Last Week: HOW TO Prevent Gastric Dilatation/Volvulus
Bringing home a new puppy is exciting for everyone in the family. In addition to having a new playmate to bond with, there is a certain excitement that comes along with puppy preparation. Purchasing toys, selecting the perfect food bowls that match the kitchen, picking out a cozy bed, and trying to figure out which collar and leash set best suits his personality are fun details when it comes to bringing the baby home.
Last week: HOW TO Prevent Hip Dysplasia in Your Dog
It’s your worst nightmare: You toss Fido a treat, which he gulps down whole – and starts gagging. You pat his back, but he continues to choke. What do you do?
Choking occurs when a dog can’t breathe because a foreign object or constriction is preventing air from reaching his lungs through his throat. While gagging is the most obvious sign, be aware of other choking symptoms such as difficulty breathing, pacing, drooling, excessive pawing at the mouth and a blue-tinged tongue, according to the American Veterinary Medical Association (AVMA).
If your dog is choking, you should rush him to your vet or emergency clinic. The AVMA and petplace.com recommend you also do the following. A panicking, choking dog is more likely to bite, so use caution. (more…)
When Sophie was born, the German Shepherd’s rear legs were not functioning. It seemed highly unlikely she would ever be able to walk. Flight attendants volunteered to transport the immobile puppy from New Jersey to the Healing HEART Sanctuary (HHS) in Utah, which rehabilitates disabled or injured domestic and farm animals.
Laura Bradshaw, a founder and the executive director of HHS, treated Sophie using a combination of traditional and alternative therapies. Soon Sophie’s back legs began to move. Bewildered veterinarians who examined the puppy’s x-rays could not understand how Sophie could possibly walk, since her hips were not in their sockets. Bradshaw told them, “But she does, look.”
As Sophie grew, so did her mobility. Now an adult, Sophie can hike up to 10 miles at a time. She was adopted by the flight attendants who brought her to HHS, and is leading a happy and active life.
Sophie’s success story is just one of hundreds at HHS, which was founded in 2003. During the aftermaths of hurricanes Katrina and Rita, HHS worked with the Best Friends Animal Society (BFAS) to reunite nearly 1,000 pets with their families across the country. (more…)
Last Week: HOW TO Choose A Veterinarian For Your Dog
With the winter weather watering down both our gardens and our coats, the sniffles and coughs aren’t too far behind. While humans battle those pesky viruses and bacterial infections with vitamin C and other immunity boosters, their canines might be suffering the sniffly woes of the rain as well.
H1N1 continues to affect humans and recent reports show it possibly spreading to the four-legged and furry. Other diseases like canine influenza or parvovirus are dangerous diseases to stay cautious of. Maintaining your dog’s optimum immunity will help him fend these diseases off. For this reason, pups might benefit from an immunity boost just as much as their humans.
“As with any disease caused by a virus, treatment is largely supportive. Good animal care practices and nutrition assist dogs in mounting an effective immune response,” says the American Veterinary Medical Association (AVMA).
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Last Week: HOW TO Keep your Dog with Arthritis Comfortable
WHY Choose a Veterinarian
It’s sometimes hard to believe that our best dog friends might need to see a doctor at some point in their short lives. Or, for others, it might seem very obvious.
Dogs, like humans, have a body full of functioning organs, joints, bones, ligaments, muscles, and on and on the list goes. Moreover, dogs, unlike humans, jump from couch to couch daily, leap onto their owners without remorse, scarf down dish towels, toy cars, pens, chew toys, and any human food they can get their paws on. Dogs will dart out into traffic with the delusional belief that they are SuperFido. They’ll try to prove to a Rottweiler that they’re the boss even if they’re a teeny tiny Chihuahua. Do you get where this is going? Dogs certainly live in the moment, and sometimes that can work against their best interests. The opportunities for bodily injury to your dog are countless. (more…)
Not only is October national Adopt-A-Dog Month, it’s also Breast Cancer Awareness Month. Although these two subjects aren’t typically associated with each other, dogs can get breast cancer – referred to as “mammary cancer” in the canine world – just as humans do.
Fortunately, mammary cancer is one of the most preventable types of cancer in dogs since it rarely occurs in female dogs that were spayed before their first heat. Gerald Post, a veterinary oncologist, told ABC News, “It’s important for owners to spay female animals before the animal first goes into heat, because each following heat cycle increases the risk of developing the cancer.”
Mammary cancer is more common in five- to 10-year-old female dogs that have not been spayed, because with every heat cycle, their bodies endure a 60-day hormonal pregnancy regardless of whether or not they breed. Veterinarian Michael Watts writes, “This hormonal cycle continuously stimulates the mammary tissue for at least four months of each year. The constant stimulation leads to very high rates of cancer. Fortunately, 99% of canine breast cancer can be prevented by spaying young dogs.” (more…)
Do your dog’s ears hang low? Do they wobble to and fro? Can you tie them in a knot, can you – well, you get where this is going. The thought of a pup’s ears hanging low and wobbling to and fro bring very sweet images to mind. Many dog owners get a heartwarming kick out of scratching behind their pup’s ears, and what pet parent doesn’t just melt when they see that tail wag?
Despite the overwhelming cuteness points floppy ears and wagging tails have received over eons, many dog breeds are better known for their short, pointy ears and tail nubs, such as the Doberman Pinscher, Miniature Schnauzer, and Great Dane. Though it seems standard for many breeds to have these traits, they are not inherent to some breeds and are the center of controversy among dog lovers. (more…)
The American Veterinary Medical Association released new statistics on pet ownership in the US and announced pet ownership is up as is spending on pets. The AVMA conducts this survey every five years, this year surveying 47,842 households. The results showed an increase in pet ownership of 26.5 million pets from 2001 to 2006 (which includes dogs, cats, birds and horses).
