The Next #ASKAVET is Next Week!
It’s time for our August #ASKAVET Facebook event! This session will be hosted by Dr. Rod on Tuesday, Aug. 19 at 6 p.m. CST.
Dr. Rod is a practicing veterinarian with a large suburban clinic who works with dogs, cats and many other types of pets. He is a regular contributor to our Pet Health Central Facebook fan page and helps pet owners navigate medical and behavioral issues.
For the Pet Health Central blog, Dr. Rod’s posts focus on medical advice for the family pet. He has a special interest in and comprehensive knowledge of pet dental care and is our “Expert in Residence” on this topic.
As a pet owner, you may have questions about how to keep your pet healthy and active, and #ASKAVET is the perfect place to get the right answers to your important questions. Don’t rely on outdated and potentially dangerously incorrect online information from untrusted sources or wait for your vet to return a phone call — come to the next #ASKAVET event and get your knowledge from a trained and trusted veterinarian who can help you right away!
If you have a question you would like to ask Dr. Rod before the Aug. 19 #ASKAVET event, please post it in the comments section of this blog post and we will do our best to answer it during the hour-long session. If you want to post a live question during the event, be sure to include the #ASKAVET hashtag in your question. Without it, your question may be missed! Talk to you soon!
#ASKAVET
Used Hartz Flea and Tick shampoo on my 40lb. Corgy/Pit mix last week and he broke out in little sub dermal bumps all over his torso! Lasted for several hours and he was scratching and very uncomfortable. Was gonna take him to a vet the next morning but the condition was gone. So I put the Pet Guard Plus treatment on him and he’s not had anymore reaction. What flea/tick shampoo would you recommend that will not cause such a reaction?
He’s a mostly indoors pet at night but loves to stay outdoors during the daylight hours, weather permitting, so fleas and ticks are a concern in our East Texas environment.
Thank you in advance!
William, just to be sure, are you looking for a flea and tick shampoo to use in place of a monthly topical? Thanks!
What’s the best raw catfood recipe you’ve heard of?
Hi Bill, here’s Dr. Rod’s response:
With so many excellent commercially available diets available for cats (and dogs) I do not recommend raw diets and thus can’t provide a recipe. There is much controversy on this topic and advocates for both sides. However, the risks of not providing the proper nutrition with raw diets, along with handling etc. in my opinion, along with convenience alone, make me shy away from feeding raw diets. #ASKAVET
My dog Buddy was diagonosed with heartworms and has already received three shots but still has heartworms. Is there anything else I can do to help him.
Hi Virginia, here’s Dr. Rod’s response:
Sorry to hear that Buddy has heartworm disease. Not knowing how he was treated or what stage of heartworm disease he had when treated it is hard to give a definitive answer. Typically melarsomine HCl is used as an injectable form for treatment. This kills the adult worms. These treatments are timely staggered depending upon the stage of heartworm disease. Once the adults are treated/killed the patient is treated for the immature form of heartworm (microfilaria), followed by preventatives. There are alternative treatments as well to this protocol as well that should be discussed with your veterinarian if the disease is persistent. Sometimes, the treatments do need to be repeated. For other readers, prevention is best in both dogs and cats for heartworm disease. #ASKAVET
Hi I have a 13 year old rescue. Her name is Molly & shes a beagle jack russell mix. She has had tummy issues for years & a few times a week , her tummy gurgles & she will refuse food until later in the eve. When she gets this way, her stool will be soft with mucus. Any meds you can recommend? She had a bleeding ulcer a few years ago. Also my purebred beagle, Jake is 10 years old & has had 2 bouts of pancreatitis in the last year. The only thing that the vet has found to control his symptoms is pepto bismol pills, half a pill 2 x
a day. Is this ok? Both dogs get a homemade diet of boiled potatoes & boiled boneless skinless chicken breasts. Thanks!
Debbie, here is Dr. Rod’s response: First of all if the Pepto pills are working without side effects you can continue these. Probably a better option may be a medication called sucralfate. Both of your dogs could likely benefit from lower fat, higher fiber diets. There are several commercial options available that your vet can discuss with you. Pancreatitis is nothing to mess around with. With chronic reoccurring pancreatitis (even in mild forms) can lead to diabetes, so you will want to try and keep this from happening.
Thank you for your questions! We will do our best to answer them during tomorrow’s #ASKAVET event!
#askavet. My 7 yr old female sheltie is getting lumps on her belly area. She recently started having areas of hair not comming back after her last hair cut. She was fixed last yr. vet didn’t really give me any answers. He said he could biopsy a lump but it could be inconclusive he didn’t seem concerned with her hair loss when I pressed him he said he could do blood work for thyroid. I am worried about her and think I need a new vet
From Dr. Rod:
Deb, your sheltie could be experiencing many conditions and accurately diagnosing based on your description alone would be impossible in this context. However, this could be something as simple as allergic reaction and a secondary skin infection, hypothyroid is a good thing to rule out, and other endocrine diseases can sometimes cause decreased hair growth (Cushing’s disease is one example). If they are actually masses then biopsy would be a suggestion. I would suggest to have this condition looked at a little more closely and if there is a veterinary dermatologist in your area that is always and option. Good luck. #ASKAVET
Hello, I have a 10 year old female deer head chihuahua, I have had her about 5 years. She has all of her shots. She is inside and outside about equal times. My question is, she has not been eating the last 4 to 5 days, she seems interested, but won’t eat, even bought her different dry dog food. But when she Ttys to eat, she vomits bile. My daughter is a vet tech in training, looked at Betti my dog and says she seems to be OK. Could she be having GERD, or something similar? She is about 10lbs, still active, runs around with 4 other large dogs, (she rules the roost)
Carol, here is Dr. Rod’s response: GERD (Gastric Esophageal Reflux Disease) while may be part of the problem there could be many other problems going on as well. Although you daughter may be in school to become a veterinary technician, she doesn’t take the place of a trained veterinarian. Betti needs to have an examination to make sure this is the case, and if so special dietary recommendations can be made along with volumes and timing of feedings. Better to be safe than sorry if something can be addressed early rather than letting it progress to a worsening condition.
I have 3 dogs. 2 of them seem to itch all the time now. The lab/rat terrier mix is 10 years old and the lahso apso/shitzu mix is 9 1/2 years old. Could this be due to age or something they may be eating? They both have been shedding very bad for the last 3-4 years(worse than normal). They are trated monthly for fleas and ticks and combed daily. I do not find any kind of insects on them. They are both house dogs and are only outside for walks and to potty.
Missy, here’s Dr. Rod’s response: Glad you are treating your fur babies with flea preventions. If these are being used properly on all pets in the house, then fleas are not likely. Remember even you can bring “hitch-hiker” fleas into the house. As a preventative measure, try using a home spray like Sentry Home Flea Free Breeze (http://www.sentrypetcare.com/products/ProductCatalog.asp?one=1&two=290&three=851&pr=20220). With that said there are many other skin conditions, including food allergies as you allude to that could be causing the itching. Hypothyroidism for example can create excessive shedding. My suggestion is to have your pooches checked out by your veterinarian to see what options there are to help them be more comfortable. Chronic, itchy skin is not fun for anyone, including our pets.
Is there an otc meds for tape worms in cats and how old do kitten’s need to be before they can be treated for tape worms?
Bridget, Dr. Rod replied on Facebook, but in case you didn’t see it, here’s what he said!
Bridget, tapeworms look like little pieces of white rice either on the feces or around the anus. If this is what you are seeing then there is a possibility that you kitty may also have fleas. The most common tapeworm is caused by a pet swallowing a flea carrying the immature form of the tapeworm. This is important since you will not only want to treat the tapeworms with a product such as any product specifically designated to treat tapeworms. With regards to the fleas you should consider using Pet Armor squeeze on products. You can learn more on PetArmor.com.
#ASKAVET I Have A 5 Year Old Racoon Whose Feet Have Ben Swelling An Gitting Sore. What Could It B.??He Lives Inside With Going Out At Times….Thanks.
David, Dr. Rod is a companion animal vet, specializing in dog and cat care. Sorry that we can’t help, but I hope that your raccoon gets better soon!
I hv 2 dogs and 2 cats. The beagle is allergic to flea bites. I cannot afford to buy he FRONTLINE PLUS. The animal food bank does not have any. Do you know where I can get any for free. My animals are all up to date on their shots. The veterinary office that I go to recently let me work off a $500+ bill by cleaning the office. My husband is on Social Security Disability. He just came home from the hospital due to kidney surgery. Our funds are limited. I do not drive. My husband has limited driving. Please help us.
Jeanne, here’s Dr. Rod’s response: If you have a flea problem, not only all the pets need to be treated but the house as well. Only about 5% of fleas you see are on the pet, the other 95% are in the environment in one of the life stages. It is unfortunate regarding your financial limitations. However, I do not know of any good will organization that will deliver free products to you. An option to Frontline Plus is PetArmor Plus IGR, which is available at major retailers nationwide and breaks the flea life cycle. Good luck. Learn more: http://www.petarmor.com/product_dogs/petarmor-plus-igr/.