Peer-reviewed veterinary case report
Serum lipid levels in dogs with compulsive tail chasing
By Yalcin, E et al.·Published in The Journal of small animal practice·2009·Department of Internal Medicine·View original on PubMed →
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Original publication title: Serum lipid concentrations in dogs with tail chasing.
- Species:
- dog
Plain-English summary
Fifteen dogs that chased their tails were found to have higher cholesterol levels compared to dogs that did not exhibit this behavior. The dogs with tail chasing had significantly elevated total cholesterol, as well as higher levels of good (HDL) and bad (LDL) cholesterol. This suggests that tail chasing might be linked to changes in cholesterol levels, which could help veterinarians assess and understand this compulsive behavior in dogs.
People also search for: dog tail chasing behavior · high cholesterol in dogs · treatment for dog tail chasing
Abstract
OBJECTIVE: To characterise lipid profile in dogs with tail chasing. METHODS: Fifteen dogs with tail chasing were included in this study. A behavioural diagnosis was made for each dog on the basis of the dog's behavioural history, clinical signs and results of other medical assessments. None of the dogs had concurrent medical disease that would account for compulsive tail chasing. Blood samples were taken from each dog after a fasting period of 12 to 16 hours to measure total cholesterol, triglyceride, high-density lipoprotein cholesterol, low-density lipoprotein cholesterol and very low-density lipoprotein cholesterol levels. Fifteen control dogs were also enrolled on the basis of normal physical examination results, complete blood count and serum biochemistry profiles. RESULTS: Dogs with tail chasing had significantly higher total cholesterol (P<0.01), high-density lipoprotein cholesterol (P<0.05) and low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (P<0.001) compared with control dogs. Very low-density lipoprotein cholesterol and triglyceride levels did not differ significantly between the groups. CLINICAL SIGNIFICANCE: Tail chasing may be associated with serum cholesterol elevations in dogs. High serum cholesterol, high-density lipoprotein cholesterol and low-density lipoprotein cholesterol levels may be used as biochemical parameters of compulsive tail chasing in clinical settings.
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Search related cases →Original publication on PubMed: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/19261083/