Acute respiratory distress syndrome

Acute Respiratory Distress Syndrome (ARDS) is an inherited condition in Dalmatians that severely affects the lungs, causing severe respiratory distress and death. The first signs of this disease usually appear in young dogs at around 7 months of age, although they can start as early as 5 months or as late as 10 months. Symptoms develop quickly; dogs start to have difficulty breathing, make loud noises, can’t catch their breath and eventually get worse until they suffocate. The disease is very rapid and sadly dogs often die or have to be put to sleep within 3 to 6 weeks. ARDS is inherited as an autosomal recessive trait, which means that statistically 25% of puppies will be affected if both their parents carry the genetic disease.