Dear Dr. John,
We have two dogs,12 and 14. A few years ago, we were informed by our veterinarian that both had masses on their spleens. We chose not to do surgery due to the costs and possible outcomes given what we were told.
In the last week, our 14-year-old Retriever has had bouts of shortness of breath and weakness almost to the point of collapse. However, he always seems to recover after half a day or an evening of rest. At what point should he be seen given the presenting signs? Do you think we are nearing the end? A.H.
Dear A.H.,
It is peculiar that two dogs in the same home have splenic masses, but I believe it to just be an unfortunate circumstance.
I can often diagnose a dog with a bleed from the spleen based on presenting signs of shortness of breath or heavy panting, weakness or collapse, and pale mucous membranes. These often lead me to perform abdominocentesis, which is drawing fluid from a distended abdomen that is filled with blood. An abdominal radiograph can confirm an enlarged spleen with masses. Masses on the spleen can be either benign or malignant. Retrievers are known to have splenic hemangiosarcomas which are highly malignant tumors.
The description of what you are noticing suggests that there is bleeding associated with one or more masses and that the bleeding stops based on buildup of abdominal blood or laying or the side that would put pressure on the bleed, both of which would cause the bleeding to stop temporarily.
The choice on when to have him seen is entirely up to you but I suspect that you may not want to wait until he cannot even get up anymore and does not rally from one of the episodes.
He may well be nearing the end. If the mass(es) are benign then he may have more time. Should there be a malignancy, especially with possible metastases, most of these dogs do not live long even if owners pursue surgery to buy time since it is not usually more than a few months. Good luck with a tough situation.
Dr. John de Jong is President of the World Veterinary Association. He owns and operates the Boston Mobile Veterinary Clinic and can be reached at 781-899-9994.
The dog show is coming home.
Not that it ever left New York.
When the COVID-19 pandemic hit, the Westminster Kennel Club dog show, a longstanding Manhattan event, changed places and seasons.
The winter event became a spring affair held outdoors and in tents on the grounds of Lyndhurst Manor in Tarrytown. Then, the dog show settled in at USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Center in Queens.
This week, the 2025 Westminster Kennel Club dog show marks a return to Manhattan, with competition taking place at the Javits Center as well as the traditional home of best in show: Madison Square Garden.
Here are all the details for when to tune in, ticket information and more for the 149th Westminster Kennel Club dog show, the Super Bowl of the dog show world.
Dog show events are available to watch via free streaming and TV.Michael Loccisano | Getty Images
When is the 2025 Westminster Kennel Club dog show?The Westminster Kennel Club dog show now becomes a winter event once again.
This means it’s been less than a year since the 2024 show, which happened in May in Queens.
Competition commences with the 10th Westminster Masters Obedience Championship and the 12th Westminster Masters Agility Championship Saturday, Feb. 8 at the Javits Center.
Last year, a dog named Nimble from Maryland became the first mixed-breed competitor to win the agility competition. Zayne, a border collie from Illinois, won the obedience competition.
The breed show starts right after the Super Bowl — Monday, Feb. 10 at the Javits Center before moving to Madison Square Garden for evening group competition (hound, toy, non-sporting and herding groups).
The show continues Tuesday, Feb. 11 at the same locations: Javits for day and Madison Square Garden for night (sporting, working and terrier groups).
Sage, a miniature poodle from Houston, won best in show at the 2024 Westminster Kennel Club dog show. Kena Betancur | AFP via Getty Images
When is best in show?Sage, a miniature poodle from Houston, Texas, triumphed at the 2024 Westminster Kennel Club dog show to win best in show.
The 2025 winner of best in show will be named Tuesday, Feb. 11 at Madison Square Garden after the end of competition in the sporting, working and terrier groups.
When is the 2025 Westminster Kennel Club dog show on TV? Streaming? How to watch best in show.So when do you tune in for these various dog events?
Here’s the day-by-day schedule.
Saturday, Feb. 8: Obedience and agility
The free livestream starts Saturday, Feb. 8 with the 10th Masters Obedience Championship, which can be watched from 7:30 a.M. To 3 p.M. At westminsterkennelclub.Org.
The 12th Westminster Masters Agility Championship starts Saturday, Feb. 8 with preliminary competition, which you can stream from 8 a.M. To 4 p.M. At the Westminster Kennel Club YouTube channel.
Next comes the Westminster Masters Agility Championship finals, which air live this year, from 4:30 p.M. To 7 p.M. Sat., Feb. 8 on Fox.
Comet the shih tzu, 2024 winner of the toy group at Westminster Kennel Club dog show. Mike Stobe | Getty Images
Monday, Feb. 10: Breed and group competition
Junior showmanship preliminaries stream Monday, Feb. 10 from 8 a.M. To 4:30 p.M. At westminsterkennelclub.Org.
Select breed judging for hound, toy, non-sporting and herding groups can be watched from 1 p.M. To 4 p.M. Monday, Feb. 10 on FS2.
The first night of group competition (non-sporting, toy, herding and hound) at Madison Square Garden will air from 7:30 p.M. To 11 p.M. Monday, Feb. 10 on FS1.
Tuesday, Feb. 11: Breed and group competition and best in show
The final day of the dog show starts with more junior showmanship preliminaries, streaming 8 a.M. To 4:30 p.M. Tuesday, Feb. 11 at westminsterkennelclub.Org.
Select coverage of breed judging (sporting, working and terrier groups) and junior showmanship preliminaries can be watched that day on FS2 from 1 p.M. To 4 p.M.
Group competition (sporting, working, terrier groups) continues at Madison Square Garden Tuesday, followed by the naming of best in show; the broadcast runs from 7:30 p.M. To 11 p.M. On FS1.
Westminster dog show ticketsFor tickets to 2025 Westminster Kennel Club dog show events at the Javits Center Feb. 8, 10 and 11 (obedience, agility, breed competition), head to Tix123.
For tickets to the 2025 Westminster Kennel Club dog show group competition and best in show competition (Feb. 10 and 11) at Madison Square Garden, visit Ticketmaster.
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Humans have a long history of reshaping their canine companions, which evolved from ancient wolves. At least 10,000 years ago, Arctic peoples were using selective breeding to create sled dogs, cold-tolerant animals with the stamina to pull heavy loads over long distances. Over time, people bred dogs for a diverse and increasingly specialized array of roles.
“Hunting things underground, hunting things overground, hunting things flying, hunting things in the water, running around in little wheels to turn your spit,” said Kathryn Lord, an evolutionary biologist at the UMass Chan Medical School and the Broad Institute. (The now-extinct turnspit dog was once a mainstay of European kitchens, where it was used to power fireplace meat-roasting spits.)
Still, historically, the priority was performance — breeding dogs that were good at their jobs.
That changed in the 19th century with the rise of Victorian dog fanciers, who began to codify existing breeds and to invent new ones. Rather than creating skilled working dogs, they aimed to engineer “the perfect physical specimen,” said James A. Serpell, an emeritus professor of ethics and animal welfare at the University of Pennsylvania School of Veterinary Medicine.
Breed clubs created prescriptive standards that specified exactly how the perfect pointer (or bulldog or foxhound) should look. They identified dogs that fit the bill and registered them as official members of those breeds. Then, they used those dogs — and only those dogs — to breed more just like them. As a result, each breed became a distinct, reproductively isolated population.
Credit...Alexey Kuznetsov/AlamyA few genetic tweaks can yield very different dogs.In humans, physical appearance is the product of many different genes, each of which typically has a small impact. For example, hundreds of genetic variants are known to affect height; many of these variants make less than a millimeter of difference.