Von Williebrand Disease

What is Von Williebrand Disease (vWD)?

In essence, vWD is a bleeding disorder in where the dog is missing a substance in the clotting process that allows them to heal properly. As a result, when injured the animal is prone to excessive bleeding.

Symptoms

As mentioned earlier, the dog will suffer from excessive bleeding when injured. Thus, this is the primary symptom of this disorder. Other symptoms related to this disease include:

• Bleeding of the gums
• Nose bleeds
• Bleeding in the stomach and intestines (in this case, blood will be noticed in the dog’s urine or stool)
• Arthritis type symptoms may occur due to bleeding in the joints

Causes

Unfortunately, vWD is an inherited condition or passed on by the parents. It is more common in such small dog breeds as:

• Shetland Sheepdogs
• Poodles
• Scottish Terriers
• Cairn Terriers

• German Shepherds
• Golden Retrievers
• German Shorthaired Pointers
• Doberman Pinschers

Treatment and Prevention

Seemingly, the most credible way to treat this disorder is by way of blood transfusions from dog’s who are not carriers. Medications have been used in order to aide with bleeding. Due to vWD’s relevance with hypothyroidism, thyroid hormone replacement methods have been known to help as well. The best method of prevention for this disease is not to breed carriers of vWD. Please consult with your vet for further information regarding this disorder.

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Von Williebrand Disease