Terrier Lover

Scotties are by no means an exception to the rule when it comes to the longevity of the terrier breeds…

The Scottish Terrier will typically live between 12 to 14 years.

Being that they are a terrier, they are relatively free of health problems, but if we must discuss them, these are the most prevalent among Scotty illnesses.

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Cancer:
Can be a problem in the Scotty dog, most prevalent types being:

1. Bladder cancer, and other transitional cell carcinomas of the lower urinary tract
2. Malignant melanoma
3. Gastric carcinoma
4. Squamous cell carcinoma of the skin
5. Lymphosarcoma
6. Nasal carcinoma
7. Mast cell sarcoma
8. Hemangiosarcoma

Von Willebrand’s Disease (vWD):
The Scottish terrier is one of the dog breeds that are prone to carrying a recessive gene that has an inherited disease attached to it, Von Willebrand’s Disease. It is the most common bleeding disorder of man and dogs. There is the chance that your Scotty will be either free of the disease, carriers of the disease or actual “bleeders”.

* Tip: It is very important to acquire your terrier from a reputable breeder that partakes in responsible breeding by having their breeding dogs tested to ensure they don’t even carry this gene.

* Tip: You can have your dog DNA tested to ensure that it’s blood work score is 60 or above. Dogs that score between 50-59 are borderline normal. A score below 50 should draw a huge, red flag.

Craniomandibular Osteopathy (CMO):
This is a developmental disease, which is also known as lion’s jaw, and causes severe bony changes of the mandible and skull before the dog turns 1 year old, when it usually stops and could possibly regress.

This can be very painful, cause eating problems, cause drooling and swelling in the jaw. It could even affect the middle ear.

Scotty Cramp:
This is an autosomal recessive trait in Scottish terriers, and dogs displaying this illness, their parents and siblings should not be bred. It is a neurological disorder typically appearing in Scotties about 6 months old, and could progress as the dog ages. The dog could be running or playing and all of a sudden, they will have stiffened rear legs and an arched back; the dog may even fall over. This could last up to 10 minutes.

It is said that this condition is due to a disorder in seratonin metabolism, which causes a deficiency in the body. Treatments of diazepam, acepromazine or Vitamin E can be used to control symptoms.

Seizures:
The Scottish terrier is one of the dog breeds that can be affected by seizures, which will manifest due to a disturbance of brain function.

The terrier will be affected suddenly and typically lasts about 1 min, but may be longer. Loss of consciousness, muscle stiffening and rigidity of muscles in the limbs and trunk, and falling to the floor constitute a seizure. This muscle stiffening will alternate with violent running motions, along with possible biting movements and salivation.

There will be spontaneous recovery, but the dog may have some brief disorientation.

You should alert your veterinarian about the seizures and they will be able to prescribe an anti-convulsion medication, which should control this condition.

Most Scotties afflicted with seizures will live a “normal” life, and there is no research that proves that the seizures are painful to the animal. It is more of a scary event for the owner than anything, as the dogs seem to be unaffected after seizure.

* Bear in mind that Scottish terriers are, on average, very healthy dogs. These are just some of the illnesses that are most prevalent among Scotties that do have health conditions.

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I hope you enjoyed this installment of Terrier Lover! Until next time…

Love Your Terrier,

Kimberly Edwards

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