E-Vet Clinic - Dog Health Care

Ok we all have done it, gone into a pet store and just loved the puppies. But would you ever buy one from a puppy store?

I have to admit I have purchased a puppy from a pet store; but I considered it a rescue. It was a 4 month old Aussie that just needed to get out of that cage and run. It had been there for 2 months. I was in vet school at the time and my vet school friends can attest to the fact that that dog was certifiably crazy. Very ill tempered to men, she bit a few and not out of fear. I was able to train her fairly well but I just could not get her broke out of the aggressive behavior towards men. Oh well that is what you get when you buy from a puppy store which buys from puppy mills.

Too bad many people still do not understand that buying from a pet store perpetuates a horrible cycle of puppy mill breeding. What astonishes me is the lack of understanding of the general population of puppy mills. Here is a story from my alma mater’s paper, the Daily Illini. I was really excited when I caught the headline about this story –>Puppy store at mall faces criticisms

I was thinking all right a pet store that is going to be called out on buying from puppy mills; unfortunately this was not the case. It is obvious to me and several others that the student reporter did absolutely no research and did not even know what a puppy mill was. She got caught up like the rest of us in how cute the puppies were. It is a shame. The biggest red flag in the whole story is that the place where the pet store owner purchases here puppies from, Puppy Haven Kennels, had its certification pulled from the AKC. Unfortunately no good explanation in the story at all as to why it was pulled.

However here is the explanation –> I-Team: Puppy Mills

Thats right it is a puppy mill. A television news station in Milwaukee did a report back in April of this year and then updated it in September telling viewers/readers that Puppy Haven is a puppy mill of the worst kind. If you read this story you will know why you should not buy puppies from pet stores; any pet store. No reputable breeder will ever sell a puppy to a pet store…period. They are all puppy mills or disreputable breeders trying to dump their puppies.

SO I publicly apologize for my purchase many years ago, even though it was a rescu. Just now that you are informed - don’t do it! No matter how cute they are, don’t buy from a pet store.

A news piece from the Boston Herald through the AP -Dog advocates try again for ban on greyhound racing tells a story of the Massachusetts Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals and the United States Humane Society attempting to close down the Greyhound racing industry in Massachusetts. They have tried twice in the past and have finally made it on to a ballot for the 2008 November elections to pose the question as to whether or not Mass should continue to have a Greyhound Racing Industry.

I have seen many Greyhounds from the racetrack, the majority from the racetrack in Wisconsin. I have heard of the conditions they are kept in. I have seen evidence to support the small cage confinement abuse. Overall I am not against Greyhound racing, what I am for is healthy happy dogs that are cared for humanely. Many of my clients race their dogs either in lure coursing, flyball and even whippet straight racing, but I will tell you that although there are injuries, nothing as prominent as what I have heard about in the Greyhound racing world. The dogs I work on are family pets that happen to be involved in a sport. I have worked on the second fastest Whippet in the country at the owners home. Although I am not in the family home 24 hours a day, I can almost guarantee that that dog sleeps on the couch a good percentage of the time it is in the house…LOL. Talk about living the high life, you are one of the fastest dogs in the country and you are sleeping in complete comfort - like it should be! So I would again have to say I am not against dog racing, if the Greyhounds were treated as the dogs I work on were treated; dogs who are athletes vs machines that happen to be dogs who are athletes, then I would be happy to allow Greyhound Racing to continue, because it is exciting to see a dog, or anything/anyone for that matter, do the one thing it was born to do!

What do you think? Greyhound Racing for or against and why?

The ASPCA Holiday Shop is a great way to get your shopping done for your animal lover or even your best dog friend and be supportive to the ASPCA.

Thank you to Brennan from Shepherds Haven Sanctuary for pointing out that the shop was up and running. Check her post out here —>The Season for Helping

Or go directly to the ASPCA Holiday Shop

I just had to show you this picture I found on the web. Doesn’t he look like Uh-oh I think I am in trouble!

Click on it to see the full size

OK not really Yammy but Sweet Potato treats that are healthy for your dog and are yummy!

I have always been a fan of sweet potato treats you can buy them packaged and give them to your dog. They contain a lot of vitamins and fiber and are overall healthy but do taste good. Most dogs just scarf them up readily. Because of the fiber content they are not as fattening as other treats, so if you have an overweight dog sweet potatos are a treat you can try.

And instead of buying the packaged type why not try making treats yourself from real sweet potatos…Shepherd’s Haven Sanctuary has a few good recipes you can try. Check out Sweet Treats with Sweet Potatoes for a variety of dog treats that can be made from a healthy food source sweet potatos.

Keep your dog healthy!

Sometimes dogs have an appetite for the strangest things.

I remember when I was in school a bulldog had come in because it was vomitting and the owners were concerned that the dog had eaten something and it was blocking the dog up. A foreign body, a toy, a sock, a piece of plastic. Now why did the owners think this was the problem? Because it was the third time it had happened to the dog. Two times previous the dog had eaten something it should not have and had to have surgery to remove it. This time it was the top of a nyla-bone; howeve the strange thing was the time before that when it had eaten a little Army Guy! You could actually make out what it was on the radiographs of the little army guy stuck in his intestines…quite strange.

However here is a story from the BBC about one of the strangest things and situations I have seen or heard of about a dog that had eaten something it should not have.

Check out - Dog starts car after eating chip

So be sure for the health of your dog, keep things away from the dog that it may want to chew up and swallow. You could be like my client whose dog had to have surgery or maybe even worse you could have to bring your dog with you everytime you have to start your car!

What do you do when your dog is fat, obese or just slightly overweight? Well, just like with us, if a dog eats too much and does not get enough exercise they are going to gain weight. It is very important to take care of your dog if he develops a weight problem. Just as with us, being overweight can cause a whole mess of problems with a dog. The excess weight a dog has causes extra pressure on their joints and muscles which in turn may develop into arthritis. The extra weight can be precursors to other diseases such as diabetes. However, before you rush out to buy the newest diet dog food, stop and look at your dogs feeding habits.

While being overweight can be the symptom of other illness, chances are your dog is just being overfed. It is still a good idea to take him to the vet just to make sure. Like Tonti here…

He is a beautiful Rottweiler that happens to be overweight; however his comes from a hormonal disease called Cushings disease. Since his diagnosis he has dropped weight and continues to do so. I will update you on his progress in future posts. Most of the time though it is not a disease that is causing your dogs overweight problem, it is the fact that the dog is just eating too much and not exercising enough…sound familiar, sounds like the same problem that humans have, especially American humans.

Stay away from diet dog food. They are filled with fillers which are how they keep the fat and protein levels lower than in regular dog food. Plus these formulas can do more damage than good. You really are better off cutting down on the amount you feed your dog. You know portion control. If you are feeding your dog 3 cups of dry a day cut back to 2 cups if that is not enough cut back to 1.5 cups. To help stave off the cravings and your dogs whinning about not being fed as much, break the feeding into multiple times per day, but still maintain the same amount total for the day. So if you are feeding 2 cups a day break it down into 1 cup in the morning and 1 cup at night.

I have also seen some miraculous changes in a dogs weight by changing them over to a raw diet. Many obese dogs that have tried and tried with those filler based “diet” food have had no change and I have had them switch over to the raw diet and the weight just melts off. My guess is that the raw diet gives the dog more energy and makes them feel better which in turn makes them more active. The calories in a raw diet are not garbage calories but very useable and the dog loses weight. It is sort of like going from eating fast food everyday to starting to eat healthy, your metabolism speeds up, you feel more energetic and you start to lose weight. The same with your dog.

Next, make sure you exercise your dog. This is easier with some breeds than it is with others, but it is still necessary to improve your dogs health and make them lose weight. Take your dog for walks, if you have a fenced in yard, make sure you are out there with him tossing a ball around or at least playing with him. Anything to get them moving.

The basics for what to do when your dog is overweight are to feed your dog less and exercise him more. Portion control and exercise will keep your dog fit and trim instead of overweight!