Three Words That Strike Fear in Vets and Owners

Host Laura Reeves is joined by Dr. Marty Greer talking about the three words that strike fear in both veterinarians and owners.

“These three things are what can take a normal, easy, lovely day at the veterinary clinic and turn it upside down and cause clients to have to wait and then swear at their veterinary team because they don't understand why they have to wait because they had an appointment,” Greer said.

Those three words, according to Greer, are GDV (bloat), Pyo (pyometra) and HBC (hit by car).

Refresher on these three critical care situations:

Pyometra is a uterine infection.

“Fevers are almost never seen with pyometras,” Greer said. “And it's a hard thing to understand how you can have a uterus full of pus and not run a fever. But apparently the uterus is a privileged organ and it allows for foreign things to happen in it. That could be a pyometra. That could be a puppy.

“So unfortunately, they almost never run a fever, so don't rely on that to be a symptom. If you were waiting for a fever to happen, it means that the uterus probably just ruptured and the dog now has a belly full of puss instead of just a uterus full of puss. And when your belly is full of puss, you're in big trouble. And so, if you're waiting for a temperature, you're decreasing your dog's odds of survival.

“If your dog was recently in heat, they aren't feeling well, they're not eating well, they're perhaps drinking buckets and buckets of water, maybe vomiting, maybe have a vaginal discharge, maybe not. Do not wait for a fever (to take the dog to the vet).”

GDV (gastric dilatation and volvulus) is bloat, where a dog’s stomach fills with air and may twist, causing a very rapid cascade of life-threatening events in the dog’s system.

HBC (hit by car) and other trauma is covered in our K9 911 First Aid seminar series linked here.

Dog Breeding as a Vision Quest

Host Laura Reeves is joined by NYT best-selling author David Wroblewski discussing dog breeding as a vision quest.

Wroblewski is the author of The Story of Edgar Sawtelle and Familiaris both based on the life and history of fictional dog breeder Edgar Sawtelle and his family.

“This sort of primal connection that we have with dogs, to me fundamentally is about how to live a larger, better life in a really broad sense,” Wroblewski said.

“One of the things that you mentioned, kind of like in the theme of the novels, is the importance of creating something lasting and beautiful in the world. The idea that you're pursuing one impossible thing,” Reeves said. “And let me tell you, as somebody who has been breeding dogs since I was a child with my family and still am today, that basically defines our life. So talk to us a little bit about how you came to that and how you incorporated that into your novels.”

“I think that there's only a couple of things that are worth writing about in the larger sense and one of them is love,” Wroblewski said. “And so I would hope that everything that I write is at some level and hopefully multiple levels a love story. But one of those love stories is the love of what you're trying to do in the world with your life.

“I mean, we all need to pay the bills. There are plenty of things that are just functional things about day-to-day living, but there's also the larger meaning of what you're doing with your life. And I've been lucky to have to work with people in a number of different realms that are lucky enough to be able to say I'm not just trying to pay the mortgage. I'm trying to do something bigger than just me.

“And one of the things that readers of Familiaris will run across partway through the book is a sort of accounting of this couple, John and Mary Sawtell. Familiaris is about this history of this kennel where everything takes place later for the Story of Edgar Sawtelle. But just an accounting of how all the work that they've done over the course of 40 years of raising dogs and placing them in the world, how that has accumulated and what the net effect across all human society has been. I feel like every time a dog gets placed with a thoughtful owner, that person's life has been changed forever.”

Swedish Lapphund and the Genetics of the Arctic Spitz Breeds

[caption id="attachment_14251" align="alignleft" width="540"] Desiree Ramirez with one of her Swedish Lapphunds.[/caption]

Host Laura Reeves is joined by Desiree Ramirez to discuss the Swedish Lapphund and the genetics of the arctic spitz “archetype” that developed into landrace dogs and then different breeds over centuries.

Swedish Lapphunds are not Finnish Laphunds or Finnish Spitz or Norwegian Buhunds or Norwegian Elkhounds or Samoyeds or Karelian Bear Dogs. Currently registered by AKC in the FSS, there are only about 40 dogs in the US. They are their own unique breed developed in the same region of the Scandinavian countries by the Sami people of Lappland (northern Norway, Sweden, Finland and northwest Russia). But these breeds all developed in the same basic region of the world.

“We have archeological evidence of these lap -ish dogs going back four to 8 ,000 years,” Ramirez said. “Like some of the first dogs in Scandinavia and Europe. They were the landrace archetype.

“And these dogs all are in haplogroup D and specifically when we talk about genetics specifically subclade group D1. Now haplogroup D is the most recent haplogroup in dog genetics that has the most recent wolf ancestry, barring any, you know, modern wolf mixes that we have. It is the most recent dog breed, dog type with wolf ancestry.

[caption id="attachment_14250" align="alignright" width="536"] Swedish Lapphund puppy.[/caption]

“That's why a lot of these dogs are these spitzy. That's why they looked so wolfy, they have a lot of those holdover traits because they're so close. Subclade Group D is specific to these Scandinavian breeds. So you're Finnish Lapphund, your Swedish Lapphund, Lapponian herders, all the elk hounds, they're all coming from that one subclade D.

“(One) thing that makes them really different (from the Finnish Lapphund). This is where they really shine between the two of them is their temperament. OK, Swedish Lapphunds are a little bit more drivey. The first comparison I ever heard between the two of them was it's like comparing a V6 and a V8 engine.

“The Swedish Lapphund is just going to drive and push and they really want to work, but they're the ones that will turn around and look at you in the yard and be like, OK, what are we doing next that? The handler focus that they have is extreme. They're always looking for you for that next thing that you want to do.

“The Swedish Lapphund or the Lappish dogs were from the Sami people. And these dogs had to be versatile. They had to do everything. So hunting, herding, guarding, keeping the people warm, they had to do it all. There was no ability to specialize, right, if the owner needed it, that dog was doing it.

“And to this day they still like to have a variety within the litter. So you might have a dog that's really good at hunting, which we still have dogs hunting and you might have one that herds and you might have one that is really just a great couch potato and they love that. They love that versatility and variety of temperament within the breed.”

The Tiny but Mighty Chihuahua with Kristi Green

[caption id="attachment_14231" align="alignleft" width="416"] Kristi Green with BIS MBISS GCHG CH Knockout Pretty Little Liar.[/caption]

Host Laura Reeves is joined by Kristi Green, talking about the tiny but mighty Chihuahua. From their slightly mysterious origins to best practices on finding and raising a well-bred dog, Green shares pro tips from her own successes and struggles.

“I think that the biggest part about living with a Chihuahua is that they can be as good of a dog as you want them to be or as bad of a dog as you let them be,” Green said. “There's a lot of user error and really successful users, for lack of a better word, I hear people say that you know, they're truly trying to bite somebody and I think ‘mine don't do that.’

“I've had a lot of Chihuahuas come and go throughout my process. And, and how you handle them in certain situations really, really has a lot to do with the dog that you have. What you put in is what you get out. But just day-to-day life with them, they're wonderful dogs. You've got this little dog that thinks you hung the moon and the stars, whether you barely got out of bed that day or you solved World Peace. They love you no matter what. And that really is part of their charm.

“It really has become the gold standard in Chihuahuas now that you do health test the dogs. That really has changed over the last 15 years since I started, and I think that that's important. Look for a breeder that's not just ohh, my dogs are healthy, they've been health tested, but that they're putting those dogs in the database because it says they care about the big picture, not just selling puppies, but they care about what happens in 15 years when somebody wants to learn about a pedigree.

“A Chihuahua that's going to be a good pet really has been home raised. You know, they've been raised in your house. They've been raised under foot. They've been exposed to just life in a house. They also have been socialized. I think it's a good idea to ask the question of, you know, what do you do to socialize the puppies? How are the puppies potty trained? I mean, are you doing anything as far as those things go, because that early framework really does make a big difference as far as how the dog handles life for the next 15 years.”

Read more in our 2018 blog post interview with Green HERE.

What’s Your “Line in the Sand” for Breeding

Host Laura Reeves is joined by Dr. Marty Greer for an important conversation about “what is YOUR line in the sand” when breeding dogs.

This is a conversation around breeding ethics and having a “mission statement” for your breeding program.

“I had a listener ask about a baby puppy with one testicle yoyoing and one maybe, maybe not there and what should they do? And Marty said, ‘Well, there's only a couple things and it won't take very long (to talk about), but I think that there's no reason not to breed that.’ And I'm like, wait, what? So, Marty, I want you to talk to me about why, because this was a very interesting perspective that had literally never crossed my mind.”

The conversation continues from there with Marty describing her “line in the sand” as deadly diseases. Her reasoning being the additional genetic diversity that comes when we don’t “throw out the baby with the bath water” for issues which do not actively impact a dog’s quality of life.

“The world according to Marty Greer is for me a level 1 is something that you don't have a life shortening, life altering disease from. It's a retained testicle. For me it's extra eyelashes. For me it's an entropian. For me, it's an umbilical hernia.

“For me, level 2 is something that requires chronic management, long term allergies. Thyroid disease, things that always need to be on medication. There's an ongoing expense. There's an ongoing thing that has to happen, but it's not serious.

“And for me, Level 3, are life threatening, life altering, life shortening diseases. This is my definition. For me, that's bad temperament. If your dog bites somebody, I don't think that dog should be in your gene pool. If I have to muzzle your dog to breed it, I don't think it should be in the gene pool. That for me is orthopedic diseases that are crippling. Hip dysplasia, elbow dysplasia, patellar luxation, all this stuff that happens orthopedically. And for me that's things like seizures, because I think seizures are life threatening.

“But that's my world. I live in a veterinary clinic. Remember, that's what I do every day. So I see dogs that come in with owners that are distressed, dogs that are dying, dogs that need to be euthanized. And so my perspective is going to be different than other people's perspectives because that's not the world they live in.”

The Glen of Imaal Terrier’s Place in Ireland

We have friend of the pod Theresa Nesbitt back and you guys know how much I harp on the current dogs are living history, right? Like this is my jam. And that purebred dogs represent a specific place and a specific people in a specific time. Well, Theresa has taken that for the Glen of Imaal Terrier and done this huge deep dive on it. And her information and her stories are so fascinating. You know, in the green room off air we were talking about. How cool it is for kids for adults to learn history using purebred dogs.

In Ireland, the national cultural heritage status of native breeds is protected by the government.

“What they're protecting is yes, the dogs,” Theresa said, “but actually the dog-human connection and where they came from relate to so many parts of Irish history and heritage. And there's only 9 native breeds there so I love getting into it because I felt like it was manageable.

“I think for preservation, it's really about the past and the present and the future. So we have to look at what came from the past. Right now, breeders, right now, we're working very hard with breed standards and we're saying, so how do we move forward into the future?

“Breeders can find their purpose for what they need to do today to make sure that those dogs of the future are still able to reach back through time and touch those things. So it's a hard job for us, but we have to do it.”

Theresa’s description of the physical location that is the Glen of Imaal is absolutely fascinating and why it tends to indicate to her the breed would have been unlikely to actually have worked as turnspit dogs.

“What is really important about it being the Glen of Imaal is the antique features and the unrefined to this day. And because (the area) was so hard to get to, the dogs stayed the way the dogs used to be.”

Listen back to the episodes referenced in today’s conversation HERE and HERE.

Pro Tips for Hot Dog Shows and When Safety Overrules Ribbons

Host Laura Reeves brings you Pure Dog Talk's LIVE@5 discussion of the hot summer dog shows and when safety is more important than ribbons.

"Let's talk about what hot means. And everybody has their own understanding of it, right? So what is hot to someone like myself from the Northwest might be no big deal if you're from Phoenix. Understand that if you're hot, your dogs have similar acclimation and so it's really important to understand what your dog can tolerate.

"I was doing my handling class for folks last night and I was talking about this topic and I had a pug dog back in the day, Pug Special, and the day he went best in show in Wisconsin, the thermometer said it was 105 and it was 85% humidity. Yeah, it was really gross. If you look at the photo of me from that day, I look like I've been dipped in olive oil. It is just disgusting.

"The judge was Norman Patton. I remember it all very clearly and he flat told me that the reason my dog went best in show that day, not just was he a nice pug dog or what have you, but on that horrible gross awful day, my dog went around the entire best in show ring without panting.

"And so a lot of that has to do with what the dog is acclimated to. That particular pug dog lived in Nebraska at the time. He was accustomed to gross humidity. And my dogs were not pampered pets. They went outside in the gross humidity. I was careful with them, but they were acclimated to the heat and the humidity, which other dogs If I had brought him straight from the West Coast to that environment, he'd have died. But because he was acclimated after a couple of years in Nebraska, it was more manageable for him.

"And the other thing that I did was manage his situation. So at a hot dog show, you have an ice chest full of ice and water. More water than ice, but it is ice cold water. You do not give that to your dog to drink. You put your cool coat or your shammy or your towel or your whatever you're going to use in that water and then you ring it out as much as you need to for your dog's coat and you put it on the ground and you have the dog stand on it.

"You do not put it over the dog's back because that's not going to get them cool. Dogs release heat from their pads, they release heat from their ear flaps, they release heat in their groin, anus, all of the places that have unfurred space. And so if we're going to keep our dogs cool, the way to keep them cool is to have the coldness underneath them.

"And then I had a good Ryobi fan. I had a spray bottle with water in it, and I had another shammy and I had trained him. So this is the other part. He was trained. That's an important part of this conversation. He was trained. He could lie down on his side in the ring and I would cover his eyes, his whole head up with another cold chamois. And so he was iced, literally, he was chill.

"And this particular ring was outdoors, kind of in semi shade. I spent the vast majority of that time in the best in show ring with the dog lying down and my back to the judge, to the ring, to everything else so that I could put him in the shade. I used my body to shade him because there wasn't as much shade as I would like there to be.

"So you can manage the heat if the dog is accustomed to it, if the dog is fit and if it is acclimated to the basic conditions and then you can keep them cool enough for the amount of time that you have. So that's number one.

"Number two, remember. There's no law that you have to go to the dog show that you entered if it's 100°. Another special, another time, another place. There was a big candy ass. I can't say it another way. God love him. I loved that dog, but he was not heat tolerant and he had won a big specialty in California. And I had a huge falling out with his co-owner over it because I refused to show him the group, because it's gonna be 105 and it was out in more sun and he was going to be miserable and he was not going to perform. And I didn't want to have people see him look bad. Even though there was a reasonably good chance he could have gotten a group placement since he just won the specialty that day. OK, so we make decisions, we make the right decision for our dog."

 

 

Alaskan Klee Kai Move to Miscellaneous

Host Laura Reeves is joined by Chelsea Watson for a discussion of the Alaskan Klee Kai moving to Miscellaneous this summer.

[caption id="attachment_14178" align="alignleft" width="370"] Versatile, energetic and aloof, Alaskan Klee Kai join Miscellaneous.[/caption]

According to Watson, the Klee Kai was developed in Alaska in the 1970s by one woman who wanted to create a “miniature Husky.” The breed was developed using Alaskan Huskies, with additions of Siberian Husky, American Eskimo Dog and Schipperke.

The Klee Kai is 12-17 inches tall, with a variety of colors and coats available. Bred as a companion dog, it should still move with the smooth, effortless carriage of its working forbears, Watson noted.

The Klee Kai was accepted into AKC's FSS (Foundation Stock Service) program in 2020. An active, even busy, breed, Klee Kai are aloof and reserved with strangers, but excel in agility and other performance events, Watson said.

“They are very high energy breed,” Watson said. “They are not couch potatoes. They also are a very versatile breed. You want to go hiking for three hours every day? They can do it. Bike for five hours or five miles a day, probably 5 hours too, they can do it. Kayaking and paddle boarding with them. They could do weight pull. The tricky part is you got to have patience because they're still gonna do a quid pro quo. What’s in it for me? The Husky piece is strong in them, (but) I would say they are more trainable than Huskies. Patience, it just requires a lot of patience. It's like training your cat.”

The following links offer additional information about the breed.

Alaskan Klee Kai Association of America (UKC)

https://www.akkaoa.org/

Breeders List

https://www.akkaoa.org/find-a-breeder

Dog Breed Information

https://www.akc.org/dog-breeds/alaskan-klee-kai/

Conditioning for Canine Athletes

Host Laura Reeves is joined by Dr. Ashley Nixon to discuss conditioning our canine athletes, whether for the show ring, dock diving, agility and more.

"Cardio's good for everybody," Nixon said, "but I think it's really important to consider the sport you're doing and what you're asking your dog to do. They can be cardiovascularly fit, but maybe they don't have the propulsion to do some dock diving or agility, right? So I think it's super important to kind of keep that in mind and not just say, hey, I walk my dog, we go for a run, we're fit, we're good.

"I like a ton of stuff you can actually do at home with basic equipment (for conditioning work). You can have them do some push-ups on an unstable surface, like a little exercise ball. You can have them pivot. It's great. Front end up, back end up. I love sit to stands for these guys and you can do a ton of different variations. You can have them do it on a mattress, Fit Bones are great. Cavalettis are great for these guys. You can especially pick up some changes in their gait or change their gait.

"(Cavalettis) are super versatile and if you want some flexion, you can have serpentines over the cavalettis and arrange them in, you know, semi circles, get some nice spinal flexion. Like that."

Listen to the full episode for more from:

Dr Ashley Nixon DVM, CVA, CVMRT, CVSMT, FCOAC, CAMP, CSCC

Chief of Staff

Dr. Ashley Nixon knew she wanted to be a veterinarian since she was just 3 years old. That passion inspired her to obtain her DVM from St. Matthew’s University School of Veterinary Medicine, and complete her clinical year at Mississippi State University College of Veterinary Medicine. She received her CVMRT (massage & rehabilitation) and CVSMT (spinal manipulation) certifications from the Healing Oasis, and was trained and certified in veterinary acupuncture at the Chi Institute of Traditional Veterinary Medicine. She passed additional testing to become a fellow of the College of Animal Chiropractors, and received a certification in arthritis management. She is certified in arthritis case management. 

Dr. Nixon has a special interest in sports and conditioning, and is certified through NC State. 

Prior to the ATC, she most recently worked at a specialty referral practice in the south as a rehabilitation veterinarian. She is active with multiple dog sports. 

Infertility Problem Solving Protocol

Host Laura Reeves is joined by Dr. Marty Greer for a conversation about the problem solving protocol for infertility using a case study submitted in the private Pure Dog Talk Patrons group.

Greer’s first recommendation for fertility issues is to have a complete semen analysis on the stud dog.

“There are six parameters that we should look at for semen quality. It should be volume, sperm count, the motility, the morphology, the longevity and speed of progression. …(I)t's much easier to analyze the fertility on a male dog that is a female.”

Greer continues with discussion of “lifestyle” choices of the bitch. Nutrition choices, sunlight exposure and more.

“The foods that we see that we have good success with, are going to be Purina and Royal Canin. Those are the two diets that we reliably see good fertility with. Purina, their Sport 30/20, which is 30% protein, 20% fat is a really good diet for fertility and the Royal Canin makes a pregnancy diet, the only pregnancy diet that currently is on the market.

“Dogs need 14 hours of daylight. And if you don't have the opportunity to have it, if you don't live in a climate that you can do that. Where you're building isn't set up for it or whatever it happens to be. You can get full spectrum light bulbs and turn them on for 14 hours a day.

“We also see high performing dogs,  dogs traveling with a handler or they're out at field trials every weekend and they're running hard or hunt tests or whatever activity you happen to be doing. Sometimes just being away from home can be really stressful for the dogs and we can see that affecting their fertility.”

Greer continues with other potential infertility causes and treatments. Be sure to listen to the episode to catch her 2-2-2 "infertile bitch protocol."