Polycythemia in dogs is a condition in which the number or concentration of circulating red blood cells in the body is increased. Polycythemia is also known as erythrocytosis. The symptoms and treatment of polycythemia can vary greatly and depend on why the condition developed. There are two types of polycythemia, relative and absolute, that can occur in dogs.
Polycythemia, a condition in which the number or concentration of red blood cells in the dog’s bloodstream is increased, will produce a number of different symptoms. When a dog experiences polycythemia, the symptoms that develop depend on why the condition occurred in the first place. The treatment is then based upon what caused the polycythemia condition to occur and addressing the symptoms that developed as a result of the condition.
Polycythemia causes numerous effects in dogs, one of the most dangerous being oxygen toxicity. If untreated, polycythemia can cause lethargy, confusion, trouble walking, and seizures. In order to successfully treat polycythemia, it is important to find out why the condition developed in the first place.