internet search showed the Princes they were lucky.
Onions are extremely toxic to dogs in any form: raw, cooked, powdered or dehydrated. Onions contain a chemical called thiosulphate which is harmless to people; however, dogs (and cats) lack the ability to digest it. In a dog’s body, it can cause red blood cells to rupture, leading to a potentially life-threatening form of anemia. Eating a little pizza with onions, or a bit of onion might not be harmful, since thiosulphate’s effects are dose-dependent. Eat enough, however, and the animal might soon show vomiting and diarrhea.
Not since this photo have I felt so bad for a wiener dog.
We are the proud parents of two dachshunds – Gary and Patrick. Gary is our “senior wiener” and will be having his ninth birthday later this month.
While he enjoys the game of fetch from time-to-time, some times getting him to go on a long walk can be like dragging a mule. He’d rather rest in his bed and watch the world go by. As a result, over the past few years he has almost become as round as he is long.
I stumbled across
this article that covers the importance of exercise in older dogs. Like humans, exercise in elderly dogs can help maintain body weight, prevent
osteoarthritis, relieve stress on the heart and joints, and improve mental health.
Check it out. These are some easy ways to keep our best friends around as long as possible.
While people love fireworks, many dogs don’t.
Thankfully,
Bark Busters posted an article on safety tips for dogs on July 4. Read the full story
here.
NWF Daily News has all the details:
Buddy was immediately transported to the Emergency Veterinary Clinic in Niceville, where he stayed before being taken on Monday to Companion Animal Hospital in Fort Walton Beach.
“We didn’t think he would make it,” said Dr. Heather Hartley, because the snake’s venom had spread so thoroughly through Buddy’s little body.
Enter Fergie, a 3-year-old yellow Labrador retriever who had been at the hospital for about two weeks.
Hartley said the young lab had been rescued and placed there by the Fort Walton Beach-based Emerald Coast Golden Retriever Rescue organization. Despite its name, members of the group work to adopt out retrievers of all breeds.
Veterinary staff drew 150 milliliters of life-saving blood from Fergie, and it was then transferred to Buddy in a three-hour procedure. Though dogs have different blood types, Hartley explained, “it is not as type-specific as it is in humans.”
The Duluth News Tribune reports:
Jada is a 15-pound hero. The eight-year-old dachshund hurled herself at a wolf June 9 to save a fellow canine, Lana.
As the dogs’ owner, Dana Lundeen, tells it, she was sitting on the front porch of her South Range home that afternoon when first Lana, then Jada, ran barking around the house. Suddenly, she heard an awful bark. Rounding the corner of the house, she saw a wolf about 75 yards away.
As Lundeen watched, it kicked aside the one-year-old Lana and grabbed Jada in its mouth. She ran toward them, yelling.
“I was screaming my lungs out, hoping he would drop her and he did,” Lundeen said.
As the wounded dog ran back toward the house, she said, the wolf took a few steps in Lundeen’s direction, than padded away.
“It happened so fast,” she said. “I was more worried about my dog than anything.”
Lundeen wrapped the bleeding dog in a blanket and called her 17-year-old son, Devin, home from Northwestern High School to help.
“I didn’t know if I’d have to shoot her,” Lundeen said. “I mean, her stomach’s hanging out. [Devin] says ‘Well, Mom, is she alive?’”
Read the full story.
For a city slicker like me, the part about shooting the dog was a bit of a shock, but them I remembered my mother’s former neighbour at our country house. When our old dog Lucy got sick, he offered to take her out behind the barn and shoot her. We declined.
Last August about a week before leaving on our 2-week overseas vacation, my husband and I noticed that something was not right with our oldest dachshund Gary (8-years-old at the time). He was listless, hobbling around and requesting many more trips to go out to the bathroom than usual.
Not wanting to leave town with him under the weather, we took him into our vet who agreed that something was not right. He ran a series of tests on Gary and found that he had kidney stones, or Urolithiasis which means:
Excessive crystals (urinary stones or bladder or kidney stones) that form in the urinary tract or kidney, bladder or urethra, blocking the flow of urine. The
crystals or stones irritate the lining of the urinary tract. They cause blood in
the urine and pain and in severe cases make urination impossible for the
Dachshund (source: Dog Adoption and Training Guide).
After a very expensive emergency surgery the doctor extracted a stone the size of a grape. When you think of how big a dachshund’s bladder is, it makes a lot of sense as to why Gary was not feeling well. To save your dog from a lot of pain, and you from a lot of worry and money spent, here are some signs of urinary tract or kidney problems:
- frequent trips to the “bathroom”
- blood in urine
- change in demeanor
- pain walking, moving or urinating
- small amounts of urination or “dribbling”
- vomiting
- weakness
To prevent future kidney or urinary tract problems, our vet recommended putting Gary on prescription food, low in minerals and protein. He said that if we were out of the food or couldn’t always afford the prescription diet, we should sprinkle salt on his regular food to encourage him to drink water more frequently.
Smaller breed dogs are more susceptible to kidney and urinary problems, so it is important to keep the following in mind when attempting to prevent new or reoccurring problems:
- always have plenty of clean water available
- give your dog plenty of exercise
- do not feed table scraps
- avoid food high in minerals, particularly calcium and magnesium; and depending on your dog’s problem, protein in some cases
- feed your dog foods high in fiber
- if your dog is confined indoors during the day, be sure he has the chance to go out at least three times throughout the day when you are at home
- look into dog foods labeled to prevent bladder and kidney problems
- schedule regular urinalysis tests for dogs with a history of problems
As always, consult your vet for advice regarding the best course of action for your Dachshund.
(Additional source: howtodothings.com)
The Boys, originally uploaded by Tobyotter.
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