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Section: Overview
Hypothyroidism is a disorder of the thyroid gland, which is the butterfly-shaped glandular organ located in the neck just below the voicebox. This gland is responsible for producing and secreting thyroid hormone (thyroxine), which affects nearly all body systems. Thyroxine is the hormone that is primarily responsible for regulating the metabolic rate of many different tissues in the body. In hypothyroidism, not enough thyroxine is produced, which causes the metabolism of these tissues to slow down. Hypothyroidism is the most common endocrine (hormonal) disorder in dogs and often develops between the ages of 4 to 10 years. It usually affects castrated male and spayed female dogs. A variety of dog breeds are afflicted with this condition, such as the golden retriever, Doberman pinscher, greyhound, Irish setter, dachshund, miniature schnauzer, Great Dane, poodle, and boxer.
The primary causes of obesity in dogs are overeating and lack of exercise. When regular caloric intake exceeds the energy burned, the excess is stored as fat on your dog.
Skin odor is a common manifestation of a skin infection; the most common skin infections are bacterial (superficial pyoderma) and yeast (Malassezia dermatitis) infections.
Seborrhea or scaly skin is common in dogs and is more a symptom than a disease. Seborrhea can be dry (seborrhea secca) or oily (seborrhea oleosa), and different dog shampoos are used according to the type...
Alopecia is the complete or partial lack of hair in any area of the skin where hair would normally be found. In dogs, it may be caused by self-trauma, hair follicle diseases or the failure of hair to grow...
A thyroid test is a blood test to evaluate the function of the thyroid gland, which produces thyroid hormone, an important hormone in the regulation and maintenance of body functions.
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