Dogs and cats can be spayed or neutered anytime. Ideally, between 4 and 6 months of age, before they go through puberty.

Having your pet spayed or neutered greatly reduces the risk of breast, prostate or testicular cancer. If male dogs are neutered before they hit puberty the will not likely develop the habit of lifting their leg to mark territory or of humping things. It can also decrease their tendency to roam. Female dogs that are not spayed can develop pyometra which is a potentially fatal infection of the uterus and requires emergency surgery.

Even though your pets can’t talk to you, there are lots of ways that they can tell you that it’s time for action. Remember when your puppy or kitten’s shiny white new adult teeth came in? Now lift your pet’s lips and take a peek at the teeth and gums. If those pearly whites seem more yellow than white and the gums are swollen or inflamed, you’re looking at plaque and tartar buildup. Are the gums red or bleeding? That can be gingivitis, or the beginnings of more severe periodontal disease. Left without treatment, this can lead to oral pain or tooth loss, and that can keep your pet from wanting to eat. Loss of appetite, excessive drooling, and loose teeth are all signs that dental disease may be affecting your pet.

With dental disease, just like with any healthcare issue, the best defense is a good offense. Imagine what might happen if you hadn’t seen a dentist until you were 20! Start by having your pet’s teeth and gums examined and professionally cleaned. A dental exam and cleaning should become part of your pet’s regular veterinary visits. In between cleaning, you can help keep teeth fresh and bright by adopting an oral home-care plan. This can include brushing, special dietary aides, and other techniques to help to keep your pet healthy year round. Be sure to stick with toothpastes in flavors and formulas made especailly for pets. At your next visit, please ask us for a hands-on lesson in providing good home dental care for your pet.

When is a pet considered a senior? Both cats and dogs are considered a senior citizen in the domestic animal world when they reach 7 years of age.

Why should you be proactive about your pet’s health? Your pet may seem happy and robust, but the gradual onset of disease can easily go unnoticed. Once symptoms do appear, the condition may be difficult and costly to treat and diagnose. This is why a Wellness Exam is so important to the quality of your pet’s life.

What is a Wellness Exam? A Wellness Exam includes a physical exam and blood tests that the doctor can use as an aid to diagnose blood disorders, kidney and liver disease, diabetes, infection, cancer, thyroid disease and other hormonal problems. Many of these conditions can be prevented, controlled, or completely reversed if diagnosed early. A Wellness Exam also gives the doctors a benchmark from which to measure future test results should your pet become ill.  Furthermore, it allows the Doctor to check out any “lumps and bumps” on your animal, which, as a senior pet might be normal, but may point to something a little more serious.

What else should you do for your senior pet? Talk to your vet about what kind of senior food your pet should be eating. Also, senior pets can suffer from arthritis. Does your pet have a hard time getting up in the morning or getting around when the weather is cold? You may consider getting x-rays done to determine the severity of the arthritis. There are some very effective medications specifically for cats and dogs that your vet can prescribe to help with arthritis pain.  X- rays are also a good way to check for heart disease, especially in our smaller canine friends.

This month, Ada Animal Hospital is focusing on the well being of our Senior animal friends.  Look for a special edition of  “Healthy Pet” Magazine that has informative articles and special tips regarding your Senior pet.  There is also a valuable coupon on the cover that you can use this month specifically for your Senior Pet to help him or her live the best, healthiest life you can provide!

Parvovirus is a highly contagious virus transmitted in the feces.  All dogs are susceptible but puppies are most likely to be affected.

Is it treatable?

Parvo cases can have a high success rate of treatment if treatment is initiated early on in the disease process.  However, the cost ranges anywhere from $500-$3000.  Much higher than the cost of the puppy series of vaccine or the annual vaccination.  Also, the sooner we see and treat the animal the better the prognosis.  Dogs and puppies get dehydrated very quickly from the vomiting and diarrhea caused by the virus.  There are a number of potential complications due to the dehydration and the other effects of the virus.

Is it preventable?

Almost 100%.  It requires a series of 3-4 vaccinations as a puppy and yearly boosters thereafter.  This vaccine is included in the typical yearly vaccine so those dogs seeing a veterinarian regularly for vaccines should be protected.

The Idaho Statesman has an article further discussing the increased number of cases in the valley.

Food Items that Could Cause Problems:

• Alcoholic Beverages
• Chocolate (baker’s, semi-sweet or milk chocolate):  the amount of damage is determined by the size of your pet, the amount of chocolate it ate and what kind of chocolate.  The closer the chocolate is to cocoa form more harmful it is.
• Bones: chicken bones especially can shatter and splinter in your pet’s mouth and intestinal tract.
• Food Scraps: just not healthy
• Fatty Foods: just not healthy
• Onions, onion powder: not good in any amount
• Garlic, garlic powder: not good in any amount.
• Coffee (grounds, beans or chocolate covered espresso beans)
• Yeast dough
• Salt: like people, animals don’t need a lot of salt.
• Grapes/raisns: the research hasn’t discovered the exact cause, but grapes and raisins cause kidney failure.  However, they are not consistent.  Some pets eat them all their lives and others can go into kidney failure after eating just one or to.  So, better to error on the side of caution.

If you pet does happen to ingest any of these items that are really harmful, please call us or the emergency clinic immediately for treatment.

The best form of prevention is daily homecare. Toothbrushes, enzymatic toothpastes and products with chlorhexidene are standard products available at vet clinics and pet stores. Diets also play an important role in homecare. Hills makes a very good dental food that can be purchased from your veterinarian. Greenies and CET Chews are also great products to assist in keeping your pet’s mouth healthy.

Daily teeth brushing is one of the most important steps to keep your pet’s mouth healthy. Here are some steps that you can take to develop a teeth brushing regimen:

Step1: Introduce a brushing program to pets gradually. Avoid over-restraining your pet and keep brushing sessions short and positive. A cat or small dog can be held in your lap. Praise and reassure your pet throughout the process.

Step 2: At first, dip a finger in beef bullion for dogs or tuna water for cats. Rub the soaked finger gently over the pet’s mouth and teeth. Make the initial sessions short and positive.

Step 3: Gradually, introduce gauze over the finger and gently scrub the outside of the teeth in a circular motion.

Step 4: Finally, you can introduce a soft toothbrush designed for pets. Use a sensitive or ultra-soft brush designed for pets. Special pet toothbrushes are available from your veterinarian or specialty pet store. You also will need to use toothpaste designed for pets. Human toothpaste contains ingredients that will make your pet sick.

If you are unsure of the level of disease present in your pet’s mouth, call us today and schedule a free dental exam. We can also show you how to brush your pet’s teeth.

• Insecticides — Toxicity levels vary depending on the chemical and the amount ingested.
• Fertilizers — Toxicity levels vary depending on the chemical and the amount ingested.
• Rodenticides — All are toxic to cats and dogs
• Plants — Lillies are toxic to cats, but there is some variance in toxic levels depending on the type of lilly.

In addition to ingestible hazards there are other things to keep in mind.  Make sure that your pet has pleanty of water to avoid dehydration and don’t keep your pet in  locked car to avoid heat exhaustion.

A Wellness Exam includes a physical exam and laboratory tests that the doctor can use to diagnose blood disorders, kidney and liver disease, diabetes, infection, cancer, thyroid disease and other hormonal problems. Many of these conditions can be prevented, controlled, or completely reversed if diagnosed early. A Wellness Exam also gives the doctors a benchmark from which to measure future test results should your pet become ill.

*Stipulations to this offer are as follows:

• No billing
• Not applicable with any other discounts or offers
• Returned checks will result in the discounted amount being applied back to the total as well as the usual $25 returned check fee.

• Zoonotic disease are primarily in animals and can be transmitted to people.
• Most infections occur through soil contaminated with infected eggs and larvae.
• Children are the most at risk for disease transmission.
• An estimated 10,000 cases of human round worm infections occur each year, with more than 700 resulting in vision loss, according to the Center for Disease Control (CDC*).
• Heatworms are transmitted from animal to animal by mosquitoes.  The larvae migrate through the body reaching the blood vessels of the lungs.  Once mature they enter the heart where they continue to grow, growing up to 14″ in length.  In time this will result in severe lung and heart disease.
• The Treasure Valley had 27 positive heartworm cases in dogs in 2007 alone and approximately 20 cases in 2008.

Here are 3 steps to protect your family and pets:

1. Drop a fresh stool sample off at our hospital and we will call you with the results. The CDC* recommends a microscopic fecal exam twice a year for each pet.  This is especially important if you have children in your home.
2. Start your pet on a monthly parasite prevention program. We carry two monthly prevention options: Iverhart Max, a once-a-month oral tablet that protects against heartworms and most intestinal parasites; and Revolution, which is apples topically and protects against most intestinal parasites, heartworms, fleas and ticks.
3. Set up an appointment today to have your pet tested for heartwom infection. This only requires a quick and simple blood test.