The Dogo Argentino (DA) is the first and only breed from Argentina recognized worldwide. Although its morphologic features have been well established, its normal reproductive parameters are not clearly known. The aim of this study was to determine the main DA bitch reproductive parameters. One hundred and forty-nine surveys were obtained from breeders from Córdoba province, Argentina: one for each intact DA bitch from 1 to 14 years old. The DA bitch reached puberty at an average of 8.93 months. The mean duration of vulval bleeding found in this study was 11.11 days. The clinical signs characteristic for proestrous-estrous were vulval edema (89.93%), bleeding during the time of mating (32.21%), holding the tail to the side (95.30%), and docility during mating (85.91%). DA bitches had a whelping rate of 84%. Out of 299 pregnancies, 89.30% exhibited a normal parturition, 6.69% presented dystocia, 2.68% needed Cesarean section, and 1.34% aborted. In conclusion, the reproductive parameters of the DA bitch are similar to those identified for other large breeds. DA often showed a prolonged vulval bleeding longer than proestrus. Its high whelping rate, its low incidence of dystocia, and its good maternal ability define the DA as a good reproductive breed with normal reproductive functions.

This study compared the efficiency of the aromatase inhibitor, anastrazole, with the antioestrogenic receptor blocker, tamoxifen, on normal (NRL) and hyperplastic prostate glands. Forty healthy dogs were classified as NRL (n = 18) or abnormal (ABN) with benign prostate hyperplasia (n = 22). The dogs were randomly assigned to one of the following six groups, treated for 60 days; oral placebo for normal (NRL-PLC; n = 6) and abnormal (ABN-PLC; n = 6), oral anastrazole 0.25-1 mg/day, for normal (NRL-ANZ, n = 6) and abnormal (ABN-ANZ, n = 8) and oral tamoxifen citrate 2.5-10 mg/day for normal (NRL-TMX; n = 6) and abnormal (ABN-TMX; n = 8) dogs. The dogs were evaluated before treatment and then monthly for 4 months. At the end of the treatment, the prostatic volume decreased by 28.5 +/- 4.3%, 21.6 +/- 6.3% and 0.7 +/- 1.0% in the ABN-TMX, ABN-ANZ and ABN-PLC (p < 0.01), respectively. From then on, prostatic volume began to increase without reaching pre-treatment values at the end of the study. In the ABN animals, there were no differences for this parameter between ANZ and TMX treatment (p > 0.1), whereas in the NRL animals ANZ produced a less pronounced decrease (p < 0.05), libido, testicular consistency and scrotal diameter decreased during treatment in the TMX group (p > 0.05). These parameters and sperm volume, count, motility and morphological abnormalities remained unaltered throughout the study in the ANZ and PLC groups (p > 0.05). There were no haematological nor biochemical side effects. Anastrazole might offer a safe and effective alternative for the medical management of dogs with benign prostatic hyperplasia.

No abstract

La hepatozoonosis canina es una enfermedad parasitaria, adquirida por la ingestión de garrapatas infectadas con protozoarios del género Hepatozoon (H). Hepatozoon canis y Hepatozoon americanum son las dos especies que pueden infectar al perro. La presentación clínica de la infección con Hepatozoon canis es muy variable, pudiendo ser asintomática o manifestarse con signos de enfermedad leves a severos. Los exámenes hematológicos revelan ligera anemia no regenerativa, marcada leucocitosis neutrofílica con desvío a la izquierda y monocitosis en los casos de hepatozoonosis clínica. El diagnóstico se realiza mediante la visualización mediante el microscopio óptico de los gamontes en neutrófilos y monocitos en frotis de sangre coloreados. No existe, hasta el momento, un tratamiento eficaz para esta parasitosis. El fármaco más utilizado es el dipropionato de imidocarb, aunque con resultados variables. El objetivo de este trabajo fue evaluar tres opciones terapéuticas para la erradicación de Hepatozoon spp. de la sangre de perros infectados. Se utilizaron 18 perrosparasitados naturalmente y se evaluaron tres fármacos: dipropionato de imidocarb, toltrazuril y espiramicina. En todos los perros tratados disminuyó el promedio de infección, presentando similares valores medios de leucocitos infectados. El análisis estadístico arrojó una diferencia significativa solo en el tratamiento de la parasitosis con dipropionato de imidocarb. En virtud de los resultados obtenidos con los tratamientos llevados a cabo con los diferentes fármacos, se concluye que ninguno es totalmente efectivo para la desaparición del parásito de la sangre, siendo el dipropionato de imidocarb el de mejor comportamiento.