Cocker Spaniel with blue eyes
Common health problems in American Cocker Spaniel include deafness, ear infections, food allergies, various eye problems (e.g. dry eye, cherry eye, entropion and ectropion), hypothyroidism, patellar luxation, seborrhea, and certain autoimmune diseases.
Cocker Spaniels are divided into two groups - American Cocker Spaniel and English Cocker Spaniel. American Cocker Spaniels are smaller with a slightly smaller head and shorter nose than English Cocker Spaniels.
Both Cockers originated as hunting dogs; however, over the years, the American Cocker has become primarily a pet while the English Cocker has remained a hunting dog.
Originally bred for hunting birds, the American Cocker is the smallest of 26 dog breeds in the sporting group. It is a popular breed in the U.S.A. (ranked 27th in 2012 according to AKC Dog Registration Statistics).
Cocker spaniels are prone to numerous eye problems. If you have a cocker, therefore, take good care of his/her eyes. Give the eyes a thorough check regularly - pay particular attention to any abnormal reddening, eye discharge, bulging, and signs of pain such as squinting and avoiding being touched.
Common eye problems that tend to affect cocker spaniels include:
In addition to eye problems, cocker spaniels also tend to have ear problems, the most common ones being:
- : Due to their long flappy ears, cockers are prone to ear infections. As well, food allergies, another common health problems for the cockers, also predispose them to ear infections.
- Deafness: There have been reports of congenital deafness in American Cocker Spaniels. Most instances of congenital deafness are caused by the degeneration of blood supply to the inner ear or cochlea three to four weeks after birth. This type of deafness is permanent and may affect one or both ears. A puppy that fails to be woken up by a loud noise is likely to have bilateral deafness. This type of deafness is associated with white pigmentation (i.e. white hair, blue eyes).
Other cocker spaniel health problems include the following:
- Auto-immune hemolytic anemia (AIHA): This is a blood disorder that occurs when red blood cells are destroyed by the immune system faster than the rate at which new ones can be produced, resulting in anemia. The Cocker Spaniel is susceptible to this blood disorder, which occurs most commonly in middle-aged dogs. The condition of AIHA may be mild and hardly noticeable, or it may be sudden in onset and severe.
Symptoms of AIHA are usually vague and indistinct, such as poor appetite, weakness, listlessness, and lethargy. The dog may have a rapid heartbeat and rapid breathing. If you examine his gums, you may notice that they are pale, or they may be yellowish due to jaundice as a result of the breakdown of red blood cells.
Reduced red blood cell counts means reduced oxygen being transported to the organ tissues. Most dogs that die with this condition do so in the first few days due to kidney, liver, or heart failure, or because of a bleeding problem.
Conventional treatment includes the use of corticosteroids to slow the destruction of red blood cells. Sometimes, chemotherapy drugs may be given as well. Most forms of AIHA are treatable but, as mentioned above, death may occur due to blood loss and/or organ failure.