Top Ten Questions

Q: Can I feed my dog grapes?
A: No, both grapes and raisins are toxic for dogs and cats. Ingestion can lead to severe kidney damage and even death. It is not know how this occurs, and not all pets are affected. It is safest to just avoid consumption.

Q: What should I do if I can't get my dog to eat dog food?
A: Some dogs can become finicky over time, especially small dogs. If your canine won't eat dog food, you can try adding dilute chicken broth, small pieces of chicken, pet food dressing, or canned food to the kibble. If this doesn't work, try Happy Dog. This is a balanced grain mixture that you cook and add chicken, turkey, or lamb to it. We carry this product at our clinic.

Q: Why is people food bad for my pet?
A: People food is often not nutritionally balanced for the needs of your pet. If you are cooking for your companions, you can make sure the diet is balanced at the website www.balancit.com. Vitamin supplements are also recommended for macro and micro nutrients.

People food is also often rich and high in fat. This can lead to health problems such as Pancreatitis, Liver Disease, Irritable Bowl Disease, and others.

Q: Does my indoor cat need vaccinations?
A:Your indoor cat is still at risk for several infections. Upper respiratory infections are airborne, so your indoor cat is still exposed. Some respiratory diseases can also be transmitted on clothing from you to your pet.

Rabies is also still a concern. Bats can inhabit your attic and/or roof. They have also been known to fly into open windows, or enter through other spaces and infect the resident pets with disease.

Q: My pet's poop looks fine, why should I have a fecal sample checked?
A: Many of the parasites that can be in your pet's feces are microscopic. This means that your dog or cat can have worms or bacteria that you can't visually identify. Many parasites that affect your pet, can affect people as well. For the safety of you and your family, have a fecal sample checked at least once a year, and don't let your pet lick you on your mouth.

Q: Why is a dental important for my pet?
A: A dental cleaning is important for your pet to keep his or her teeth as long as possible. When tartar builds up on the teeth, bacteria is present as well. As more tartar is deposited, the gum line begins to become inflamed and infected. Over time this gingivitis will lead to a weakening of the ligaments that hold the tooth in place. If left untreated, the tooth will eventually fall out. This is a very painful process, and owners will often see their pets not wanting to eat hard food. Bacteria from the mouth can also spread into the bloodstream to other organs, causing disease throughout the body.

Q: Why should I run blood work on my pet?
A: Blood work is a critical tool to evaluate the overall heath of your pet, in combination with the history and a physical exam. A blood panel lets us identify problems in specific organs, as well as identify infection, and monitor treatment.

Q: Can animals get allergies?
A: Allergies are very common in our area in both animals and people. Symptoms that are commonly seen include itching, scratching, licking, hair loss, skin inflammation, sneezing, bloodshot eyes, and frequent ear infections.

Depending on the severity of symptoms and the underlying cause, some therapies might include antihistamines, flea control, fatty acids, a diet change, allergy testing, and others.

Q: How do I know if my pet is overweight, and why does it matter?
A: When your dog is standing up, you should see the abdomen or belly slope upwards. Your pet's ribs shouldn't be visible; but you want to be able to feel them with gentle pressure.

A cat tends to store fat at the belly. You don't want to feel a ball of fat larger than a lemon in this area. You should also be able to feel the ribs with gentle pressure.

If your pet is overweight, it can lead to many serious medical conditions just like in people. Diabetes, joint problems, heart disease, liver disease, kidney disease and others can all be triggered by obesity. Being overweight can also be a sign of a hormone imbalance such as low thyroid.

Q: Why do I need to have a heartworm test done on my animals before starting preventative, and once they have been on preventatives?
A: It is important to test your pets for heartworm disease before starting the preventatives because if underlying disease is present, it should be identified and treated as soon as possible. In dogs a form of arsenic is used, and in cats there is no treatment.

Patients on preventative need to be monitored because if the product isn't given routinely four weeks apart, there is a chance for break through infections. The preventative only targets the earlier larva stage of this disease process. When heartworm is treated in the hospital, it only reaches the mature adults. There are stages in the middle that can't be treated at all.