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All dog breeds have their health problems--and Boxers are no exception. Cardiomyopathy (CM) symptoms may seem to appear suddenly - quite often, the dog affected had already been affected for some time. For lots of great information--please refer to my links under WHY HOLTER????- HEART DISEASE! below .
A 24 hr holter is a great way to detect early signs of heart disease (ie: cardiomyopathy--CM). A 24 hr holter is just that - its a small piece of recording equipment , attached to electrodes that the dog wears for a 24 hr period.
For a full 24 hrs, this monitor records all heart activity. At the end of the recording - the tape is sent off to a holter technician to be read, and a report issued to the owner of the dog.
It is recommended that a dog start having this test done at 2...and yearly thereafter. Most often, dogs at 2 have no signs of CM (now known as Arrhythmogenic Right Ventricular Cardiomyopathy--ARVC) ...and that is the base reading for the following yearly readings. Many dogs who have ARVC have no early detection signs--the first sign is sudden death. Therefore, holter your dog yearly--the chance of detecting this dreaded disease is highly probable and your dog can be put on appropriate medications....extending his or her life.
To assist reputable breeders and responsible dog owners, we provide rental of our 24 hr holter monitor. The rental fee for a 24 hr period is $55 CDN. To have your tape read - it will cost you between $30 US and $75 US (depending on where you go...and how fast you want it).
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We have found in our journey into the World of Boxers that there are many sources of information. There are great mentors out there--if you choose to find them. If you are looking for Boxer information, please use the following links-- and those pages will link you to more pages--the information is abundant!
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Recently, I had the pleasure of meeting Charlie a 20 month old Boxer --who I was holtering because he'd had an episode of syncope (fainting that occurs when there is a lack of oxygen to the brain) and loss of bladder control (indicates CM). The owners advised me that this was 3 hours after a rabies vaccine! Please note--in Canada we have a choice to vaccinate for Rabies--it is not the law. In the US, many states require this vaccine by law. Look at your lifestyle--do you really need to vaccinate against rabies? Is your pet an inside pet, only outdoors with you, or to do it's 'business', with little or no chance of running into a raccoon or bat that MAY be infected (chances of getting bit by a rabid bat are the same as a human being attacked by a shark). Do you live in the city, on the 15th floor? Maybe you don't need to vaccinate your pet against rabies. |
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No ACEPROMAZINE--the anesthetic |
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NATURAL EARS --training uncropped ears |
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GENETICS Breeding Boxers--colours, traits, etc |
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