pet health questions.
Lon Black working on a happy client. Photo: Brian Crumley. What animal lover hasn't daydreamed about ditching their desk job and applying for a job at the zoo? Or at a doggy daycare? Or tracking gorillas in Africa? We sure have, but since most of us may never actually get to work with the animals we love, we thought we'd introduce you to a few people who do. Name: Lon Black Age: 53 Job: Certified Small Animal Massage Therapist; Hope Veterinary Clinic What is small animal massage therapy? It's traditional massage on small animals -- meaning cats and dogs, with an occasional rabbit here and there, but that's pretty rare -- using Swedish massage strokes. Where do you work ...
Photo: J Pat Carter, AP The debate may rage on over stem-cell treatments for people, but hundreds of veterinarians are already using the renewable cells to give arthritic dogs and horses a new spring in their steps. Vet-Stem, the company pioneering such treatments, harvests adult stem cells from the suffering animal's body fat, isolates them in a lab, and then injects the stem cells into the affected area, such as the hips. While there have been no truly independent clinical studies to determine the effectiveness -- Vet-Stem has funded the three biggest studies to date -- there has been promising anecdotal evidence coming from reputable sources. University of Florida veterinarian ...
For kids, it's a spoonful a sugar that helps the medicine to go down. For dogs, it's cheese. The video below from HowCast teaches you how to get your dog to pop meds without needing a team of helpers to manhandle your pup. Luckily, canines tend to be much more comfortable having fingers shoved down their throats than their feline counterparts! ...
Will a little dental work help this biting pup? Photo: Jake Stevens / LA Times These days, Cotton's bark may actually be bigger than his bite. The aggressive six-year-old American Eskimo dog recently underwent a highly controversial dental treatment known as canine disarming to trim and smooth his teeth. Cotton's owner Diane Krieger had tried just about everything -- puppy training classes, self-help books, and even assistance from "Dog Whisperer" Cesar Millan -- to tame her pup's dangerous bad habit, but the biting persisted. She even looked into dog rescue groups, but most refused to take pets with a history of biting. Last month, as an alternative to euthanization, Krieger ...
Feline leukemia can be spread by kitty kisses and other casual contact. Photo: SuziJane/Flickr Feline leukemia virus (FeLV) and feline immunodeficiency virus (FIV) are phrases that every cat owner dreads -- and for good reason. The diseases are deadly, and treatments for either of them are limited. That may soon change. Missouri-based company ProLabs has recently launched a drug to fight these devastating infections. It's the first treatment for the diseases to have been granted a conditional license by the USDA. Veterinarian and consultant for the Cornell Feline Health Center Christine Bellezza told Paw Nation that FeLV and FIV are related but distinct diseases. "They both affect the ...
"Can somebody get me some Claritin, please?" Photo: TheGiantVermin/Flickr Red eyes, itchy skin -- 'tis the season for allergies, for people as well as pets. Seasonal allergies typically affect pets between July and October, peaking in August and September, reports the Janesvile (Wisconsin) Gazette. About 2 to 3 percent of cats and 5 to 10 percent of dogs suffer from seasonal symptoms. Any breed (or mutt) can have allergies, but Labrador retrievers, cocker spaniels and poodles are particularly vulnerable. Dogs and cats are bugged by the same common allergens that make us humans reach for the medicine cabinet: pollen, ragweed, house mites, feathers, grasses, and mold are common culprits, ...