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As your Partner in Pet Health, the team at Hillside Animal Hospital would like to provide you with as much information as possible regarding your role in keeping your dog happy and healthy. With this in mind, we have developed new Breed-Specific Wellness Programs. These programs are intended to increase your awareness on health conditions that have been found to be commonly associated with your dog's breed. While many dogs live a long, healthy life without facing major health issues, we feel that educating pet owners about possible health conditions is the best way to be proactive in detecting health issues before they become a problem. You'll find important recommendations for scheduling physical exams and diagnostic tests which we encourage you to discuss with the doctor throughout your pet's care. Please contact us at 480-391-7297 if you would like further information or to schedule an appointment.
Labrador Retrievers - Specific Wellness Program
Endocrine Conditions
 Diabetes Mellitus
About the condition:
- Diabetes occurs where there is hyperglycemia resulting from an absolute or relative lack of insulin in the blood.
How to detect this condition:
- This disease if often noticed by owners when their pets seem to be drinking and urinating more than usual. Blood work every two years starting at age 6 can help in detecting this disease.
Gastrointestinal Conditions
Chronic Hepatitis
About the condition:
- Inflammatory liver disease which usually progresses to cirrhosis.
How to detect this condition:
- Blood work is recommended every two years starting at age 6.
Musculoskeletal Conditions
Hip Dysplasia
About the condition:
- Caused by various deformities of the hip along with the development of degenerative joint disease.
- Nutrition and exercise can help in prevention.
How to detect this condition:
- It is important to have X-rays taken to find any deformities or degeneration of the hip joints - at time of spay/neuter (or age 2 in breeding dogs) and then again at age 6.
Elbow Dysplasia
About the condition:
- This condition occurs when the elbow joint grows and matures improperly. Progression causes pain and arthritis in the elbow joint.
How to detect this condition:
- It is important to have X-Rays taken to find any deformities or degeneration of the elbow joints - at time of spay/neuter and then again at age 6.
Ocular Conditions
Progressive Retinal Atrophy
About the condition:
- This disease causes an abnormal accumulation of pigment within the retina resulting in progressive retinal degeneration and visual deficiencies.
How to detect this condition:
- Checking the eyes regularly in conjunction with annual wellness exams can help detect this condition.
This list is not intended to cover all possible diseases and/or conditions found in Labrador Retrievers, but instead lists those that we have found to be most common at Hillside Animal Hospital. Please let your doctor know if you have further questions regarding these or any other conditions.
Wellness Recommendations
An annual physical exam is recommended for the life of your pet so that any problems can be detected. In addition, we recommend the following diagnostic evaluations in order to provide more thorough veterinary prevention and care:
| At time of spay/neuter |
X-rays to look for signs of hip and/or elbow dysplasia |
| Annually |
Eye exam |
| Age 6 |
45 |
Full blood profile and urinalysis, x-rays of hips
and elbows |
| Age 8 |
55 |
Full blood profile and urinalysis, x-rays of chest,
abdomen and hips |
| Age 10 |
66 |
Full blood profile and urinalysis, x-rays |
| Age 12 |
77 |
Full blood profile and urinalysis, x-rays |
| Age 14 |
88 |
Full blood profile and urinalysis, x-rays |
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