SheddingQ: Hi, i have a mixed breed housedog, part german shepherd, not sure of the rest who weighs 80 lbs and sheds excessively. she checks out fine. is there anything i can give her to help? thank you A: You can try addind lecithin granules to her food daily. this sometimes help with shedding. i like a product called lecizyme which also contains other nutrients and enzymes to make sure she is adequately processing her foods. |shedding occurs at different times of year, and is usually harmless, as long as there is no other signs of illness. if you cant find the above product, one called prozyme can help with this as well.|i also like to add essential fatty acids like flaxseed oil to the food daily, which can be dosed at 1 teaspoon per 20 pounds of body weight daily. then see ifit helps over a few month period.
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Dry skinQ: Thank you for your assistance. my husband and i just purchased a female cocker spaniel before thanksgiving and she is now 5 months old and is scratching quite a bit. she is not bothered by fleas and we have already started her on frontline for puppies with our vet last month and she has received all her shots. q1. what could be causing her dry skin irritations and scratching? q2. what other nuturtional support or products can we use for dry skin? thank you. A: I suggest you have her checked by your veterinarian. there are many causes of itching in dogs. your veterinarian can determine the cause and recommend appropriate treatment.
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Ear infectionsQ: My black lab chief has chronic ear infections my husband about every two weeks when it gets real bad cleans them and puts medicine in them. my question is could he take a pill that would actually clear up the infection. i believe he never gets rid of the actual infection. help (he's 4 years old and 115 lbs.) big dog. A: Have him seen by your veterinarian.
Sick puppyQ: I have a 8 month old, 3 lb chihuahua that has been sick since yesterday. she was administered with once a month wormer and squeeze on flea control. the flea control was (unknowingly at the time) for dogs over 33 pounds. we bathed the dog after about 1/2 hour.but she will not eat, drink, and just lies around.she had a very wet, somewhat hard bowel movement lastnight with a trace of blood in it.she has also vomited whenever she drinks water and it looks like human spit. she also gags, and you can hear her stomach gurgling, and she acts like her stomach is sore. she is also running a little fever. i do not have the money to take her to the vet, but i don't want her to die either. do you have any suggestions as to what may be wrong with my little doggie? thank you very much for any help you may give. A: You need to bring her to a veterinarian or veterinary emergency room immediately.
Irratable bowelQ: My cat just turned 10 years old she has had blood and mucus in her stool off and on since she was 5 years old. the vet puts her on metronidaz 50 mg. liquid form to control it. i would like to know if there is a diet that could help control her condition? she has been on select care neutral formular for 8 years. also can you tell me more about this condition and if it will get worse with age and if this medication is good to take as she gets older? A: This medicine is fine and safe for long term or intermittent use in cats. might want to consider low allergy natural diet like wellness brand low allergy diets that exist for cats or possibly california natural lamb and rice diet by natura brand as choices. also could consider home made diet as described in book the new natural cat by anitra frazier. inflammatory bowel disease is very common in cats and dogs. make sure complete cbc/chem and thyroid done as well as ultrasound done to make sure no other problems. many often eventually need oral prednisone if diet and metronidazole does not control
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Pet with seizure disorderQ: My beloved rottweiler has had seizures for two years. the dog suddenly developed these symtoms. during two aggressive and violent arguments my un-neutered pet became aggressive and attacked my husband who was threating me, i was bitten trying to stop my pet from biting my husband then 17 days later my dog attacked my daughter after she became violent with me again. i was bitten during the incident my daughter was not. my question is has the dog suffered brain damage from his seizures and is going to have to be put to sleep. the dog has never attacked or harmed anyone prior to these two occasions. he felt i was being threatened. does the dog have any chance of his behavior being stopped if he was neutered and the mitigating circumstances violent arguments being stopped of returning to his normal behavior or should the dog be put down?he is normally very protective of me my daughter and my husband. has the dog just become blood thirsty or was he acting in a normal fashion. after the attacks he is his old self again demure nad he seems to know that he has done something wrong. my real question is can this type of behavior be excpected from him from now on out?would he be a candidate for a rottweiler rescue program? will this dog attack again for no reason or can extra precautions be takes to prevent the dog from biting A: Tough one to give definitive advice on. i would see vet specialist in behavior for best chance at combination of behavior mdoficiation as well as possible drug therapies. some of these dogs need to be put to sleep howeever due to unpredictaablity
G. shepherd puppies' first shotsQ: Please help, i have 10 5 weeks old puppies and i would like to do the shots or vaccinations myself. tell me please what vaccines i need to buy and please what about the schedule of those. can this be done with nonprescriptin medicines? a million thanks! A: I don't like to overvaccinate dogs. i prefer only distemper/parvo in combination without all of the others. i give two shots one at 8 weeks and one again at 12 weeks followed by a rabies shot 1 month after last shot separately.
