Natural Pet Health

Practically all conventional medications have side effects. Some side effects are self limiting and mild but others can be severe. Prednisone is often projected as a wonder drug that is used to treat numerous conditions in dogs.

The drug affects almost all parts of the body and is instrumental in remission of autoimmune diseases in cases where the fundamental cause cannot be treated. It is used as a standalone drug or as a supplementary treatment for conditions like allergies, respiratory disorders, Cushings disease in dogs, Addison’s disease and various types of cancers.

Addison’s disease in dogs is an endocrinal disease that is caused by a reduction of the steroid hormones. It is also referred as hypoadrenocorticism, a term that implies adrenal insufficiency. It is entirely the opposite of Cushing’s syndrome in dogs, which is caused by hyper-function of the adrenal glands or an increase in the production of hormones.

The adrenal glands are triangle shaped glands that sit on top of the kidneys. The glands are made up of two layers – the outer layer is the cortex and the inner layer is the medulla. The cortex secretes corticosteroid hormones. The medulla is part of the sympathetic nervous system and secretes epinephrine in response to stress.

Most diseases that strike your dog as he gets older are basically diseases of captivity. What this means is that these are the health conditions that are caused due to the fact that your dog has been kept in captivity as against the wild and has been exposed to environmental toxins that he would otherwise have been a stranger to.

With better medical facilities our pets live longer than ever before. This is definitely much longer than they would have lived in the wild. However, this comes at a price that they have to pay with serious illness like Cushing’s disease and cancer. While cancer is a dreaded disease, Cushing’s is equally frightening in terms of the problems it creates for the pet and the owner.