Most common canine health problems begin with the lack of nutritious dog food. Owning a pet comes with a lot of responsibilities including providing adequate health care. Let me dispel some common misunderstandings on this subject. Most common canine health problems begin with the lack of nutritious dog food.

Providing health care of course means having at least a working knowledge of the most common health problems your dog may face. Most owners think diseases like rabies in dogs, parvo or heartworms are common problems. They are not.

Want to know the number one reason for a trip to the vet? Canine skin conditions including hot spots, dog rashes, and dry itchy skin top the list. Your vet can give you medications that may appear to stop the problem, but not the underlying cause.

Below are some more canine health problems, which can adversely affect a dog without a strong immune system, especially those fed a cheap dog food.

Parvovirus

One of the most deadly if contracted as a puppy is parvovirus. CPV is a disease that affects the gastrointestinal tract, lymph system and white blood cells. This virus creates a constant diarrhea, often accompanied by vomiting. The severe diarrhea not only dehydrates the dog but actually sloughs off cells of the intestinal walls, allowing infection to enter and poison the body.

Treatment for parvovirus is intravenous fluids, usually accompanied with antibiotics until the virus runs its course.

Heartworms

Heartworms are not an actual disease but a parasite infection. Worms are transmitted through the bite of an infected mosquito. Once the heartworm larvae are injected into the host dog, if they can find their way through the bloodstream, a few may take up residence inside the animal's heart. One or two heartworm can actually live out their life in a healthy dog with virtually no ill effects on a healthy dog.

There are commercial heartworm treatments but natural options are much healthier. Should your dog contract heartworm, be sure to find out if there are worms actually living within the tissues because having the larvae in the bloodstream is not a problem, only a potential problem and the treatment is quite hard on your pet.

Kennel Cough

Canine bordetella is a disease that is normally as serious as a cold or flu in humans. It is seen more often in a kennel situation because of the close quarters several dogs share. Unless your dog has a compromised immune system, it can be easily treated. Studies have been done which indicate the kennel cough vaccine is responsible for outbreaks of the disease, but dog care facilities still require it. Getting a dog sitter when you go out of town will avoid the need for subjecting your pet to this disease or questionable preventative altogether.

Rabies

The most dreaded canine disease is rabies. This virus attacks the central nervous system and is spread through saliva and commonly transmitted through the bite of an infected animal. At this point in time, there is no cure for rabies in canines.

While keeping your dog from roaming where he might come in contact from a rabid animal should be enough, rabies shots for dogs are mandatory in the U.S. Once or twice in a lifetime has been proven to protect a dog for life but the laws are slow to change. The requirement for this vaccination changed to once every 3 years and in the next few years it should change to every 5 years so keep abreast of the requirements on your own. There are vets out there who see no problem with the extra income they receive from over vaccinating pets.

Conclusion

Taking care of your canine companion includes nutritious food, proper shelter and good exercise. Feeding your dog a variety of human grade foods has been proven to boost the immune system well enough to avoid most canine health problems.

Having a veterinarian you can trust and who understands the value of nutrition and the problems with over vaccination will help your dog live a long and healthy life.