Background: The popularity of brachycephalic dogs continues to increase despite inherent breed health problems. Increased education of current and potential brachycephalic dog owners could reduce the desirability of severely affected dogs. Methods: Members of the general public were prospectively recruited to assess their understanding and opinions of brachycephalic breed-related health problems, before and after an educational intervention on brachycephalic obstructive airway syndrome (BOAS). Results: A total of 587 people participated. Before the intervention most participants considered characteristics of BOAS to be normal for brachycephalic dogs. Following the intervention this was moderately reduced. Responses highlighted that defining 'normal' for a breed is difficult. Referring to a trait as 'normal', even in a negative context results in normalisation. 99.7% of participants had an improved understanding of BOAS following the intervention. However, only 53.0% of the total participants and 29.3% of brachycephalic dog owning participants had their opinion of brachycephalic dogs changed. 99.5% of participants believed that potential owners should be more aware of BOAS and 57.3% of brachycephalic dog owners would have liked further information about breed health problems before purchasing their dog. Conclusion: Educational interventions may be beneficial in improving understanding and awareness of BOAS however, normalisation of clinical signs of BOAS remains prevalent.
K E Y W O R D Sbrachycephalic, brachycephalic obstructive airway syndrome (BOAS), breed health, public perception, questionnaire
A 6-month-old neutered male dog presented for investigation of right thoracic limb lameness of 6-week duration following an acute injury. Radiography and computed tomography revealed focal osteolysis of the intermedioradial carpal bone. Histopathology of the bone revealed osteonecrosis, bone resorption, fibrous proliferation and new bone formation suggestive of avascular necrosis. Pancarpal arthrodesis was performed to stabilize the carpus and resulted in resolution of lameness and return to normal exercise. Avascular necrosis of carpal bones is rare and unreported in skeletally immature dogs. The imaging and histopathological changes in this dog's intermedioradial carpal bone bear strong similarity to Legg-Calvé-Perthes disease and the two presentations may have a similar traumatic vascular pathology.
A 10-year-old male neutered cocker spaniel was presented for further investigation of an enlarged sublumbar lymph node, which was cytologically consistent with epithelial cell malignancy. CT revealed marked left medial and internal iliac and mild lumbo-aortic lymphadenomegaly. Surgical extirpation of the lymph nodes was performed, and histopathology was consistent with poorly differentiated carcinoma. Despite the absence of a discernible primary lesion, metastatic apocrine gland anal sac adenocarcinoma (AGASAC) was suspected and chemotherapy was started. Six days after starting chemotherapy, the patient developed acute-onset paraparesis and trembling. MRI revealed a left-sided extradural mass at the level of T11–T13. CT imaging revealed mild enlargement of multiple left sided lumbo-aortic lymph nodes. The dog was euthanised 3 days later due to neurological deterioration. Postmortem examination confirmed a diagnosis of left AGASAC with local lymph node and T11–T13 vertebral canal metastasis.
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