Pet Skin Doctor
Pet Skin Information
Archive for September, 2009
When I first brought home my puppy, Mugs, at six months, I was taken aback when he darted for the kitty litter box and started chowing down. I had never seen this behavior in a dog before. After repeated attempts of chasing him around the house while he held his mouth clenched on kitty poo, we moved the litter box to a location less accessible to him. Shortly there after I came home to find my puppy’s stool contained something belong to me – my underwear! I ran into the house and discovered my half eaten undergarments.
This behavior is actually a condition called pica. Pica is not limited to underwear and kitty stool. It can also include a continual eating of shoes, carpet, wood, rocks, or socks. The dog may do this because they want attention, or out of boredom. This can also be a trait carried over from puppy hood. Pica may also be a sign of a medicinal problem; suffering from anemia or internal conditions. Certain internal issues may also bring along pet skin problems. If you feel this is a symptom your pet is experiencing, you may benefit from a visit to the vet’s office. You can also curb this behavior by feeding your pet more food but less often, changing your pets food, or adding a supplement to your pets diet. Another way is to trap objects or lace them with unappealing taste, such as Tabasco or a spray offered by your local vet. My solution was to put everything he had an urge to eat up where he couldn’t reach it, but this takes a lot of extra effort and the ability to remember to do so. Pica is a very serious condition which can cause obstructions in your pet’s internal organs.
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Pets age differently than we, as owners, do. Many factors also account to when your pet is actually considered a senior. Generally, the larger breeds tend to age faster. Sadly, our pets are subject to the same conditions we face as we age. As your dog ages, loss of hearing and vision may make it difficult to connect with your dog. Also, decreased activity may lead to weight gain. A regular exercise program will keep your dog healthy and active in his later years. Gentle games or an occasional swim in the pool are good ideas to start with.
As your dog approaches senior citizenship, he or she is becoming more helpless to skin conditions. Although dog itchy skin is common in all dogs, it’s more prevalent in senior dogs. As an owner, you may need to start grooming and bathing your dog more often. A blow dryer may be very rough on your senior’s now dry skin so instead use a thick absorbent towel. A flea and tick treatment may be required as your dog ages; senior dogs are more prone to skin infections than their younger counterparts. Extra care and cautionary measures are important in keeping your senior dog healthier longer and to improve his quality of life during his later years.
There are many variables that can cause feline hair loss, but it is generally a sign of poor health and possibly an allergy problem. The best way to avoid hair loss caused by allergies and poor diet is to feed your cat a healthy food from the onset.
To establish if the cause of hair loss is an allergy, poor diet, stress or a combination of these, you will need to examine your cat’s body and pay close attention to it’s behavior. Is your pet only loosing hair or are there cat skin conditions present as well, such as bumps, redness, irritation or dry patches? It is never to late, nor a bad idea to transition your cat to a healthier diet (unless you cat is older or has special needs and your vet has made specific recommendations). Choose a food high in protein, where the first ingredient is meat, preferably salmon or turkey. Other meats, such as beef or even chicken, will not provide your cat with all the necessary nutrients. The best foods will have the best ingredients for maintaining cat health. Turkey and salmon are both considered meats a cat would eat without human intervention, and both offer the most digestible proteins for felines. To avoid hyperthyroidismis disorder, augment your cat’s diet with a Vitamin E and Vitamin B supplement.
If you’ve noticed your feline companion scratching a bit more then normal, the first thought to come to mind is probably, “Oh no, fluffy has fleas!” Obviously the next step is checking kitty over for signs of fleas such as bites, flea feces, eggs or even the little biters themselves. Fleas are often the culprit and therefore the number one possibility when it comes to your cat’s itchy skin. back, around tail and hindquarters
However, if your flea search comes up clean, there are numerous other culprits for cat itchy skin. Take note where your cat is doing the most scratching to help figure out what the cause may be. Constant scratching around their head, face, neck and the edges of their ears may be scabies while ”walking dandruff” is only mildly itchy and tends to lay on their back, neck and sides. Head shaking and ear scratching may be caused by ear mites while itching and skin irritations between the toes, around ears and the mouth may be chiggers. Ticks attach themselves to your cat’s skin while lice attach themselves to it’s hair and look like a piece of white grain. Possible, more complicated disorders include food allergy and dermatitis.
Skin Irritations or Pet Skin Allergies?
Friday, September 11, 2009
posted by Essential Needs @ 10:13 AM
Skin problems found on your pet can be a sign of any number of potential health conditions including allergies. Skin that is red or irritated, loss of hair or constant chewing, licking, biting and/or scratching are all signs of an allergy. Of course these symptoms may also be caused by another problem or problems, so it’s important to begin a log of your pet’s condition(s) as well as his behavior.
If you remotely suspect that your dog or cat has pet skin allergies call your vet and set up an appointment. Since an allergic reaction to flea bites is one of the most common pet allergies, check first to see if your pet, home and surrounding area is infested. A food allergy is another common allergy, so you’ll want to tell your vet what your pet has been eating. In the meantime, cease all intake of people food, table scraps and dog treats.
Pet Skin Care Includes Nail Trimming
Thursday, September 10, 2009
posted by Essential Needs @ 6:44 PM
Trimming your dog’s nails is not usually considered sharing “quality time” with your beloved pet. But when done often enough, with the proper technique, and rewards for your dog’s good behavior, it should be one of those regular grooming events that your dog will tolerate if not look forward to. If not done often enough, with proper technique, and reward- training, it can be frightening and even painful for your dog.
Why do we consider nail trimming to be a part of pet skin care? When a dog’s nails become too long they interfere with the dog’s gait and as the nails continue to grow, walking will become awkward and painful. Untrimmed nails can also split resulting in a great deal of pain, bleeding, and a trip to the veterinarian’s office. In severe cases a dog’s nails can curl under and grow into the pad of the dog’s paw causing a very serious and painful infection. If your pet(s) nails are sharp and too long they can easily tear through many things including your skin as well as their own. This causes cuts, bleeding, open sores and possible infection to their skin.
Dogs are carnivores, but if need be, could survive on an herbivore diet. Many owners may find their dog chowing down on the yard. Unfortunately, since we cannot ask our dog why they are eating grass, the exact reason is unknown. Pet owners may witness their dog chomping down on grass just to vomit it up later. Having an upset stomach in the wild could be deadly, so the ability to induce vomit could be a matter of life or death to the animal. Did the grass they ate make them sick or were they already suffering from an upset stomach?
The answer may be as simple as dogs just eat grass because they like it. In the wild, a dog would eat an entire herbivore animal and perhaps in doing so would receive a taste of grass, plants or berries. If your dog just seems to have a taste for grass, be cautious. Make sure the grass is pesticide and chemical free. Another possible explanation for grass eating is that your dog may be lacking fiber in his/her diet. To help avoid this habit, try cooking broccoli, carrots or lettuce for your pet to chow down on. Thankfully, whatever the reason, eating grass is not a sign of dog allergies and is not known to cause dog skin conditions or other health problems. So if your pet doesn’t seem to be irritated or throwing up from grass, he may just crave it. If your dog seems to be showing signs of a sick stomach and is eating grass, it is best to consult your vet.
My Dane recently gave birth to 11 puppies. About a week after their birth she began to loose hair in patches mostly on her sides above her belly. At first I was concerned that it may be one of many dog skin allergies but I never saw her licking, chewing or scratching the areas and the skin under the hair seemed fine. It wasn’t red, irritated or sore.
I was talking to a local pet shop owner who has previous experience breeding English Mastiffs. He told me that it was not uncommon for pregnant dogs to experience hot spots or loss of hair. They call it ’blowing her coat’. His advice? A dog who is blowing her coat will benefit from daily brushing and be sure she is receiving proper nutrition for a nursing dog.
An antibiotic or topical skin therapy lotion will clear up a hot spot in most cases. More importantly, you need to find the underlying cause of the hot spot in order to prevent future lesions from occurring.
Red, irritated or raw patches of skin are referred to as pet hot spots and there is usually an underlying cause for them. They may appear rather suddenly. Possibilities for the hot spots in either cats or dogs include bacterial infection, fleas, ticks or burrs, food allergy, flea allergy, atopy, parasites, anal gland problems or localized inflammation of the skin from clipping and grooming. Be sure to shave the area around the hot spot to allow air to hit it so it will scab over.You must find a way to stop the animal from scratching, licking and biting the area in order for the hot spot to heal.
Most pet owners are not aware of how important a nutritional diet is to their animal’s health. You think, I feed my dog daily, give him chow in the appropriate amount according to his breed and weight. What’s scary, is not only is it possible that the dog food you are feeding your four-legged friend does not contain the needed nutrients, but it may also be detrimental to your pet’s life!
As a responsible pet owner you are probably aware that certain people foods are harmful if fed to your dog, but are you aware of the poor quality of many commercial dog foods, often containing useless, filler ingredients? Dog skin problems are often the first obvious sign that your pet is in danger. Mal-nutrition is the least of your worries compared to pancreatitis or heart failure, which can occur as a result of feeding the wrong food. Learning how to read and understand the ingredients label on your dog food bag is the first step to combatting this potential problem in your household.