This is an old revision of the document!
external siteAny individual is bound to have their own opinion when it comes to Pets. (Image: https://drive.google.com/uc?id=1GvnFKiOIxj9ofNYVwcnQN_O26qeMmZKX) Think Like A Dog. Be A Great Pet Owner.
(Image: https://burst.shopifycdn.com/photos/hot-fresh-donut.jpg?width=746&format=pjpg&exif=0&iptc=0)Dog ownership is a special thing, but sometimes it doesn't work out. To get the most out of your relationship with your dog, you'll need to know a few things. You can read about some useful dog tips in the following article.
Be careful with your dog around Christmas season, many dangers are lurking just under the festive ambiance. For instance, electrical chords are typically strewn about during the holidays, and dogs often chew them, creating an electrical hazard. Dogs may be tempted to eat the decorations on the tree. They may also be tempted by the tree water, which can be toxic.
Hugs are great, but avoid kisses. Dog kisses are adorable, but your dog's mouth is really dirty. Keep in mind that dogs drink from toilet bowls and eat whatever is on the ground. Many people say that dogs have cleaner mouths than people. This is not true, at all!
Avoid insisting that your dog socialize nicely with every other passing dog. Experts recommend that your dog be able to tolerate introductions through sniffing and eying with another animal, but say forcing the issue can create problems. Accept your dog's lead when meeting and greeting other animals and allow for natural interaction.
Make sure that you trim your dog's nails on a fairly regular basis. You do not want them to get too long since it will make it uncomfortable for them to walk and they may develop health issues. They should be at a length that just about touches the ground.
Keep your dog's teeth in tip tip condition. Just like humans, a dog can suffer from toothache, gum disease and even tooth loss. Regular brushing will ensure that that his teeth and gums stay healthy and strong. Without regular brushing, it is estimated that dental disease will affect up to 80% of dogs by the age of three. As well as dental cleaning by a vet, make sure that you brush your dog's teeth regularly.
You may be tempted to use your favorite hair shampoo on your dog, but this should not be done. Human shampoo can cause dog skin to dry out. Instead, find a quality shampoo that is made for dogs. When you bath your dog, make sure to rinse all of the residue out of his fur.
Always follow any instructions from the vet carefully, especially if your dog requires medication or other special attention. They might not be fond of having a cone attached to their head, but your vet recommended it. The vet doesn't give advice for no reason, and it can be dangerous to now do what is advised.
When preparing to groom your pet, start the session off on the right foot by helping your dog relax. Spend a few minutes simply petting him, starting with the head and then rubbing the back, paws, belly and even tail. Once you feel your dog is happy and content, begin grooming him.
If you are training your dog, make sure the treat you are giving him really is desirable. Pets have preferences too, and if your dog does not like the treat you are providing, there is not going to be much motivation to do the right thing. Try out a few different brands, and remember that soft, chewy treats are generally the most well-received.
You need to invest in a quality collar and ID tag with your address on it. Choose a robust collar that is adapted to the size of your dog. You should be able to easily fit two fingers inside the collar. Do not forget to update the ID tag if you get a new phone number.
Just like humans, dogs need to get a good amount of exercise each and every day. If your dog does not get the exercise it needs, it health will decline, and so will his attitude towards life. If you have any kind of inquiries concerning where and how you can use Can rabbits Eat succulents, you could contact us at our web page. Take the time to exercise your dog for at least a half hour each day for the best results.
Don't bathe your dog after you have applied a flea or tick medication. Some medications tout that they are waterproo, but they only mean against rain or swimming. They will largely wash away with a dog shampoo, rendering the treatment ineffective. If you must bathe the dog after a treatment, use a soap free shampoo.
Do not rely on a cold, wet nose to judge your dog's health. There are many reasons for your dog's nose to be cold and wet even if the dog is sick. Pay attention to the amount of energy, type of appetite and the dog's demeanor. These can be great ways to know how your dog's health is. A rectal thermometer can be used on the dog to do a temperature check.
Don't skip your dog's annual checkup. The vet will be able to spot signs of diabetes, thyroid issues and kidney trouble a while before your dog shows any signs. Giving your dog an annual physical can prevent unnecessary suffering to the animal and unnecessary expenses later on.
If you are going to bring a new dog into your home you should do a lot of the preparation ahead of time. You should have a nice place for it to sleep, food, grooming products and toys all on hand before they arrive. This will make the transition easier for everyone involved.
Outdoor doghouses are not enough to keep your furry friend comfortable in cold weather. You must also provide some sort of bedding for him. Choose from straw, hay, cedar bedding or even blankets. Make sure that you change the bedding often no matter what you choose to ensure that there no bugs move in and mold doesn't grow.
Keep your dog safe from dangerous chemicals. Similar to kids, cleaning chemicals and any car maintenance substances are harmful to them. These substances are poisonous, so if a dog gets any on them or ingests any, they could get burned, become very sick, or die. Store your hazardous chemicals in a place that your dog can't get to, or keep them in a closed area using a child-proof lock.
Dogs are emotional creatures. That said, reading this article will give you a greater understanding of the body language of your dog. Your dog is going to be grateful for that. external site Caring For A Dog Made Easy With This Article
A dog can be a great companion and the best kind of pet to own. They can give you love and happiness. But, it does pay to understand the needs and desires of dogs in order to develop good relationships with them. The below article will provide you with some excellent knowledge on how to begin raising a dog.
Always, have your dog spayed or neutered. Studies have shown that this leads to the pet living a longer and much healthier life. Not only that, but neutered and spayed dogs feel less need to wander away from home, so they are not as likely to be hit by a vehicle or become lost.
Your dog needs to be secured when in a car. Not only will it make the journey safer, as it will lead to fewer distractions for the person driving the car, but in the event of an accident, it could also save your dog's life. Look for a seat belt harness, often sold at pet stores, that you can put in your car for your pet.
If you are interested in providing your dog with the healthiest of diets and making positive contributions to the earth's environment, make his food from scratch. You can buy locally grown organic ingredients and provide him all the proteins, carbs and fats he needs with no preservatives while reducing the waste from packaging as well.
Your dog needs a stimulating environment if it is going to live a long and healthy life. Providing him or her with one is not really that hard. Simply make sure you take your dog for walks each day, and purchase a few toys that you and your pet can play with together.
You don't want to buy the bargain dog food. The brands that are cheaper actually have lots of additives, preservatives and other harmful ingredients that can endanger the health of your dog. Looking at a pet advocacy group website can give you recommendations of the best food for your dog. Your dog will appreciate your research.
To protect your dog in the event he is lost or stolen, have a microchip surgically implanted by your vet. These handy chips store data that can be retrieved by a shelter or animal officer and used to contact you. They are painless to put in and offer peace of mind for the pet lover!
Make sure that you trim your dog's nails on a fairly regular basis. You do not want them to get too long since it will make it uncomfortable for them to walk and they may develop health issues. They should be at a length that just about touches the ground.
Respect your pet. When out on a walk, do not force your dog to interact with other people or animals if he does not want to. There is a reason why your dog may not want to get too close, and it is important that you listen to him. If you try and make him interact, your dog may begin to act out over time.
Accept the aging process in your dog and know how to meet his changing needs. Your older dog may require dietary changes, more rest and not be as playful as he once was. This doesn't mean he should be left to grow old in a corner. Adapt to his needs and make his golden years enjoyable!
Try to provide your dog with plenty of opportunities to socialize. Take him on walks to the park or beach where he will be around people and other dogs. Encourage his interactions with others and praise him for good manners. He'll be much more comfortable in any setting and generally happier too.
If you have a smaller breed dog, make sure everyone who touches him knows the proper way to hold him. Small dogs can be easily injured by inappropriate handling and many owners find this out the hard way. Gently lift at the belly from under his front legs and secure him with both hands.
If you are training your dog, make sure the treat you are giving him really is desirable. Pets have preferences too, and if your dog does not like the treat you are providing, there is not going to be much motivation to do the right thing. Try out a few different brands, and remember that soft, chewy treats are generally the most well-received.
You need to consider your own life when you are thinking about getting a dog. You might feel like you are ready to be a dog owner because you love animals but you need to carefully consider the pros and cons of having a dog.
Never give your dog away for free, no matter how desperate you might feel to get rid of it quickly. Even if you can not care for the animal, it is still your responsibility to be sure that it will have a good life to come. Instead, take the time to investigate the person that you will give it to and charge a re-homing fee to ensure that they are serious about caring for the animal.
Carefully pick the foods you feed your dog. You'll find a wide variety of food to buy, but they're not one-size-fits-all. Choose the food that fits both your dog's age and size. You may be tempted to give your pet leftovers, but this is not healthy.
(Image: https://negativespace.co/page/1/1062)Puppies are cute and cuddly, but remember that puppies eventually grow into dogs, and rather quickly. Make sure that you put a lot of thought in your decision to get a dog. Taking a dog into your home is a long-term commitment and comes with certain costs and responsibilities, but is ultimately rewarding.
If your dog makes messes in the house or chews when you are away, consider crate training. Crate training involves providing your pet with an appropriate sized crate to,stay in while you're out of the house. It can keep your pet and belongings safe. Just make sure to never leave him in the crate for a very lengthly period of time.
The information is at your fingertips, so delay no longer. Make sure you change your ways to make your dog happy and you will be happy. Dog ownership is about responsibility, not laziness. (Image: https://drive.google.com/uc?id=1enTupkjgmZwhgH5ymXaE2MAyu5rYS2SS) Best Advice for Dogs with Skin Issues
I still need to publish a real post about Mr. Stix's full backstory, but this feels more pressing. For nearly 18 months, Mr. Stix's permanent nakey spot (from unknown injuries before he was rescued, including 15 fractures and this big patch of coat missing) has featured several inflamed, peeling areas. Initially I tried to fix it myself at home with things like aloe vera, vaseline, a veterinary ointment called animax that the shelter had give us while we fostered him most of 2019, etc. It's sort of a combination of steroids, antibacterial, and antifungal stuff. I took him to see our main veterinarian in spring 2020, when there was a 2-month wait to get into see a board-certified veterinary dermatologist. It has been quite a journey since then, and it's nowhere near over. Here's my best advice for dogs with skin issues.
Before I tell the ongoing saga with Mr. Stix's skin. Here is my best advice for dogs with skin problems.
See a board-certified veterinary dermatologist as soon as you can. Yes, your main veterinarian can probably help, but it's honestly best to go right to the top experts.
Agree to whatever skin scrapings / cytology the veterinary dermatologist recommends. This provides information about what types of secondary infections currently grow on your dog's damaged skin.
Do NOT assume every skin issue is allergies. It often is some sort of allergic process, but NOT always and assuming so (and acting accordingly may only delay real solutions and subject your dog to all kinds of quack advice and home remedies).
Buy the best quality fish oil and Vitamin E supplements you can afford, if it's recommended for your particular case of a dog with skin issues.
When necessary, agree to the skin biopsies (yes, like minor surgery) and have them reviewed by a veterinary pathologist that specializes in dogs with skin issues. The one we used is at Texas A&M.
Follow your veterinary dermatologist's advice and plans, and keep the faith. These dogs with skin problems often don't improve quickly. (I need to take my own advise. See below.)
Mr. Stix's Story as a Dog with Skin Problems
This is what Mr. Stix's nakey spot looks like when it's normal. Photo from May 2019 soon after his hip surgery. The bald patch is permanent. That's not the issue.
This is how bad the red / peeling areas got in mid-2020 when we saw our main veterinarian, who added a low-dose of oral Vitamin E and some topical too and told me to keep using the animax.
This is how it looked when Mr. Stix first saw the board-certified veterinary dermatologist in early August 2020, but the specialist had me STOP the animax and instead use a prescription anti-bacterial ointment (mupirocin) … as well as add a better quality oral fish oil and continue both topical and oral Vitamin E (but at a higher dose twice a day). We knew from the skin scrapings / cytology they did onsite that Mr. Stix had a bacterial infection.
But, without the daily topical steroids (which long term are a bad idea), Mr. Stix's skin got much, much worse – even breaking open and scabbing over.
Our veterinary dermatologist had recommended doing the skin biopsies right away in August 2020, and I *almost agreed to it then, but I was VERY worried about the cuts resulting in skin that would NOT heal. And, I figured it was at least worth a try to use the prescription antibiotic ointment and other supplements and stuff.
But, by around Thanksgiving, it was clear we had to do the biopsy. That photo is kind of gruesome, so you can see it here, if you want. I wish I had done the biopsy sooner. I feel like I wasted time from August through November.
Post-Biopsy Diagnosis
As I expected, despite all the know-it-alls trying to tell me it was an allergic issue, it turns out that Mr. Stix instead has an autoimmune condition called erythema multiforme. They believe it was triggered by the trauma of his earlier injuries. They don't think it is life-threatening. They don't think it will spread to other areas of his skin. Just the already damaged, permanent nakey spot.
With that information in hand, we updated the treatment plan to include a topical, non-steroidal anti-inflammatory ointment (tacrolimus – often pricey, but we used a Good RX coupon at Costco to get the cost down). They use a version of this medication orally for people who have had various kinds of transplants. It's the smallest / safest option for treatment, and that's where we started.
I was so hopeful it would work at the once-daily application, but the skin still didn't heal completely.
So, in early 2021, we started applying it twice daily on the advice of our veterinary dermatologist.
But, it still hasn't healed completely. It often improves a lot and then comes roaring back, so we had another appointment to see the specialist last week. We had to try something new.
Enter the Big Immune-Suppressing Drug
Despite my concerns and form of veterinary PTSD about major immune suppression drugs (after our experiences with Lilly), I agreed last week to add oral cyclosporine, which is also a drug that people get after various transplants. Mr. Stix would need to take it daily for life.
It smells like it's made from skunk butts, so each gel-cap pill is individually packaged, and you keep them in the freezer because that can help with nausea it can cause (since it's recommended you give on an empty stomach).
I found some good info on this med, and our veterinary dermatologist assured me that it has been safely used in veterinary medicine for like 20+ years, etc.
The med only comes in doses of 25 mg, 50 mg, and 100 mg, and at his size Mr. Stix's ideal dose is around 88 mg once a day. So we went with 75 mg (25+50) to err on the lower side.
It takes like 3-7 days for the med to build up in the blood to therapeutic levels, but it takes more like 4-6 weeks to know if it's going to help the skin (or not).
We made it to day 4, then the barfing started.
Anxiety
I wish I could say that this is all going to be fine, but I just don't know. I feel like I just have to accept that the skin will never fully heal, even though seeing his raw spots up close while applying the topical med twice a day and topical Vitamin E once a day causes me so much angst and anxiety.
I supposed to check in with our veterinary dermatology team next week to confirm that Mr. Stix's weirdness and apparent suffering has improved.
It took a lot of convincing to get Mr. Champion of My Heart to agree to try the cyclosporine, so even if the specialist comes back and recommends maybe a lower dose, I doubt we'll want to risk it … because Mr. Stix sure seemed to be having some neurologist issues to me, and after the Lilly situation, I just cannot do that again.
He is only 3 years old. I don't want to make anything worse. It honestly felt like I'd poisoned him.
The good news is that most of the time his skin doesn't seem to hurt or itch or anything – though I do have pain meds, if he needs them. It mostly just looks bad, and he has to wear a no-lick collar for about 20 minutes after I apply his meds so that he doesn't lick it off.
His nakey spot is prone to sunburn anyway, and the topical tacrolimus increases the risk of burning, so I used his earlier sun-reflecting coat (which started to look ragged) as a pattern and sewed him a new / light sun protection coat. He looks very cute in it.
https://championofmyheart.com/2021/08/05/dogs-with-skin-issues/
Good Morning from the Golden Retriever Channel. This pupper is taking-in rain. Who turned on the sprinkler in the sky? Another good day in his life, so far.
(Lifeofsterlingnewton IG)#dogs #puppies #cute pic.twitter.com/ooQqHn9XIf — Golden Retriever Channel (@GoldretrieverUS) August 20, 2021 I'm just very occupied with Dogs and I'm hoping you enjoyed the piece. Feel free to take the time to share this article if you enjoyed reading it. Kudos for your time. Don't hesitate to check up our blog back soon.