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I think my dog has separation anxiety. He gets very sad and freaks out when he knows we are leaving and cries nonstop. I was wondering if there was a way to make him more comfortable at home when we will be going to work?
Our 4 month male lab/husky (a patient at JVV)
He has episodes of “attacking/biting”. Today he went after my 5 year old grandson. Bit him in the leg. Not provoked. He also has biting episodes at night. My daughter, his mom, puts him in a hold and he calms down. CN u offer advice how to train him to stop. This is scary. Thank you
Good morning-
I am sorry this is an issue. I would first start with a vet exam to rule out any medical issue. Then I would search out a reputable behaviorist to help you with training. It will be time and money well spent. In a serious case like this, a behaviorist is very helpful. Very best of luck to you all. I hope your grandson is ok.
I agree, vet, then behaviorist.
Hi,
my 2 years old cat doesn’t want to eat wet food (I have tried every kind and brand ). He only eats small amounts of dry food (urinary).
In the result he is skinny (weights only about 3,5kg) and has ongoing problems with urinary tract and struvite crystals.
We’ve been dealing with these problems since he was a child and I am afraid the situation won’t change unless he starts eating properly.
I can’t afford such frequent visits to the Vet clinic, especially since he recently had a blockage and the treatment costs a lot ( vet care in Poland is really expensive too).
He is such an active cat and despite the poor diet, he still has the energy to play.
I’ve examinated his blood and everything seems fine. His teeth are also fine..I honestly tried every internet trick to encourage him to eat.
I don’t know If he is picky or sick. Is the urinary porblems affected by diet or he doesn’t want to eat becouse of the urinary tract issues..
What should I do?
Hello,
It is ideal that your cat eats the right (prescription) urinary food, but, it is even more important that he eats. For these cases I talk to my clients about trying high quality urinary friendly over the counter diets. I also talk to them about adding little bots of the urinary prescription food into the OTC food they will eat. If all else fails I try watered down over the counter wet food. Also ask your vet about giving subcutaneous fluids at home daily to help keep the urinary system diuresing. I also think it might help to add an appetite stimulant. Also think about toys, playtime and lots of things to keep him active, engaged and feeling good. I also take a long hard look at the litter boxes, the type of litter and where the boxes are placed, along with making them impeccably clean. Please talk to your vet about all of these. Also an antiinflammatory might help?
Very best of luck!
keep me posted.
Hello, I have a kitty Cheesey poof who is on methimazole for hyperthyroidism. My question is has anyone used herbs or homeopathy for this condition instead? And what has worked succesfully? Thanks
I would find a holistic vet to help you with this – they would need to be familiar with your cat, specifically, to proceed. Anything we could recommend would put your cat at risk.
I’m taking care of a Siamese who’s over 10, an indoor/outdoor cat. I did a cbc & chem bloodwork. His BUN is only slightly elevated. His issue is throwing up daily, weight loss, & diarrhea. His vomit is undigested food & liquid. He eats very little wet food & his owner just feeds all of them the worst dry food. I give him sq fluids as needed & started cerenia. Yet this is not treating the underlying cause. Does anyone have any advice on this? I have vet bills for my cows & my cats. Yet i still want to help all the animals I can. I obviously have very little money to help though. Thanks
Hello,
Thank you for helping. I honestly feel like the best course of action right now is to get a diagnosis. Even a presumptive one. For this I think you should do the following. Find a cat vet or a very reputable vet that you trust for an exam. And then I would talk about checking the thyroid a fecal and probably also a urinalysis. For most of the cases lien this I just feel that I need a full set of basic diagnostics before I can begin to offer treatment plans. Otherwise I am eating precious time guessing and very likely guessing wrong. Things like intestinal parasites and hyperthyroid disease can be affordably treated. But cannot, and definitely should not be treated without confirmation. After that I talk about xrays and an ultrasound. I’m sorry. I can’t tell you what to do without knowing what it might be. And that list is very long. Start with the basics. An exam and a fecal. Talk about thyroid and go from there. Good luck. Let us know. Thank you for helping.
My two cats got into a tussle, and one of them has a scratch right down the center of his nose. He doesn’t seem to be bothered, but I don’t want it to get infected. What should I do?
Hello,
In almost all cases I assume that a fight causes an infection. Please watch the area very closely. Any sign of swelling, pain or purulent discharge (like puss) are all signs of infection. If you see any of these, or inappetence or changes in s attitude or Behavior please call your vet. Hope this helps. Be well and stay safe.
My dogs legs have been really sore after exercising. This started happening randomly a few months ago. She is a 4 year old American pit bull terrier. Her legs are sore for a day or two (sometimes longer depending on how intense the exercise was) and then the soreness goes away. I am wondering how I could help her with this problem.
Have you been going for regular checkups at the vet? Have you spoken to your vet about this, or had an appointment to get it checked out? That is where I would start. Meantime, I would let her set the pace for exercise/walks to be in the safe side. Best to you both!!
Hello,
I’m sorry to hear about your dog. I agree with Sarah. This is something that needs some investigating. I would worry about diet, disease and immune mediated conditions. In worst case scenarios muscle biopsy is done. But start with an exam and bloodwork. I really think there is an answer. Let us know what happens.
My dog, Max, was recently diagnosed with diabetes. We are still trying to find the right dose of insulin and were making progress until yesterday. His sugar was back up to 471 yesterday when 2 weeks ago it was 275. We know cataracts are already forming but this morning before 4am he woke me up. I thought he had to go outside but when I got him, realized he wasn’t opening his left eye. When he does open it, it seems rolled back and is red. His third eyelid is also visible. The right one is better but also seems like it might be bothering him. I contacted the vet for walk in hours today but wanted to see if anyone else has had this issue and what it might be.
Thanks!
Hello,
Me again. I think that as long as he is acting completely normal otherwise AND not rubbing his face or eye (which can cause trauma or damage to the cornea (think about all the doctors advice to not run your eyes)), then you are probably fine to wait until we open at 1. If he is rubbing his face please place an ecollar on him. You can always make a quick make shift one with either a large price of plastic or thick poster board or even a bucket (do a google search for homemade ecolllars people get creative. And you just need one for a few hours we have them at the clinic), and then come in. For dogs with a history of allergies I would recommend a saline flood (like the kind you do if you get a toxin in your eye). Nose to the sky and flood the eye with strike saline or clean two water (cool). To wash out any irritants. Or give diphenhydramine orally. I want to hold off on your pup due to the diabetes. I also am a little concerned about Horners. You can look that up online too. Dr Ahrens has been notified that she will see you at 1230. You can email me anytime if you need anything. Stay safe! Hugs to you all.
Any assistance would be greatly appreciated. My 14 weeks old Golden Retriever have eye infection. I don’t know what is this, could you please advice?
Hi there- eyes are serious. And using a photo is difficult to diagnose. It could be an injury (scratch or worse), it could be a conjunctivitis (infection), or it could be allergies…. a vet would have to inspect it closely to give a proper diagnosis and then get you the medicine you need.
yesterday he played with the dog with conjunctivitis so I believe is just this. Thank you for youe respond.
Your puppy needs to see the vet. If I were your vet I would probably stain the eye for any signs of injury and add an ophthalmic antibiotic and an ecollar. Please go to the vet. Mucous discharge is possibly a sign of a serious eye issue. And all eye issues in my opinion should be addressed to cover worst case scenario which is blindness. I have seen it happen in puppies. I hope that is not the case. But I never mess around with puppies OR eyes. Be well and stay safe.
Please help!!! We recently rescued a Yellow Canary from Pet Smart 3 weeks ago. He has been acting fine, loves attention, sings, perks up when you talk to him and was great all day today. He loves to stand tall and flap his wings normally. This evening we were making dinner and I walked back in the living room and he was stuck in his hooded food bowl. Within a minute this happened because I walked to stir the pot and went back and there he was. I immediately scooped him up and placed him on his favorite perch, I removed the hoods as I thought maybe they were dangerous. And reached over to give him his favorite pet on his neck and he climbed on my hand and would not get off, I wouldn’t be alarmed if this was normal for him so I kept my hand there for him thinking he maybe felt safe after feeling trapped. He kept closing his eyes and wobbling bad. He finally jumped off in about 4 minutes and kept trying to perch and would lose his balance and try to sleep but startle and lean forward doing so. He even tried resting against the bars. I have been watching him now for about 2 hours and he has finally settled in but just seems a bit off still, not seeming relaxed and cozy at his bedtime like normal. I also want to add he kept leaning forward after like he was afraid he was going to fall backwards. I just want to stay ahead of things if he is sick and with all that is going on I figured I would try here first to see if you think maybe he just got scared and will settle in now. He immediately fit right in here when we brought him home. He is such a happy and friendly little guy and we love him so much already. My daughter is so scared and so am I, he has brought so much joy during this crazy dark mess we are in with the virus threat. Thank you so much in advance and God Bless and keep you all safe.
Hello,
I would put him in a very quiet very safe place and let him rest tonight. It sounds like trauma and honestly in these small guys the only thing you really can do is give them time to heal. No food no water no ability to fly or fall. Just a safe small quiet place to rest. Check on him in the morning and give him time. I hope he heals ok.
I am so sorry, I am just seeing your response as I just am figuring out how to navigate this site, which is amazing by the way. I sent a fb message a few minutes ago with videos and pictures. Should a remove him from his cage now?
Good morning- anxiety is something that takes time, patience and in my opinion routine. Routine definitely helps. When your dog learns that they can expect “x,y,z” at certain times, and can depend on that routine, it builds trust. There are also other things like leaving a radio on low while you’re gone, walks/exercise to get them good and relaxed before you go, chew toys and toys you can hide a treat like peanut butter in for them to work on while you’re out…. I will also say that making walks a priority part of your daily routine helps a ton. For both of you- it helps with strengthening your bond- in turn helping them trust you more, as well as being physically tired. Training and repetition (even the most basic) is mental work and also helps keep their mind tired. A tired dog is a better behaved dog. There are lots and lots of tricks and tools. Lastly, I would check in with your vet and make sure it is not something that is more serious and needs medical attention. It is definitely something that you can work with and potentially overcome. One of our shepherds had terrible separation anxiety when we first rescued him- chewed EVERYTHING. It took time, but he is well adjusted and one now. Don’t lose hope????