Ahhh, there’s nothing like sweet little puppy kisses being planted all over your face. But, is Poochie’s breath bad enough to knock you out?

by Sheri Huttner

The care of your dog’s teeth should begin the day you get him, not when problems develop. Certain breeds, particularly the smaller ones, are prone to dental problems, so extra preventative care should be taken.

Giving your puppy hard biscuits such as MilkBone is a good start. Many companies make similar biscuits, so your dog can have a nice variety. Hard chew toys are great, too. The important thing is to get the dog into the habit of chewing hard and crunchy things which will act as a “toothbrush” to keep the teeth strong and free of tartar.

The food you feed your dog can play an important part in your dog’s dental health, as well. I have always fed my dogs dry food with an occasional can of food as a treat. Never mix dry and canned food, as that defeats the purpose by turning the dry food soft. My motto: ‘Feed your dog mush and his teeth will turn to mush.’ In fact, one of the reasons the smaller breeds often have dental problems is because owners tend to feed them canned food, feeling they are “pampering” them.

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The holidays will soon be upon us. Can you beleive it! As much fun as the holiday season can be for us, the celebrations and decorations can translate to pet safety hazards. It’s not uncommon to see accidents related to foreign body ingestion, bone fractures and electric shock occur.

Here are some hidden holiday dangers to be aware of and a few tips on holiday safety for pets:

COLD WEATHER DANGERS

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Most male animals that are not used for breeding purposed are castrated, neutered, so that they can no longer impregnate a female. For cats especially, this is crucial, since there are hundreds of kittens every year that go without homes. There are many advantages to neutering your male cat, and the process is quite safe, so you should consider it if your furry feline friend is male and not yet neutered.

Male cats that have not yet been neutered are called tomcats. Simply put, it can be difficult to live with a tomcat, no matter how well trained he may be. When your cat is not neutered, he will want to get outside as frequently as possible to mate with female cats in heat. This can be disastrous if you live in a busy street with lots of traffic or if your cat is not used to being outdoors. Tomcats also roam a lot, meaning that they may travel far distances in search of female cats, and it is possible for your cat to roam too far and not know his way home. It is also possible for him simply to resist coming home at all, since he will be shut indoors. To protect your male cat, neutering it the best choice.

Tomcats also fight and are generally more aggressive than neutered cats. Because they want sexual dominance in a particular area, they may seek fights with other male cats to drive them away. Cats will fight to the death if they feel threatened, and fights cause not only injuries, but also the spread of diseases like the FeLV virus, which can be fatal. Neutering your cat will not stop an aggressive cat from being less aggressive toward humans, but it will prevent your cat from actively seeking fights with other male cats in the neighborhood.

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By: John E. Miller

Meow! That is the sound you hear when you meet your cat walking down the doorway. It will move with his head and tail held high, looking directly at your eyes and emitting a faint sound summoning you to follow wherever it goes. That is your cat? Right? The fluffy little mass, whose behavior seems quite odd at times, and leaves you baffling with a variety of questions.

Have you ever thought that your cat is an aloof creature to you? Then it is because you do not understand it. Your cat is always trying to communicate to you through its gestures and body language, so to know your cat more, you need to know more about the cat’s body language. The sweeping of the tail or rubbing of the cheeks, pricking of the ears or purring under breath – each has a significance of its own. Your cat will often rub its cheeks against you or against the cheeks of another cat. Through this it actually tries to pick up or leave scent markers so that it can again create a future physical contact.

Importance of tail movement

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From the Centers for Disease Control:

Q. Can West Nile virus (WNV) cause illness in dogs or cats?
A. A relatively small number of WNV infected dogs (<40) and only 1 WNV infected cat have been reported to CDC during 2003. Experimentally infected dogs* showed no symptoms after infection with WNV. Some infected cats exhibited mild, nonspecific symptoms during the first week after infection–for the most part only showing a slight fever and slight lethargy. It is unlikely that most pet owners would notice any unusual symptoms or behavior in cats or dogs that become infected with WNV.

Q. How can my veterinarian treat my cat or dog if they are/may be infected with WNV?
A. There is no specific treatment for WNV infection. Full recovery from the infection is likely. Treatment would be supportive (managing symptoms, if present) and consistent with standard veterinary practices for animals infected with a viral agent.

Q. Does my dog/cat becoming infected pose a risk to the health of my family or other animals?
A. There is no documented evidence of dog or cat-to-person transmission of West Nile virus. The evidence suggests that dogs do not develop enough virus in their bloodstream to infect more mosquitoes. Cats develop slightly higher levels of virus in their bloodstream, but it is unclear if this would be enough to infect mosquitoes. It is very unlikely that cats would be important in furthering the spread of the virus. *

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By Erv Mrotek
Owner, Wholesome Pet Supply

Back in March, 2007, my neighbor’s beautiful American Eskimo dog, Sunny, fell ill one morning and was dead by noon. He had been fine up until that fateful morning. It turned out he died of the very symptoms caused by the tainted dog food you heard about on the national news during that time period. Thousands of pets died. When my neighbor checked the web site for the list of recalled foods, the brand she had been serving her dogs was on the list. More brands are being added to this recall list daily. This is a story that got worse as time went by. Please check the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) web site yourself to make sure the brand you are feeding your pet isn’t contaminated: http://www.fda.gov/oc/opacom/hottopics/petfood.html

Sunny’s death really upset me as I used to play with him a lot, so I started researching wholesome pet foods. I came across a company called HealthyPetNet, a division of Trilogy International, Inc. They sell the Life’s Abundance® Premium Health Food line for dogs and cats. They also sell other pet-related products and supplements. None of their products have ever been recalled.

What impressed me about their food was the fact that only natural ingredients like chicken meal, fish meal, carrots, apples, spinach, celery, alfalfa meal, ground brown rice, antioxidants, live probiotics, and chelated minerals are used. Their products contain no chemicals or fillers, nothing artificial. In fact, all of their ingredients come from human food processing plants and their food is shipped fresh to your door. Food bought in a store can sit in non-climate-controlled storage areas for up to 18 months before it is sold, often sitting outside in trailers. To prevent it from spoiling, powerful, dangerous, chemicals are used as preservatives. With Life’s Abundance you have the food in your hands within a few short weeks of its manufacture.

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Pet owners who let their pets run loose should “microchip” them. Then, when one of us animal lovers finds your pet and isn’t sure if they have a home or not, we can track you down. Any vet or shelter can scan a pet for a microchip. If they have one, they can be reunited their owner instead of being put in a new home. It might even save their life if they are taken to a pound.

There are many stories about owners reunited with their pets because of this technology. Basically, your contact info is put on a microchip the size of a grain of rice and then injected under the skin of your pet. And unlike a traditional tag you put on a collar, this one won’t come off. Most vets should be able to do this for you or know where you can get it done.

Watch this video on MSNBC.com about a cat that was reunited with his owner because of a microchip. The cat had somehow gotten 1600 miles away from his home!

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