3:34 PM
To that end, because Dr Eick has not had experience with a Chrondrodysplasic dog before, I'm doing what I did when we started taking Dante to her (Dante was her first ever Akita too)- I'm looking up and printing out information for her.
Except... I'm having little to no luck.}:/ The Akita Club of America website lists NOTHING as far as Chrondrodysplasia in Akitas. That surprises me, as lately quite a few have been taken in by Rescues.
I'm having all sorts of luck finding information on Chrondro in HUMANS, even in Malamutes, which isn't bad, as it's another Spitz family dog and distantly related to the Akita, and the Havanese.
But... nothing on Chrondro in Akitas.}:/
Time to ask the Akita Rescue list for links, I guess.
I will say though, the more I read up on this disorder, the more thankful I am that it's relatively mild in Caena, compared to all the things that she could have, that could be wrong with her. Wow.
CD - DEFINED
Chondrodysplasia Punctata (often referred to as CD) is the name given to a group of multisystemic, metabolic disorders of skeletal development, primarily characterized by mild to moderate growth deficiency, short stature, and bilateral or asymmetric shortening and/or bowing of the legs. Chondrodysplasia means, literally, “faulty cartilage”, and punctata refers to the punctate calcifications seen in the epiphyseal cartilage. Chondrodysplasia is generally considered to have a genetic basis. Different forms have different modes of inheritance; some forms are autosomal recessive, some x-linked recessive, some autosomal dominant, and some x-linked dominant.
There are many symptoms associated with chondrodysplasia- the skeletal/orthopedic problems that characterize it, ocular problems (cataracts, retinal abnormalities, lens luxation (detached lens), microphthalmia (small eyes), nystagmus (involuntary, rhythmical, repeated oscillations of one or both eyes) and glaucoma. Other symptoms are various skin problems including patchy alopecia (hair loss), abnormalities
of the skull and trachea, short necks, hearing loss, and patellar (knee) luxation are all known to be associated with the disease. Some forms of CD are also associated with various organ abnormalities, primarily the heart, liver and kidneys.
Chondrodysplasia is usually part of a syndrome; in other words, all dogs may not have all the associated symptoms. Symptoms range from very mild (slight asymmetry or bowing of the legs) to severe, which is pretty easily recognizable, and is often associated with multiple health problems. Severely affected dogs may require extensive orthopedic surgery to correct various skeletal problems, usually before a year of age.