Rottweilers Common Health Issues And Symptoms

Rottweilers Common Health Issues And Symptoms: Rottweilers are also prone to some diseases including Hip & Elbow Dysplasia, OCD, and Bloat.

Just like any other dog breed Rottweilers are also prone to some health problems. Some of these diseases can be rare whereas some can be common. It is important that you should get a Rottweiler puppy from a good and reputed dog breeder as some of the diseases could be hereditary or genetic. Such health problems are inherited which means if parents of a particular dog are suffering from a particular health problem it is possible that the puppy can also get affected by it. Here we will list common health problems found that Rottweilers are prone to, including common eye problems, stomach, and skin conditions.

Rottweiler is one of the most popular breeds in the world, the popularity of Rottweilers is increasing day by day and which cause more demand for Rottweilers throughout the world, more demand of Rottweiler cause over breeding of this breed.

Many of these health problems and diseases were caused by poor care and over breeding of them. It’s necessary that if you own a pet you should take good care of them and provide their lifestyle good.

Besides their heavy and muscular large body, they are very active and playful. These working dogs can be affected by many diseases and health problems, if you have a Rottweiler as a pet its better you notice such behavior and notice symptoms of those health problems and diseases.

Size of a Rottweiler

Male :

Weight – 50-60 kg

Height – 61-69 cm

Female:

Weight – 35-48 kg

Height – 56-63 cm

Life Span:

A Rottweiler generally lives up to 8 to 11 years.

Health problems found in Rottweilers-

Some of the common diseases or health problems associated with Rottweilers are listed below:

Cancer
Elbow dysplasia
Hip dysplasia
Coldwater tail
Wet Eczema
Aortic stenosis
Entropion
Ectropion
Cruciate ligament rupture
Osteochondritis Dissecans (OCD)
Juvenile Laryngeal Paralysis & Polyneuropathy (JLLP)
Colitis (inflammatory bowel disease)
Bloat (gastrointestinal syndrome)
Eye diseases

We will know about all of these health problems in detail.

Cancer in Rottweilers

One of the most common reasons for death in Rottweilers is cancer Cancer (all kinds, but especially bone cancer) affects half of the Rottweilers. In most of the cases, the cancer was found as liver, lymphoma, spleen and bone cancer.

Canine cancer can be cured as in humans, a tumor can be removed and destroyed by various therapies which are quite expensive.

You will never want that your dog can go through this dangerous disease. To prevent cancer you should notice your dog regularly and take your dog to routine checkups to ensure that tumors are forming or not.

If tumors are forming you can cure it by its early stage which means less risk of the life of the dog.

Proper vaccination can also prevent cancer from forming, so it will be better if you will take your dog for proper vaccination from the dog’s early age.

Symptoms of Canine Cancer

There are many symptoms of cancer in a dog but it is a little difficult to be sure that your dog is suffering from cancer or not, so whenever you think that your dog is suffering from such early symptoms it will be better than you should take him to a good Vet.

Wounds on the body of a dog do not heal: The wounds on the body of the dog don’t heal by licking by the dog himself or any other medicine at a particular time.

Sudden weight loss: The weight of the dog began to fall suddenly only in a few days.

low appetite: This symptom result in loss of appetite and the dog stops eating food even his favorite food.

Bad odor– Uncomfortable smell from the dog can be smelled.

Bleeding from any of the body’s opening: This symptom can cause a dog to bleed from any opening of the body.

Difficulty in urinating and breathing: Difficulty occurs in breathing, defecating, and urinating to the dog.

Tiredness and loss of stamina in a dog: The dog becomes lazy and looks sad, loss of stamina in a dog can be observed.

Abnormal swellings: The part of the dog’s body swollen up and lumps formed on the body.

Elbow and Hip Dysplasia in Rottweilers

Hip dysplasia is a common problem that a Rottweiler owner should be aware of it usually occurs in heavy dogs like Rottweiler when there is displacement between hip joints and the thigh bone.
Elbow dysplasia is just like hip dysplasia it also occurs when there is a displacement between the joint and the bone. Symptoms of both hip dysplasia and elbow dysplasia are the same.

To Prevent this problem an owner should notice the physical condition of dogs like his standing position and his way of walking. If you observe such changes in your dog it is necessary that you should take your dog to Vet and you should show X-ray images of your dog to him.

Symptoms of Hip Dysplasia and Elbow Dysplasia

Pain
Rigidity
Decreased activity and decreased motion
Looseness of joints
Loss of muscle mass of that area
Change in the standing position

Coldwater tail in Rottweiler

A limber tail or cold water tail is a problem mostly in working dogs like Rottweiler; in this situation, the tail of the dog becomes almost dead from the base temporarily. It is caused by swimming in water that is too cold and it also occurs in dogs that are living in cold areas like snowy places.

After proper rest and a particular period of time, the tail becomes normal.

Symptoms of Coldwater tail

pain on the base of the tail
flaccid tail

Wet eczema in Rottweilers

wet eczema or hot spot eczema is caused by a bacterial infection, it is very common in Rottweilers and it spreads very quickly. It can simply be caused by other dogs like stray dogs.

It progresses into weeping and bleeding mass because of self-scratching and licking of that particular area by the dog himself.

Treatment is done to stop it, you have to wash that part-time to time to remove bacteria and remove some hair around the wound caused by eczema.

You have to stop your dog from scratching or biting the wound. Apply hydrocortisone spray or hydrocortisone cream to stop the itching. Eczema affected part will heal after some time and if it doesn’t you should take your pet to a vet for treatment quickly because it spread very fast.

Symptoms of Wet Eczema

the dog will start licking, scratching the area due to excessive irritation and itching.
After some time the affected area will become red and swollen.

Aortic stenosis in Rottweilers

Aortic stenosis affects the cardiovascular system and generally, it is by birth in a puppy or developed within the initial 6 months but this heart problem is genetic. This tends to get worse year by year. It occurs when there is a partial obstruction in the flow of blood as it leaves the left ventricle to the main blood vessel called the aorta that carries blood to the rest of the body.

Because of this difficulty, a dog’s heart has to work harder than a normal dog’s heart does to keep the normal blood flow. This shows no symptoms, this can cause heart failure, fainting, and sudden death.

The dog suffering from Aortic stenosis needs special care and regular health checkups but unfortunately, there is not an exact cure for this heart problem.

Entropion and Ectropion in Rottweilers

They are prone to two eye disease called Entropion and Ectropion are two eye condition that is opposite to each other and can happen to a dog at any age as the result or effect of any other disease or it can also occur genetically.

Entropion is rolling inwards of eyelids which causes eyelashes to rub on the eye’s surface which is painful for a dog because this damages the cornea of a dog’s eye.

Ectropion is rolling outward of the eyelids of a dog’s eye.

These conditions can be corrected by surgery.

Symptoms of Entropion and Ectropion

Due to irritation, a dog’s eyes will become red.
Inward or outward curve of the eyelids.
Watery eyes and the dog will try to rub his eye with his paws due to pain and irritation.

Cruciate ligament rupture in Rottweilers

Sometimes connective tissues called ligament holding parts of hind legs can rupture. It is common in large dogs. This condition can be fixed by surgery.

Its reason can be heavy exercise, sudden turning, falling while running, jumping and running fast, etc.

Symptoms of Cruciate ligament rupture

A dog goes lame on his hind leg
Less activity level
Pain

Osteochondritis Dissecans (OCD)

OCD is a problem related to the joints of the body of the dog. It starts at a young age around 4 -6 months of age when the cartilage is formed into joints and growth of bones is taking place and during this time some bones sometimes split, grow too fast or shape without alignment can cause some bones to form abnormally, press against each other and cause some of them to break. It is very painful for the dog.

Symptoms of OCD are the same as Elbow and Hip Dysplasia.

Juvenile Laryngeal Paralysis & Polyneuropathy (JLLP)

This disorder is most common in Rottweilers.

Juvenile Laryngeal Paralysis & Polyneuropathy (JLLP) is a neurological disorder, it is a genetic disease.

It starts from one of the longest nerves in the body that supplies the muscles of the voice box, called the larynx, and then causes weakness in muscles or even paralyzes them. It also causes difficulty in breathing and affected dog breath with noise.

Then this affects the muscles of the back legs and causes that dog difficulty in getting up and walking.

Another symptom of JLLP is that the affected dog seems to have smaller eyes than normal.

Colitis (inflammatory bowel disease)

Colitis is one of the most common diseases in dogs, it can cause chronic diarrhea to them.

The main causes of colitis are

Taking contaminated food, parasite, eating things that are not intended for dogs or poor eating habits, infection and stress, it can also be spread by being in contact with infected dogs.

Symptoms of Colitis (inflammatory bowel disease)

Soft and loose feces and sometimes with blood
Weight loss
Increase defecating
Pain during defecating
Irregular and different eating habits

Bloat (gastrointestinal syndrome)

Rottweilers are one of the main breeds which are affected by an emergency gastrointestinal syndrome called bloat, this can kill a dog within hours.

In bloat the stomach of the dog gets bloated and they repeatedly try to vomit but failed to do it. This means a dog whose stomach is bloated should immediately be brought to a vet as soon as possible.

In this type of situation, you have to recognize and act quickly. If you failed this can be a threat to your dog’s life and can kill him.

Any dog can have bloat but it is more common in large dog breeds like German shepherds, Rottweiler, Akita, Great Dane, and many more.

Symptoms of Bloat

Bloated abdomen
Excessive saliva
An affected dog becomes Uncomfortable
Trying and failing to vomit
Difficulty in breathing
Rapid heart and pulse rate

How to keep your Rottweiler healthy and happy?

Rottweiler is becoming more and more famous day by day so it is very normal that breeders will try to over breed them just for profit and such poorly bred dog are not healthy and develops various health problem which is not been identified by a common man. So it becomes mandatory that you should concern a vet and carefully examine whether the puppy or dog is healthy or not before buying them.

A proper diet is one of the main important parts of making a Rottweiler healthy, a healthy diet not only makes him strong but also helps him to strengthen up his immune system and a healthy immune system means a healthy dog. A dog’s diet should contain a proper amount of fat, proteins, and other essential nutrients.
Daily exercising is the main factor to keep your dog fit, exercising boosts metabolism and makes the respiratory system of the dog healthy which means exercising acts as an essential factor in the digestion of food. Exercising also prevents a dog from being overweight and helps in maintaining the proper weight of the body.
Regular checkups and proper vaccination can prevent some life-threatening diseases like cancer from occurring and can save your dog’s life. When a dog is brought to routine checkups regularly many of the diseases were stopped to their initial stage which not only saves a dog’s life but also prevents the big expenditure.

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Rottweilers Common Health Issues And Symptoms

Rottweilers Common Health Issues And Symptoms

Size of a Rottweiler