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Those of us that have pets that “freak out” during thunderstorms and fireworks, dread this time of year. A few nights ago I was laying in bed and could see flashes in the distance, and feared it was heading our way. It didn’t make it our way, but it got me thinking about posting a topic covering this.We have a wide assortment of calming aids to help your pet through the loud noises, and I highly suggest using the aids in conjunction with the training suggestions below.
- On the evenings you expect fireworks/thunder ensure your pet is safe indoors and secure doors, windows and cat flaps.
- Make sure your dog or cat is microchipped. If they do escape, frightened confused animals can easily get lost or injured and it is important that they are easily identified.
- Ensure dogs are taken out to go to the toilet early in the evening and cats are provided with a litter tray.
- Draw curtains to reduce outside noise and play music or have the TV turned on to help mask the noise of fireworks or thunder.
- Ignore any fearful behaviour. Do not try to comfort your pet. The animal will pick up on your anxiety and this may make the problem worse and/or fussing a pet who appears frightened can reward this negative behaviour.
- Don’t punish your pet; this only confirms that there was something to be afraid of.
- If your pet hides in a corner or under a bed, leave it alone and do not try to coax it out. This ‘hideout’ is where the animal feels most secure.
- Try not to go out during such potentially upsetting events. Seeing you acting normally will help your pets feel more settled.
- Speak to your vet about using synthetic pheromones to help comfort your pet during the noisy season.
- If you are still worried or if your pet takes a long time to recover from the experience contact your vet for further assistance or for referral for behavioural therapy.
I hope this helps your pet. I will be posting more training aids and tips for this as the summer progresses. Hopefully we will have video of our dog Sadie (Our scared dog) with another training trick.
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After hearing a few extremely sad stories yesterday about lyme disease despite topical flea and tick prevention, I decided to pull some information together and create this post. The logic that is usually expressed with veterinarian professionals is that with lyme disease being so prevalent that it is better to be safe than sorry and use products like Frontline… However Frontline does not repel ticks, and in fact Frontline states that it takes 48 hours after the tick has attached for the tick to die. Ticks begin transmitting the lyme spirochete between 24 and 48 hours.
- Frontline – Yes it does kill ticks, but only after 48 hours. Lyme disease can start transmitting as early as 24 hours
- Advantage – Doesn’t Kill ticks
- Advantix – Has some success with killing ticks, but with the use of permethrin (Also found in BioSpot) I wouldn’t touch it with a ten foot pole.
- Revolution – Has some success with ticks, but appears it doesn’t work on deer ticks.
This is why we use all natural flea and tick prevention with our pets.
We will leave out the side effects of these products for another post.
Ok, enough of what I wouldn’t recommend. Lets get to the safe products that you don’t have to wear hazmat gear to treat.
My Favorite is Earth Animal Internal Powder and Earth Animal Yeast Free Internal Powder. We have used it on our dogs now for approximately 3 years, and have been virtually tick free. The bonus is that it is also a strong repellent for fleas and black flies. One of our dogs has a bad dermatitis reaction to black flies, so needless to say this is my product of choice.
Equinature BugGone All-Natural Herbal Repellent is a daily spray that is all natural, and for daily use. Very good for hikes, not only for your pet, but for yourself. I actually use it while mowing and weed wacking.
I could go on and on about all the different ones, but I will let you browse the list of flea and tick prevention (We have more that will be added to that over the next few days). Leave a comment if you have any questions.
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Photo courtesy of Meredith Perdue at &Unlimited
Loki came to us courtesy of Petfinder, via Canine Guardians for Life. Loki, a firecracker of a doggie, has special dietary needs. This month, we will be featuring Loki’s diet as an example of what we feed our own four-legged family:Age: approx 6 years
Breed: Border Collie mix
Issue: Seizures of indeterminate cause
Loki’s protocol: Loki has always been fed a grain-free raw diet, but Dr.
Strobbe of Medomak Veterinary Care recommended that we change her protein to
a more “cooling” food, such as turkey or duck. Cooling foods help with
hyperactivity in the brain (or in Loki’s case, generalized hyperactivity!).
Treats:_ Barkwheats Chamomile, Stella & Chewy’s Duck
Food: Sojo’s Complete Dehydrated Grain-Free Turkey
Supplements: Settle Seizures from Herbsmith, NaturVet probiotics
Etc: Dr. Strobbe has done a few rounds of Acupuncuture.Since we started her on this regime,…voila! Seizure free!
Adoption, General Pets, Nutrition, Pet Safety, Product HighlightNo Barks Yet » Bark Back! Leave a comment
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Dear Abby,
I actually have a real question…this totally grosses me out but I’m sure there’s an explanation for why it happens.We have two male labs…Sam (yellow, 10) and Kernel (black, 8). I keep the yard picked up regularly (daily, if not more), but without fail Sam finds pleasure in eating Kernel’s poo. Why does he do this? Other than standing immediately behind them while they’re doing their business (which is not always possible anyways), what can I do to prevent this? It even happens right after they eat a meal. YUCK!
Thanks Doc
-AaronDear Aaron-
I am sorry to hear about Sam’s offensive taste buds. Coprophagia is a fairly common problem in dogs, and can be caused by a variety of conditions including a behavioral issue, poor digestion, or an underlying medical problem.If you would like to try training Sam to not eat Kernel’s feces there is a really good training exercise explained on the website www.veterinarypartner.com. A simple ‘poop eating’ search will get you into the canine behavior series on the website.
There are food additives that make the feces taste unpleasant. You can feed Kernel SEP (Stop Eating Poop – Solid Gold) or Coprophagia Deterrent (NaturVet).
Sometimes a change in diet can help, and based on Sam’s current issues I would suggest considering switching him to a grain-free food. Aubrey, Dan, and their fine employees at The Animal House can help you pick out an over-the-counter brand that Sam & Kernel would enjoy.
Lastly, I would recommend a good check up with your vet including a senior blood panel and a fecal sample to rule out intestinal parasites, hypothyroidism, and other internal medical conditions that can cause dogs to seek more calories – no matter how repulsive we may find their snacking habits.
Best of luck, Aaron!
-Abby Strobbe, DVM
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Introducing the rescue powered Kitty Cam at The Animal House. Many of you have heard me talking about this feature for a month now, and after waiting for a special extension chord it is finally launched.
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We are closed today, but still working hard for Woofstock2009 and getting back-end work done for the store. We wish you a safe, happy and hopefully dry Independence Day!Our dog, Buddha (Shown Right), was feeling left out after Loki’s modeling stint, and wanted everyone to be aware of some firework tips:
- On the evenings you expect fireworks ensure your pet is safe indoors and secure doors, windows and cat flaps.
- Make sure your dog or cat is microchipped. If they do escape, frightened confused animals can easily get lost or injured and it is important that they are easily identified.
- Ensure dogs are taken out to go to the toilet early in the evening and cats are provided with a litter tray.
- Draw curtains to reduce outside noise and play music or have the TV turned on to help mask the noise of fireworks.
- Ignore any fearful behaviour. Do not try to comfort your pet. The animal will pick up on your anxiety and this may make the problem worse and/or fussing a pet who appears frightened can reward this negative behaviour.
- Don’t punish your pet; this only confirms that there was something to be afraid of.
- If your pet hides in a corner or under a bed, leave it alone and do not try to coax it out. This ‘hideout’ is where the animal feels most secure.
- Try not to go out during such potentially upsetting events. Seeing you acting normally will help your pets feel more settled.
- Speak to your vet about using synthetic pheromones to help comfort your pet during the fireworks season.
- If you are still worried or if your pet takes a long time to recover from the experience contact your vet for further assistance or for referral for behavioural therapy.
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