Author Archives: Admin

Vet Advise – Part 1 – Home Remedies for Poisoning and Fever

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Dr. Andrew JonesI’m going to be passing along some vet advise from Dr Andrew Jones, author and creator of Veterinary Secrets Revealed.

Dr. Jones has more than a decade of experience and has his own veterinary practice.

Dr. Jones also has a great online vet site called ‘The Inner Circle’ where you can find some incredible information, answers to questions, a library and forum.

Now let’s hear from Dr. Andrew Jones!

My personal story, plus six specific at home remedies for Poisoning and Fever, which you can use right away to Treat Your Pet At Home!

You have probably never had any medical training – let alone given your pet medication.

This information will not turn you in to a practicing veterinarian, but I can show you the basic ways to examine your pet, make a tentative diagnosis, and treat your pet — all in the comfort of your home.

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Pet Emergencies – What Do I Do Now?

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Pet emergencies are scary just because they are emergencies and in general they happen with no warning. Even worse is when they happen at night or on the weekend when your regular vet is often not easily available. Or if you live too far away to make a trip to the vet’s office easily and quickly enough. What do you do then?

Do you have a pet first aid kit and know how to use it? Do you know the basics about pet first aid? Poisonings, cuts, abscesses, wounds, bites, etc. Will you have the time to look it up online and hope you come across the right information quickly enough?

Like I said, scary!

This is something we all hope we never have the need to know but what if you do? Do you have a comprehensive manual on pet first aid at home that you can access quickly? It can make a difference.

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What You Need to Know About Pet Health Care Insurance

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Wanted to pass along some excellent advise on pet insurance from For the Love of the Dog

I recently did an article on pet wellness and the questionability of it. It seems the supplier in question is notorious for poor customer service among other things. They do not seem to have a good reputation.

Purchasing pet insurance or a pet wellness plan is an important step and can be a good or bad step depending on the company. Here are some tips on choosing pet insurance:

Before you purchase a pet health care insurance plan for your pet, check the list of the companies approved veterinarians to see if your veterinarian will accept the companies check.

Ask your local veterinarian what type of pet health care insurance plan would best suit your family pet. Ask your local veterinarian to read over the plan and listen to their advice. Talking to your local veterinarian will also help you establish if the insurance company you are considering purchasing your pet health care insurance plan from is reputable.

If you have purchased a pet that is as of yet unaltered you’ll want to look for a pet health care plan that includes neutering and spaying.

Before you pay for a pet health care insurance plan you need to carefully read how the policy handles prescription coverage. Most companies that sell pet health care insurance do not include prescription coverage in their basic medical health care insurance plan. If you are concerned about the cost of any prescription your pet might need during the course of its life you should probably consider buying a prescription coverage rider to complement your pet health care insurance. Although this rider may appear expensive and unnecessary you’ll probably wish you had purchased it if your pet is ever given a prescription for anything. Just like the human counterparts prescriptions are very expensive.

One of things you need to take into consideration when purchasing a pet health care insurance plan is the deductible. The deductible is the amount of money you pay out-of-pocket for veterinarian services rendered that your pet health care insurance plan does not cover. Different pet health care plans require different deductibles. The higher a the deductible you choose the lower your monthly payments to the insurance company but the higher deductible the more out-of-pocket extension had each time you visit the veterinarian’s office/clinic.

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Regular Home Examination of Pets Can Save Lives

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Too often a pet’s illness goes undetected until it gets to a critical point then you have rush vet visits and bills and treatments. If you take the time to perform weekly home examinations of your pet and learn what to look for, you may be able to detect potential problems early enough to take care of them before they get to a critical point. It’s not that difficult if you follow some basic guidelines.

There is much when it comes to your pet’s health that you can not only check, but treat at home.  Armed with the proper knowledge there are many home and natural remedies that you can employ to care for your pet.

Get comfortable in examining your pet. He should be fine with letting you put your fingers in his mouth or brushing his hair to feel for lumps. The first thing that you have to be familiar with is what is normal.

Vital Statistics: Pulse and Heart Rate

Normal resting rates:
Cats: 150-200 bpm
Small dogs: 90-120 bpm
Medium dogs: 70-110 bpm
Large dogs: 60-90 bpm

Pulse should be strong, regular and easy to locate.

Checking the pulse

The easiest place to locate a pulse is the femoral artery in the groin area. Place your fingers on the inside of the hind leg and slide your hand upward until the back of your fingers touches the abdomen. Gently move your fingers back and forth on the inside of the hind leg until you feel the pulsing blood.

Count the number of pulses in 15 seconds and multiply that number by 4. This will give you the beats per minute (bpm).

Temperature

A normal dog’s temperature is 101 F (38.0 C), and a normal cat’s temperature is 102 F (38.5 C). Taking your pet’s temperature involves placing a thermometer in their rectum. If your pet has a temperature of 103.5 F (39.5 C) or more, they have a fever.

Thermometer should be almost clean when removed. Abnormalities are indicated by blood, diarrhea, or black, tarry stool.

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Diabetes in Pets

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Diabetic Pets

Diabetes is a result of the Pancreas not producing Insulin any more. This means that the sugar in the blood CAN’T be used for Energy and you get the resulting signs of Increased Drinking, Urinating, Increased Appetite, Weakness, and some serious secondary metabolic changes ( Keto-Acidosis)

If you are to have your pet diagnosed with Diabetes, Chances are You will be told that there are NO ALTERNATE TREATMENTS that you can consider.

Not necessarily true, read on!

DIETARY CHANGES – This is most important for cats. Recent studies have shown that cats benefit greatly from higher protein, lower carbohydrate diets. These resemble diets that they would eat in the wild. Purina and Hills now make specific feline diabetic diets. You can also purchase canned food that fits this requirement at the grocery store.  Specifically go for the kitten food: an example is Friskies canned tuna which is very high in protein and low in carbohydrates.

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Liver Shunts in Pets

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A portosystemic shunt (PSS), also known as a liver shunt, is a bypass of the liver by the body’s circulatory system. It can be either a congenital (present at birth) or acquired condition.

Congenital PSS is a hereditary condition in dogs and cats, its frequency varying depending on the breed. The shunts found mainly in small dog breeds such as Miniature Schnauzers and Yorkshire Terriers, and in cats such as Persians, Himalayans, and mix breeds are usually extrahepatic (outside the liver), while the shunts found in large dog breeds such as Irish Wolfhounds and Labrador Retrievers tend to be intrahepatic.

Acquired PSS is uncommon and is found in dogs and cats with liver disease such as cirrhosis causing portal hypertension, which is high blood pressure in the portal vein.

Congenital PSS is caused by the failure of the fetal circulatory system of the liver to change. Normally, the blood from the placenta bypasses the liver and goes into circulation via the ductus venosus, a blood vessel found in the fetus. A failure of the ductus venosus to close causes an intrahepatic shunt, while extrahepatic shunts are usually a developmental abnormality of the vitelline veins, which connect the portal vein to the caudal vena cava. Thus in the juvenile and adult animal with PSS, blood from the intestines only partly goes through the liver, and the rest mixes into general circulation. Toxins such as ammonia are not cleared by the liver. Most commonly, extrahepatic shunts are found connecting the portal vein or left gastric vein to the caudal vena cava.

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Important Information for California Residents with Pets!

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Please pass this along. With these horrible fires, any help and information is so important! This comes from For the Love of the Dog

VCA Animal Hospitals Offers Free Boarding for Pets Affected by Southern California Fires

VCA Animal Hospitals announced that local SOUTHERN California VCA
facilities are offering free boarding for companion animals whose families have
been evacuated or displaced as a result of the current firestorms.

Conveniently located VCA animal hospitals will provide a safe environment for
pets that have been affected by the fires through November 5, 2007, on a space available basis.

As thousands of families are being evacuated to shelters or facing the loss of
their homes, VCA hopes to ease their burden by offering free boarding for pets
so they can focus on the critical issues with their families and homes, said
Art Antin, Chief Operating Officer of VCA Animal Hospitals.

Boarding assistance for pets is based on space availability at individual VCA
Animal Hospitals throughout Southern California.

Pet owners can Call the following VCA facilities that currently have space
available:

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Don’t Let Halloween Be a ‘Fright Nitght’ for Your Pets!

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Most people don’t realize how scary and actually dangerous Halloween can be for our pets. They tend to think of it as just a mostly fun filled entree to Fall for children and adults alike but what about our furry companions?

It can actually be quite frightening for them, the constant knocking or door bell ringing, strange looking people showing up at the door making sounds, sometimes in sizable groups. This is especially noticeable in pets that are more accustomed to a relatively quiet routine.

You need to really watch for frightened or excited pets darting out an open door and racing into the street. Incidences of animals being hit by vehicles sadly tend to escalate due to this. You may see evidence of fear based aggression triggered by territorial or fear responses to all the ghouls and goblins, the laughter, the noise, the yelling and excitement.

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Skin Allergies in Dogs

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When it comes to canine skin problems, dog allergies are by far the common cause but unfortunately are extremely hard to diagnose effectively because dog allergy symptoms bear a striking resemblance to those of other aliments and illnesses. Skin allergies can manifest themselves in dogs in a number of ways, anything from dermatitis to ear infections, but they will always tend to affect the whole body in some way.

Dog skin allergies are commonly caused by an adverse reaction to an allergen. An allergen is a substance given off by certain elements of the world around us, including vegetation pollen and food for example. When these elements come into contact with a living being and cannot be neutralized by the body, it provokes an allergic reaction.

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Destructive Chewing

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The act of chewing seems to be a matter of individual preference among dogs: some have an innate desire to chew as a pleasurable activity in itself, and some seem to have no need to chew whatsoever unless they’re driven to it out of sheer boredom.

The phrase “destructive chewing” may sound redundant, because – by its very nature! – all chewing is destructive. Your dog has strong jaws full of sharp, pointy teeth: just about anything she starts to chew on is probably going to show the effects of it inside of a minute. So just to clarify, when I use the phrase “destructive chewing”, I’m referring to inappropriate chewing: the kind of chewing that’s focused on your own possessions and household items, instead of on your dog’s own designated toys and chews.

The three main reasons why dogs chew:

– Most dogs have a natural desire to chew. It’s fun, it passes the time, and it’s a self-rewarding, self-reinforcing activity (for example, if she’s chewing on something that tastes good.)

– Chewing provides a nervous, bored, or lonely dog with an outlet for her emotions. To an anxious dog, the repetitive act of chewing is soothing – it’s the doggie equivalent of comfort food.

– Underexercised dogs often use chewing as a way of burning up nervous energy and giving themselves something to do.

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