About Health Testing, NuVet and Dog Food
Below you will find information concerning Health Testing, Information on NuVet and how to order and Information on Dog Foods
Let's talk about health testing.... My ultimate goal as a breeder is to improve the Goldendoodle and Labradoodle hybrid. Please read the following as it will explain about certain health testing and what it is about.
Hip Dysplasia
Hip Dysplasia (HD) is defined as abnormal development or growth of the hip joint. The hip in all mammals is a ball and socket joint. The tip of the femur is supposed to fit nicely inside the curvature of the hip socket. Lack of fit causes side-effects such as mild to severe arthritis, pain, limping and impacts on other joints of the dog’s body as he compensates for the hip joint failure. If all goes well, a pup will be born with no signs of dysplasia, and his hip movement will encourage good hip and bone development, thus avoiding the unwanted side-effects of HD. However, in some large breed pups, this does not occur.
Now Let's talk about HD.............
Is HD hereditary or environmental or both?
Here are the most common situations of HD. Subluxation, meaning there is a good hip joint formation but not a snug fit between the ball and socket of the hip. This may improve or deteriorate depending on care given by the dog’s owner/vet. Good hip formation but the ball is not in the socket. In this instance the hip formation will deteriorate over time without good veterinary care and potentially hip surgery. Poor formation of either the socket or ball or both. Again, this situation may be mitigated with proper veterinary care to avoid or reduce painful side-effects. HD is both hereditary and environmental!
Here are the most common situations of HD. Subluxation, meaning there is a good hip joint formation but not a snug fit between the ball and socket of the hip. This may improve or deteriorate depending on care given by the dog’s owner/vet. Good hip formation but the ball is not in the socket. In this instance the hip formation will deteriorate over time without good veterinary care and potentially hip surgery. Poor formation of either the socket or ball or both. Again, this situation may be mitigated with proper veterinary care to avoid or reduce painful side-effects. HD is both hereditary and environmental!
*Hereditary*
Hereditary HD occurs during the development of the pup in the womb. In this instance, the hip sockets in the pup are not right from conception. They inherit this type of HD from a relative – mom, dad or even a dog from many generations ago. Please note that although the mom and dad dog may have tested just fine for hips – as well as their parents and the parents before them, and on and on, there is absolutely no guarantee than any given pup won’t inherit HD. If there is HD anywhere at all in their background – even five generations or more ago, there is a possibility of the pup inheriting it.
*Environmental*
Even if you purchase a pup born with no discernable hip problems, you’re absolutely not home free. Even the best puppy hips can deteriorate from stress or injury as they grow. All large breed puppies grow very quickly between the ages of 3 months and 8 months. During that short period of time, they will attain almost all of their adult height. This rapid growth alone stresses the joints and ligaments. Add rough play, jumping and climbing while the hip sockets are still forming and hip dysplasia may occur. Here are some environmental issues that may create or aggravate a dysplastic hip. ·Injury (ie ,puppy falls off something, dropping puppy) can cause the perfect fit to become loose or the ball to become misplaced. Very vigorous play in the still-forming joint may cause improper formation, the joint to lose its smoothness and/or the socket to become shallow and deteriorate.
Here are some specific things YOU as a responsible dog owner can do to avoid environmental HD:
*Food - Nutrition
It is vitally important to provide proper food and nutrition for your puppy’s health and this will go a long way toward preventing HD. Always feed a high quality food that is specifically made for puppies until the age of 4-5 months old at this time we recommend changing to a lower protein food.
Yes, high quality foods usually do cost more, but the benefits of paying more for quality food will pay off in the long run not to mention the fact that you fill need to feed less per feeding than if you were using a lower quality food that is filled with nonessential fillers. After all doesn‘t your puppy deserve the best? Do you want him to become chronically sick just because of improper nutrition? In the end, you’re saving money on vet bills by paying more for better quality food. Good nutrition also includes feeding the proper amount – not too much and not too little. During your pup’s high growth phase, he may be a voracious eater, but also make sure he doesn’t get too fat. Extra weight puts a lot of stress on developing hips, but too little weight is also a problem. Talk with your vet or breeder about the correct amount to feed to maintain optimal health.
Yes, high quality foods usually do cost more, but the benefits of paying more for quality food will pay off in the long run not to mention the fact that you fill need to feed less per feeding than if you were using a lower quality food that is filled with nonessential fillers. After all doesn‘t your puppy deserve the best? Do you want him to become chronically sick just because of improper nutrition? In the end, you’re saving money on vet bills by paying more for better quality food. Good nutrition also includes feeding the proper amount – not too much and not too little. During your pup’s high growth phase, he may be a voracious eater, but also make sure he doesn’t get too fat. Extra weight puts a lot of stress on developing hips, but too little weight is also a problem. Talk with your vet or breeder about the correct amount to feed to maintain optimal health.
*Exercise*
Excessive exercise, tired muscles and ligaments make your puppy prone to injury. Never force exercise on your pup. Do not encourage him to play when he wants to rest. Take care not to venture too far away from home when going for a walk - rest every 15min the walk back may be too much for him.
Stairs are a work-out for people as well as a puppy. The pup’s body is stressed by stair climbing.
Between the added stress and the angle of the stairs, it makes his hips work too hard and can literally destroy them. We strongly recommend your pup not attempt stairs until he is ready after 4-6mths old and ONLY walking. not running.
Another area in which you need to be aware of is of incidences of slipping/sliding on slick floors (tile, linoleum, wet grass, etc.) Your puppy sliding across the floor after a toy is cute but it can also cause him to become a cripple. Access to slick floors should be avoided or at least limited to no running or playing.
Jumping over things/on things is one of the worst things a developing puppy can do to his hips, elbows and knees. Holding a toy up and having him leap into the air to get it is very hard on a pup’s body, as the landing is too much impact on a young one’s developing joints. As they say, what goes up must come down! So, in the final analysis is hip dysplasia caused by a bad breeder or a bad owner? Of course it can be a combination of both. The pup may have a very tiny hip defect, and coupled with the owner contribution, the combination may be too much. Or he may be born that way or develop it from improper care. And even the best puppy hips can become dysplastic through the things I just discussed. But let me try to answer the question from this breeder’s perspective. Unfortunately, breeders sometimes take the rap for everything that goes wrong with a puppy. This is not necessarily correct or fair. Certainly there are some breeders that know their dogs have or produce problems but they breed these particular dogs anyway. Again, these are NOT responsible breeders. All responsible breeders would love to see the irresponsible ones go out of business, but frankly, they give us responsible breeders a bad reputation. Now what about the responsible breeders who only breed dogs that are doing their absolute best to limit the number of problems they have - are they to be blamed and held accountable for the hidden genes that come from ancestors that had no part of their current breeding program? This is an area that I have been struggling with and thinking on for some time now.
After years of research and consulting with licensed veterinarians about this subject these are the conclusions that we have come to……
As a breeder and a buyer, I have researched this topic extensively and am deeply troubled by the thought that I might be blamed for producing a pup with HD sometime in the future. I believe most reputable breeders share my concerns. So the question is, who is ultimately responsible if your puppy turns up with problems? Dogs are living breathing creatures; should we expect them to come with a warranty like cars and dishwashers? On the other hand, purchasing a puppy is an expense and how are you to know if your puppy is from a reputable breeder if you have no guarantees – this is the reason most reputable breeders offer a guarantee because this gives us credibility because owners believe they are buying peace of mind. However, on the flip side, what if you as an owner have, through ignorance accident or lack of care "trashed" a perfectly good puppy; should you be entitled to a free pup or even a full refund under the guarantee? If your pup is determined to have hip problems, it’s back to the breeder. If the breeder used only healthy parents for breeding, what more could they have done? A reputable breeder has the responsibility of doing what they can to produce healthy puppies, but the owners of each puppy also have a responsibility of insuring the ongoing health of that individual puppy and continuing to provide everything that the puppy needs and also understanding that a health guarantee is not a 100% guarantee that your puppy could not have potential health issues, but that the breeder has done everything they can to insure a genetically healthy puppy.
Unfortunately, there’s really no perfect answer, but I guess it all comes down to the fact that I produce beautiful living creatures and adopt them out to approved homes. This is my livelihood, but also my passion and I do my absolute best to assure the puppies that are born here at Doodle Heaven are healthy and leave here in the same condition. I work with all of my new families and advise them against doing things unwittingly that could damage a pup. But at the end of the day, there are no guarantees and the only way to completely guarantee you will not end up with problems such as HD is to not purchase a living creature. I wish it was different but it’s not. Working together, we can reduce the number of HD doodles!
Stairs are a work-out for people as well as a puppy. The pup’s body is stressed by stair climbing.
Between the added stress and the angle of the stairs, it makes his hips work too hard and can literally destroy them. We strongly recommend your pup not attempt stairs until he is ready after 4-6mths old and ONLY walking. not running.
Another area in which you need to be aware of is of incidences of slipping/sliding on slick floors (tile, linoleum, wet grass, etc.) Your puppy sliding across the floor after a toy is cute but it can also cause him to become a cripple. Access to slick floors should be avoided or at least limited to no running or playing.
Jumping over things/on things is one of the worst things a developing puppy can do to his hips, elbows and knees. Holding a toy up and having him leap into the air to get it is very hard on a pup’s body, as the landing is too much impact on a young one’s developing joints. As they say, what goes up must come down! So, in the final analysis is hip dysplasia caused by a bad breeder or a bad owner? Of course it can be a combination of both. The pup may have a very tiny hip defect, and coupled with the owner contribution, the combination may be too much. Or he may be born that way or develop it from improper care. And even the best puppy hips can become dysplastic through the things I just discussed. But let me try to answer the question from this breeder’s perspective. Unfortunately, breeders sometimes take the rap for everything that goes wrong with a puppy. This is not necessarily correct or fair. Certainly there are some breeders that know their dogs have or produce problems but they breed these particular dogs anyway. Again, these are NOT responsible breeders. All responsible breeders would love to see the irresponsible ones go out of business, but frankly, they give us responsible breeders a bad reputation. Now what about the responsible breeders who only breed dogs that are doing their absolute best to limit the number of problems they have - are they to be blamed and held accountable for the hidden genes that come from ancestors that had no part of their current breeding program? This is an area that I have been struggling with and thinking on for some time now.
After years of research and consulting with licensed veterinarians about this subject these are the conclusions that we have come to……
As a breeder and a buyer, I have researched this topic extensively and am deeply troubled by the thought that I might be blamed for producing a pup with HD sometime in the future. I believe most reputable breeders share my concerns. So the question is, who is ultimately responsible if your puppy turns up with problems? Dogs are living breathing creatures; should we expect them to come with a warranty like cars and dishwashers? On the other hand, purchasing a puppy is an expense and how are you to know if your puppy is from a reputable breeder if you have no guarantees – this is the reason most reputable breeders offer a guarantee because this gives us credibility because owners believe they are buying peace of mind. However, on the flip side, what if you as an owner have, through ignorance accident or lack of care "trashed" a perfectly good puppy; should you be entitled to a free pup or even a full refund under the guarantee? If your pup is determined to have hip problems, it’s back to the breeder. If the breeder used only healthy parents for breeding, what more could they have done? A reputable breeder has the responsibility of doing what they can to produce healthy puppies, but the owners of each puppy also have a responsibility of insuring the ongoing health of that individual puppy and continuing to provide everything that the puppy needs and also understanding that a health guarantee is not a 100% guarantee that your puppy could not have potential health issues, but that the breeder has done everything they can to insure a genetically healthy puppy.
Unfortunately, there’s really no perfect answer, but I guess it all comes down to the fact that I produce beautiful living creatures and adopt them out to approved homes. This is my livelihood, but also my passion and I do my absolute best to assure the puppies that are born here at Doodle Heaven are healthy and leave here in the same condition. I work with all of my new families and advise them against doing things unwittingly that could damage a pup. But at the end of the day, there are no guarantees and the only way to completely guarantee you will not end up with problems such as HD is to not purchase a living creature. I wish it was different but it’s not. Working together, we can reduce the number of HD doodles!
VWD (Von Willebrands Disease) - Bleeding Disorder
This test is one of great importance, however many breeders test more than necessary. Let me explain….. If a dog has vWD or is a carrier bred to a carrier this can be passed onto the puppies, One parent can be carrier and the other not a carrier and produce unaffected pups. We test all of our dogs unless we have raised them from puppies and the parents were tested and cleared for vWD. Please note, the tests for this disorder is currently NOT fool proof. Unfortunately, it is a shame that we as breeders who go through all the trouble of testing cannot be guarantee 100% accuracy on such tests.
SA (Sebaceous Adenitis) - Skin Disorder
Sebaceous Adenitis is not a common skin disorder, it does however occur more often is certain breeds of dogs. Within this condition the body's sebaceous glands become inflamed and are eventually destroyed. When the sebaceous glands are no longer functioning the dog will exhibit a variety of symptoms. These symptoms include, loss of hair, thickening of the skin, scaley skin, secondary skin infections, and frequently a musty odour. Clinically diagnosed dogs with SA should never be used for breeding.
PRA (Progressive Retinal Atrophy) - Eye disorder
The genetic disorder, prcd-PRA , causes cells in the retina at the back of the eye to degenerate and die, even though the cells seem to develop normally early in life. The “rod” cells operate in low light levels and are the first to lose normal function. Night blindness results. Then the “cone” cells gradually lose their normal function in full light situations. Most affected dogs will eventually be blind. Typically, the clinical disease is recognized first in early adolescence or early adulthood. Conditions that seem to be prcd-PRA might instead be another disease and might not be inherited.
NuVet Supplements
NuVet Plus is an all Natural, Human grade Supplement and is NOT heat processed which this allows the vitamins, minerals, anti-oxidants and enzymes to stay intact, alive and usable for your puppy's body!
There are NO fillers or artificial binding agents. Instead, they use high compression tableting machine to press the wafers.
NUVET PLUS can significantly reduce the risk or eliminate many problems that strike your pet:
Allergies
Skin and Coat Problems
Scratching, Itching, Biting
Hot Spots
Arthritis Joint Problems (incl. hip dysplasia)
Premature Aging
Low Energy Levels
Cataracts and Tumers
Diabetes Liver Problems
Cancer (certain types)
Digestive Problems
Tearing
Heart Disease
There are NO fillers or artificial binding agents. Instead, they use high compression tableting machine to press the wafers.
NUVET PLUS can significantly reduce the risk or eliminate many problems that strike your pet:
Allergies
Skin and Coat Problems
Scratching, Itching, Biting
Hot Spots
Arthritis Joint Problems (incl. hip dysplasia)
Premature Aging
Low Energy Levels
Cataracts and Tumers
Diabetes Liver Problems
Cancer (certain types)
Digestive Problems
Tearing
Heart Disease
NuVet is Not available in stores - Call now to Order!!
1-800-474-7044 use order code - 43476 for discount
or order online at www.nuvet.com
Use Order Code - 43476
KEEP YOUR NEW ADDITION
GROWING STRONG!
1-800-474-7044 use order code - 43476 for discount
or order online at www.nuvet.com
Use Order Code - 43476
KEEP YOUR NEW ADDITION
GROWING STRONG!
Dog Food
Whet is the Best Dog Food to feed your Goldendoodle or Labradoodle? Their are so many different types of dog food out their but when it comes to the health of our four legged family members we want what's best and what will keep them living a long and healthy life and not end up in the vets office for being unhealthy because of the dog food. So when it comes to feeding your four legged family member what is the best foods?
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Website designed by Brittany Velez - Copyright©
Website designed by Brittany Velez - Copyright©