What’s in your dog? Screening tests.

I have had a busy week and,  as always, one patient with a history of vomiting. Since that is a common complaint the challenge is to determine which ones are emergencies and which will pass. In further consultation with the owner, the invariable question arises,  “Is anything missing?" This patient, bright and alert, incidentally ate a golf glove approximately a month ago. So here are the lateral films. Do you see anything in the stomach.

Well, we did not know either since there is so much food in there. Yet I knew the white/ metal objects were not normal! Sooo, we gave an injection of apomorphine to induce vomiting and this is what we found. Surprise!!!! 

This is the golf glove consumed a month ago.  Just as I do not often know what an animal eats, I often do not know the genetic makeup of a patient, their allergic tendencies, and thus, their health risks.

What is out there for basic breed/genetic testing of Animals?

Royal Canin (yes, the food manufacturer) has a Genetic Health Analysis that reviews basic risks and breed background. I recently ran this on my own dog, Taco Belle and received these results. 

I am looking for more specific breed associated diseases. Is there a link?

Yes, I would look at the following sites. 

   http://www.offa.org/dna_alltest_b.html

https://www.vetstream.com/canis/corporate/html/Inheriteddiseases/Genetictestsforhereditarydiseases.htm

WHAT’S OUT THERE FOR CAT TESTING?

https://www.vgl.ucdavis.edu/services/cat/

What do veterinarians use for more specific genetic testing?

The Metabolic Genetic Disease Laboratory at the University of Pennsylvania 

http://research.vet.upenn.edu/penngen

Similarly Cornell's Comparative Coagulation Laboratory offers functional testing for many bleeding disorders 

http://ahdc.vet.cornell.edu/  

 Comparative Neuromuscular Laboratory in San Diego for neurological 

http://vetneuromuscular.ucsd.edu/

What are some of the laboratories that have skeptical results?

 Here is a pet store “off the shelf’ allergy test based on hair samples and saliva swabs collected from a 6 month old dog.  Scientifically, positive results of food allergy blood testing do not correlate with clinical food allergy in dogs. Note the disclaimer and allergy to white wine among other questionable results. 

With the known inaccuracy of food allergy blood testing in companion animals, it makes more sense to spend the pet owner’s time and funds on the prescription or home cooked hypoallergenic diet trial which is both diagnostic and potentially therapeutic. I wish we could call these tests "predatory health misinformation," sort of like predatory lending.

WHAT IS THE PROBLEM WITH VETERINARY vs HUMAN LABORATORIES?

Many upscale “veterinary laboratories” are not well regulated and thus are accountable to no one. I would be skeptical of any lab that is providing animal testing with no scientific VALIDATION of the results (from reputable sources). Testimonials alone are not evidence based medicine. Clearly the obvious question is, "where is the science and does it make sense?"

Betsy Sigmon DVM, Diplomate ABVP Canine & Feline 

Creature Comforts Animal Hospital PLLC

Cary, NC

My thanks for photos to Terry Seaks sharing Puffball the cat  and Tammy Butler sharing her Rescue Dog January staring at statue with the blog followers. Memphis Woodall is a repeat performance from last week now wearing antlers.