Basenji Health Issues & Questions

PLEASE DO NOT!!! The AMVA and the dental veterinary society says RUN from ANY VET advertising no anesthesia cleaning. PLEASE, find a vet who knows what they are doing! The teeth may LOOK cleaner, but the MEDICAL issue is below the gums! http://www.avdc.org/dentalscaling.html However, performing NPDS on an unanesthetized pet is inappropriate for the following reasons: 1. Dental tartar is firmly adhered to the surface of the teeth. Scaling to remove tartar is accomplished using ultrasonic and sonic power scalers, plus hand instruments that must have a sharp working edge to be used effectively. Even slight head movement by the patient could result in injury to the oral tissues of the patient, and the operator may be bitten when the patient reacts. 2. Professional dental scaling includes scaling the surfaces of the teeth both above and below the gingival margin (gum line), followed by dental polishing. The most critical part of a dental scaling procedure is scaling the tooth surfaces that are within the gingival pocket (the subgingival space between the gum and the root), where periodontal disease is active. Because the patient cooperates, dental scaling of human teeth performed by a professional trained in the procedures can be completed successfully without anesthesia. However, access to the subgingival area of every tooth is impossible in an unanesthetized canine or feline patient. Removal of dental tartar on the visible surfaces of the teeth has little effect on a pet's health, and provides a false sense of accomplishment. The effect is purely cosmetic. 3. Inhalation anesthesia using a cuffed endotracheal tube provides three important advantages… the cooperation of the patient with a procedure it does not understand, elimination of pain resulting from examination and treatment of affected dental tissues during the procedure, and protection of the airway and lungs from accidental aspiration. 4. A complete oral examination, which is an important part of a professional dental scaling procedure, is not possible in an unanesthetized patient. The surfaces of the teeth facing the tongue cannot be examined, and areas of disease and discomfort are likely to be missed. Safe use of an anesthetic or sedative in a dog or cat requires evaluation of the general health and size of the patient to determine the appropriate drug and dose, and continual monitoring of the patient. ) Periodontal problems affect more than 80 percent of dogs over the age of four, according to Hometown Animal Hospital and Dental Clinic veterinarian Jan Bellows. University of Penn http://www.vet.upenn.edu/RyanVHUPforSmallAnimalPatients/SpecialtyCareServices/DentistryOralSurgery/ClientInformation/tabid/814/Default.aspx#AnesthesiaFrequencyDentalCleanings Need for Anesthesia and Frequency of Professional Dental Cleanings Need for Anesthesia In order to perform a thorough periodontal examination, dental radiography, scaling and polishing, gingival curettage and root planing, the pet must be under general anesthesia. Anesthetic gas and oxygen are delivered through an endotracheal tube, thus ensuring pain-free procedures and also protecting the airways from aspirating fluids or debris. Owners of pets naturally are concerned when anesthesia is required for their pet. However, anesthesia-free dentistry performed by untrained individuals is inappropriate for several reasons, including: Significant safety concerns for the patient and operator. Insufficient cleaning of inaccessible tooth surfaces. No debridement of periodontal pockets. Oral discomfort and serious pain. Accidental aspiration of debris that can result in pneumonia and death. Furthermore, it is illegal for anybody but licensed veterinarians or supervised and trained veterinary technicians to practice veterinary medicine. Although anesthesia will never be 100% risk-free, modern anesthetic and patient evaluation techniques used in veterinary hospitals minimize the risks, and millions of dentistry and oral surgery procedures are safely performed each year. The American Veterinary Dental College adopted a position statement on companion animal dental scaling without anesthesia. Anesthesia is essential for veterinary dental procedures, to ensure that the procedure can be completed successfully. Fear of general anesthesia is a natural concern voiced by many owners when a dental procedure is recommended. However, the risk of chronic oral infection, for example, is far greater than the risk of an anesthetic complication. \ btw… have dog with CUPS, an autoimmune issue. I have to have her teeth cleaned every 3 mos. I wish I didn't know so much about it. :(

She should heal up quickly and be a great companion to you.

@krunzer: does the skin look dark and dirty? it may be demodectic mange. If it is, the location is unusual.

Cara had coccidia when we got her, but I have read research that it is killed more easily with ammonia than bleach so that's what I used–- pick up, pour ammonia over area. Neither Connor nor Arwen got it. But since you weren't doing it before, do take in stool samples of the other dogs to avoid them continuing to pass it around. A dog can have it with limited effect and still be passing it in stools to recontaminate your pup. http://www.sheltermedicine.vet.cornell.edu//shelter/coccidia.htm

Glad Ayo is better!

@wizard: Makes you wonder what the vet schools are teaching too! Indeed it does!

@khanis: This has been this way for quite some time. There hasn't been a difference in the 1 and 3-yr vaccines for as long as I have paid attention to them… True, but so many pet owners are unaware of this fact.

I don't get on here often, so I just saw this. What a fascinating topic!!! Thank you for sharing.

I, too, would have the umbilical hernia fixed when she is spayed. In fact, that's exactly what we did when Blaze was neutered last month at 6 months of age (we are not going to do any sports activities with him such as lure coursing, so waiting until his growth plates were closed wasn't a concern).

@Chealsie508: In a way I feel pressured to do it and in all reality, I am comfortable waiting until 14 months. I certainly wouldn't have your dog neutered because someone else thinks you should…I agree with eeeefarm on this. Do what you feel comfortable with, and it appears that you feel more comfortable waiting.

So glad to hear that Nicky is back to her usual self. Hopefully, she'll never have it again!

Thank you for your detective work, Saba. I think it's a hard "case," but I do think that if I were the original breeder of these dogs, I would want to know what happened to them. Even as a lover of the breed, it makes me feel sad and helpless to see those pictures. I certainly can't jump on a plane to fetch those dogs, and I don't reasonably expect the original breeder to, either. But if it serves as an eye-opening example of what happens when you don't keep in touch with your puppy people, then maybe some good will come out of it… Meanwhile, just as you posted this, Saba, I received an e-mail from someone who was able to do more thorough detective work. They found the Malaysian Basenji owner's Rottweiler kennel, and there's full contact info there, including e-mail. I will leave you more info. I would like to send him an e-mail myself, but I have to think about what to say. I get angry whenever I look at that article and those pictures, but I don't think I would get very far if I just went in there guns blazing. The welfare of those two Basenjis is what concerns me. If they are sick, I hope they are getting medical attention. If they are not being fed, maybe there's a local animal welfare agency I can contact. I know there are cases like this all over the world, every day, and many far worse. It just appalls me that someone can call themselves a "dog expert" and a "top kennel," yet have dogs in such condition -- and PROUDLY display them for the press!

Congrats on the newest member of your family! I have a Fanconi dog and part of the reason he has done so well is because strip testing caught it early. I'm sure your B will be fine and live a long, healthy life. Do post photos. :)

Really, posted and decided to send private because, well because.

Kathy, I sure didn't mean to indicate it isn't a godsend or fantastic! Of course it is. I just meant… well as the Arabs say, Trust in G-d but tie your camel. Get the testing, use it to help guide breeding, retest if necessary, but keep doing the strip test. It's an easy if annoying process that protects your dog against testing errors or human errors.

@deschroedter: We use the fowl & the venison and bison ones. Ditto here. But I do not like the fact that the company is using something like this is ANY of their foods.

Wow, I'd not heard of these coat changes. My B has grown some longer hairs in the white around her neck and the red just on the edge of the white, and some of the hair along her neck has faded to a lighter color - no losing bunches or real drastic changes though. What other changes to their coats are normal?

@Patty: Try giving him a good tasty drink immediately after his meal Mine are not drinkers (and in many years I've never had a Basenji that is) so I weakly flavour water with meat juice, veg water and actually anything tasty left over and they each have approximately third of a pint as a 'dessert' after their main meal. Ah yes, the flavored water trick. Last night I put some cut up chicken breast in a bowl, added some water and stirred for flavor and down it went. I got a copy of the urine analysis and it said PH was 8.5, trace amount of protein and Amorphous Phosphate Crystals 2-3. I just collected another sample today and it's yellow cloudy. Not red or pink.

@Patty: Your pictures may be too big in resolution… try to re-size them to a smaller size and then re-posting? For the record, the Purina pro-biotics are called Forti-Flora, by prescription use only (but GIVEN to me by my vet for Lola)... Not so, I have purchased Forti-Flora via the internets for quite a while. So not just by prescription

Not Robin, however if over all he is a good, well put together, good temperment dog, with light pigment, I would used the dog provided that you have a bitch that compliments him. Of course would be great to see stacked pictures of him.