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Holiday Safety for Cats and Dogs

The holidays can be a stressful and even dangerous time for our cats. Normal routines are upset, visitors come and go, and overly tempting smells may be coming from the kitchen! The Christmas tree is the first item of great interest on your cat’s Santa list. Many cats find it irresistibly tempting to climb. First, make sure your tree is in a sturdy stand. Test it to make sure it’s tip-proof. Or put a hook in the ceiling and tie the tree to it (nylon fishing line works well and ...

2017-03-21T18:25:46-07:00
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Please Don’t Give Pets as Gifts

It's a wonderful thing to give, and we all have good intentions when shopping for truly special gifts for our loved ones. You may have visions of one you love opening a beautiful box with an adorable kitten inside, or of covering their eyes and leading them into a room where a puppy wearing a big bow is waiting. We aren't to blame—we have these joyful images lingering from our own childhood as well as from movies. It may feel like we are giving the gift of unconditional love, especially ...

2017-03-23T14:16:31-07:00
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When You SHOULD Induce Vomiting

We recently discussed when NOT to induce vomiting after your pet has eaten certain harmful items. Today we’ll look at common situations where you should induce vomiting (how-to instructions below). Rodent poisons often contain anti-coagulant (blood-thinning) drugs such as coumarin or warfarin; newer products contain bromethalin, a neurotoxin that is equally dangerous. If a pet ingests an anti-coagulant, or even eats an animal that has consumed it, life-threatening internal bleeding may occur. While symptoms typically take 5 to 7 days to develop, they need to be headed off by inducing ...

2017-03-23T14:00:21-07:00
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Rabies Vaccine Reality Check

Thanks to my good friend Dr. Karen Becker at Mercola.com for this incredibly important article! By Dr. Becker I have some encouraging news to share about rabies vaccines, or more specifically, how pets with out-of-date vaccinations that are exposed to a rabid animal should be handled. Currently, if a pet with a lapsed rabies vaccination is exposed to a rabid animal, the law in many states requires the pet to be quarantined for several months at the owner’s expense, or euthanized. In October 2014, a Brockton, Massachusetts woman was forced ...

2018-06-09T13:51:41-07:00
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Halloween Safety for Pets

Halloween is already upon us, so it's time to remind folks how to keep all pets (most especially black cats!) safe at this time of year. Many thanks to Kimberly Jackson (A to Z Petcare) and Kate Solisti (KateSolisti.com) for this timely article! HALLOWEEN SAFETY ESSENTIALS FOR ANIMAL GUARDIANS By Kimberly Jackson and Kate Solisti Halloween can be scary for our furry friends. It can also be quite dangerous. Here are some helpful tips for keeping your pets safe on Halloween. First and foremost, please do not leave pets outside ...

2017-03-21T18:31:00-07:00
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When NOT to Induce Vomiting

Cats and dogs can get into a lot of trouble! If they've eaten something they shouldn't, the common advice is to induce vomiting by giving them syrup of ipecac or hydrogen peroxide. (My favorite item recovered by this method was a baby sock that had been eaten by a cat!) However, there are some things that are actually worse coming back up than they were going down. In those cases, you should NOT induce vomiting by any method. These items include: Household cleaning products containing acidic or alkaline ingredients, which ...

2017-03-23T14:00:33-07:00
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The Difference in Cost of Veterinary Care

Today I'm posting an article written a few days ago by a colleague, Dr. Carolyn Karrh, who was sad and frustrated after a dog died after being spayed. The dog was a high risk patient, but was brought to a low-cost, high-volume clinic for the surgery. Had she (the dog) been at a clinic where a thorough history, pre-op exam, better equipment, IV line, constant monitoring, etc., were the norm, the story could have had a much happier ending. Dr. Karrh goes on to explain the difference between clinics, and why ...

2017-03-21T18:33:32-07:00
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Restful Sleep

Restful sleep is a topic that most of us don't give enough attention to... unless it's to fret about not getting enough of it! And hardly anyone thinks about sleep as far as animal companions are concerned. But getting enough good quality sleep is essential to health. And this goes for our pets, too! Most wild members of the feline (and canine) species are born in a dark nest or den; and they're born with their eyes closed. Darkness is a key component of healthy development in those first weeks ...

2020-05-18T13:53:02-07:00
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Cat Senses

Science has discovered what many cat-lovers have known for years... most cats depend more on their vision than on their sense of smell! I could have told you that when I brought my freshly-shaved dog home one summer afternoon. My "watchcat" Spencer took one look and attacked instantly, drawing blood on both the dog--and on me, when I tried to intervene. He didn't spend a nanosecond analyzing any smells... it was a lightning reflex arc from eyeballs to claws! But to give science credit, the British researchers did develop a ...

2017-03-23T14:17:35-07:00
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E-Cigarettes: Dangerous for Pets

http://www.vetstreet.com/our-pet-experts/a-warning-to-pet-owners-who-use-e-cigarettes?Wt.mc_id=facebook The ASPCA Poison Control Center says that electronic cigarettes (e-cigarettes) often contain high concentrations of nicotine, which is a dangerous poison for dogs and cats. Nicotine exposures are increasing, and the types of exposures are changing. In 2012, e-cigarettes made up 4.6% of total nicotine exposures (including tobacco cigarettes, nicotine gum, e-cigarettes, and nicotine patches), but in 2013, this number increased to 13.6%; and it's expected to continue rising. Nicotine is dangerous for pets, and e-cigarettes and refills can contain far more nicotine than regular cigarettes. E-cigarettes are filled ...

2017-03-21T19:21:26-07:00
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Feline Hyperthyroidism

By Jean Hofve, DVM A serious disease called "feline hyperthyroidism" has risen to epidemic proportions since the first cases were diagnosed in 1979. It is a worldwide phenomenon, though worse in the U.S. than other countries. Hyperthyroidism (hyper = too much, thyroid = a hormone-making gland), is seen mostly in older cats age 10 or more. Watch Floppy Cat's interview with Dr. Jean here (a written transcript can be found below the video by clicking "show more"): In people, the thyroid gland is "H" shaped, and located at the base ...

2018-01-01T22:01:40-07:00
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Animal Communication

Many thanks to our guest author, animal communicator Kate Solisti!  The art of listening to an animal and actually receiving something back from them is based on two things: (1) Love and (2) Intuition. I have been a professional interspecies communicator for over twenty years and in that time have helped many people rekindle their natural abilities to open and receive information from non-speaking beings through their intuition. It is my belief that the heart is the seat of our intuition and innate wisdom. In order to access these, we ...

2017-03-21T19:22:08-07:00
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