Ask the vet: develop a backup plan for pet care
Whatever you decide about Buster’s care, let the important people in your life know, and designate your wishes on a wallet card and in a prominent location in your home.
Lee Pickett, Special to IBJ
Articles
Ask the vet: To prevent bites, teach children to respect dogs
Most bite victims are children, usually boys between the ages of 5 and 9, who are provoking dogs they know. The most common injury sites are the face, neck and head.
Ask the vet: Adopting ‘special needs’ cats can be rewarding
The feline leukemia virus, or FeLV, and feline immunodeficiency virus, FIV, are more prevalent than many people think.
PETS: Drinking and urinating excessively may signal diabetes
Many diabetic cats also eat more, although some lose weight and muscle mass. Eventually, they lose energy, and some walk low on their hind legs because of diabetes-induced nerve damage.
Pets: Treat cat to outdoor adventure with cat-safe enclosure
Build your kitty a “catio.” You can attach it to your home like a screened porch, or you can install a cat door and tunnel leading to the enclosed catio so he can slip in and out as he wishes.
Drugs can diminish dog’s sense of smell
In humans, more than 70 drugs affect the sense of smell. So, it shouldn’t be surprising that some medications can reduce scenting ability in dogs.
Three reasons not to toilet train your cat
Most cats dislike water, especially baths, so imagine how Cameo will feel if she slips into the toilet bowl while eliminating.
Ask the vet: Ferrets and COVID-19
If you get sick, you can decrease the risk to your ferrets by staying away from them, just as you would stay away from people.
Ask the Vet: Updating your pet’s microchip information and identifying toxic mushrooms in yard
Keeping your pet’s microchip up-to-date will help ensure you’ll be reunited should your pet escape, and assume all varieties of mushrooms are toxic to your dog and remove them from your yard when you see them.
Ask the Vet: Keep bread dough away from dog
just as it does when resting on the kitchen counter, dough rises in a dog’s warm, moist stomach, expanding to many times its original size. This causes abdominal pain, retching and bloat — and, sometimes, breathing problems and stomach rupture, either of which can be fatal.
Ask the vet: Fleas transmit plague bacteria
To prevent your cats from getting the plague, use effective flea control throughout the year, and keep your cats inside to discourage hunting.
Ask the Vet: Dog’s cold, wet nose doesn’t guarantee good health
Also, can a kitten transfer lice to kids?
Ask the Vet: Even indoor cats need rabies vaccination
Globally, 59,000 people die every year from rabies. In the U.S., most human cases result from a bat bite inside the home, but it is the domestic cat that most often tests positive for the disease.
Ask the vet: What happens when a dog gets overheated?
Heatstroke occurs when the dog’s body temperature, normally 100.5 to 102.5 degrees, increases to 105 degrees or more.
Ask the vet: Can my dog ride in the back of a pickup?
It’s illegal in only a few states to transport an unsecured animal in an open vehicle, such as the bed of a pickup truck or a top-down convertible. Regardless, the practice is unsafe for animals and drivers.
Ask the Vet: Excessive drooling may signal medical problem
Drooling often results from chewing houseplants, especially those that contain insoluble oxalate crystals.
Ask the vet: Feed commercial cat food, not just tuna
Schedule an appointment with your veterinarian to figure out why Tater Tot refuses his regular dry food. Until then, feed him canned cat food that’s nutritionally complete and balanced, and save the tuna for yourself.