One of my friends mentioned that she has noticed that this season, dogs tend to fall sick a lot, probably because of how cold the weather is, and a lot of other factors that contribute to this illness. One way a pet owner could start suspecting the possible presence of an illness is through a change in meat consumption, probably your pet is not eating as much as he would, you may begin to suspect something.
However, this is not an outright reason to determine there is a need for urgent medical attention, but if accompanied by other factors like a drastic drop in weight, then it should be a thing of worry. Today, we will be sharing about weight loss in dogs and possible causes.
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Parasite: When a pet is affected by parasites, these parasites can limit the amount of food intake by host animals. Parasites are regarded as nature's hidden champions, they conveniently control important physiological processes and behaviors of the host, therefore regulating the dynamics of the entire community.
Parasites in dogs are not rare, and they may be found either internally or externally. The presence of these parasites can become so irritating to dogs that it can begin to cause serious health problems.
Internal parasites like intestinal worms, live inside the body of an animal and could be transferred in various ways affecting various organs.
External parasites like ticks and fleas, live on the host's body and produce infestation.
The symptoms of parasites in a dog vary depending on the type of parasite, where it lives, and how severe the infestation is. These parasites produce symptoms ranging from mild discomfort to intermittent loose stool, cases of anemia, secondary infections, malnutrition, and skin disease.
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The presence of most intestinal parasites would not produce symptoms until the condition has become very severe. Regular fecal examination and preventive care will help detect parasites when they are in their early stage. Weight loss, diarrhea, vomiting, scooting, lethargy, coughing, difficulty breathing, and worms are signs to watch out for.
Various types of parasites can affect our pets, and understanding the impact of each of them would help us know why we need to protect our pets from them, I think I should do a post in that regard.
Cancer: Cancer is another very common reason why a pet could drastically lose weight. According to Wilson-Robles, the symptoms of cancer experienced by man are closely the same as what pets experience, but the only difference here is that our pets are unable to express how they feel.
The most common symptom is a lump or a bump found during examinations at home, it could be an enlarged lymph node, limping, or pain. Weight loss, decreased appetite, and fatigue are also common in the presence of cancer.
Grateful for the better vaccines we now have, better leash laws, better wellness care, and most importantly people are getting more responsible. So pets now live longer than they used to.
Heart Disease: The presence of heart disease is a complex issue, there are different types of heart disease each with its types and symptoms, and following that, are different forms of diagnosis and treatments too.
Heart disease could be hereditary, continental, or acquired. Noticing symptoms of a heart disease in cats for instance may be quite difficult and this is because they are good at hiding illness, so observing them closely would help you detect the symptoms on time and get treatment. In a cat one would observe; loss of appetite, weight loss, lethargy, breathing problems, sudden hind leg paralysis, and sometimes even sudden collapse. (Detailed post on heart disease coming soon)
Several factors like; metabolic disorders, kidney disease, and diabetes mellitus are strong reasons that could make a pet lose weight, and of course, each of them needs to be analyzed deeply.
References
knutsfordvetsurgery.co.uk/common
igb-berlin.de/en/news/parasites-influence
roguepetscience.com/blogs/dog-health