German Shepherds - Choosing a German Shepherd

German Shepherds - Choosing a German Shepherd

By: Dr. Dawn Ruben


Common Diseases and Disorders

Even though the German shepherd dog is a strong muscular breed, they may be prone to a variety of ailments.

  • Gastric torsion, also known as bloat, is a life-threatening sudden illness associated with the stomach filling with air and twisting.

  • Hip dysplasia is a malformation of the hip joint that results in pain, lameness and arthritis.

  • Elbow dysplasia is the abnormal development of certain parts of the elbow joint during the growing phase.

  • Epilepsy is a seizure disorder, which develops between the ages of 2 to 5 years.

  • Panosteitis is an inflammation of the long bones during growth. It results in pain and lameness until the dog matures.

  • Pyoderma refers to deep skin infections.

  • Hot spots are areas of itchy moist skin irritation.


  • Pannus is a disease of the eye resulting in inflammation.

  • Corneal dystrophy is a primary, inherited, bilateral (both sides), symmetrical condition of the cornea that is not accompanied by corneal inflammation or systemic disease.

  • Degenerative myelopathy is a progressive degenerative disease of the spinal cord that slowly results in weakness and eventually inability to use the rear legs.

     
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