Common Health Issues Humans Share With Dogs

The first thing that comes to mind when thinking about the health issues humans have in common with dogs is that “do they even have the same diseases we do ?” The answers is yes. You may be surprised the types of diseases dogs have in common with humans. There are a lot of diseases humans have that dogs also have from small things like colds and coughing to other quite serious ailments like diabetes. Here’s a list of the diseases humans have and dogs also seem to have.

Acne

As weird as it sounds your dog may suffer from acne. Dogs also have an awkward teenage phase and during this phase they may have acne, usually between the age of five to eight months and this may cause they pain and itching. To be more particular, acne is more complicated in breeds of dogs such as Boxers, Rottweilers and Bulldogs. You may noticing your dog rubbing his head against the ground or see black heads and red welts on his/her skin and if so your vet will be able to handle it properly. The treatment for this awkward phase is usually pills, antibiotics, or shampooing your dog twice a week with a special preparation that contains benzoyl peroxide.

Arthritis

Dogs get arthritis too just like humans and it can be noticed if you observe your dog properly. You may notice that he/she may be limping,licking, having difficult moving or chewing at the particular joint affected, like humans joints the joints in a dog may wear out and cause inflammation or pain to the animal so the best course of action would be to change your dog’s diet. When your dog has arthritis then you need to start watching his/her weight because it may determine how much pain your dog is going to be in. Changing over to a lower calorie diet for your dog will help it shave off some pounds and that will help ease the pain in the affected joints. Another thing you could do is to apply pressure to the affected joint with a heat pad, this’ll relieve some of the pain. Arthritis in dogs is not a death sentence so rest assured your dog will be able to live a happy and healthy life.

Cancer

As unbelievable as it sounds, your dog can get cancer. The same way that humans find cancers in their body is the same way cancerous cells can be found in the body of a dog. You could feel lumps and notice other changes like a loss of appetite, losing weight, frequent vomitting and diarrhea and so on. According to research, dogs get cancer at the same rate that humans get cancer so to be on the safe side you should check your dog frequently. The medication uses for human cancer patients is similar to the ones used on dogs also, they go through surgeries, radiation, chemotherapy and use medicine to combat it. The chances of your dog surviving are better the earlier it’s discovered

Heart disease

Going by recent numbers, a startling 40 percent of dogs have chronic valvular disease which means there are degenerative changes in the heart of your dog. Heart disease in dogs are different however when you’re talking about their breeds. Chronic valvular disease is more common in small breeds of dogs while in the larger dogs what they get is dilated cardiomyopathy which means they have large heart chambers and weak and thin ventricle walls. Symptoms are your dog tiring easily or having difficulty breathing, even coughing for extended periods of time.

Diabetes

This is on the rise and especially in female dogs. The rise in diabetes can be attributed to the fact that dogs are becoming overweight and hence they get diabetes. The food which your dog eat matters and a dog shouldn’t be fed to much or you risking having an obese dog with it more likely to get type one diabetes. Diabetes in dogs is a complex disease that occurs in a dog’s body when there is an inadequate response to insulin or there is the lack of the hormone insulin. You should know however that it is a very manageable disease and it’s very likely that your dog will be able to lead a happy and healthy life. A dog may be diagnosed to have diabetes after your vet runs a series of tests and does a urinalysis in order to ascertain the diabetes. Another thing to know is that it is more occurent in breeds of dogs such as Australian terriers, poodles, Dachshunds and Samoyeds.

Dementia

People often assume that this is a very human ailment but they don’t know that dogs also suffer from dementia. Clinically know as canine cognitive dysfunction, dementia in dogs can prove to be very serious and should not be taken lightly. In a way that is very similar to humans dogs also suffer from symptoms of dementia like disorientation, less active, become more aggressive, general anxiety, even disturbed sleep-wake cycles. You need to understand that there is no solid way to diagnose a dog of having dementia but it is done by the elimination of all other factors that may be the cause of the change in behaviour in a dog. To treat dog dementia you can use CBD oil which is sold in many independent pet stores and it’s proven to help a great deal, or using omega three fatty oils on your dog

Conclusion

There you have it, above are diseases that you didn’t know humans shares with dogs. From the mildest of diseases like acne to other rather serious ailments like heart disease or dementia there is a range of things that humans may have in common with dogs. It’s imperative that you get regular Vet checkup for your dogs so as to ensure that they are always healthy and also to find out if anything is wrong with them. The earlier some of these diseases are discovered the better, the dog’s life may depend on it