Health Issues                 

Hip dysplasia is a congenital disease that affects mostly large breed dogs.  It causes weakness and lameness to the rear quarters, and eventually leads to painful arthritis.  This arthritis goes by several names; degenerative joint disease, arthrosis, osteoarthritis.

The knee cap (patella) normally fits into a groove in the thigh bone (femur). The patella slides up and down in this groove as the leg bends and straightens. Patellar luxation means that the knee cap has slipped out of the groove. There are several reasons why this happens, including malformation of the groove. Luxation may happen only occasionally, or may happen continuously. The knee cap may pop back into the groove on its own, or your veterinarian may need to push it back into place. Your dog will be lame when the patella is out of place. Over time your dog may develop other degenerative joint changes, such as osteoarthritis.

Distichiasis is a condition in which there is growth of extra eyelashes (cilia) from the glands of the upper or lower eyelid. A hair follicle develops deep within the glands rather than on the skin surface of the eyelid. As the hair grows, it follows the duct of the gland and exits from the gland opening along the smooth surface of the eyelid margin. In many cases, these eyelashes, called distichia, rub on the cornea causing irritation and tearing, and occasionally corneal abrasions.

We feed our dogs Lamb & Rice formula dry dog foods and supplement with a variety of other foods such as  raw foods and vegetables.