An osteosarcoma (OS) or osteogenic sarcoma (OGS) is a cancerous tumor in a bone. Specifically, it is an aggressive malignant neoplasm that arises from primitive transformed cells of mesenchymal origin and that exhibits osteoblastic differentiation and produces malignant osteoid.
Hemangiosarcoma is a rapidly growing, highly invasive variety of cancer that occurs almost exclusively in dogs, and only rarely in cats, horses, mice, or humans. It is a sarcoma arising from the lining of blood vessels; that is, blood-filled channels and spaces are commonly observed microscopically. A frequent cause of death is the rupturing of this tumor, causing the patient to rapidly bleed to death.
Neutering, from the Latin neuter, is the removal of a non-human animal's reproductive organ, either all of it or a considerably large part. The male-specific term is castration, while spaying is usually reserved for female animals. Colloquially, both terms are often referred to as fixing. In male horses, castrating is referred to as gelding. An animal that has not been neutered is sometimes referred to as entire or intact.
Pyometra or pyometritis is a uterine infection. Though it is most commonly known as a disease of the unaltered female dog, it is also a notable human disease. It is also seen in female cattle, horses, goats, sheep, swine, cats, rabbits, hamsters, ferrets, rats and guinea pigs. Pyometra is an important disease to be aware of for any dog or cat owner because of the sudden nature of the disease and the deadly consequences if left untreated. It has been compared to acute appendicitis in humans, because both are essentially empyemas within an abdominal organ.
A canine transmissible venereal tumor (CTVT), also known as a transmissible venereal tumor (TVT), canine transmissible venereal sarcoma (CTVS), sticker tumor and infectious sarcoma, is a histiocytic tumor of the external genitalia of the dog and other canines, and is transmitted from animal to animal during mating. It is one of only three known transmissible cancers in mammals; the others are devil facial tumor disease, a cancer which occurs in Tasmanian devils, and contagious reticulum cell sarcoma of the Syrian hamster.
The health of dogs is a well studied area in veterinary medicine.
Lymphoma (lymphosarcoma) in animals is a type of cancer defined by a proliferation of malignant lymphocytes within solid organs such as the lymph nodes, bone marrow, liver and spleen. The disease also may occur in the eye, skin, and gastrointestinal tract.
A mammary tumor is a neoplasm originating in the mammary gland. It is a common finding in older female dogs and cats that are not spayed, but they are found in other animals as well. The mammary glands in dogs and cats are associated with their nipples and extend from the underside of the chest to the groin on both sides of the midline. There are many differences between mammary tumors in animals and breast cancer in humans, including tumor type, malignancy, and treatment options. The prevalence in dogs is about three times that of women. In dogs, mammary tumors are the second most common tumor over all and the most common tumor in female dogs with a reported incidence of 3.4%. Multiple studies have documented that spaying female dogs when young greatly decreases their risk of developing mammary neoplasia when aged. Compared with female dogs left intact, those spayed before puberty have 0.5% of the risk, those spayed after one estrous cycle have 8.0% of the risk, and dogs spayed after two estrous cycles have 26.0% of the risk of developing mammary neoplasia later in life. Overall, unspayed female dogs have a seven times greater risk of developing mammary neoplasia than do those that are spayed. While the benefit of spaying decreases with each estrous cycle, some benefit has been demonstrated in female dogs even up to 9 years of age. There is a much lower risk in male dogs and a risk in cats about half that of dogs.
The dog is a domesticated descendant of the wolf. Also called the domestic dog, it is derived from the extinct Pleistocene wolf; the gray wolf is the dog's closest living relative. The dog was the first species to be domesticated by humans. Experts estimate that hunter-gatherers domesticated dogs more than 15,000 years ago, which was before the development of agriculture. Due to their long association with humans, dogs have expanded to a large number of domestic individuals and gained the ability to thrive on a starch-rich diet that would be inadequate for other canids.
An anal sac adenocarcinoma is an uncommon and aggressive malignant tumor found in dogs that arises from the apocrine glandular tissue of anal sac. The disease exists in cats as well, but is much less common in that species. They are the second most common cancerous cause of hypercalcaemia in dogs, following T-cell lymphoma.
Canine reproduction is the process of sexual reproduction in domestic dogs, wolves, coyotes and other canine species.
A transmissible cancer is a cancer cell or cluster of cancer cells that can be transferred between individuals without the involvement of an infectious agent, such as an oncovirus. The evolution of transmissible cancer has occurred naturally in other animal species, but human cancer transmission is rare. This transfer is typically between members of the same species or closely related species.
Aging in dogs varies from breed to breed, and affects the dog's health and physical ability. As with humans, advanced years often bring changes in a dog's ability to hear, see, and move about easily. Skin condition, appetite, and energy levels often degrade with geriatric age. Medical conditions such as cancer, kidney failure, arthritis, dementia, and joint conditions, and other signs of old age may appear.
Veterinary oncology is a subspecialty of veterinary medicine that deals with cancer diagnosis and treatment in animals. Cancer is a major cause of death in pet animals. In one study, 45% of the dogs that reached 10 years of age or older died of cancer.
Cancer in cats is the leading cause of death among cats. It is caused by uncontrolled cell growth, and affects a wide range of cell types and organs in the body. Feline cancer initially manifests as a lump or bump on any parts of the body. It rapidly grows in the affected cell, attaches itself to the tissue under the skin in that area, and, depending on the tumour, it can spread to other parts of the body. Although cancer accounts for approximately 32% of deaths in cats over ten years old, it can be successfully treated if diagnosed early.
The most common bone tumor is called osteosarcoma, and typically affects middle-age to older dogs of large and giant breeds. Osteosarcoma is less common in cats. Osteosarcoma is an aggressive cancer that can develop in any bone of the body but the majority is seen in the limbs.
Many types of skin tumors, both benign (noncancerous) and malignant (cancerous), exist in cats and dogs. Approximately 20–40% of primary skin tumors are malignant in dogs and 50–65% are malignant in cats. Not all forms of skin cancer in cats and dogs are caused by sun exposure, but it can happen occasionally. On dogs, the nose and pads of the feet contain sensitive skin and no fur to protect from the sun. Also, cats and dogs with thin or light-colored coats are at a higher risk of sun damage over their entire bodies.
Aggressive lymphoma, also known as high-grade lymphoma, is a group of fast growing non-Hodgkin lymphoma.
As in the human practice of veganism, vegan dog foods are those formulated with the exclusion of ingredients that contain or were processed with any part of an animal, or any animal byproduct. Vegan dog food may incorporate the use of fruits, vegetables, cereals, legumes including soya, nuts, vegetable oils, as well as any other non-animal based foods.
