Preventative Pet Health Care Series: Canine Infectious Hepatitis

(photo credit:  http://dogbreedsinfo.org)

Canine infectious hepatitis is caused by an adenovirus type I virus is transmitted through being inhaled or ingested from the secretions stool or urine of infected dog. The incubation period of the virus is between 5-7 days. By this time the virus is present to the liver and the dog is beginning to show clinical signs that include: Lethargy and listlessness vomiting diarrhea and jaundice (yellow coloring of the gums and skin, whites of the eyes).

This disease is most commonly seen in puppies that have not been immunized for canine adenovirus, however, it can be seen in adult dogs that have no previous immunizations of the disease. Older puppies and young adult dogs with strong immune systems often can recover from this disease with simple supportive care such as subcutaneous fluids liver supportive supplements and antibiotics to prevent and/or control secondary infections.

In younger puppies, geriatric dog’s, or dogs with immune compromise, in-hospital treatment with intravenous fluids antibiotics ant nausea medication and other measures need to be taken. Fatality is possible, but if the disease is detected early, mortality rate is generally low.

Canine infectious hepatitis has any effective immunization represented as the H in the core DAH PP canine vaccine. This vaccine is given at 6, 9, and 12 weeks of age. The vaccine is then boosted one year later. Following the one-year booster vaccine is then administered effectively once every 3 years.

Dr. Roger Welton is the President of Maybeck Animal Hospital in West Melbourne, FL, Chief Editor of the Veterinary Advice and Information Website, Web-DVM, and founder/CEO of Dr. Roger’s Holistic Veterinary Care.

Preventative Pet Health Care Series: Canine Distemper

(photo credit: http://www.laceyinthecity.com)

Many dog owners recognize distemper as a common vaccine we administer to dogs.  The reality is that distemper is most commonly administered as one part of the 4 in one core vaccine (some vets do a 5 in one or even a 6 in one, which I do not agree with – something I will clarify in a later post), known as the DHPP.  Since Distemper is represented as the “D,” the first letter in the DHPP vaccine, we commonly just call the DHPP vaccine, distemper.

This is a case in point of my previous assertion in the first post of my preventative health care series that we have failed in our profession in the communication of the details and importance of preventative health care.  Many pet owners do not even know what distemper is; only that it is a bad canine disease that we vaccinate for.  On one humorous occasion a few years ago, we had a client call asking if we had given his dog the “distemperament” vaccine, as it does not seem to be working, because his dog was acting very ornery in spite of the vaccine.  We all got a good laugh at the fact that this gentleman had the impression that the distemper vaccine was prevention for bad temperament instead of prevention against a deadly disease.  Instead of laughing, however, we should have realized back then as we are now, that the fact that that man did not understand what the distemper vaccine was our fault, not his…and it really was not funny.

Canine distemper is caused by a virus that’s closest relative in human infectious disease is measles.  What makes distemper unique, is that rather than get efficiently cleared by the canine host’s immune system, it actually uses the immune system to effectively spread throughout the body.  Under normal circumstances, large white blood cells called macrophages engulf viral or bacterial invaders and enzymatically destroy them.  In the case of distemper virus, the virus is coated in a fatty envelope that protects it from the enzymatic destruction, instead using the macrophage as an effective transportation vehicle to infect the rest of the body.

Distemper is highly contagious to other dogs through what is called the fecal/oral route.  It is either inhaled or licked when a dog is near the fresh feces, the mucus secretions, or inhaling the cough vapors of an infected dog.  Before the advent of an effective vaccine, distemper was known to wipe out the canines of entire towns and cities.  With the advent and mass production of effective vaccines, the incidence of canine distemper has decreased considerably, but outbreaks are still occasionally reported.  Puppies and old dogs are the highest risk for disease.

Once infected, the patient starts to show an increase in mucus secretions from the nose and often develops a cough by about day 6.  At this point, the virus has gone beyond the mouth and upper respiratory system and reached the stomach, spleen, small intestine, and liver.  After this time, if the virus effectively continues to evade the immune system, the sensitive cells of the linings of tissues, including, the brain, gastrointestinal system, and lungs will begin to show significant disease manifesting by days 10-14.  Signs include:

–          Seizure, the most common presentation of which is called a “chewing gum fit,” due to rapid biting action and tremors of the mouth.

–          Coughing and labored breathing from pneumonia.

–          Diarrhea, sometimes with blood in it.

Treatment is mostly supportive and includes: IV fluids, antibiotics to fight secondary bacterial infections, blood transfusion if blood loss in the stool is significant and/or bone marrow suppression by the virus leads to low red blood cell production, anti-nausea and GI protective agents, nebulization to help clear the lungs, and anti-convulsant therapy to control seizures.  The mortality rate is 50% even with aggressive therapy.

Luckily, there is a vaccine that effectively prevents canine distemper.  As previously mentioned, it is administered within the 4 in 1 combination vaccine called the DHPP.  The protocol that I follow is puppies having this vaccine administered at 6, 9, and 12 weeks of age, then boostered one year later.  Following the one year booster, the vaccine can then effectively be backed off to once every 3 year administration.

One year of a dog’s or a cat’s life is equivalent to 5-7 years of a person’s life.  Consider all of things that could go wrong with humans within a 5-7 year period, combined with the fact that our pet’s cannot articulate how they are feeling and instinctively  hide signs of pain or illness; it should be clear how important yearly examination are, even for young pets.

Just this month alone, the majority of procedures I performed were the result of disease that I found on incidentally physical examination in a yearly visit, including:

–          6 dentistry procedures where I found painful and health compromising stages of periodontal disease.

–          1 echocardiogram (heart ultrasound) because I heard a high intensity heart murmur with my stethoscope during the yearly examination of a 4 year old King Charles Cavalier Spaniel.  Because we discovered the murmur was the result of heart valve defect, we now have him on a dietary and medical a lifestyle regimen that will extend his life and stave off heart failure.

–          1 class 4 laser therapy induction in a case of degenerative joint disease in the elbow discovered on routine yearly examination of a 9 year old Bichon. I first noticed that something was odd about his gait as he entered the room, then palpated thickness and popping in the elbow.  The aforementioned laser therapy and joint chew regimen that I subsequently recommended for him is already improving his quality of life, and will help to keep him in less pain long term, while optimizing the longevity of that leg.

The mother of all incidental findings I detected on routine yearly visits in the month of October, however, was on a 10 year old pit bull, whose owner’s had not observed anything wrong with their dog leading up to the visit.  On routine abdominal palpation that is part of the yearly physical examination, I palpated an enlarged spleen, which I confirmed with abdominal x-rays.  One week later, I performed an abdominal exploratory surgical to remove the spleen, as x-rays revealed that the dog had developed a dangerous vascular accident within the spleen called a splenic hematoma.  This condition is a silent killer, as splenic hematomas do not typically show outward signs.  They rupture unbeknownst to the owner, and the dog goes to sleep one day, never to wake up as they bleed to death internally.  In this dog’s case, the hematoma was so large that this would likely have happened within 30-60 days.

Instead, because of the owners’ commitment to having the yearly preventative health care visit, she came in 2 days ago for suture removal, fully recovered from surgery with a new lease on life and crisis averted.  The owners were so moved by what had transpired that they plan to tell as many pet owners whose ear they can bend their story, and shout from the roof tops about how important preventative pet well visits are.

Bear in mind, that I only listed procedures that came about as the result of incidental findings on physical examinations this past month.  Other ailments I discovered and initiated treatment for included KCS (dry eye), ear infections, fleas, ticks, skin infections, inflammatory airway disease, and hypertension to name a few.  Had I not seen these pets as well, they would still be living with the painful and health compromising consequences of these diseases.  I started this preventative pet health care series with the yearly examination because it is the single most important aspect of the preventative veterinary care visit.

Dr. Roger Welton is the President of Maybeck Animal Hospital in West Melbourne, FL, Chief Editor of the Veterinary Advice and Information Website, Web-DVM, and founder/CEO of Dr. Roger’s Holistic Veterinary Care.

Preventative Pet Health Care Series: The Yearly Examination

One year of a dog’s or a cat’s life is equivalent to 5-7 years of a person’s life.  Consider all of things that could go wrong with humans within a 5-7 year period, combined with the fact that our pet’s cannot articulate how they are feeling and instinctively  hide signs of pain or illness; it should be clear how important yearly examination are, even for young pets.

Just this month alone, the majority of procedures I performed were the result of disease that I found on incidentally physical examination in a yearly visit, including:

–          6 dentistry procedures where I found painful and health compromising stages of periodontal disease.

–          1 echocardiogram (heart ultrasound) because I heard a high intensity heart murmur with my stethoscope during the yearly examination of a 4 year old King Charles Cavalier Spaniel.  Because we discovered the murmur was the result of heart valve defect, we now have him on a dietary and medical a lifestyle regimen that will extend his life and stave off heart failure.

–          1 class 4 laser therapy induction in a case of degenerative joint disease in the elbow discovered on routine yearly examination of a 9 year old Bichon. I first noticed that something was odd about his gait as he entered the room, then palpated thickness and popping in the elbow.  The aforementioned laser therapy and joint chew regimen that I subsequently recommended for him is already improving his quality of life, and will help to keep him in less pain long term, while optimizing the longevity of that leg.

The mother of all incidental findings I detected on routine yearly visits in the month of October, however, was on a 10 year old pit bull, whose owner’s had not observed anything wrong with their dog leading up to the visit.  On routine abdominal palpation that is part of the yearly physical examination, I palpated an enlarged spleen, which I confirmed with abdominal x-rays.  One week later, I performed an abdominal exploratory surgical to remove the spleen, as x-rays revealed that the dog had developed a dangerous vascular accident within the spleen called a splenic hematoma.  This condition is a silent killer, as splenic hematomas do not typically show outward signs.  They rupture unbeknownst to the owner, and the dog goes to sleep one day, never to wake up as they bleed to death internally.  In this dog’s case, the hematoma was so large that this would likely have happened within 30-60 days.

Instead, because of the owners’ commitment to having the yearly preventative health care visit, she came in 2 days ago for suture removal, fully recovered from surgery with a new lease on life and crisis averted.  The owners were so moved by what had transpired that they plan to tell as many pet owners whose ear they can bend their story, and shout from the roof tops about how important preventative pet well visits are.

Bear in mind, that I only listed procedures that came about as the result of incidental findings on physical examinations this past month.  Other ailments I discovered and initiated treatment for included KCS (dry eye), ear infections, fleas, ticks, skin infections, inflammatory airway disease, and hypertension to name a few.  Had I not seen these pets as well, they would still be living with the painful and health compromising consequences of these diseases.  I started this preventative pet health care series with the yearly examination because it is the single most important aspect of the preventative veterinary care visit.

Dr. Roger Welton is the President of Maybeck Animal Hospital in West Melbourne, FL, Chief Editor of the Veterinary Advice and Information Website, Web-DVM, and founder/CEO of Dr. Roger’s Holistic Veterinary Care.

Preventative Pet Health Care Has Been Steadily Decreasing, And We (The Veterinary Industry) Are At Fault

I have written and talked about discount vaccine clinics and shot wagons that pull up to human pharmacies, feed stores, and even gas stations to give vaccines for their pets without examinations or even a medical history.  I have called out the veterinarians that do this as unethical and demeaning to the noble profession of veterinary medicine, and blamed them for providing a grossly inferior level of preventative care, sold effectively and dishonestly as a cheaper, but equal to what general practices offer.

However true that may, it has recently come to my attention that rather than focus on these entities that are here to stay no matter what little regard “real” veterinarians have for them and no matter how much I rant and about them, they are here to stay, and we (the “real” veterinary industry) are part of the reason these places emerged to begin with.  The truth is, that well before discount shot clinics and shot wagons became rampant in our industry, starting more than a decade ago, preventative veterinary well visits started to decline and have continued to do so.  Thus, the finger we should be pointing first and foremost is at ourselves.

The Telling Statistics

24% of pet owners feel that routine check-ups are unnecessary.¹

33% pf pet owners say that they would only take their pet to a veterinarian if he/she was sick.¹

As previously stated, veterinary visits have been declining for almost a decade.¹

The Results

Preventable but deadly diseases like distemper, parvo, leptospirosis, and lyme disease are on the rise.¹

1 in 4 pets has his/her health compromised as he/she lives with a preventable parasite, some of which put the human family at risk.¹

1 in 3 pets has their lives shortened and their quality of life compromised because of health consequences and chronic pain from living with dental disease.¹

Banfield Pet Hospital.  State of Pet Health 2011 Report, Volume 1.

Now more than at any other time of my career, I am presented with pets riddled with disease that is too far gone to realistically successfully treat, but could likely have been treated if it had been detected earlier through yearly routine visits.

As a practitioner of veterinary medicine that chose this career path first and foremost for love of animals and to help them and the families that love them as vital family members, these statistics are very distressing to me.  At some point along the way, we have failed to convey to pet owners the importance of preventative pet health care, to make them understand  how badly things can go for their pets when they do not comply with our recommendations, and heed our advice.  Why is this the case?  Have pet owners just become increasingly more stubborn than they were in past years?  Have they become increasingly less caring of the pets?  The answer to both questions is resoundingly no.

The problem lies with an increase in complacency about preventative medicine.  It is not that as general practitioners we do not believe in a yearly examinations, stool and heartworm screening, and administration of flea tick and internal parasite preventatives.  The problem is that we became so accustomed to excellent pet owner compliance with preventative medicine that our communication skills with regard to the topic diminished.  For years, as people saw their pets living longer and healthier  – by in large because of a long enjoyed era of preventative veterinary health care – as we no longer effectively communicated the reasons for things we recommend, pet owner perception of the value of preventative health care offered by general practice has waned.

As much as I enjoy treating emergencies, working up challenging medicine cases, and performing lifesaving surgery, I have become reinvigorated in my dedication to connecting with pet owners about the importance of preventative pet health care.  I am revamping the entire culture of my practice, from the client care advisors at the front desk and patient care advisors that take medical history and initiate the visit; to the certified veterinary technicians and doctors.

We will not simply go through the motions of a preventative health care visits.  We will explain every nuance of the wellness visit, discuss each infectious disease that we immunize for given the patient’s life style and/or geographical risk factors.  We will explain why we screen for parasites and recommend safe medications to prevent them.  We will do all this, not by lecturing to the pet owner, but by having an open, honest, sincere, and respectful discussion with each client.

For you, my beloved fans that take the time to read my posts and listen to my podcast, but many live too far away to connect with me directly in my veterinary practice, I will offer you the next best thing: begin a preventative pet health care series that details each aspect of the preventative health care visit and why it is important.  It is time that we all reconnect with the value of preventative medicine, to embrace it and enable our pets to live longer, with better quality of life, and our human families risk kept to a minimum.  Thus, stay tuned, as there is much more on this topic to come.

See Follow Up Preventative Pet Health Care Posts By Dr. Roger Welton:

Preventative Pet Health Care Series: The Yearly Examination

Preventative Pet Health Care Series: Canine Distemper

Preventative Pet Health Care Series: Canine Infectious Hepatitis

Preventative Pet Health Care Series: Canine Parvovirus

Preventative Pet Health Care Series: Parainfluenza In Dogs

Preventative Pet Health Care Series: Canine Heartworm Disease – The Mother Of Preventative Health Care In Dogs

Preventative Pet Health Care Series: Feline Panleukopenia (Feline Distemper)

Preventative Pet Health Care Series: Feline Herpesvirus (Rhinotracheitis)

Preventative Pet Health Care Series: Feline Respiratory Disease Complex – Calicicvirus

Preventative Pet Health Care Series: Non-Core Vaccine – Bordatella – Kennel Cough In Dogs

Preventative Pet Health Care Series: Non-Core Vaccine – Leptospirosis In Dogs

Preventative Pet Health Care Series: Non-Core Vaccine – Lyme Disease In Dogs

Preventative Pet Health Care Series: Feline Leukemia – Core or Non-Core Vaccine?

Preventative Pet Health Care Series: The Stool Analysis – Protecting Pets and Your Families!

Dr. Roger Welton is the President of Maybeck Animal Hospital in West Melbourne, FL, Chief Editor of the Veterinary Advice and Information Website, Web-DVM, and founder/CEO of Dr. Roger’s Holistic Veterinary Care.

Preparing For Your Pet’s Health Care for the Veterinary Critical Mass (Cont’d)

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The better answer for all parties is to seek viable options to afford quality veterinary costs that will continue to inevitably increase with inflation over time.  There are medical lending plans that pet owners make take advantage of, but these options still invariably lead to debt accumulation.  While the low interest rates on these plans are often very favorable, the best option is high quality pet health insurance.

This biggest barrier that we have encountered in advocating for pet owners to get their pets insured is that most of the options that are available in the pet insurance market mirror the same abysmal issues that have frustrated people in the human health insurance market: life time health care caps, unreasonable denials of claims, etc.  As a result, only 3% of pet owners in the US carry pet health insurance for their pets…and in light of the options that have been out there, rightfully so.

The game changed, however, when a company called Trupanion, a pet insurance company based out of Canada, made a push into the US over 2 years ago.  While Trupanion does not cover pre-existing conditions, they only go back 18 months in your pet’s medical record when determining the presence of pre-existing conditions.  Of course, the best time to sign up for Trupanion pet insurance is when your dog/cat is still young (5 years or younger) when most do not have pre-existing health issues.  As long as renewals of policies do not lapse, you lock in the young pet rate for the life of the pet, no matter what health concerns may arise.  Thus, this is the time period when it is ideal to get your pet insured.  I have been so happy with Trupanion, that I have discarded all other pet insurance brochures from my veterinary hospital.

With Trupanion, we finally have a pet insurance company doing it right.  Trupanion’s influence in my veterinary practice for those pet owners who have decided to carry has been virtually no hesitation from the pet owner to engage in whatever diagnostics and treatments are necessary to heal their pets; while enabling the doctors and medical team of my hospital the ability to practice the best quality veterinary medicine.

I urge every pet owner – not just clients of my veterinary clinic, but every pet owner – to take precautions for the pending veterinary critical mass.  If treating your pet’s ailments that will inevitably occur in his/her lifetime is something that could create a troubling or even perilous financial circumstance for you and your family, please consider Trupanion, as they are the gold standard for pet health insurance.  Do not make the mistake of being faced with putting a monetary value on your pet’s health, because as they relate to your family, they are priceless.

Dr. Roger Welton is the President of Maybeck Animal Hospital in West Melbourne, FL, Chief Editor of the Veterinary Advice and Information Website, Web-DVM, and founder/CEO of Dr. Roger’s Holistic Veterinary Care.

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Preparing For Your Pet’s Health Care for the Veterinary Critical Mass

I hear all the time that veterinarians have gotten too expensive.  Some pet owners go even further to accuse us of being greedy, even victimizing good people that will do anything and pay anything to save their pet’s lives, repair their injuries, and relieve their pain.  True, like any other profession, there are bad apples.  Thus there is some – albeit small – truth to this.

By in large, however, the notion of the greedy, gouging veterinarian could not be further from the truth.  In fact, it is quite the opposite, with most veterinarians willing to sacrifice their own income in order to trim prices and forgo charges for people and pets that we care about.  Our biggest frustration with our profession is pet owners’ financial positions being one of the biggest factors that stand between practicing the medicine we desire practice as animal patient advocates, and the medicine we are actually able to practice.  As my accountant has frequently told me, financially, we (veterinarians) are our own worst enemy).

However, I am not simply whining in this post.  I am here to give you a reason for the perceived high veterinary fees, warn you that this is not poised to change but only get worse with time, and how you can prepare your pets and you families that love them when quality veterinary health care becomes simply unaffordable when we reach what I call, the “veterinary critical mass.”

Looking back over the past decade, the rate of inflation has fluctuated between 3% and 4%.  Inflation in general terms is the increase in cost of goods and services sold that happens over time (for reasons I will not get into, not that I fully understand them anyway).  Because our veterinary suppliers and vendors prices have inflated at these levels, and the cost of living of average veterinary employees has gone up and their health care benefits have gone up (essentially outpacing the rate of inflation in many cases), veterinary fees have simply had to keep pace with these financial circumstances.  If any business does not keep pace with inflationary costs, then eventually they will cease to exist.  This is no different for a veterinary practice than it is for any small business.  One big difference is that with a veterinary practice, 90% of gross income goes to direct costs of simply doing business, so inflation is even more impactful.

Where the client perception is often that veterinary costs are out of control, the reality is that perception is born from the fact that in the same 10 year span that the veterinary fee structure has kept pace with inflation, the wage of the average worker has gone virtually unchanged.  Thus, while the average American worker has wages barely if at all increased over the past 10 years, inflation has mercilessly made life more expensive; a circumstance that involves pet health care as well.

The solution to this dilemma is for veterinary medicine to dumb down its true capabilities in providing the pet health care for pets that pet owners can afford; or pet owners seek other options to be able to afford quality medicine.  The former is already happening, with the increase in “discount clinics” that offer bottom basement vaccines and spays/neuters performed in a fashion that was a poor standard of practice at a time before I was even accepted to veterinary school.  This is a very bad standard for our profession, but one that people continue to increasingly turn to.  For those of us that refuse to devolve into such a substandard of veterinary care, as the veterinary critical mass approaches, we may simply have to scale down the size of our operations to treat the pets of the privileged few that can afford it…a prospect that is equally as troubling, as I never imagined a career providing quality health care to only a the economically well off.  Working class people love their pets as much wealthy people do, and they deserve to have the best educated and well equipped veterinarians to be champions for their health and well-being.

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We Must Preserve Our What Wild Treasures We Have Left…And The Wild Creatures That Call Them Home

Above is an image of me, taken earlier today by a fellow hiker at the start of an exhilarating hike up Paintbrush Canyon in Grand Teton National Park, Wyoming.  The natural beauty I saw today was incredible, the raw wilderness spiritually uplifting, the mountain air and strenuous climb cleansing.  Along the way, I saw countless beautiful wild creatures, birds, chipmunks, and moose.  I am glad to say that I did not see a bear, as they are a common and concerning sight in these parts.  But even they are part of the beauty of places like this, and have their place in the perfectly balanced natural order.

In an age of unprecedented urban sprawl, in many parts encroaching on natural beauty like I experienced today and ruining the habitats of creatures that call these places like this home, we must take pause to consider the consequences of our nation becoming one giant city.  Not only should we mourn the innocent victims of our encroachment into their lands, but we should also mourn that we lose a precious resource that we can lose ourselves in, invigorate our spirit, and escape from the stresses of our daily existence.

In the town I live in Florida, there remains undeveloped tracks of land where people can go bird watching, hike, or fish.  The town used to be part of a cattle ranch own by the Duda family who decided to set aside parts of the massive acreage they own for development.  The town is called Viera, and they created the Viera Company to sell tracks of land to builders.  I last heard that there are currently 15,000 homes going up, yet hundreds, possibly thousands, sit empty in foreclosure, remnants of the credit crisis of 2008.

But people moving to the area want new construction that has never been lived in before, custom built by their specifications…and the Viera Company is all too willing to feed on that demand and prosper from it.  I saw on the news that similar circumstances are occurring in Nevada and other areas that were hard hit by the credit crisis.  So rather than purchase empty, foreclosed homes cheap, people instead are paying full price for a houses built on what used to be the homes of countless birds, small mammals, deer; and alligators, wild boars and bobcats in the case of Florida.  The land of the new house may also have been a place where a boy had previously gone to seek solitude and commune with nature.

There is a song by the band The Counting Crows, called “Big Yellow Taxi,” with the refrain, “They Paved Paradise, Put Up A Parking Lot.”  They song is about the lack regard for nature in favor of development that plagues our society.   I really hope we come to our senses and start putting greater value on our natural treasures…for if/when the day comes that they are no longer around, mankind will be far worse off for it.

Dr. Roger Welton is the President of Maybeck Animal Hospital in West Melbourne, FL, Chief Editor of the Veterinary Advice and Information Website, Web-DVM, and founder/CEO of Dr. Roger’s Holistic Veterinary Care.

Pancreatitis: Why Is It So Common In Dogs And Cats, How To Prevent It, And How To Recognize It

Pancreatitis is a potentially severe, life threatening inflammatory disease of the pancreas.  Under normal circumstances, the pancreas plays an important role in the regulation of blood glucose metabolism through the secretion of insulin, as well as secreting digestive enzymes into the upper segment of the small intestine to emulsify fats and break down proteins into small segments, for absorption of these nutrients.  These powerful digestive enzymes do not activate until they have reached the upper small intestine via the pancreatic duct.

In the case of pancreatitis, an inflamed, abnormal pancreas releases enzymes excessively, while enabling the digestive enzymes (namely amylase and lipase) to activate while still within the pancreas.  In essence, the pancreas begins to digest itself, creating a condition that is severely painful and leads to severe vomiting and ill thrift.  The source of the inflammation could be the result of an infection of the upper small intestine, but the definitive cause is often not  identified.

Pancreatitis is significantly more common in dogs and cats than it is in people.  It is most commonly seen in small terrier type dogs, but it is not uncommonly seen in other small breeds and even big dogs.   It is also very common in cats.  So, what is the reason for all of this pancreatitis in petss?  Is there a way to prevent it?  If it happens to your pet, how do you recognize it, and how is it treated?

Cause:

As previously mentioned, pancreatitis can be set off by an ascending infection of the gut.  It has been linked to the feeding of foods that are high in saturated fats, such as pets fed rich items from the table by their owners, (fatty meats like bacon, ice cream, cheese, etc.).  Most commonly, however, a definitive cause is not found, and we are left with the most likelyhood that pancreatitis is a genetic ticking time bomb that will go off if a pet is genetically predisposed to the disease.  Case in point, a few years ago, three Cairn terrier patients of mine from the same litter developed severe pancreatitis all within one week of one another at the age of 3 years.

How to recognize it:

Severe vomiting, not eating, abdominal pain, and lethargy are the primary signs of disease in dogs and cats.

Prevention:

Refrain from feeding pets rich and/or fatty foods.  Since feeding a pet predisposed to pancreatitis a pancreas friendly diet (see more on this below in the treatment section) goes against how we recommend feeding pets under normal circumstances (high protein, low simple carbohydrate, insoluble fiber, low to moderate amounts of complex carbohydrates), I am not a proponent of feeding a pancreatitis prevention diet preemptively.   However, some vets recommend feeding prescription pancreatitis prevention diets to small terrier type breeds that have the highest incidence of disease.

Treatment:

When recognized it early enough and we engage in treatment aggressively, we rarely lose patients to pancreatitis.  Treatment consists of IV fluids, antibiotics, pain management, and feeding a highly digestible, absorbable diet that is minimally irritating to the gut.  This translates to diets that are restricted in insoluble fiber, fats and proteins; while feeding more simple carbohydrate.  Again, this goes against how we should be feeding our pets under normal circumstances, but this really is the only way to prevent pancreatic disease.

Dr. Roger Welton is the President of Maybeck Animal Hospital in West Melbourne, FL, Chief Editor of the Veterinary Advice and Information Website, Web-DVM, and founder/CEO of Dr. Roger’s Holistic Veterinary Care.

5 Ways To Get Your Lazy, Chubby Kitty To Exercise

Obesity is a far too common epidemic in cats, and is a much more serious health concern than feline owners realize.  Obesity commonly leads to pancreatic disease, diabetes, degenerative joint disease, and a host of other health problems.  These health issues reduce quality of life, cause high veterinary bills, and shorten the precious lives of the already too short life spans of our feline friends.  While of course there are nutritional solutions to obesity, this article is about battling feline obesity through exercise.

Exercise increases the basal metabolic rate, while increasing lean muscle mass and tone.  This combination converts the body into a more efficient fat burning machine.  With dogs, getting them to exercise is generally easy: throw a leash on the dog and go for a walk.  With few exceptions, this does not work with cats.  Put a leash on a kitty and try to get him to walk, and usually it is like dragging a sack of potatoes behind you.  Below, are 5 ways that you can get your cat to engage in exercise.

1.)    Laser pointer – These can be purchased online or at most pet stores.  A laser pointer aimed at a wall or floor will provide a focus of light that any cats will chase.  Moving it around, you get your cat actively trying to catch it, while getting a work out in the process (as well as providing entertainment for the cat owner).

2.)    Provide them means to go vertical – Most cats love to climb.  You can purchase or build kitty jungle gyms that have platforms, scratching posts, and hammocks, and boxes that they can hide in.  Getting them to climb is a great source of exercise, while providing them a vertical refuge that they enjoy.  In my household, we have three: one in our master bedroom, one in the cat room/wife’s office where the cat litter boxes are, and one in the formal living room.  Perhaps it is a little overkill, but since our cats like to follow us into the rooms that we inhabit; they always have a means to climb.  When they sleep curled up in their hammocks, it is also quite adorable.

3.)    Separate water and food – When most cats eat, especially if they eat kibble, they like to take a drink during or after eating.  Taking advantage of this tendency, you can separate the food and water into different rooms.  In my home, the food is kept in the cat room and the water is kept on the complete opposite side of the house in the master bedroom.  Thus, they are mandated to walk across the house to get that must needed post prandial drink.

4.)    Fun with food – For our most enthusiastic feline eaters, when you feed them, grab the food dish every couple of minutes and move it around to make them follow it.  Put it on a counter one moment, then in another room on the floor.  After the floor, put it up on a dresser, etc.

5.)    Take advantage of a favorite toy and/or cat nip – One my favorite (and my 6 year old son’s favorite) cat toys is a pretend fishing rod with a felt fish on the end of the line.  You can cast it out and reel it in; meanwhile, kitty relentlessly chases and pounces on the fish.  Find a toy that entertains and exercises your cat.  Cat nip for many cats will give many cats a 15 minute burst of ecstatic activity.  Buy some and use it…it is not bad for them.

Although with few exceptions, our kitties will not walk on a treadmill, walk on a leash, go jogging, or swim, there clearly are ways to get them moving and reap the health benefits if you are willing to put the time and effort in.  These methods are mentally good for cats as well, and can even be entertaining for the feline owner.

Dr. Roger Welton is the President of Maybeck Animal Hospital in West Melbourne, FL, Chief Editor of the Veterinary Advice and Information Website, Web-DVM, and founder/CEO of Dr. Roger’s Holistic Veterinary Care.

Evidence Suggests Dog Training “Shock” Collars Should Be Avoided

Electronic collars that deliver static shock as a consequence of unwanted behavior have been in use for several years.  Some exist in the form of a perimeter invisible fence that emits a warning beep as the dog approaches his appropriate boundaries, and then delivers a shock as he reaches the limit.  Other collars deliver a static shock when the dog barks to stop unwanted compulsive barking behavior.   Still other collars work by remote control held by the dog owner that delivers a shock when the dog owner judges behavior to be inappropriate and presses a button.

This technique utilizes negative reinforcement, which is, providing an undesirable consequence to avert unwanted behavior.  It is the complete opposite of what most animal behaviorists subscribe to, which is training through positive reinforcement to reward appropriate behavior, while redirecting unwanted behavior through understanding canine body language and the canine psyche necessary to provide the leadership a canine seeks.

Thus, shock collars have been met with some controversy through the years, although some trainers and canine enthusiasts, while many using them as a last resort, maintain that they are necessary for some very hard canine cases where positive reinforcement just does not achieve acceptable results.  As new study that came out of the University of Lincoln in the UK that suggests that overall, perhaps with the exception of perimeter invisible fencing, shock collars actually prove a less effective training tool than positive reinforcement.  What’s more, by testing post shock salivary levels of cortisol, a stress hormone, the study demonstrated that the shock caused distress in dogs.  The study also showed that dogs trained with shock collar methods were generally tenser and nervous, less engaged in environmental interaction, and more prone to yawning in comparison to control dogs not trained with shock collars.

In follow up, the study found that the owners of dogs trained with positive reward based training methods were significantly and consistently more satisfied with the results than the owners of dogs trained with shock collar training.  The conclusion of the study was that, not only are shock collars less effective than positive, reward based training, the stress and anxiety caused by shock collars make them questionable from an animal welfare perspective.

I’ve never personally been a fan of shock collars.  To me, they were always that quick fix that people all too often seek, demanding less of the owner to seek professional and proper training and being less engaged and encumbered by the training process.  From a professional standpoint, over the years, I have found that all too often, rather than fix the unwanted behavior, not only to they fail, but shock collars often contribute to a more neurotic mind-set that leads to nervous dogs prone to additional behavior disorders.

Sources for this article:

http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2014/09/140908083344.htm    

Dr. Roger Welton is the President of Maybeck Animal Hospital in West Melbourne, FL, Chief Editor of the Veterinary Advice and Information Website, Web-DVM, and founder/CEO of Dr. Roger’s Holistic Veterinary Care.