Doug Robinson
UKC Forum Member
Registered: Jun 2003
Location: Warsaw, New York
Posts: 4242 |
Rickets
Rickets is a disease of the bony growth plate and thus only affects young, growing animals. The most common causes are dietary insufficiencies of phosphorus or vitamin D. Calcium deficiencies can also cause rickets, and while this rarely occurs naturally, poorly balanced diets deficient in calcium have been said to cause the disease. As in most diets causing osteodystrophies, the abnormal calcium hosphorus ratio is most likely the cause.
Animals fed all-meat diets are commonly affected. Kittens fed beef heart exclusively develop locomotor disturbances within 4 wk, even though the high content of digestible protein (>50% on a weight basis) and fat promotes rapid growth, the animals appear well nourished, and their coat maintains a good luster. The predominant clinical signs are reluctance to move, posterior lameness, and ataxia. The kittens often stand with characteristic deviation of the paws. The skeletal disease becomes progressively more severe after 5–14 wk. The kittens become quiet and reluctant to play; they assume a sitting position or sternal recumbency with the hindlimbs abducted. Normal activities may result in the sudden onset of severe lameness due to incomplete or folding fractures of one or more bones. Lameness is the initial functional disturbance in growing dogs and may vary from a slight limp to inability to walk. The bones are painful on palpation, and folding fractures of long bones and vertebrae are common.
Swine kept in confined housing are susceptible to rickets because of their rapid growth rate combined with lack of exposure to sunlight. Furthermore, diets for market swine are formulated to maximize growth of lean muscle mass with little consideration of requirements for bone formation.
Diets with excessive amounts of calcium (three times normal concentrations) have caused rickets-like signs in growing Great Danes. Several other bone pathologies such as retained cartilaginous cores, osteochondrosis, and stunted growth were seen in these dogs as well.
Treatment
Correction of the diet is the primary treatment for rickets. The prognosis is good in the absence of pathologic fractures or irreversible damage to the physes. If the animals are housed, exposure to sunlight (ultraviolet radiation) will also increase production of vitamin D3 precursors.
Many homemade diets for dogs are deficient in minerals and have altered calciumhosphorus ratios. Therefore, a high-quality commercial food, or one designed by a credentialed veterinary nutritionist, is recommended.
__________________
Doug Robinson
Past Home of:
GRNITECH FCH GRCH ROBINSON'S SILVERTONE BLUSPECK HTX DNA-P
GRNITECH GRCH PKC CH ROBINSON'S RED LINDSAY
NITECH GRFCH GRWCH GRCH ROBINSON'S CROOKTAIL KATE
GRNITECH GRCH ROBINSON'S CIDERHOUSE LULU
NITECH GRCH GRFCH GRWCH RED RIDGE'S SUPER SHOCK Z HTX2
NITECH GRCH ROBINSON'S OATKA VALLEY ANNIE (BLUSPECK DAUGHTER)
NITECH GRCH ROBINSON'S JJ THUNDER SUE
Current
CH PR ROBINSON'S OATKA VALLEY JUNEBUG - (GRNITECH PKC CH RIVER BOTTOM'S CRACKER JACK X NITECH GRCH ROBINSON'S OATKA VALLEY ANNIE)
Report this post to a moderator | IP: Logged
|
BACKWOODS BOYS KENNELS 
03-13-2015 06:18 PM
