My dog Fox

I don't know if anyone still remembers, but a few months ago I posted about my Pomeranian, Fox, and some health issues he was having, including patellar luxation, laxity in shoulder ligaments causing chronic dislocation, and bladder stones.

Fox was a great dog with a loving spirit and so smart that we couldn't even spell in front of him because he would figure out what we were saying. He was my best friend and the best dog I ever had.

With all his health problems, it was finally tracheal collapse which took him. This is a fairly common problem in small dogs, particularly those with short snouts. As you can see from the pic, he had a normal snout for a Pom, not the crushed-face look like some breeds, but he suffered from tracheal collapse nonetheless.

His trachea went from 3/4" (normal) down to 1/8" over a stretch of about 2-3". His symptoms were most evident when he was excited, but they had grown progressively worse, especially the last month or so of his life. When we saw the x-ray that showed the extent of the collapse, we felt we had no choice. Better he should simply go to sleep that get overexcited and smother to death.

I am saying all this to try to inform those who have small dogs to please check and see if tracheal collapse is one of the common ailments of your particular breed of dog. The Animal Planet site (link below) has a lot of good information on dog breeds, including common medical problems.

Unfortunately tracheal collapse is a very difficult problem to treat. There are surgeries available, but results vary depending on the extent of collapse, the age and overall health of the dog, and the skill of the surgeon.

If Fox's death can make at least a few people aware of this common problem, especially in smaller purebred dogs, then I will feel that it was not entirely in vain.

• My dog Fox - Rad MT
  • I'm very sorry for your loss. - Misha
    • Me, too. Thank you for posting about that condition. - tnmt
  • Fox is so pretty!!! sm - mom3bassetts
  • What a beautiful boy, I am so - tired in OH
    • Me too, it is so very hard to lose a pet. What a beauty. - Minding your Business
    • I'm so sorry. - Hayseed
      • Hayseed, it hasn't changed my mind about little dogs - Rad MT
      • So sorry. SM - Anon

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