Doberman Pinschers or Dobie, which have been know as excellent guard dogs for many years, are listed on the American Kennel Club’s list of top twenty dog breed in the United States. The popularity of this beautiful, intelligent breed of dog has put it on this list for many years. Although Doberman pinschers are very popular, they are also generally a very healthy breed, with few health concerns or conditions. But, even so, there are several health related problems that their owners should be aware of. Here are just a few:
Demodectic mange or red mange, which affects the Dobie’s skin, occurs when the Dobie has mites that proliferate, causing the dog to suffer with scaly skin, skin infections, bald spots and patchy fur.
Dilated cardiomyopathy, which affects the Dobie’s heart, occurs when the dog’s heart muscle is enlarged and the wall is thinned.
Enlarged orbit, which affects the Dobie’s eyes, occurs when the dog has deepset eyes which come from the dog having eye sockets that are oversized.
Eversion, which affects the Dobie’s eyes, occurs when the third eyelid folds over on itself and surgical dissection of the defective cartilage allowing the fold is the method of correcting the condition.
Gastric torsion or bloat, which affects the Dobie’s stomach, occurs when the dog’s stomach becomes full of air and twists. If left untreated, this condition can be life-threatening.
Hip dysplasia, which affects the Doberman’s hip joint, occurs when the hip joint is malformed and allows the muscles, ligaments and connective tissues that support the hip joint to become lax and not do their job.
Hypothyroidism, which affects the Doberman’s metabolism, occurs when the dog’s thyroid gland does not produce enough thyroid hormone.
Persistent papillary membrane, which affects the Doberman’s eyes, occurs when the dog has papillary membrane remnant stains that remain after birth and extend across the dog’s pupil or they may extend from the iris to the cornea, or they may even extend across and connect to the front of the dog’s eye lens. These strains cause little trouble unless there are an excessive number of them.
Renal cortical hypoplasia, which affects the Dobie’s kidneys, occurs when the dog’s kidneys are small and incorrectly shaped when the puppy is born. This condition is caused by an infection of the fetus while it was in the uterus of the Dam.
Staphylococcus, which affects the Dobie’s skin, is a bacterial infection.Wobbler’s disease, which affects the Doberman’s neck, occurs when the dog’s neck bones are not formed correctly and cause the dog neck pain and a wobbly gait when it walks.Von Willebrand’s disease, which affects the Doberman’s blood, occurs when the dog’s blood does not clot correctly.
