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If you suspect your dog has an autoimmune disease, it's important to consult a vet early on.
The triggers behind autoimmune diseases in dogs are not yet fully understood. However, one thing is certain: there are ways to manage immune-mediated illnesses to an extent. This article explains what these diseases are and how to handle them.
Autoimmune Diseases in Dogs: Definition and Causes
Even during the foetal development inside the womb, the immune system of puppies learns to distinguish between foreign and body’s own substances.
When an autoimmune disease occurs, this understanding becomes confused, leading to the immune system attacking its own body structures. Often, congenital disorders are the trigger for an autoimmune disease in dogs.
The Role of Autoantibodies
Autoantibodies often play a part in the development of autoimmune diseases. These antibodies naturally target the body’s own tissues or substances such as hormones, for instance, during an inflammatory reaction.
Autoaggressive antibodies may also attack substances (antigens) deemed foreign, against which there is no immune tolerance – perhaps due to disrupted maturation of the immune system.
It is also possible that there was immune tolerance towards these antigens, but the antibodies have breached this tolerance.
How Common are Autoimmune Diseases in Dogs?
Autoimmune diseases are relatively rare in dogs. For instance, only about 1.4 percent of all skin diseases in pets are thought to be immune-mediated
What Autoimmune Diseases Occur in Dogs?
Various autoimmune diseases can occur in dogs, each with different courses and clinical pictures. Some of the best-known autoimmune diseases in dogs include the following:
Glomerulonephritis
This is inflammation of the tiny filtering elements of the kidney (glomeruli), which naturally flush electrolytes, toxins, and excess water from the blood. If there is an immune-mediated glomerulonephritis, this process may be disrupted, leading to dangerous poisoning symptoms or electrolyte shifts in your dog.
Lupus Erythematosus
“Discoid Lupus Erythematosus” (DLE) mainly affects younger dogs between the ages of two and four years and is characterised by crusty, ulcer-like skin changes, especially on the nose. The eye area or lips can also be affected by this disease. “Systemic Lupus Erythematosus” (SLE) is a form that affects the entire body. The clinical picture is more diverse and depends on the affected organ.
Pemphigus Complex:
This disease causes severe skin changes, with blisters and pustules forming on the skin and mucous membranes. Depending on the affected tissue, vets classify this disease into different forms:
Pemphigus erythematosus
Pemphigus foliaceus
Pemphigus vegetans
Pemphigus vulgaris
Of these types, Pemphigus foliaceus is the most common form in dogs, with certain breeds like Akita, Chow-Chow, and Spitz particularly affected.
Polyarthritis
This chronic and progressive inflammation affects several joints at the same time, causing painful movement-related issues like lameness. Symptoms such as fever or fatigue can also arise, complicating the condition.
Rheumatoid Arthritis
In addition to infection-related arthritis, dogs can also develop immune-mediated arthritis such as rheumatoid arthritis. In this case, the immune system produces signalling molecules that result in inflammatory reactions in the joints.
Why this reaction occurs in dogs is not fully understood. However, it’s possible that the body is responding to bacterial remnants left in the joint after a bacterial-induced joint inflammation.
Symptoms: What are the Signs of an Autoimmune Disease in a Dog?
The symptoms of an autoimmune disease are not universal. They largely depend on which tissue the antibodies are attacking and to what extent.
Autoimmune diseases in dogs often involve disturbances in the skin and joints. Non-specific complaints such as loss of appetite, fever, or tiredness can also accompany immune-mediated diseases.
Symmetry Can Indicate Immune-Mediated Disorders
Many autoimmune diseases are characterised by symmetric manifestations, wherein immune-mediated skin changes do not occur only on one side areas but are bilaterally present and follow a similar pattern.
Medications can help alleviate many symptoms in dogs with autoimmune diseases.
Treatment: How are Autoimmune Diseases in Dogs Treated?
If you suspect an autoimmune disease in your dog, you should seek veterinary attention promptly.
The vet can confirm such illnesses with special lab tests. Typically, this involves blood tests or taking an organ biopsy.
Challenging Diagnosis
Be prepared for it to take some time to arrive at the correct diagnosis. This is mainly due to the complex symptoms, which can also be caused by other potential illnesses. The vet must first rule out several possible diseases for a confirmed diagnosis.
To help your dog, it’s crucial to suppress the unwanted immune reaction. This is important both to alleviate the symptoms and to prevent possible late consequences, such as organ damage.
Medication Treatment
Vets typically prescribe special medications for autoimmune diseases – namely, immunosuppressants and corticosteroids. Depending on the clinical picture and accompanying symptoms such as a bacterial infection, the vet might also prescribe pain relief, anti-inflammatories, or antibiotics.
Prognosis: Can Autoimmune Diseases in Dogs Be Cured?
Since an autoimmune disease involves a disruption in your dog’s complex immune system, such conditions are usually incurable.
As a result, affected dogs are often prescribed lifelong medication to help suppress the condition.
A Life with Autoimmune Diseases is Possible
By following your vet’s instructions and continually monitoring your dog’s health, you can ensure your dog lives as normal a life as possible, depending on the diagnosis. It’s essential to visit a vet as soon as your dog shows signs of a new flare-up.
This article from zooplus Magazine is purely informative. If your pet is experiencing discomfort, contact your veterinarian for diagnosis and treatment.
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Franziska G., Veterinarian
At the Justus-Liebig-University of Giessen I was extensively trained as a veterinarian and was able to gain experience in various fields such as small animal, large animal and exotic animal medicine as well as pharmacology, pathology and food hygiene.
Since then, I have been working not only as a veterinary author, but also on my scientifically driven dissertation. My goal is to better protect animals from pathogenic bacterial organisms in the future.
Besides my veterinary knowledge, I also share my own experiences as a happy dog owner and can thus understand and enlighten fears and problems as well as other important questions about animal health.
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