Knowing the risk of developing a gastrointestinal disorder is relatively easy for a purebred dog. The risk of genetic gastrointestinal disorders is well understood for many breeds.
However, the risk of a gastrointestinal disorder for a mixed breed dog is hard to determine, since the exact breeds that make up a mixed breed dog aren’t often known.
However, mixed breed Dog DNA tests now provide a way to find out the breeds that make up a mixed breed. Once a dog’s parents or grandparents breeds are known, a vet can determine if a mixed breed may be at risk of a genetic gastrointestinal disorder.
Disorders of the gastrointestinal system include:
- Chronic hepatitis
- Cleft lip
- Cleft palate
- Copper-associated hepatitis
- Copper toxicosis
- Exocrine pancreatic insufficiency
- Gastric dilatation-volvulus (bloat)
- Gluten (wheat)-sensitive enteropathy
- Histiocytic ulcerative colitis
- Hyperlipoproteinemia
- Immunoproliferative enteropathy/lymphocytic-plasmacytic enteritis
- Intestinal lymphangiectasia
- Megaesophagus
- Pancreatitis
- Perianal fistula
- Portosystemic shunt
- Protein-losing enteropathy
- Protein-losing enteropathy and nephropathy
- Pyloric stenosis
- Small intestinal bacterial overgrowth
Other disorders
Purebreds can also suffer from other inherited disorders, including rarer disorders of the blood, skin, cardiovascular, endocrine, gastrointestinal, immune, nervous, respiratory, and urinary and reproductive systems. Be sure to ask a reputable breeder, or consult your veterinarian, about diseases common to specific breeds.