Animalix - Magazine

How Can I Prevent Winter Health Risks to My Dog? Frostbite.   Frostbite begins when the dog’s body gets cold. The body pulls blood from the extremities to the center of the body to stay warm. The dog’s ears, paws or tail can get so cold that ice crystals will form in the tissue and damage it. Frostbite is not immediately obvious. Watch for signs of pale or grey skin as the skin may also turn hard and cold. As frostbitten areas warm, they can be extremely painful. Severely frostbitten skin will eventually turn black and fall off. Hypothermia.  The other very serious winter weather health concern for dogs is hypothermia. Hypothermia occurs when a dog spends too much time in the cold, gets wet in cold temperatures or when dogs with poor health or circulation are exposed to cold. In mild cases, the dog will shiver and ears and feet will become cold. As hypothermia progresses, your dog may show signs of depression, lethargy, and weakness. As the condition worsens, the musc...

If you are a computer guru, you may remember the term GIGO.  This term stands for Garbage In.  Garbage Out.  So, what does this have to do with your dog's diet?  Well, your dog may be no walking, wagging, and barking computer, but he or she works in the same way.  What food goes into your pet will eventually come out in the end. Your dog's diet will affect the outputs considerably.  Other factors play a role such as illness, nerves, and the weather.  You can tell a lot about the health of your hound by the outputs produced. As any responsible pet owner knows, cleaning up after your pet is not the most pleasant job, but it is a necessary one.  Being choosy and selective about your dog's diet will make cleaning up after your pet much easier. When your dog is eating a diet high in fillers, your pet will show it.  The excrement will be large in size and often runny and hard to pick up.  You may notice when you give your pet leftovers ...

What is the Green Bean Dog Diet? For some time, people have tossed around the idea of the green bean diet for dogs.  You may have heard of this and considered trying it.  Let's look at the green bean dog diet and discuss some of the pros and cons. If you choose to feed your dog the green bean diet, you must know that you cannot exclusively feed your pet green beans.  Only supplying your dog with this green vegetable will not be a healthy choice for your dog's diet.  Pet owners will need to find a balance between dog food, for example, and green beans that will produce the desired results.   The green bean dog diet involves standard kibble for your pet mixed with a portion of green beans.  The green beans are a healthy way to keep your dog full between meals.  For example, your lab may only need two cups of high-quality dog food per day to maintain a healthy weight, but he is always scrounging around and hungry.  Adding some green beans to...

America’s most popular pet, the cat, lives more than half of its life in the senior years. Although advances in veterinary care, better nutrition and better educated owners have helped improve the quantity and quality of these years, studies reveal that senior cats continue to struggle with weight as the result of reduced activity levels and a steady decline in senses, nutrient absorption and fat digestion. “One of the most important goals when feeding senior cats is maintaining an ideal weight and keeping that weight stable,” said Dr. Arnold Plotnick, who developed a senior wellness program to address the special needs of aging cats at his veterinary clinic, Manhattan Cat Specialists in New York City. Owners of senior cats can help their aging felines maintain an ideal body weight throughout the senior lifestage by feeding a diet that addresses their unique nutritional needs. Purina Pro Plan, for instance, has reformulated its entire line of senior cat foods to address the changin...

Learn how to give your dog his own space. 1. House train your dog. Efficient and humane training aids, crates take advantage of the dog's natural tendency to keep its sleeping area clean. However, you should crate your puppy for only as long as it can reasonably control its bladder and bowels. 2. Protect your dog. Crating a dog prevents it from chewing electrical cords or eating poisonous plants, toxic cleaning fluids, or nylon socks (which can tear up your dog's intestines.) These are only a few dangers awaiting new dogs left alone in a home. 3. Protect your property. A crate costs between $25 and $200, depending on its size and where you buy it. That's a bargain compared to the cost of replacing furniture and other belongings your new dog can destroy. 4. Curb and prevent separation anxiety. You love your dog, but you can't spend every minute of every day with him. The crate can help you teach your dog to enjoy spending time alone. 5. Introduce chew toys. A...

How Can I Travel Safely with My Dog? Dogs can be wonderful traveling companions. But before you hit the road with your furry friend, make sure you know what you need to do to make your dog as safe and comfortable as possible on your journey. These Frequently Asked Questions can help you plan the perfect trip! Should I take my pet along on my vacation? It's important to ask yourself if taking your pet along is what's best for him or her — or if it's just what's best for you. At home, your pet has all of his or her favorite toys, sleeping spots, and perhaps the run of the backyard all day.  If your vacation involves a road trip, you need to ask how well your pet will accept being in a car for long periods of time. Is he acclimated to a car? Does she love going out and about with you — or would she rather stay at home? Animals that very infrequently ride in a car are poor candidates for automobile vacations.  Some pets shouldn't travel at all. If your pet is v...

What Should I Do About Fleas and Ticks? United Animal Nations is pleased to share these tips on how to deal with fleas and ticks, which are usually most troublesome to pets in the warm summer weather. Fortunately, prevention and treatment are fairly simple, as you'll discover in these Frequently Asked Questions. The information below offers suggested remedies, and should not be regarded as comprehensive. Please contact your veterinarian for more information. How often should I check my pets for ticks or fleas? Pets should be checked at least once a week for ticks, fleas, or skin irritations. If you discover a tick, remove it gently, using fine-point tweezers as close to the skin as possible (making sure to grasp the tick where the mouth parts are embedded into the skin). Is it enough just to kill any fleas found on my pet? Even a single adult flea on a dog or cat indicates a major infestation that must be treated. At any given time, only 5% of the flea populati...