Cocker Spaniel Health Problems - Autoimmune Hemolytic Anemia (AIHA)

Auto-immune hemolytic anemia (AIHA) is a blood disorder. This condition results when red blood cells are destroyed by the immune system faster than the rate at which new ones can be produced, resulting in anemia. The Cocker Spaniel is susceptible to this blood disorder, which occurs most commonly in middle-aged dogs. The condition of AIHA may be mild and hardly noticeable, or it may be sudden in onset and severe.

Symptoms of AIHA are usually vague and indistinct, such as poor appetite, weakness, listlessness, and lethargy. The dog may have a rapid heartbeat and rapid breathing. If you examine his gums, you may notice that they are pale, or they may be yellowish due to jaundice as a result of the breakdown of red blood cells.

Reduced red blood cell counts means reduced oxygen being transported to the organ tissues. Most dogs that die with this condition do so in the first few days due to kidney, liver, or heart failure, or because of a bleeding problem.

Conventional treatment includes the use of corticosteroids to slow the destruction of red blood cells. Sometimes, chemotherapy drugs may be given as well. Most forms of AIHA are treatable but, as mentioned above, death may occur due to blood loss and/or organ failure.