Copper Toxicosis

Copper Toxicosis: Most Often Found In The Terrier Breeds

As the name implies, copper toxicosis is literally a poisoning or toxicity due to an over abundance of copper in the blood. Most dogs have a natural mechanism or metabolic process to allow the liver to effectively excrete or store copper in the body to aid in correct body functioning. In dogs with copper toxicosis the liver is either incorrectly secreting excess copper or it is the copper storage in the body is not functioning properly, causing the body to absorb and store copper until it reaches a fatally toxic level. The pureblood dogs that are most commonly affected by this condition are the Bedlington Terrier, West Highland White Terrier and the Skye Terrier, although other terrier breeds can have the condition. Besides the obvious terrier breeds Doberman Pinschers, which do have a terrier component to their heritage are also known to have problems with copper toxicosis. [...]

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