Bear's Web Page

Great Pyrenees (long coat)  : :  Male (neutered)  : :  Adult  : :  X-Large


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About Bear

  • Status: Adopted!
  • Species: Dog
  • Rescue ID: 5372
  • General Color: White
  • Current Size: 65 Pounds
  • Potential Size: 85 Pounds
  • Current Age: 3 Years 9 Months (best estimate)
  • Microchipped: Yes
  • Fence Required: Yes(6 foot)
  • Housetrained: Yes
  • Obedience Training Needed: Has Basic Training
  • Exercise Needs: Moderate
  • Grooming Needs: High
  • Shedding Amount: Moderate
  • Owner Experience Needed: Species
  • Reaction to New People: Friendly

Bear is a rare addition to Pawfect Match-- a bonafide Great Pyrenees!  Bear is a very sweet and loving dog.  He really wants to be a companion.  He loves to ride in the car and does well with most dogs (he has had moments of being dog selective, true to his breed type).  He is gentle with children a very much a guard dog.  He doesn't bark much but will be on alert if any person, dog, bird, lizard, or other critter approaches the house.  He loves to sit on front porches and watch the world go by-- giving his approval or a low 'woof' that says "hey there-- I see you!"   He is a Pyrenees through and through.

Bear was a stray found in Wilson County, NC.  His hair was so horribly matted that we had to shave him down to the skin.  It is growing out and will be a long-haired fluffy boy with the typical Pyrenees curly-Q tail.

Being a purebred, Bear has some digestive troubles.  He has a very sensitive stomach and has to be give probiotics and special food.  We think his tummy hurts and so he won't each much, thus causing him to be 20lbs + underweight.  We are working with our vet partners to understand the root cause and get him on a long term plan for health.  Until then, he is eating lots of carrots, sweet potatoes, and peanut butter.  Despite these issues, he is great about doing his business outside.

Bear is crate-trained and pretty easy to manage-- although he is tall!  We prefer applicants who have experience with the breed and a yard for him to roam.  He can jump a 3-4 foot fence, so a tall fence or constant monitoring would be needed.

 

More about Bear

Good with Dogs, Good with Kids, Good with Adults, Somewhat vocal, Does Good in the Car, Requires a yard, Cratetrained, Likes to play with toys, Protective, Needs special care, Playful, Affectionate, Eager To Please, Intelligent, Goofy

Special Needs: Here is the e-mail I mentioned in my voicemail to you about my conversation with the internal medicine doctor at IDEXX and the recommendations she had for Bear's very unique case. Bear's urinalysis showed three different crystal types-calcium oxalate dihydrate and monohydrate and amorphous urate (likely ammonium urate crystals) and his urine concentration was moderately low (1.014-normal 1.25-1.040). Given the unusual crystals (urate) and the clinical signs Bear has been having, I felt a consultation with an internal medicine specialist was warranted. I spoke with Dr. Amanda Wagner with IDEXX Laboratories Internal Medicine Service about Bear's urinalysis results as well as his clinical history, Ultrasound findings, as well as his previous labwork results (run through IDEXX) -including his ACTH stimulation test results and his GI Panel results. Given the previously elevated calcium level she does recommend re-checking that value to see if it is persistently high as it was higher than one would expect, even for a growing larger breed dog (skeletal bone/muscle source). Potential causes for a persistent elevation include dietary (Calcium containing Vitamin D supplement or high calcium diet), parathyroid disease, or a granulomatous disease such as a systemic/Gastro-intestinal fungal disease or histiocytic disease. The latter of course would require colonoscopy for biopsy to be obtained and submitted for histopathology for a definitive diagnosis. She recommended a full course of Vitamin B12 therapy given his low normal level (319) which would entail administering (via subcutaneous injection) 1.0 mL (1000 mcg) once weekly for 6 weeks, then 1 dose again in 30 days, and then recheck his cobalamin levels (should be > 400) again in 30 days. If they continue to be low continue weekly or biweekly supplementation In addition, Dr Wagner feels it would be best to try to get him eating a hydrolyzed diet (hypoallergenic) given the ultrasound findings suggestive of IBD . Ideally this would be the Royal Canin Hydrolyzed SO diet which would also help prevent further bladder stone formation. Purina also has a hydrolyzed chicken formula that comes in canned and dry and salmon or vegetarian formula that come in dry formula only, should we not be successful at getting him to eat the Royal Canin formula. She also suspects his reluctance to eat kibble in the past has been due to nausea, so she recommends anti-nausea medication (Cerenia), as well as an appetite stimulant (Entyce) to try to keep him interested in eating the hypoallergenic diet. Dr Wagner also recommended running the Canine Diarrhea PCR panel ($143.18) to rule out other potential parasitic/protozoal/coccidial/bacterial causes for chronic diarrhea that may not show up on a routine fecal analysis/centrifugation. This test requires at least 5 grams of fresh feces kept refrigerated after collection. Dr. Wagner also discussed an organism called Heterobilharzia americana (which is a parasite called a trematode) that can cause an infection called Schistosomiasis. The organism is primarily carried by raccoons; snails in waterways act as a vector for the organism. Dogs acquire infections when cercariae (motile larvae) of H. americana penetrate the skin while dogs are swimming or wading in contaminated fresh water sources. Clinical signs in infected dogs include diarrhea (which may be blood-tinged), vomiting, anorexia, weight loss, lethargy, and polyuria/polydipsia (excessive water consumption and urination).Laboratory findings include hypoalbuminemia, hypoglobulinemia, hypercalcemia, azotemia, anemia, and eosinophilia. Bear only showed the hypercalcemia on his previous labwork. Ultrasonography may detect thickening of intestinal walls and enlargement of liver, spleen, and lymph nodes associated with reaction to H. americana eggs. Only the intestinal wall thickening was noted on Bear's ultrasound. The majority of cases of canine schistosomiasis are in Texas and Louisiana. However, cases have been diagnosed in dogs throughout much of the southeastern United States. Both antigen capture ELISA and polymerase chain reaction (PCR) assay have been used to diagnose H. americana infections. Texas A&M College of Veterinary Medicine has a lab that runs the latter types of test. We would need to investigate the cost and sample requirements for testing for this organism. Infected dogs do not pose a direct zoonotic risk to people, but their presence in a given area may increase the level of cercariae and thus contribute to schistosome-associated dermatitis in people (swimmers itch). Unfortunately treatment is not always effective, but the recommended treatment which is a combination of praziquantel (10 mg/kg PO tid for 2 days) and fenbendazole (24 mg/kg PO sid for 7 days) may result in resolution of clinical signs in some infected dogs. Dr Wagner suggested additional testing that might be considered would be a Bile Acids test (257I-pre/post-$173.11) to assess liver function. Though Bear's liver values were within normal limits these can be normal despite having reduced liver function. This test requires overnight fasting and then collecting blood prior to feeding a high fat meal (at least 2 tbsp) and then collecting blood again 2 hours, so he would need to stay at the hospital for a few hours like he did for his ultrasound in order to obtain the samples should we opt to pursue this test. Our initial plan would include: Repeat labwork to assess calcium level: ($90.49) Send out Diarrhea PCR panel (3808I-$143.18) Start Vitamin B12 therapy-can order bottle of B12 for Bear and teach foster to administer SQ injections Start Entyce therapy Start Cerenia therapy Start Hydrolyzed diet-ideally Royal Canin Hydrolyzed Diet SO (to prevent further stone formation) or Purina HA -chicken canned and dry or Salmon or Vegetarian HA -dry only depending on other diagnostic test results- test for schistosomiasis or treat empirically with praziquantel and fenbendazole +/- bile acids test +/- Vitamin D Panel (includes ionized Ca, Vitamin D, PTH hormone) I know this is quite a lot to consider, so after you have a chance to review it feel free to e-mail me back or we can try to set up a time for a phone conversation to discuss the next steps for Bear. I hope you have a great weekend, Bridgitte Araba, DVM Lake Pine Animal Hospital (919) 380-1157

Other Pictures of Bear (click to see larger version):

Bear Bear Bear Bear