Guest maggiemay Posted May 11, 2009 Share Posted May 11, 2009 The below excerpt was published in our local group's newsletter recently, as an explanation for why playgroups are cancelled on hot days. I think a heat rule is a good idea in general, but was curious as to how common this condition is in retired hounds? Thanks. Following on from last newsletter’s informa- tion about the Heat Policy, it seems fitting to include information on a condition known as Acidosis. The following information has been summarized and paraphrased from Care of the Retired and Racing Greyhound and a Vetsearch International article Acidosis Alert. The technical term is actually Exertional Rhabdomyolysis and it is primarily a meta- bolic disease of healthy, young athletes. It is also recognized in horses and humans, in retired greyhounds that are excessively exer- cised without being properly conditioned or in greyhounds that escape from the owners and run to exhaustion. Certain environmental and managerial cir- cumstances seem to predispose greyhounds to “Acidosis”. These are: ♦ A lack of physical fitness in relationship to exercise load ♦ The tendency of more highly strung grey- hounds to become tense and excitable prior to running ♦ Hot or humid climactic conditions during travelling and exercise ♦ Excessive frequency of exercising in an otherwise physically fit greyhound ♦ A low potassium content in the body It is apparent that the origins of condition has many contributing factors with the same end result of varying degrees of muscle cell leakage or even death. Muscle groups may appear swollen and tense and the dog finds it painful to change position and move around. Mus- cle protein may leak from muscles into the urine giving it a red-brown appear- ance. Dog do not have to be unfit to de- velop acidosis. A fit dog raced or trained excessively can also develop acidosis. The condition can be arbitrarily subdivided into three categories Hyperacute, Acute and Subacute. While the following infor- mation has been written predominantly for racing greyhounds, the information about environmental and managerial factors applies equally to retired dogs. Hyperacute Acidosis – this form tends to be seen after an unfit dog is raced or trialled. When an unfit greyhound is sub- jected to excessive fast work there is an enormous production of lactic acid in the muscles. The intracellular buffers in the muscle cell are unable to neutralise such a large amount of lactic acid and acidosis develops. In this situation the dog needs to be treated with intravenous fluids and electrolytes by a veterinarian. Acute Acidosis – this form also follows a race or trial. Greyhounds that are either highly-strung or tense or racing under hot and humid climatic conditions can de- velop acute acidosis. These greyhounds spend a lot of time barking and panting and this can lead to loss of the electro- lytes that buffer (neutralise) lactic acid. The greyhound is primarily a non- sweating animal and when the environ- mental conditions are hot and humid it has an increased difficulty in getting rid of heat. A veterinarian should also treat acute acidosis. Subacute Acidosis - it is thought that this form of less seen acidosis is due to a deficiency in potassium that can develop in greyhounds trialling or racing too fre- quently. The immediate treatment is aimed at minimising any damage to the kidney from the myoglobin in the urine. It is also important to keep the urine alka- line. For this you can use Neutradex. This is a special formulation of buffering salts designed for use after racing to flush the system and aid recovery. Of course please remember that this in- formation can never replace personal veterinary attention. If you feel your grey- hound may have a case of acidosis please seek the services and opinions of a qualified veterinarian. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest KennelMom Posted May 11, 2009 Share Posted May 11, 2009 (edited) I don't know how common it is...the only anecdotal evidence I have is having been to lots of playgroups with lots of dogs over the years and I've never seen or heard of it happening. Even in the summer...though playgroups in the summer here are at night and with swimming pools or very early in the morning. Dogs are usually pretty good about self-regulating and not pushing too hard in a playgroup situation. I think you run into problems in events like lure coursing or amateur racing (or real racing) when a dog may be unfit and outrun their body because they have a "bunny" to chase. That always raises their intensity level. In lure coursing the runs are non-stop 800-1000+ yards (compared to a 650+/- in a greyhound race) and the dogs run it at least twice, sometimes 3 or 4 times in the course of a day. Obviously not something you want an unfit greyhound doing. But playgroup...usually not an issue that I've seen. Edited May 11, 2009 by KennelMom Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest GreysAndMoreGreys Posted May 11, 2009 Share Posted May 11, 2009 I agree with Heather, the chances of a hound having this problem from Play group are pretty slim. Even in race kennels you might have 2 or 3 hounds a year that "run their backs off" as it's called in the kennels Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest greytkidsmom Posted May 11, 2009 Share Posted May 11, 2009 It is not common as long as you exercise common sense. There was a post about a year ago about an inactive dog who had been taken on a several-mile run on a warm day by a well-intentioned friend. I don't think the outcome was very good for the dog. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Greyt_dog_lover Posted May 11, 2009 Share Posted May 11, 2009 Would you think that it would at least be helpful in giving your hound a bannana or two before a summer playgroup? Just thinking the additional potassium would help. Thats what I used to do before I would lift weights in the military, it helped to keep the angry (craps) muscles at bay. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Batmom Posted May 11, 2009 Share Posted May 11, 2009 Not likely to see that condition so much as you might see heat exhaustion and heat stroke, which can be fatal. You'd be more likely to see any of them amongst dogs who are very competitive about running and so forth; dogs who run a bit and then just hang out together, not so much. Quote Star aka Starz Ovation (Ronco x Oneco Maggie*, litter #48538), Coco aka Low Key (Kiowa Mon Manny x Party Hardy, litter # 59881), and mom in IllinoisWe miss Reko Batman (Trouper Zeke x Marque Louisiana), 11/15/95-6/29/06, Rocco the thistledown whippet, 04/29/93-10/14/08, Reko Zema (Mo Kick x Reko Princess), 8/16/98-4/18/10, the most beautiful girl in the whole USA, my good egg Joseph aka Won by a Nose (Oneco Cufflink x Buy Back), 09/22/2003-03/01/2013, and our gentle sweet Gidget (Digitizer, Dodgem by Design x Sobe Mulberry), 1/29/2006-11/22/2014, gone much too soon. Never forgetting CJC's Buckshot, 1/2/07-10/25/10. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
turbotaina Posted May 11, 2009 Share Posted May 11, 2009 It's not super common, but I do know of greyhounds who have had mild ER after play group or dog park time. None have required hospitalization and were fine with rest and fluids. We had one dog come off a haul in severe ER and die a few days later, in spite of intensive supportive care - his kidneys were shot. So, keep your dogs fit and exercise common sense and you probably won't have any problems. Note that while hot, humid conditions may contribute to ER, they do not have to be present in order for ER to occur. The dog we pulled off the haul came to us in the middle of winter and heat was not a contributor at all. Dogs who have had ER may be prone to further attacks (which is what we think happened to the dog off our haul). At a playgroup in warm conditions, I'd be much more concerned about heat exhaustion/heatstroke and malignant hyperthermia (stress/heat induced). Quote Meredith with Heyokha (HUS Me Teddy) and Crow (Mike Milbury). Missing Turbo (Sendahl Boss), Pancho, JoJo, and "Fat Stacks" Juana, the psycho kitty. Canku wakan kin manipi."Those who can make you believe absurdities can make you commit atrocities." - Voltaire Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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