Dogs

Now we can prevent fleas!

Flea control has always been a losing battle, until now . . .

Look First

If no fleas are on you, don't assume there aren't any on your pets. Fleas don't prefer people as hosts, so your pet has to be thoroughly infested before they'll choose you. Flea combs come in handy to get the facts, because combs catch the fleas, flea eggs, and flea dirt (feces), allowing you to see the true extent of your problem. Once you spot fleas, you'll know to start pet treatments.

Don't delay

Each flea on an animal consumes about a drop of blood a day. A heavy infestation can actually cause anemia, a life threatening condition. An allergic animal can scratch itself raw within a day, after only one or two bites.

The Older Way

Until the development of the new methods, controlling fleas here in the northwest was a matter of continuous, expensive chemical warfare. Attention had to be paid to killing fleas around the house and in the yard, as well as on our pets.

On the Animals

Using conventional insecticides, we had to shampoo and dip dogs, and bathe, spray, or powder cats every one or two weeks, a schedule that had to be continued throughout the warmer months, and until winter settled in with a couple of hard frosts. Even during winter, though, we had to stay alert: sometimes warming up the house at the start of heating season can encourage a hatch of eggs in carpet, starting flea troubles all over again. While worst from August through November, flea season here in the northwest is usually year round. Bathing and dipping cats and dogs all through the year was messy, difficult, inconvenient, and because of the chemicals involved a health risk. Modern preventative medicines avoid all these drawbacks.

Around the House

To kill fleas indoors, flea bombs have never been the best choice, because the mist from bombs only kills fleas where it lands, leaving spots under furniture untouched. Instead, we have recommended handheld sprays or commercial carpet treatments. Today, a well controlled house simply doesn't need such treatments.

In the Yard

Our pets' outdoor environment will always represent a source of new fleas. Studies have shown that raccoons and opossums steadily carry new fleas into back yards in even the most urbanized parts of Portland. Using older techniques meant periodically spraying with poisons or other, more expensive alternatives. With the new methods, these arriving fleas never have a chance to gain a foothold in our homes. Your pet's yard ceases to be a threat to health.

Traditional?

We still carry these older products, and we'll gladly show you how to use them most effectively. They're still quite useful for knocking down a bad initial infestation. But once you're ready to start a maintenance program, we hope you'll consider switching to the more effective, more convenient, and safer preventative approach. It doesn't make sense to constantly play catch-up with fleas when it's easier and more effective to prevent them from infesting your pets in the first place.

A New Approach

We've had a great deal of success with a treatment called Program. Administered to your pets as a single monthly dose (a pill for dogs, liquid or pill for cats), the active ingredient in Program is an enzyme that prevents immature flea larvae from producing chitin, a protein necessary for their exoskeleton, or shell. They can't live or breed without that, so their reproductive cycle is destroyed. That means that although adult fleas don't die, and need to be controlled through other measures, after biting your pet they'll be infertile. Normally, one adult flea will lay over 400 eggs in its lifetime, but this product ensures that those eggs won't hatch. After the first generation of fleas dies, Program may then be all you need to keep them under control.

Program has been proven safe for pets and humans. The medicine is recommended for all sizes and weights of dogs and cats, breeding pets, and puppies and kittens as young as six weeks. It reduces your need for other treatments, but is safe to use with them, too. Sold only by veterinarians, Program is safe, effective, convenient, and reasonably priced.

Researchers have made progress in adulticides, too. Two that we recommend are Advantage and Frontline. Though they are different substances, both of these products work by disrupting the fleas' nerve function, without harming your pet, and they stay effective for at least a month. Advantage is administered as a drop of liquid applied to the pet's skin, while Frontline comes as a drop or a spray. Both are highly effective at killing adult fleas on contact. Frontline also protects against ticks. Both products have a wide margin of safety for both cats and dogs.

An Integrated Approach

Advantage and Frontline both will let fleas live long enough to lay fertile eggs after about three weeks, and the ones that have any resistance to the medicines will breed better. Therefore, to avoid encouraging fleas to develop a resistance to these products, it's important to use them as parts of an integrated plan that incorporates both a developmental or growth inhibitor, such as Program or FleaBusters (which treats indoor carpets to control flea development there), and an adulticide, such as Advantage. The combination can deliver nearly perfect flea control that also prevents the appearance of resistant fleas, keeping the effectiveness of the treatments high. Ask us what treatment will be best for you.

Call us for information, an examination, or any of the products mentioned here. We want to help your animal friends enjoy life flea free.

Go ahead, ask us how Program works

We've been hearing good things from our clients about Program flea control ...

"Raleigh loves it - no fleas! ... Best thing since sliced bread!" C.H.
"Much better than spray, powders, etc.!" S.S.
"My eldest cat has a flea allergy. When we began (Program), he was losing lots of fur. It has all grown back and he's beautiful again! Great!" T.T.

Barking

Barking is an attempt by your pet to get your attention (any attention is better than no attention) and often indicates insecurity. Training is a solution since it gives the animal confidence, both in you and in his/her worth. Most barking problems arise from boredom or the need to protect the dog's area.

Protectiveness

Dogs that are protective by nature will bark to warn off intruders. As the dog's owner, you don't want to totally stop this behavior, but the dog should stop barking when you say it's okay. So step one is training.

The dog must understand he is a member of the pack, and not its leader. Dogs want to please, and just need guidance. Start with basic commands, such as sit, stay, down, and heel commands. This can be done either by the owner alone, or with the help of a trainer. The dog should obey the command the first time. If it doesn't, have him do it with some control, but never cruelly. Make your dog want to please you., and make a big fuss over him with praise when he does obey properly.

After the basic commands are done, and the dog understands what you need, then the barking will start to improve. Do this gradually. Have him come to you, go down, and be quiet. Praise him when he does this much.

Training never ends for dogs: it's a daily affair. You must be consistent with your dog and not expect overnight miracles.

Boredom

Boredom can be harder to handle, especially if the dog has to be left alone. As owners, we have to create diversions for our dogs. Exercise is the key: get your dog out of the house, exercise him, and use up that excess energy. At Pet Samaritan we also see a lot of pets on high protein diets that have problems with excessive energy unless they get plenty of exercise.

Remember that barking dogs are communicating. We have to understand what the dog is trying to say and handle the communication appropriately. This is not always easy, but it can be done with some patience. The secret is to start early with the barking, and never let it get out of hand.

Excessive Energy

This is normally seen in dogs less than two years old. Basically, the owner just has to wait it out. However, decreasing the protein content of the dog's food by switching from puppy food to adult formula sometimes helps.

The most productive suggestion is to help the dog get adequate exercise in a situation of your choosing. Letting him or her choose the situation only leads to high blood pressure and broken china.

Dogs are pack animals and like being with a group. They like to have a purpose. In today's society, dogs are usually kept for companionship and protection. The dog bonds with its owner and looks to the owner for a purpose. If not provided with one, the dog will develop a purpose on its own.

The first step in creating a well behaved dog is to start training while it's still a puppy. Younger dogs have not developed opinions of their own yet and are easier to teach. On the other hand, while older dogs take more time and patience, the ultimate results of training can be just as good. Older dogs are not so easily distracted. On balance, it's best to teach a dog how to behave properly right from the start: it's easier on both of you to establish good habits early than to try to correct bad habits later.

Allow your dog to exercise and burn off its excess energy. Try to do this regularly so the dog learns to look forward to his time with you. When you establish enjoyable activities, your dog will come to see you as the leader. You are already the feeder, and if you get the dog to understand that you are the one who gives him "something to do," he will be more willing to obey when you give a command.

A bored dog is a dog with behavior problems. So train your dog and give it something to do and look forward to.

Neutering and Spaying

The decision to spay or neuter your dog rests with you. You must decide your dog's purpose in your life. Most owners feel that the responsibility of owning a dog is enough, and the time, attention, and expense represented by puppies would be too much.

Spaying

If you decide to spay your dog, we recommend that you have it done before her first heat, to avoid an unwanted pregnancy, which can happen very easily. Dogs come into heat at 6 months to 1 year of age. During heat (about 3 weeks), Mother Nature is very strong. Your dog won't listen to you, and she'll constantly try to escape from the yard, or you could find that a neighbor's dog can jump your 8 foot fence after all. It happens all the time. Outside, you'll have to be present and alert throughout those 3 weeks, and you won't want her inside the house, either, because of the bloody vaginal discharge that accompanies the first week of her cycle. During the second week, when she is most fertile, she'll also be the most interested in being bred. In the last week, if she is a late ovulator, she can still get pregnant. A dog in heat needs a considerable investment of time and attention. Spaying early lets you avoid that.

Beyond matters of convenience, spaying offers significant health benefits, too. A dog spayed before the first heat is 99% certain not to get mammary cancer. If you wait until after the first heat, that number drops to 85%. Dogs that remain un-spayed until after their second heat have a risk of mammary cancer that depends on their genes and breeds. Spaying before first heat helps prevent this particular cancer.

Mother Nature's design of the dog's uterus makes it well suited to having puppies, but also makes it vulnerable to serious and life threatening infections. In cases of an infected uterus, emergency surgery is required. Again, this is a serious problem that can be avoided by spaying early.

Neutering

Neutering male dogs is a difficult issue for many owners, but there are excellent reasons to do it.

Male dogs don't have seasonal peaks as the females do, but their testosterone level is usually high enough to cause behavior problems anyway. We hate to see nice dogs develop behavior problems due to testosterone, because their quality of life invariably deteriorates. Because of the hormones and their basic nature as protectors, unfixed male dogs often develop serious behavior problems.

The first problem is running away. The dog will feel a real need to get out and explore the neighborhood. Generally, if he doesn't find other dogs to pack with, these trips will just mean sniffing every nook and cranny, and scent-marking as much territory as possible. Such tours, though, are dangerous in many ways, traffic being the highest risk. Dogs identify their enemies by smell, and cars don't have any scent to mark them as dangerous: dogs should never be allowed to roam unattended in any area where they would be exposed to traffic hazards. Once a dog develops a love of wandering, though, it's nearly impossible to make him stop, so it's best to not let it start in the first place.

Cruising the neighborhood also opens up other dangers, such as gunshots, cat chasing (which can be dangerous for both the dog and cat), and dog fights. Among a group of intact male dogs, there will always be the question of who is the pack leader. Older dogs try to defend their position, younger dogs try to assert themselves, and some dogs just enjoy fighting: give them an opportunity, and they will start fighting. Dog fights are not trivial contests: the fight goes on until one of the combatants is seriously injured, with both of them trying to go for the other's throat or underbelly. Dog fights can pose a threat to the dog's owner, too, if they try to get in the middle and put a stop to it. Neutering mellows this instinct and makes fights less likely.

Another problem with un-neutered dogs is urinating in the house. Many small breeds of dog mark their territory (which is their house, of course) by lifting their leg. This is another problem behavior that, once begun, is very difficult to eradicate. It's most common among intact males, so it's best to deal with it by neutering the dog early, before it becomes a problem.

As a dog ages, failing to have him neutered leads to other health complications, number one being problems with the prostate. Dogs often develop enlarged prostates and then have difficulty in urinating and defecating. Because of constipation, some dogs develop hernias around the rectum, a very uncomfortable condition that requires extensive surgery. Cancer of the prostate is another danger: though not very common, it is devastating when it occurs, and it leaves the dog prone to cancer of the testicles and rectum. All of these problems, once they occur, will require that the dog be neutered. But that's like shutting the barn door after the horse is already out; these health risks can be avoided easily by neutering male dogs early.

Concerns

Many owners worry that a neutered dog won't be protective, will get fat and lazy, or won't have a great personality. But a dog's personality and protective nature aren't governed by testosterone, the hormone most affected by neutering, so they won't change. Getting fat and lazy can happen to any dog, neutered or not, if it is over-fed and under exercised, and taking care of that is our responsibility.

On balance, neutered male dogs make better pets. In today's world, the owner of a neutered dog will have fewer headaches, and a better mannered, happier, and healthier pet.

"I want my dog to have puppies."

When thinking about breeding their dog, the first decision owners have to face is whether they're willing to raise a litter of puppies. Puppies represent a large responsibility that can't be taken lightly. We can't assume we can find homes for a whole litter, because there are always more puppies in need of homes than homes to take them in.

If you decide to breed your dog, make sure she's examined by an experienced vet and vaccinated beforehand. She has to be healthy, free of parasites, and have strong immunities to give birth to healthy puppies. Make sure she has well formed hips, to avoid a litter of puppies that will grow up to have hip problems themselves. Dogs with a family history of cataracts need an eye exam. She'll need high quality food throughout her pregnancy and after, too.

Arthritis

Cold weather takes its toll on our pets just as it does on us, and that's especially true for older pets with arthritis. Many large dog breeds are more prone to arthritis than smaller breeds, but we see arthritis in all breeds.

Trouble Signs

How can you know if your pet has arthritis? Most dogs with arthritis are sore and slow in standing and don't like to walk as far as when they were younger. Many dogs will have trouble with tripping and won't be able to walk up stairs the way they should. Their hind legs are usually affected, but many dogs also develop arthritis in their shoulders and carpus (wrist). Older cats sometimes develop symptoms similar to arthritis and are unable to jump as high or as far as they used to. They often have very skinny muscles in their back legs. A young dog, aged from 6 to 9 months, should be checked immediately if it shows any soreness in its back end after exercise. These dogs usually will be back to normal in a week's time, but this is the time of the dog's life when if it is needed- corrective surgery can prevent hip dysplasia. The surgery can no longer be done on a dog over a year old.

Treatment

Don't dismiss your pet's stiffness as arthritis and think you can do nothing. There is nothing harder than being forced, because of paralysis in the back, to put one's best friend of many years to sleep even though he or she is bright and alert, but that's what joint disease can come to.

Animals have a different pain threshold than we do: they don't complain about little aches and pains. Instead, they have a tendency to keep on doing what they are used to doing until they just can't do it anymore. It is important for your pet to have radiographs done to find out what stage your pet's arthritis is in, and then the proper treatment should be started to keep your pet comfortable. Appropriate treatment is critical to your pet's comfort. Remember that some human pain killers are harmful to your pet: aspirin and Tylenol will kill your cat, aspirin will cause vomiting in some dogs, and Advil can cause severe stomach ulcers.

In cases of dogs with hip dysplasia that cannot be treated surgically, we have had good success with a product used in horses, called Adequin. Adequin injection causes the body to produce cartilage to help smooth out the roughened areas in the hip joints, thereby reducing the pain. This product doesn't repair the poorly fitting joint, so it can't cure the hip problem, but in many cases it does help stop the pain. After Adequin treatment, a dog will often start doing things again that we had forgotten all about.

A nutritional supplement that enhances Adequin's effectiveness is Cosequin, the main ingredient of which is glucosamine, a substance the body needs to build cartilage. Glucosamine is now also being used in human medicine to repair damaged cartilage. All by itself, Cosequin has done wonders for some dogs and cats.

The newest product is Rimadyl, a painkiller like ibuprofen, but without the dangerous side effects (such as kidney disease) associated with ibuprofen. Rimadyl has allowed some dogs with very stiff joints to act like puppies again. It is amazing. We also use a tablet product called MSM that contains DMSO. MSM really has given a lot of comfort to dogs with arthritis and muscle difficulties.

Conventional aspirin and cortisone can also be used as an arthritis case progresses; it is important, however that they not be used chronically in early cases, because later on when they are needed to treat severe arthritis the dosage required to produce comfort seems to be much higher.

Acupuncture, an ancient Chinese art, can be performed on a regular basis for dogs with chronic back and hip problems: in many cases, these animals do very well and need very little medication. Massage therapy or acupressure can also give pets relief.

Head off the Problem

Of course, prevention is the ideal answer. One approach is illustrated by the two shepherds belonging to Dr. Chen, a colleague from Indiana. When her dogs were eight years old she put them on a product called Prozyme, a food supplement that helps digestion, and also acts as an anti-oxidant. Free oxygen atoms are very destructive to cells. Prozyme keeps oxygen bonded together in pairs, so it won't harm cells. Dr. Chen's dogs are now in their early and middle teens, have no arthritis or hip dysplasia, and can run and play like young dogs. In these two dogs, Prozyme helped prevent destruction of the bones in the back and hips. (This is a subjective statement, but we see very few shepherds at that age without some kind of hip or back problem.)

We use Bioguard, a product similar to Prozyme, to help arthritis pain when it develops. It is a very concentrated wheat product that also bonds free oxygen. Many dogs and cats take their Bioguard daily and live longer lives, free of crippling pain.

Another preventative approach we use is a product called Cholodin, that enhances the production of the substance that carries nerve messages between the nerves up and down the spinal cord. Cholodin improves nerve function and as a result many dogs using it drag their back feet less and are able to climb stairs better. As a nice side benefit, this treatment also counteracts the effects of senility in older dogs and cats. Finally, calcium ascorbate may help deal with arthritis in a dog's spine.

A program of carting (exercising the dog's muscles by having it pull a specially designed cart) has been shown to be effective in counteracting the effects of hip dysplasia, and the program is fun for both the dog and the owner.

If you are concerned that your pet may be showing symptoms of arthritis, or are interested in preventative measures, call us today for information or an appointment to have your pet examined.

Digestive Disorders

Dogs will gladly eat just about anything, and that basic behavior causes many problems for the digestive tract of dogs and unpleasant messes for owners. It should be understood that most dogs will eat just about anything that they shouldn't. If this happens, and the dog vomits, a cleaning process occurs to remove refuse from the stomach. Diarrhea removes the rest of the poisons from the lower digestive tract.

So the number one thing dog owners need to do is prevent the dog from eating harmful material. Keep the garbage can totally away from the dog, and that means behind a closed door, not just under the sink or cabinet. It is just too easy to forget to empty the garbage, and if you forget once, the dog will find it. The second hazard is compost and vegetation or fruit that falls to the ground. Many dogs eat this vegetation and suffer the consequences. Dogs' stomachs cannot digest raw vegetation the way a horse or cow can. How many of us have seen our dogs go out, eat grass, and vomit shortly afterwards? If your dog appears to be craving greens, you must cook them for him, and only give small amounts. Remember, dogs' systems are meant for meat.

If your dog starts vomiting repeatedly, you must stop the cycle of vomiting. The first thing you can do is take the water dish up and prevent the dog from drinking from the toilet or other water sources. Put ice cubes or very small amounts of water down only after it has been a couple of hours without vomiting. Do not feed your dog for a good 12-24 hours after a serious vomiting episode, then start feeding a bland diet of 2 parts rice and 1 part hamburger (boiled, no grease), chicken, or low fat cottage cheese. It's better to give 3 small portions over a 24 hour period and let the dog's digestive tract work slowly. And, if you can, get your dog to drink some Pedialyte (an electrolyte solution for babies, available at grocery stores): it will help as long as the dog is not acting as if he feels ill. It's safe to do this for 24 hours. If the problem isn't corrected by then, though, it is time to see a veterinarian. If vomiting continues for more than 24 hours, the dog can dehydrate and suffer from body fluid imbalance, just like a human child.

Some things that dogs get into can get stuck in their stomachs: small children's toys, rocks, rope, golf balls, super balls, corn cobs, bones, children's clothes, and the list goes on. So, if vomiting is the symptom, and any small items like these could be involved, be sure to let the vet know. Your dog's doctor will want to take a radiograph and possibly perform some other tests to make sure the stomach isn't suffering from any foreign objects. One of the hardest things to find is string, wrapped around the base of the tongue and hanging down the throat to the stomach. This is actually more serious than something like a rock or golf ball, so if there's any chance that your dog got a hold of fishing line, for instance, or any rope like material, tell your vet.

Dogs can fall prey to as many digestive problems as people. Many of these problems show themselves as diarrhea. Your vet will always want to make a microscopic examination of your dog's stool. Very often, an exam will reveal evidence of parasites (such as worm eggs) and imbalances in bacteria. Bacterial imbalances are generally due to irritation of the digestive tract, which can be caused by stress, as well as by abrupt changes in diet. This change could be something like getting into the garbage can, or just getting a bone to chew on. A soft stool in association with a known diet change should not cause alarm. However, if the stool is a problem for longer than 48 hours, we would like to examine a fresh sample and examine your dog in order to correct the problem rapidly.

Dogs can develop digestive problems due to an allergy to certain proteins. We have had to restrict the diets of some dogs to correct their diarrhea. Some dogs have a very sensitive pancreas (the organ that makes the digestive enzymes and insulin) and require low roughage and low fat diets. The liver also plays an important role in digestion of fats and purifying the blood and if the dog is having low grade liver problems, digestive difficulties may be the only obvious symptom.

So it is very important to feed your dog high quality food. There are many on the market. Generally, the quality of protein is reflected in the price tag of a bag of food.

Keep the dog away from foods that are high in fats and roughage. (Dogs love cat food, which is very high in fat.) If you do feed your dog table food, make sure it is not pork, chicken bones, or grease. It should be good quality food that you would eat yourself. Don't get in the habit of feeding only table food unless you are willing to cook a balanced diet for your dog every day. As the dog gets older, he may have special health needs and it is difficult to get dogs to eat special foods if they are used to cooked meals.

Urinary infections

A bladder infection is very uncomfortable for pets. The most common scenario starts with a house dog that is very careful never to urinate in the house, but that suddenly starts having "accidents." There can be excessive licking around the vulva or penis and urine stained hair around these areas. The dog, given the opportunity, will try to urinate many times and there may be blood visible in the urine.

This problem happens more often in female dogs. The dog's resistance to infection plays an important role in this, so, if you have a dog that is subject to urinary infections, you must improve the dog's resistance or reduce its exposure to the bacteria that cause problems.

First, a urine sample must be collected. The best sample is a mid-stream catch first thing in the morning. You'll need a clean (dishwasher clean) plastic container or pie pan (depending on the size of your dog). Take the dog out on a leash, and when it squats to pee, smoothly - without startling the dog! - hold the container under the urine stream. There will be plenty of urine, so you don't have to startle the dog in fear you won't get enough: your vet only needs about 2 tablespoons to make an evaluation.

If you can't immediately bring the sample in, keep it in the refrigerator. Some dogs won't allow you to collect the urine sample at home. If that happens, don't despair. Your vet will generally be successful at the clinic.

Once the sample is analyzed, the course of treatment can be determined. Most of the time, treatment with antibiotics and measures to discourage bacterial growth in the hairs around the vulva or penis will help prevent further problems.

Some dogs have crystals in the urine that cause them pain. Urinating with these crystals is like scrubbing your hands with sand: eventually your hands would get raw. These dogs need to have special diets to prevent the formation of these crystals.

If a male dog forms stones, it is a very serious problem and can cause a life threatening blockage. This happens in the smaller breeds and some Dalmatians. Many dogs require surgery to remove the stones. Always watch your male dog and make sure he is able to urinate a good stream, and not just a dribble. If you are concerned, take him in for an exam immediately. Female dogs also can form urinary stones that are very uncomfortable. For them, though, stones are not generally a life-or-death matter.

Older female dogs sometimes have problems holding their urine while sleeping. If you are finding puddles of urine close to where the dog lies, this is a warning sign that your dog is having problems keeping the bladder sphincter closed while in a deep sleep. Such dogs can be given a medication to tighten that sphincter so they can still stay indoors.

Even for dogs with serious bladder and kidney infections and difficulties, quality of life can be improved with proper medication and food. So, if your dog is showing any difficulties, get a urine sample immediately. Of course, prevention is always the best approach. We prefer to check fecal samples at least one a year. Just because it is not as easy to catch a urine sample, don't let this stop you from also bringing in an annual urine sample. Your dog can't live without healthy kidneys.