Enough with the warm fuzzies about our pets – come on – tell all on what your pet does to get on your very last nerve. Tell all about what happens behind closed doors in your home!
Pet Peeves
Posted 27 Feb 2010 — by Impeeved
Category Cats, Dogs, Fish, Goats, Horses, Lizards, Snakes, Uncategorized
Category Cats, Dogs, Fish, Goats, Horses, Lizards, Snakes, Uncategorized
Watch this video from the Shelter Pet Project – Great!
Keep Bouncer Bouncing by Bud Stuart DVM
Most of you who follow this column know that I am a strong proponent of good nutrition and preventive medicine. Nowhere is this more important than in the health of our pet’s joints. So this week we are going to discuss how to keep our pets “wagging instead of dragging”.
Obviously no discussion of joint health would be complete without first addressing the problem of pet obesity and its place as a primary cause of joint problems. No one would continuously load one ton or more in a half-ton pick-up truck without expecting the springs to go. So why add the risk of an extra 30 to 50% of weight on your pet’s frame? Yet many pets are allowed to do just that.
Building strong joints starts early. Pups and kittens should be on a multivitamin until full grown. In addition, the larger breeds of dogs should be supplemented a calcium/mineral mix in either pill form or as dry milk powder added to the diet. The latter you can get at any supermarket and the former from your pet’s doctor.
In addition we promote a well balanced diet. For small dogs and cats this means a diet largely of canned and fresh foods. In the larger breeds we will mix in an increasing amount of dry with the canned and fresh up to a maximum of 50% dry. This combination of dry, canned, leftover meats, vegetables and other foods will give your pet a balanced nutritional intake and allow healthy, well maintained joints. And remember, no food left down during the day.
But as we know, in time, arthritis can become a problem. So, for our senior citizens, staying trim is all the more important. In addition there are supplements which can be of great value. First of these is glucosamine. The same one found in human joint supplements. It is often paired with chondroitin. Doses of each in the 400 to 500 milligram range, twice daily, are commonly given to large dogs.
At our practice we find that including a third neutraceutical with the long name of methylsulfonylmethane, or MSM, is often very beneficial. This product has the ability to help promote healing of the cartilage in joints. These neutraceuticals, along with a generous dose of vitamin C twice daily, which we discussed in a previous column, make a valuable combination to protect your pet’s joints.
Many pets spend their senior years on various pain medications and no doubt these have their place. But wouldn’t it be a far better strategy to prevent the problems in the first place? In my practice in Virginia we always had a lot of very old cats and dogs. But they didn’t know they were old. They were happy and active until the end of their lives. And that’s the way your pet should be.
Bud Stuart DVM
Courage of Disabled Pets
The Courage of Disabled Pets
What happens if your well-trained, and usually well-behaved, family dog forgets himself, runs into the road, gets hit by a car and loses a leg? Or, your mild mannered cat is involved in a fight with the local bullying Tom and loses an eye?
Does this mean that the quality of life for your pet will be so low that euthanasia would be kindness?
Use your favorite search engine and enter “animals with disabilities” “disabled pets” or a similar phrase and you will find story after story, report after report about courageous pets that have all sorts of disabilities – and yet are living a happy contented life and are bringing joy to their owners.
Proud Owners tell of their disabled pets such as a deaf cat being ‘called’ in for the night by switching a light on and off. Dogs that have lost their rear legs getting around and enjoying playing using a special cart (also known as a pet wheelchair.) A story of a blind horse whose bravery was the inspiration for a whole new animal rescue center. These and other stories show that with a little assistance from their owners, pets that have disabilities can carry on enjoying a happy quality filled life.
My own experience of caring for a disabled pet was richly rewarding. I’d shared my life with a tabby cat named Basil since he was a kitten. He met with a traffic accident resulting in the little fellow having one of his rear legs amputated.
I really did not know what to expect. How would this impact upon Basil’s life? Would he still be the same cat that I loved so much?
I need not have worried. Basil’s personality had not changed one bit. He just got on with life, and there was very little that he could not do after his accident that he could do before. Maybe he wasn’t able to climb a tree but fences did not seem to present a problem. He’d walk along the very narrow fence top too, and with so much ease that it was if he was saying “Hey! Who needs four legs?”
I’m convinced that my cat did not realize that he had a so called disability. I would say that the missing limb did not lessen the quality of the cat’s life in any way at all.
Perhaps some pets suffer injury or illness that leaves them with such a low quality of life that a vet would recommend that permanent sleep would be a kindness. But, after browsing around the Internet it seems that, like my Basil, often pets with disabilities will get on with their life and enjoy themselves, giving you a whole lot of love on the way.
You are welcome to use this article on your cat or pet related web site or in your pet ezine. Please keep the article intact including this resource box, (you may make minor formatting alterations,) and keep all links as hyperlinks. Thank you.
Cat Art at Best Cat Art.com
Kitten Pictures
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Cat Art at Best Cat Art.com
Kitten Pictures
How Important Are Vitamins to Dogs? by Bud Stuart DVM
Posted 09 Aug 2010 — by Impeeved
Category Birds, Bunny, Cats, Chickens, Dogs, Fish, Goats, Horses, hamster
Category Birds, Bunny, Cats, Chickens, Dogs, Fish, Goats, Horses, hamster
B Vitamins-Because
We have often been hearing discussions about vitamins and the role they play in nutrition. One group of vitamins is the family of B vitamins. You may recognize them by such names as thiamine, riboflavin, niacin, folic acid and such. The latter has been found to be of extreme importance in preventing spina-bifida in human babies. Whatever they may be called they all play an essential part in any wellness program. From the very largest to the smallest animals, deficiencies of these important elements can produce major problems.
I have always remembered a class in equine medicine at Cornell. We were examining a lovely young horse afflicted with a problem called “moon blindness”. This meant that every month or so the horse’s eyes would whiten and it would lose its vision for two or three days. Our large animal professor, Dr. Francis Fox, informed us that had the horse been given just 50 milligrams of riboflavin in its diet each day, it would never have gotten the disease. Such a little thing, but oh so important. It was one of the first cases during my college training where I saw how really vital nutrition could be to maintaining an animal’s health. It was also the case that sparked my interest in preventive nutrition, which has played a major role in my career ever since.
It is also felt that B vitamins also play a role in preserving retinal health in dogs and cats as well. Along with vitamins E and C, the B vitamins help preserve circulation and general good health of the retina. This would be similar to preventing macular degeneration in humans which is a major problem in senior citizens.
As an example of just how important diet in pets can be, recently there was an article in one of my veterinary journals about a cat that ate a diet consisting largely of tuna. Tuna is a diet we warn against due to its very strong addicting power for the cats which consume it. The cats will get so they refuse all other foods. However the tuna is deficient in the B vitamin, thiamine, and the kitty mentioned became quite ill with some rather bizarre symptoms. Fortunately the problem, called ‘yellow fat disease’ and which can be fatal, was recognized early and quickly corrected with thiamine injections and supportive treatment.
Senior pets are especially prone to vitamin B deficiency diseases. As we age, our kidneys lose the B vitamins at an increased rate and this is true with animals as well. Many of the cognitive or so called “senile” changes seen in older dogs and cats are related to lowered vitamin B levels since this vitamin is very important to the health of brain cells. I have treated many a cat which could not remember where its kitty litter box is located. Also a lot of dogs which became so senile they could not figure out how to turn around out of a corner they had walked into. It was always very satisfying to make these problems disappear with proper nutrition. There is a product called Cholodon on the market which contains the necessary B vitamins plus cholin and methionine. A chewable tablet or two of this daily will often produce dramatic clearing of the mind. I have even used it to successfully treat mild seizures.
So every cat or dog 10 years or older should be treated as a senior citizen and be on a good geriatric multivitamin supplement which will contain the B vitamin group. Your veterinarian can advise you how to pick a good one and most are chewable, as well as tasty, so act as a treat. This and a good senior diet will put an excellent health platform under any older pet. Many of the problems attributed to a pet “just getting old” are really nutritional and can be prevented. There is not a great deal we can do about preventing ourselves or our pets from getting older. But there is a lot we can do to keep us both from looking, acting and feeling old. So let’s do it.
Bud Stuart DVM resides in California after a 45+ year as a small animal veterinarian.
NOTE: There has been a recall issued by the FDA for a pet vitamin – see news flash below:
A news release from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration:
United Pet Group, Cincinnati, Ohio, is voluntarily recalling all unexpired lots of its PRO-PET ADULT DAILY VITAMIN tablets for dogs because of possible salmonella contamination.
The product was sold nationally at various retailers. The product comes in 100-count white plastic bottles with a light blue label, and UPC code 26851-01800. These products are being removed from retail stores, and consumers should immediately stop feeding these supplements to their pets. The affected products are those with expiration dates on or before 06/13. The expiration date can be found imprinted vertically on the right side of the product label.
Laboratory testing has shown that one lot of this vitamin product was contaminated with salmonella. All lots are being recalled for safety assurance.
Pets with salmonella infections may be lethargic and have diarrhea or bloody diarrhea, fever and vomiting. Some pets will have only decreased appetite, fever and abdominal pain. Infected but otherwise healthy pets can be carriers and infect other animals or humans. If your pet has consumed the recalled product and has these symptoms, contact your veterinarian.
Consumers who have purchased the product are urged to contact United Pet Group or the place of purchase for further direction.
Consumers may contact United Pet Group at 1-800-645-5154, Ext. 3, Monday through Friday, from 8:30 a.m. to 5 p.m.
Penny Pinching With Pets by Roxie Dinstel
Posted 02 Aug 2010 — by Impeeved
Category Birds, Bunny, Cats, Dogs, Fish, Lizards, Rabbit, Rats, hamster
Category Birds, Bunny, Cats, Dogs, Fish, Lizards, Rabbit, Rats, hamster
FAIRBANKS – Everyone loves pets. More than 55 percent of Americans have one. Dogs and cats are the most popular, but many enjoy the companionship of fish, hamsters, iguanas, snakes, pigs, chickens and goats. They provide companionship and can be cute and cuddly, but they can be expensive to keep. By learning a few money saving tips, you’ll make sure your family friend won’t drain the budget.
The first step comes before you choose a pet. Choose a pet you can afford. Some pets cost little to begin with but are expensive to maintain. Others are expensive to buy, yet cost less in the long run.
If you’ve decided to get a pet, consider visiting an animal shelter. You’ll save money on a pet by adopting from a shelter. Also, most shelters only send animals home with you after they’ve given them the necessary shots and immunizations.
Our local pet shelter not only gives all the shots before putting them up for adoption, but they also require the animals be spayed or neutered.
Check with Fairbanks Pet Shelter (petfinder.com), Homeward Bound Rescue and Referral (hbrr.org), Golden Retriever Rescue (grrf.org), Second Chance League (members.petfinder.com/~AK/index.php), and Pet Pride for cats (petfinder.com). A quick look showed dogs, cats, birds and rabbits of all shapes and sizes.
Also, put the word out that you are looking for a pet among family and friends. Someone might know of animals that need to be adopted because of owners who are moving, facing financial difficulties, have newly discovered allergies or simply don’t have time to invest in a pet. If someone is giving away a pet, they might have supplies and equipment for the animal.
Regardless of what animal you consider for a pet, you will need to spend a certain amount of money to care for it. Food, shelter, toys and health necessities all cost money. Remember, you have another mouth to feed, even if it only weighs five pounds.
For many, food will be the largest expense during the life of your pet. For example, an average-sized dog consuming one can of food with four cups of dry food per day averages to about $25-$40 per month. Multiply that by 8-15 years, and you get an idea of how much you’ll spend on food for your dog.
When it comes to food, you might be tempted to cut costs, but that might not be a good idea. Lower quality dog food might seem like a bargain — you get more for your money, so it must be a good deal. Not necessarily — premium pet foods might be a better bargain during the life of the pet.
Here’s why: less expensive pet foods might offer more for a pet owner’s money, but it is quality, not quantity that counts with pet food. A pet’s body requires certain nutrients, vitamins and minerals, and the pet must eat more of the low-quality food to get the necessary nutrients.
Regardless of what you pay, it is important to get the nutrients needed for your pet. Just like choosing your own food, it is important to read labels to see what you are purchasing. Find the food that provides the most protein and nutrients at the lowest cost. If you aren’t sure, ask the store employees what kind of food would be best for your pet. Purchase pet food in bulk to save money.
Coupons also are available for pet food. Visit www.savings.com and www.coolsavings.com and search “pet coupons.” Both websites have printable coupons to use at local stores and online retailers.
Pets can be a welcome addition to your household. They provide love and companionship. But a pet shouldn’t empty your wallet or drain your finances. Try a few of these tips to decrease the financial burden.
Roxie Rodgers Dinstel is a professor of extension at the Tanana District Office of the UAF Cooperative Extension. Questions or column requests can be emailed to her at rrdinstel@alaska.edu.
Thank you to Roxie for sharing her guest post today!