AHFP Connect

Some dogs show mild signs of stress during storms or fireworks and others may be overwhelmed with fear.  Your pet may pant, pace, hide, or cry during storms or they may have a full panic attack with howling, tremors, and other fearful behaviors.  You can’t just hold their paw and tell them that everything is ok, they just don’t understand that the storm will be gone soon.  You can help by giving them a safe hiding place, basements work well, or bathrooms.  Avoid areas with windows if possible.  Drape a blanket over their crate.  Play music to help hide the sounds of the storm.  You can use an over the counter herbal medication, Rescue Remedy, before the storm starts to decrease their stress level.  Give 2 to 6 drops, by mouth. at least 1 hour before the storm arrives.  Rescue Remedy doesn’t work well after the storm has started.   If this doesn’t help, we may be able to prescribe anti-anxiety medications that are stronger to better control your pet’s anxiety levels.

Ask most dog owners what behavior they dislike the most, and chances are they will tell you hate seeing their pet eating poop!  This is a normal behavior and has nothing to do with feeding a  diet deficient in any nutrients.  Dogs will seek out their own stool, the stool of other dogs, cat feces, rabbit or deer feces, and horse feces.  Stool eating is a normal behavior in dogs.  There may even be an evolutionary factor, based on a history of food scavenging in early domesticated dogs, and present day stool eating is likely a part of that behavior.  Dogs have a very good sense of smell and they can still smell undigested food in the feces, which may also trigger this behavior.  You may find that certain foods are more likely to cause this behavior.

What is the best way to prevent  stool eating?  Keep the stool cleaned up right away so that your dog can not get to it.  Keep him on a leash outside so you can direct them away from feces outside.  You can try to make the stool taste bad by using products such as Forbid which you add to the food of the pet whose stool is being eaten.  Monosodium glutamate added to the food may work also.  These usually work the best on dogs that have recently started this behavior.  Offer your dog a tasty treat as a distraction to prevent stool eating when you are outside.  Try feeding a different food or stop giving people food to see if this stops the interest in eating the stool.

Keep dogs that are stool eaters on year round anti-parasite medications (such as Interceptor or Sentinel)  to prevent the spread of parasite infections.  Have their stool checked frequently for parasites too.

Has your dog ever had reverse sneezing? This is a common occurrence in dogs, especially in the high pollen times of the year. A reverse sneeze is repeated. forceful inhalation which is caused by an irritation of the deep areas of the nose. Dogs will stretch their head out as they have a reverse sneeze, so it may look like they are having trouble breathing.  Reverse sneezes usually only last a short time, but they may have several episodes each day.   May things can trigger a reverse sneeze: nasal mites, post nasal drip, foreign bodies in the nose, tumors, but pollen and other irritants are the most common causes.  To stop a reverse sneeze, massage your dog’s neck to make it swallow, or hold off it’s nose for a moment.   Once your dog swallows, the reverse sneeze should stop.  Some dogs may need antihistamines to decrease the reverse sneezes.

Not really, feeding too many calories makes your dog (or cat) too fat.  Most pets are neutered or spayed around 6 months of age, and by 8 to 12 months, most pets have reached their full adult size.  Giant breeds such as Great Danes will continue to grow until about 18 months.  Our puppies and kittens need lots of calories when they are growing rapidly, but once they have reached adult size, they need less calories.  If we continue to feed them the same amount of calories, they will continue to grow, but only their waistlines.  They may also decrease their activity level as they mature, so they burn less calories too.  Switch to lower calorie diets when your pet has reached adult size.  Weigh your pet often to monitor their weight gain.  Keep them active.  Your pet does not have to gain weight after being altered.

It may seem simple, wet, wash, rinse, but there are a few things you should know about using medicated shampoos on your pet.  It is important that you use the correct shampoo for your pet’s skin problem.  If you are not sure, please ask us for a recommendation.  Itchy pets may benefit from a oatmeal type shampoo while pets with skin infections may need a chlorhexadine type shampoo.

First, you should use wet your pet’s fur with warm water and apply a mild shampoo.  Work this into a good lather, then rinse off.  Next apply the medicated shampoo and work up into a good lather.  Concentrate on the areas that have the most problems. Wait 5 to 10 minutes, then rinse very well and then dry your pet.

Why use a mild shampoo first?  The first shampooing wets your pet’s fur completely to the skin and removes surface dirt and oils.  This will allow the medicated shampoo to reach the skin better.  (Since most medicated shampoos are not cheap, you will save money if you use the medicated shampoo on just the second shampooing.)  Rinse well before staring the second shampooing.  This time you use the medicated shampoo and you will work down to the skin.  Some medicated shampoos will not make a lot of lather, but concentrate on reaching the skin.  Now you must give the shampoo a chance to work.  Medicated shampoos work while they are in contact with the skin,  If you rinse them off right away, you will not get the full benefit from them.  You will need at least 5 to 10 minutes of skin contact time with the shampoo.  You can wrap you pet up in a towel to keep him warm if needed.  Next, you will rinse your pet very well.  If you use a cream rinse, you can apply it now.  Do not rinse the cream rinse off unless the product directions request you to do so.  Towel dry (or blow dry) your pet.

Medicated shampoos can really help control skin diseases, so don’t be afarid to use them.  How often can you use them?  That depends on the type, but most can be used at least weekly.

You know what to look for with counterfeit money, but did you know that there are counterfeit flea and tick products too?  Products purchased from a veterinary hospital have been purchased directly from the manufacturer and will be the “real thing”, but products purchased from online sources or pet stores may be fakes.  Manufacturers of products such as Frontline will stand behind their product, and will replace it if it is not working for you, but only when you have purchased it from your veterinarian.

How can you tell if your flea control product is a fake? Check out this website from the EPA for more details.

http://www.epa.gov/opp00001/factsheets/petproduct.htm

Cats need entertainment for better relaxation and mental health. If a cat does not use up their hunting instincts by playing, they will use those instincts inappropriately, by pouncing on your feet at night, or by stalking and grabbing your ankles as you walk down the hall. You should play with your cat for 15 minutes or more a day. One important thing is to not play with the cat with your hands, as that would just encourage them to scratch, grab on, and bite.

Several good toys are fun for both the cat and owner. Laser pointers are great because the cats love to follow the red dot and will go in circles, jump on walls, and pounce and chase the red spot. Never point the laser light at the cat’s or a person’s eyes. Dangling objects on “cat fishing poles” can be moved around so the cat can chase them. Another good toy is a Cat Dancer, which can be dragged across the floor or swung through the air, to get the cat to follow it. Some inexpensive toys include aluminum foil or paper balls, and milk rings from gallon milk jugs. Some cats can learn to fetch these back so that the owner can throw them again. Catnip mice can be interesting for cats, for playing by themselves or for throwing so they can “chase” them.

Another way to get cats to “hunt” is to poke some large holes in a small empty plastic bottle and put cat food in it. The cat has to roll the bottle around to get pieces of food to fall out. You can also put small amounts of their food around the house in various places, such as a cat tower or window perch, so they have to go searching for it.

Cat towers and perches add more vertical space to the cat’s environment and effectively enlarges their territory. This can allow them to get away from housemates (or small children), if they do not want to be disturbed, or to watch what is happening in the house. A window perch allows them to see what is going on outside (windows are like TV for kitties, especially if a bird feeder is in view).

Does your dog eat his food like a starving animal? Has she vomited right after eating? Would he eat the entire bag of food if left alone with it? There are ways to slow them down. One of the simplest ways is to spread the food out evenly on a large cookie tray, or just spread it across the floor. Make sure you measure the food out first so you know how much food you are feeding them.

There are special feeding bowls with plastic “fingers” in them to make it harder to eat fast. You can use a large feeding bowl and put in 2 or 3 tennis balls with the food to slow them down too.

One of the best ways is to put all or at least part of the food into s Kong type toy. Measure out the food and fill several Kongs, you may have to add a little canned food or peanut butter to the food to hold it in better. Give the Kongs to your dog one at a time. Better yet, hide the kongs in several places and let you dog go out and find them. This will not only slow them down with their eating, but will give them something to do. Dogs love this new game. Since most of our dogs live indoors and are not asked to earn their keep, this gives them a “job” to do each day. Many breeds that we commonly see as pets were bred to do specific jobs such as herding, or retrieving prey. As pets, we seldom ask they to do the job they were bred to do, so having to locate their food in a Kong or other toy will give them something to do besides sleep or chew on things. Give it a try!

Declawing is not the only way to stop a cat from scratching things. The cat claw grows by removing the old outer layers, so your cat has to scratch something. Give your cat items that they are allowed to scratch. Cardboard type scratching posts are well liked by most cats. Fancy carpeted posts may work well also.

Place the scratching post near the places you cat wants to scratch. If he tries to scratch the corner of the sofa, put a scratching post there. You can also cover the area they should not scratch with thick plastic that you have covered with tape (put the sticky side out) Your cats will not like the sticky surface and should use the scratching post you have provided next to it.
Take your cat to the scratching post and rub her feet on it, this will help to scent mark the post (scent marking is the other reason cats scratch things). Use toys or a laser pointer to encourage your cat to play and scratch the post too.

Once your cat is using the post all the time, you can slowly move the post farther away to a better location.

Training your cat to use a scratching post is like housebreaking a puppy, you have to do it, it takes a little bit of time and effort, and it will keep your cat from destroying things.

Why does my pet itch?

Does your pet suddenly stop and start to chew itself?  Is your cat chewing at his back, near his tail? Has your dog lost a lot of fur starting at the base if her tail and now it is missing along her lower spine?  Do you see tiny scabs on your cats around his neck or on his back? Is there black grit on your dog’s skin?  If you are answering yes to any of these questions then your pet probably has fleas.

• Fleas are the most common reason why pets itch and scratch.  Yes, I know -  you haven’t seen any fleas,  you are not being bitten, your pet never goes outside, your house is very clean, you put a flea collar on your pet, you used a flea treatment on your pet a couple of months ago, you have never had fleas on any of your pets,   but please believe me, your pet probably has fleas anyway.  Having fleas does not make you a bad pet owner or a messy housekeeper.

Fleas are very good at finding new hosts.  They prefer dogs and cats to humans, but they may bite people if their population is very high.  So, most people are not going to be bitten  by fleas.  Fleas are very tiny and are hard to see.  Most of the time you will see the flea dirt or poop more easily.  Flea dirt looks like fine black grit.  Indoor pets get fleas all the time when the flea hitches a ride on our clothing when we go some place that has fleas, or when we have a visitor whose pets have fleas.  You will never notice the fleas on your clothes because they will leave you the moment they sense your pet.

• Over 90% of the flea population are eggs, larvae or pupae and only 10% will be adult fleas that you can see.  So, if your pet is itchy, treat all your pets and your home for fleas. You will not get rid of the fleas if you do not treat your home. Use an insect growth regulator  (IGR) for best results
• Use a long lasting flea product (such as Frontline) on your pets, and continue to treat all of your pets and your home for at least 3 to 6 months.  Better yet, start flea control in the spring after the last frost and keep all pets on monthly flea control until the first  hard frost of fall.

Other causes of itchy pets are skin infections, allergies, or other parasites such as demodex or sarcoptic mange mites, “walking dandruff” (Cheyletiella), lice, or ticks. We need to see your pet to determine what is the cause of the itchiness is.  Do not give your pet a bath before your appointment.  Bathing may remove evidence  and prevent us from finding the reason why your pet is itchy.