Entries Tagged 'Healthy info for Cats' ↓

This is Beau- a dog we used to have… And you will learn why by the end of this post.

Oh- He’s So, So Cute! We just have to have him…

And this is how most of us choose a pet! (Hint- this is NOT the best way to go about it!)

In my day to day work as a veterinarian, I see quite a few people who have some problems with new pets. So- today I am going to share a few tips that might help you approach this more sensibly. Believe me, this may make your life a lot more comfortable, especially when you consider that your average pet is a long term investment- on average, anywhere from 9 to 15 years (or even longer).

The MOST Important Thing to Consider is… PERSONALITY!

So- forget about all those things you thought you wanted! Most of them are simply eye candy, in any case… I must admit that the sex of your new pet can be important, especially if you already have other pets. So do bear this in mind. Still- it is not nearly as important as you might think. If you look around the people you know, it is clear that their personalities vary widely, within the men, and the women.

It’s exactly the same with dogs, and cats!

Most people think that a given breed will produce a certain personality. Whilst this is true to an extent, you will find that there is a very wide range of personality types within the overall “vibe” of the breed personality. It’s almost as if a given breed really only colours the individuals personality with an undertone. (Not always in a good way, either- “line” breeding can concentrate or produce unusual traits.)

Every animal is unique- We have just had a litter of kittens in our house- and it is totally amazing to see just how different the personality of each is.

What Sort of Pet is the Best (for You)?

This will depend on so many things- your house, your yard, how much exercise you like to do (if you are choosing a dog), how much time you have to spend on training and playing, your family (little kids?), and… well- I could go on for a lot longer. I suggest that you actually consider all of these things, and then write them down, and take a few moments to have a good long look.

For instance- if you live in a unit, in the city, and only have enough time for 2 or three walks a day- say 45 minutes all together, then a breed that is high energy, has a strong work focus, and intelligent- (eg Border Collies, Labradors, Jack Russels, etc) is quite likely  to destroy your home, and be driven stir crazy by the lack of exercise. A small white fluffy of some sort might be better!

And as for cats- a very vocal, demanding Siamese might be less suitable than a quite, retiring Rag doll, or Persian.

You need to consider long coats versus short coats, and veterinary bills, and food, and everything else you can think of.

PLEASE- let go of what you thought you wanted! And have a moment of honesty about what sort of animal best suits you.

How do You Tell?

Step 1.

Ask the people selling the pet all about the parent’s personalities. And go into depth! One good way is to ask them to tell you what they would be like if they were a person. Ask them how they behave with other animals, with strange people, around food, with children, thunderstorms- and anything else you can think of. Ask about the health history of both parents (look out for allergies in particular). It is a very good idea to do this before you even see the puppy or kitten.

Because they are so, so cute, and then you’ll be lost!
Step 2.

Meeting them for the first time-It would be ideal to meet both parents as well, and see what they are like.

***HINT- take someone you know with experience with animals along with you, for a more detached point of view***

Beware! one of them will be the first to bounce out and approach you! This one will take a lot more time and attention, and exercise, and likely get into loads more trouble, than the other one that is hanging back a little (hopefully not scared or timid, just calmer, more self assured). Check them all out, very carefully, clap your hands, see how they respond when you pick them up, have fun!

To be honest, one of them usually seems to choose you, in the end.

Then What?

You will need to train and socialise your new pet… I will go into this in depth in a future post!

And Beau- the lovely black Lab at the top of this post. Beau was always very nervous, and unable to cope with change, or anything at all strange- he barked at a towel I hung on the washing machine for an hour one afternoon! When Beau arrived, I was in the throes of separating from my ex wife- and he never got socialised. Now with 19 out of 20 Labs, I might have gotten away with that.

But not this fella!
He was great with me, awful with everyone else, and very difficult to train. (He was always his own dog!) Then we moved into town, and he became very, very aggressive through the fence to anyone walking past. One day I dropped a bag of turkey necks on the lawn, went back to pick up something, and…

He bit me quite badly on the hand.

I have a 5 year old child, and I couldn’t accept the risk. He was unrehomable, so I helped him back to spirit, put him to sleep. It was one of the hardest things I have ever done, and we both miss him dearly.

I only share this to illustrate how his personality was totally NOT Labrador like!

Good luck with choosing your new pet!

cheers for now, Dr Edward

Say Hello to our new kittens- Tickle (hiding) and Fred…

What is the one simple, easy thing You can to to revolutionise Your pets health?

Cut out all processed foods, (But here is a loophole- as much as you possibly can…)

YES- it is that easy, and it’s the same for us as well…

You don’t see dogs and cats eating cereals in the wild! They eat Meat, and not just meat, but whole animals- bones, guts, everything. Their digestive systems are simply not designed to eat a whole lot of cereal products- and Guess what! Dry food is nearly all cereal products.

And as for what else they put in there, you really don’t want to know!

Let’s just be honest, and admit that there is only a very small portion of anything even remotely approaching what you and I would call meat.

Tinned food is even worse- cooked to death, and largely water and meat byproduct flavoured jelly, in the end. If your pet has a wind problem, tinned food will be making it far worse

I feed my cats and dog a special complete raw diet made up of meat, ground up bones, with some raw vegetables, and sprinkles of this and that to make up a complete and healthy diet- so all the minerals and vitamins that your pet need to be better than well are included as well (Cause I’m busy, I use the BARF diet- created by Dr Ian Billinghurst of Australia… I will place a link in down a bit. I highly recommend his books, as well.)

I still use some good quality commercial biscuits as well, but the raw food is the cornerstone. And to be honest, it makes life a little bit more convenient for me- though I am also sure that if I changed over to a totally raw diet, it would be better for them.

BUT! My pet won’t eat it…

Yep- I know, many are fussy- so if they won’t eat anything else, at least do your best to buy best quality food, or try mixing in just a little of the raw food, then gradually increase the amount or (shock, horror) - don’t give them anything else to eat for a coulpe of days, then hand feed them? (be warned- some pets WILL starve rather than eat something they don’t like, especially cats- so you may have to admit defeat in the very rare case.)

If they won’t eat it raw, the next best step is to cook their food, using good quality meats and vegetables- and to beef up the vitamins and minerals, I advise adding a small amount of Kelp meal, maybe a little LSA (ground Linseed, Soy and Almond meal) and a dollop of good quality cold pressed vegetable oil (after it has cooled). If you can afford it, go organic. (Please NEVER use onion in your pets food, it can make them very ill, and even cause death.)

Your table scraps are fine too- as long as you eat healthy, home cooked food, and don’t give your pet the fatty trimmings, and remembering to cut back on their other food in kind…

Raw, Meaty Bones are very important…

This is your pet’s toothbrush- from small chicken necks and wings for kittens/cats and small dogs, right up to a huge marrow bone for danes and so on- there is a risk of broken teeth with big bones, so be aware, - BUT- I feel the benefits outweigh the risk. I have seen too many pets with foul mouths, teeth coated in tartar. This is very painful, and also requires a General Anaesthetic every time they need a clean and polish!

Even if you change only to giving your pet meaty, raw bones twice a week, this will make a difference

***Never Give Your Pet Cooked Bones***

I can’t stress this enough. It makes them indigestible, and so can lead to a very painful, life threatening constipation.

So- All you have to do now is throw out all those tins and bags of processed food (Woops- NO, wait- give them to your local animal refuge instead!), and read Dr Ians books, or order some BARF, if there is a supplier near you, or make your own! You will see a difference in your pet…

Here is the link to Dr Ian Billinghurst’s website, and you have a great day with your pets!

The Home of the BARF Diet

Cheers for now, Dr Edward

How Diagnostic Tests Work…

I have just had a good friend have all sorts of trouble with her lovely old Labby- He suddenly got sick, really unwell, and in a matter of weeks they had to help him along to spirit… He suddenly developed Diabetes, and then they thought he had developed Cushings disease as well. However- the tests they did came back as negative, even though he had the symptoms!

This was confusing and painful…

The thing is- Diagnostic, or Laboratory tests are not perfect! I always tell my clients this- even the very best tests have some False results- both False Negatives (so they tell you your pet doesn’t have some problem, when really he does)- and False Positives (so they tell you your pet does have some problem, when really he doesn’t!)

Confused yet?

Stay with me- and I will show you what I mean.

There are two important measurements of diagnostic tests- SENSITIVITY, and SPECIFICITY..

Sensitivity tells you how good a test is at detecting when your pet has a given dis-ease. So- If a test has a Sensitivity of  %95, then it will detect 95 out of every 100 patients with the given dis-ease.

Specificity Tells you how accurately a Positive Test identifies patients who actually have the given dis-ease… So if a test has %90 Specificity, then 10 times out of 100, if your pet tests positive to the dis-ease  with that specific test, he doesn’t actually have the dis-ease.

Or Don’t Work?

So- When you are testing for diseases that are harder to diagnose with Laboratory or blood test (and Cushings is one of these)- it gets really tricky.

Let’s take a quick look under the hood- for Cushings, there are several tests you can use-

1. The Low Dose Dexamethasone Response Test is about %95 Sensitive, but only around %70 Specific (so it will detect 95 out of 100 pets with the disease, BUT  out of 100 positive tests, 25 patients will not have the disease)
2. The ACTH Response Test is about %80 Sensitive, But it’s Specificity can vary from %35-%80
3. The Urine Cortisol:creatanine ratio Test is about %90 Sensitive, but it’s Specificity is only  around %25 (so only about a 1/4 of dogs with abnormal levels in this test actually have Cushings disease, BUT it will pick up %90 of dogs tested that do have the dis-ease.)

I hope that makes some sort of good sense

So What do You Do then?

Please remember that this is confusing- even for your Vet- who I am sure is doing their level best to find out what’s up, so he can help you out, and find an effective treatment. I just think it will help if you know that all diagnostic tests are not created equal, and neither a positive, nor a negative test result will give you absolute certainty most of the time. This is why we sometimes need to do more tests,and sometimes what we don’t find in a test is as meaningful as what we do find. (So no test is wasted!- they all help by increasing our knowledge of the case…)

And it might help you understand just how hard it sometimes is for your vet to work out what is wrong with your pet.

Happy pets until next time, Dr Edward