Frenchie Dad Plays with His Pups

Video: Frenchie Dad Plays with His Pups

So cute!!  This reminds me so much of our Apachi playing with his pups after they were weaned. Mama Angel was the best Mommy and Apachi watched over them dutifully, but from a distance, until they were weaned and then he took over.

Grandpa Tim With Tired Daddy Apachi; 7-Week Old Pups (In Semi-Circle Front to Back) Princess, Goji, Angelina and Magnum After Too Much Playing; and Mama Angel in the Foreground.

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Human Medical Treatment Brings New Hope to Critically Injured Pets

Story at-a-glance

• Hyperbaric oxygen therapy has been used in human medicine for years to treat a range of conditions including the bends, wounds that won’t heal, gangrene, burns, and even anemia.
• What happens with hyperbaric oxygen therapy is the lungs are able to gather up to three times more pure oxygen than is normally available, and blood flow delivers that oxygen throughout the body, stimulating the release of natural substances that promote healing.
• At the University of Florida’s College of Veterinary Medicine, the staff is using a hyperbaric chamber to treat a variety of animals with injuries and wounds that involve swollen tissue.
• A veterinarian in New York is using her chamber to speed healing in certain conditions including abscesses, post-radiation swelling and herniated discs.
• At the Animal Emergency and Referral Center in Ft. Pierce, Florida, pets lie on a soft blanket and nap while inhaling pure oxygen that goes to work immediately on wounds, swelling, burns, and other injuries/illnesses.

When your pet gets injured, whether it be from a near-drowning, being hit by a car or bitten by a snake, often what’s needed is a drastic treatment that can effectively reduce swelling and speed up the healing process. This comfortable, 1 to 2 hour treatment, now being offered in certain facilities, might be your pet’s best chance for recovery.

By Dr. Becker

Hyperbaric oxygen chambers are pressurized tubes, or in some cases rooms, where hyperbaric oxygen therapy is delivered. This technique has been used in human medicine for decades to treat a variety of conditions including air bubbles in blood vessels (arterial gas embolism), decompression sickness (“the bends”), carbon monoxide poisoning, wounds that won’t heal, crushing injuries, gangrene, a skin or bone infection that causes tissue death, radiation injuries, burns, skin grafts or skin flaps that can cause tissue death, and severe anemia.

In a hyperbaric oxygen chamber, the air pressure is up to three times greater than normal. This causes the lungs to collect up to three times more pure oxygen than is possible when breathing atmospheric oxygen. The pure oxygen is transported throughout the body via the blood stream, which encourages the release of growth factors and stem cells that promote healing.

Reduces Swelling and Speeds Healing in Animals

In Florida and a few other states, hyperbaric oxygen therapy is increasingly being used on pets.

The University of Florida’s College of Veterinary Medicine has recently treated dogs, cats, ferrets, rabbits and even a monkey with oxygen therapy. According to professor and DVM Justin Shmalberg, they have treated rattlesnake bites, infected wounds, and animals hit by cars. Essentially any kind of problem that causes swelling of tissue is a candidate for the hyperbaric chamber.

This summer, the school will begin clinical trials to determine if what they are seeing is “real” – that hyperbaric oxygen therapy helps reduce swelling and speed healing in animals. There isn’t much research on this type of treatment for pets, though ironically, most of the research for human oxygen therapy is the result of studies on rats and rabbits.

Dr. Diane Levitan, owner of a veterinary practice in New York, has a hyperbaric chamber in her facility and has seen improved rates of healing for certain conditions including abscesses, post-radiation swelling and herniated discs. Dr. Levitan is writing an article for a veterinary journal on her use of hyperbaric oxygen therapy and agrees with Dr. Shmalberg that it’s important to establish the science behind the success of the technique for certain conditions. “It’s not a panacea,” says Levitan. “There are specific reasons why this is helpful.”

Pets are Comfortable and Relaxed During Treatment

The Animal Emergency and Referral Center in Ft. Pierce, Florida also has a hyperbaric oxygen chamber. They describe the treatment this way:

“Inside the chamber, pets lie on a soft blanket and rest or sleep while the oxygen goes to work on wounds, swelling, burns and other injuries or illnesses. The pets are comfortable and relaxed during dog/cat hyperbaric therapy treatment. The total HBOT treatment time is from 1 to 2 hours, and is usually repeated twice a day. Treatments continue until the doctors see a marked improvement. When your pet is beginning to use the affected limb, or is gaining strength and function, the animal hyperbaric oxygen chamber treatments are discontinued.”

This facility uses oxygen therapy for patients with post operative swelling, snake bites, wounds and burns, head and spinal injuries, near-drowning or asphyxiation, and smoke inhalation.

‘About the Size of a Loveseat’

As you might expect, some (probably many) human insurance companies don’t cover oxygen therapy because it’s “unproven,” however, people who have had success with treatments will seek it out anyway. And the same is true for pet owners. They research the treatment and then seek it out for an ailing pet.

The equipment used at the University of Florida is “about the size of a loveseat.” The DVM who initially arranged for the equipment at UF estimates he’s used the chamber 750-800 times in the last 18 months and feels it is very effective for any kind of trauma.

Since most vet practices can’t afford to buy a chamber (equipment for humans runs between $50,000 and $150,000 each), the manufacturer actually gives the chambers to clinics and receives a percentage of each treatment done. Treatments run about $125 per session at the UF clinic.

The equipment can be dangerous to use because 100 percent oxygen is involved. Animals are patted down with water before they go into the chamber so their coat doesn’t attract static electricity and start a fire. Tragically, last year a hyperbaric oxygen chamber in a Florida equine veterinary center exploded, killing a staff member and the horse inside the chamber, and collapsing part of the building. Apparently, the horse hit the side of the enclosure with a foot, which caused a spark that set off the explosion.

Although this type of accident is incredibly rare, some veterinarians view hyperbaric therapy as a treatment of last resort. I don’t agree. With proper training, the hyperbaric oxygen chamber is as safe as any other veterinary treatment equipment, but without side effects. Inhaling pure oxygen in this manner triggers the body’s own ability to heal, which is always the goal.

Video: University of Florida Treats First Animal in a New Hyperbaric Chamber

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Busts of presidential pets Barney and Miss Beazley at George W. Bush Library

Busts of presidential pets Barney and Miss Beazley are seen during a tour of the George W. Bush Presidential Center – which will house the George W. Bush library.

Related:

Pampered pets and pet survivors

Jeb Bush says brother taken to painting dogs ‘with a vengeance’

Bush and Barney, Just Like Old Times

President Bush and His Pets

Presidential Pet Museum.com

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Animal photos to make you smile

h/t to Pat Gillenwater

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Sidestep This Feline Vaccine – Despite the Potentially Fatal Disease Outcome

Story at-a-glance

• Feline infectious peritonitis, or FIP, is a viral disease caused by certain strains of the feline coronavirus.
• Most cats who acquire a feline corona infection are able to overcome it, however, in 5 to 10 percent of infected cats, either a mutation of the virus or an abnormality in the immune system allows the infection to progress to FIP.
• FIP is seen in both domestic and wild cats, and most often in young cats living in multi-cat households or shelters. Any cat exposed to the feline coronavirus can develop FIP, however, kitties with compromised immune systems or FeLV, elderly cats, kittens, and purebreds are at increased risk.
• The most common route of infection is from mother to kittens. Symptoms depend on whether the FIP is the wet or dry form of the disease.
• Diagnosing FIP can be tricky because the symptoms are seen in many other types of diseases. In addition, there’s no diagnostic test for the condition. Once a diagnosis is made, however, the prognosis is poor. Cats with the wet form of FIP go downhill rapidly; kitties with the dry form may live a year or so past diagnosis.
• Prevention of FIP includes keeping your cat’s immune system strong and balanced. We absolutely do not recommend the FIP vaccine as a preventive measure, as it is ineffective and can cause significant immune system damage.

Video: Dr. Becker Talks About Feline Infectious Peritonitis

By Dr. Becker

Feline infectious peritonitis, or FIP, is a viral disease caused by certain strains of the feline coronavirus. Most strains, called feline enteric coronavirus, do not cause disease.

How FIP Develops

Most kitties with feline corona infection are asymptomatic during the initial stages. The immune system responds by producing antiviral antibodies to kill off the infection. But in about five to 10 percent of infected cats, it is believed either a mutation of the corona virus or an abnormality in the immune system response allows the infection to progress to FIP.

In FIP, the antibodies that should provide protection actually help infect white blood cells with the virus. These cells, in turn, spread the infection throughout the cat’s body. This results in a very powerful inflammatory response in tissues where the infected cells locate — frequently in the abdomen, kidneys, or brain.

It’s the interaction of the body’s immune system with the virus that results in disease. It behaves unlike any other viral disease we know of in either animals or people. Sadly, once FIP has involved one or more organs or body systems, the infection is quite progressed and almost always fatal.

Transmission of Feline Infectious Peritonitis

FIP is a disease of both domestic and wild cats. It’s most often seen in young cats living in multi-cat households, shelters, and catteries. Any cat exposed to the feline coronavirus can develop FIP. However, cats with compromised immune systems, those already infected with the feline leukemia virus, geriatric cats, and kittens are most likely to develop the disease. Males are more commonly infected than females, and purebred cats are at an increased risk, especially the Asian breeds.

FIP in symptomatic cats is not highly contagious, because by the time a kitty shows clinical signs of the infection, he is shedding only a small amount of the virus.

Fortunately, FIP is relatively rare in the general cat population. However, feline coronavirus is found in large quantities in the feces and saliva of cats during the acute stage of infection when there are no symptoms. It’s also found to a lesser extent in cats that have recovered, as well as carrier cats.

The coronavirus can be transmitted from one cat to another through physical contact and through exposure to feces. Usually, transmission occurs long before clinical signs are noted. The virus can also live in the environment for several weeks.

The most common route of infection, though, is when an infected mother passes the virus to her kittens. This usually occurs when the litter is between five and eight weeks of age.

The Two Forms of FIP and Their Symptoms

Kitties exposed to the feline coronavirus often have no clear symptoms, although there may be some sneezing, watery eyes, or nasal discharge. Sometimes a cat who has been infected will show mild intestinal signs like diarrhea.

Only a small percentage of cats exposed to the feline coronavirus go on to develop FIP. It can be weeks, months, or even years after exposure before symptoms appear.

Kitties that wind up with FIP often seem to their owners to develop symptoms very suddenly. This is probably due to the ability of cats to mask illness until they’re terribly sick. In addition, initial symptoms are often non-specific. They can include a lack of appetite, weight loss, fever, poor hair coat, and sometimes mild depression.

There are actually two forms of FIP, the effusive or wet form, and the non-effusive or dry form. Cats with the dry form tend to show signs of the illness more slowly. Those signs can include weight loss, depression, anemia, inflammation of the eye, and a stubborn fever that doesn’t respond to antibiotics.

Kitties with the wet form of the disease accumulate fluid in the abdomen and sometimes in the chest. Early on, symptoms may mimic those of the dry form of FIP. But effusive FIP progresses pretty quickly. The cat may suddenly develop a potbelly due to fluid accumulation in the abdomen. In addition, breathing can sometimes be labored due to a buildup of fluid in the chest.

Diagnosing FIP

Diagnosing feline infectious peritonitis can be difficult because many of the symptoms are common in many other diseases. In addition, there’s no simple diagnostic test for the condition.

Several tests can detect feline corona antibodies, but they can’t tell what strains are involved. A positive result on an ELISA, IFA, or a virus neutralization test simply means the cat has had exposure to the coronavirus, but not necessarily a strain of the virus that causes FIP.

There is an immunoperoxidase test that can find the presence of viral infected cells in the tissues. But it must be followed by a biopsy to evaluate the affected tissue.

Routine blood tests, including a complete blood count and serum biochemistry profile, can show elevated liver enzymes, anemia, and abnormal blood protein levels, which are typical of kitties with FIP.

Chest and abdominal X-rays may show an abnormal accumulation of fluid.

Blood samples from cats with very high blood protein levels can be submitted for serum protein electrophoresis testing. Cerebral spinal fluid samples can also be analyzed for protein content, which is typically elevated in FIP cats. But the only way to definitively diagnose FIP is by a surgical biopsy of an affected organ (often the intestines) or examination of tissues during an autopsy.

Veterinarians often rely on a presumptive diagnosis, which can be made with a high degree of confidence based on the cat’s history, symptoms, examination of fluids, and a high corona antibody titer.

Treatment

Unfortunately, there is no cure at the present time for FIP. Once a kitty develops clinical signs of the disease, either the dry or wet form, the prognosis is very poor.

I have had some success in helping several kitties overcome this disease by supportive care and using homeopathic FIP nosodes, cytokine therapy, and IV vitamin C therapy, in addition to immune-modulating nutraceuticals.

I have also attempted to help many kitties that, unfortunately, end up succumbing to the disease. It’s a devastating situation for both the owner and the veterinarian.

The wet form typically progresses very rapidly. Many cats live only a month or two after diagnosis. Cats that have been diagnosed with the dry form may have another year or so with a good quality of life. Unfortunately, the dry form of FIP can progress to the wet form if the cat lives long enough.

Supportive care for FIP patients includes good nutritional and environmental maintenance, alleviating the inflammatory response of the disease, fluid therapy, draining fluid accumulation, and blood transfusions.

Preventing FIP in Your Own Cat

The best way to prevent FIP is to keep your cat’s immune system strong and balanced. This includes feeding a balanced species-appropriate diet; keeping vaccines and other drugs to an absolute minimum; providing a stress-free, enriched environment for your cat; regular wellness checkups with your veterinarian; either keeping your pet indoors at all times or providing a safe outdoor enclosure; and supervising walks with a harness and leash.

Of course, I always advocate rescuing cats rather than buying them, but if you do purchase a purebred cat, only do business with breeders who guarantee their kittens are FIP-free.

In a multi-cat household, it’s important to keep litter boxes clean and located in areas away from food and water bowls. Litter should also be scooped at least once daily, removing all feces, and dumped weekly or every two weeks, at which time the box should be completely and thoroughly disinfected with mild soap and water.

New cats to the household and certainly any cat that might be infected should be kept separate from other cats for a quarantine period.

There is an FIP vaccine available. However, I do not recommend it. It has little to no effectiveness in preventing FIP and is not recommended by the American Association of Feline Practitioners’ Feline Vaccine Advisory Panel. This vaccine causes substantial immune system damage and, in my opinion, should absolutely not be used.

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A Treat??

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Chinese poaching of rare mammal exposed by boating accident

Pangolins are long, lizard-like land mammals covered with scales, which make them look like pine cones when they roll themselves up for protection. (Jefri Tarigan / Associated Press / March 1, 2013)

By Barbara Demick – April 16, 2013, 7:22 a.m. – Los Angeles Times

A boating accident off the Philippines coast has exposed Chinese poaching of a protected species of scaly anteater, or pangolin, prized in traditional medicine.

A 500-ton Chinese fishing vessel, the Min Long Yu, crashed into a coral reef April 8. When the boat was inspected, authorities found more than 2,000 butchered pangolins rolled up and packed into 400 boxes. It is one of the largest hauls of the species, which is subject to an international trade ban.

Pangolins are long, lizard-like land mammals covered with scales, which make them look like pine cones when they roll themselves up for protection.

The meat of this strange animal is considered a delicacy in southern China, while the scales are thought to have medicinal properties to treat asthma and cancer and to induce lactation in new mothers.

Filipino authorities are holding 12 Chinese members of the ship’s crew on charges of poaching and attempted bribery, and they face further charges of damaging the coral reef, which is in a UNESCO-protected marine sanctuary, Tubbataha Reef. Earlier this year, a U.S. Navy ship got stuck on a coral reef in the same marine park and had to be dismantled.

The incident seems likely to add another element of contention between China and the Philippines, already in dispute over sovereignty of fishing waters.

"It is bad enough that these Chinese have illegally entered our seas, navigated without boat papers and crashed recklessly into a national marine park and World Heritage Site," Jose Maria Lorenzo Tan, the chief executive of World Wildlife Fund-Philippines, said in a statement. "However, it is simply deplorable that they appear to be posing as fishermen to trade in illegal wildlife.’ "

The environmental group said it wasn’t sure yet whether the pangolins came from Malaysia or the Philippines.

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Charles the Lion Dog…

Video: Charles the Lion Dog…

By Dr. Becker

This story is too cute and funny not to share!

According to PilotOnline.com and the Virginian-Pilot, the first person that called 911 was rather calm as he stated, “I’d like to report a lion sighting.”

Not surprisingly, the dispatcher asked him to repeat himself!

And that man’s call was just one of three about baby lion sightings in Norfolk, Virginia one Tuesday morning in January.

A baby lion is running loose in the streets!

The first call came in around 10:20 a.m.

A man told the 911 dispatcher a lion was running down Granby Street. Then a woman grabbed the phone and said, “There was a lion that ran across the street. A baby lion. It was about the size of a Labrador Retriever. It’s running loose in the neighborhood.”

The woman also explained that the “baby lion” sighting was in close proximity to the city zoo.

“It had the ‘mange’ and everything!”

Five minutes after the first call, a second call came in of a sighting on Delaware Avenue near Llewellyn Avenue.

“I just saw an animal that looked like a small lion,” this caller, also a male, told dispatch. And it had “the mange and everything!” (Not only is a “baby lion” running loose in the streets, it also has a parasitic skin disease!) “I don’t know if it got away from the zoo, or what,” the man continued.

It’s going from one house to the next!

“I just saw a baby lion at Colley Avenue and 50th Street,” reports caller number three.

When the dispatcher asks for clarification about the type of animal, the man responds, “A lion. A baby lion, maybe. I don’t think it has caused any problem so far.”

“OK. You think it’s looking for food?” the dispatcher asked when the caller explained the “lion” was going from house to house. “I don’t know,” the man responded.

Identity of Baby Lion Revealed

In case you didn’t follow this little story in the news, the “baby lion” was soon identified as a Lab-Poodle mix (a “labradoodle”) named Charles the Monarch. Apparently Charles’ owner likes to have his dog groomed to resemble the mascot of Old Dominion University in Norfolk.

In any event, Charles the ‘doodle is now a minor celebrity. He was even featured on the “Today” show on NBC shortly after all the “baby lion” sightings!

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Gorilla Verses a Goose

Video:  Goose vs. Gorilla

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No-No Foods for Pets

The “Not So Safe” or No-No Pet Food List

The following foods are not safe for dogs, cats, potbellied pigs, or guinea pigs. Never give the following foods or beverages to your pets:

• *Alcohol of any kind (a no-no for all animals)
• *Anything with Caffeine (a no-no for all animals)
• Avocados – especially for birds and cats
• Baby food if it contains onion powder
• Bones from Ham, Chicken, Turkey or Cooked Bones that can splinter
• * (Raw) Bread or Yeast Dough
• Candied Yams
• Casseroles (unless you absolutely know that none of the no-no foods are in them)
• *Chocolate and Cocoa (this includes things like brownies and chocolate chip cookies) and dark chocolate is the worst
• Raw cookie dough can also kill dogs and small children.
• *Grapes or raisins
• Jell-O Molds
• (Raw) Liver
• *Macadamia Nuts (this includes things like cookies and pies) and go easy on nuts in general (nuts in general are not great for dogs, but walnuts, macadamia nuts, and pecans are particularly harmful and add the additional possibilities of health problems caused by fungus and mold. Peanuts and peanut butter are not on the no-no list but could also cause problems because of mold issues).
• Milk (and American Cheese) can be a problem for some dogs. They can be lactose intolerant like some people.
• Mushrooms, particularly wild mushrooms.
• Nutmeg
• *Onions, including onion powder (garlic should be fed in moderation)
• Pecans, including Pecan Pie (nuts in general are not great for dogs, but walnuts, macadamia nuts, and pecans are particularly harmful and add the additional possibilities of health problems caused by fungus and mold.  Peanuts and peanut butter are not on the no-no list but could also cause problems because of mold issues).
• Potato Skins and Green Potatoes (potatoes in general are not digestible by dogs).
• Pork Products because of the nitrates
• Stuffing (it usually contains onions, which are very harmful to pets)
• Large amounts of Grains (often a main ingredient in cheap commercial pet foods)
• *Raisins and grapes
• Raw eggs (raw egg whites) – (According to the ASPCA, raw egg whites contain avidin, which damages a dog’s metabolism and creates a biotin deficiency, so they recommend owners should discard the white if feeding a dog raw eggs.  Others disagree.)
• Tomatoes (plant and fruit) – All parts of the plant except the tomato itself are poisonous to humans
• Vitamin A in large amounts causes toxicity
• Walnuts (nuts in general are not great for dogs, but walnuts, macadamia nuts, and pecans are particularly harmful and add the additional possibilities of health problems caused by fungus and mold. Peanuts and peanut butter are not on the no-no list but could also cause problems, for humans as well, because of mold issues).
• *Xylitol and anything with it in it.

Depending on the amount consumed and the size, breed, species and age of the animal many of the items above can cause death, but they definitely can and usually cause discomfort for the pet/animal, more and expensive vet bills for you, butt scooting and stress in your pets and for you. Distention of the abdomen, vomiting, muscle tremors, paralysis bloody stool, depression, stress, jaundice, disorientation, diarrhea, lethargy, lack of coordination, difficulty breathing, tremors, coma, abnormal fluid accumulation, drooling, restlessness, anemia and seizures are among the symptoms and conditions that can be caused by the aforementioned foods.

The range of diseases and conditions caused or intensified by the No-No Foods for pets include: coma, heart arrhythmia and cardiac arrest, paralysis, pancreatitis, inflammation throughout the body, seizures and tremors, gastric-dilitation volvulus (twisted stomach) and death.

*Causing the most severe health problems and the most incidents of death.

Tobacco products and many plants and herbs are also bad for pets.  Poinsettias, tomato plants and the Sago Palm are among the common plants that are toxic to dogs/pets.

“Holidays Are Great and Fun To Share With Our Pets, As Long As We Avoid the No-No Foods”

Common Foods That Are Harmful Or Even Fatal to Dogs

Pets and Toxic Plants

More Dogs (and Cats) Getting High, Sick and Fat In States Where Marijuana Is Legal – Drugs, unless prescribed or are specifically made and approved for animals, are a No-No!

Every species, breed or type of animal has its own requirements and no-no’s.  As a pet parent or the parent of a learning pet parent, it is your job to find out what those requirements and no-no’s are and meet those needs.  A pet is a living creature that adds joy to our lives.  We are all God’s creatures and any animal is a gift that has been given to you to cherish and take care of properly!!

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