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Quick Dog Discipline

When you catch your dog behaving badly, you have to discipline him immediately. Below are tips on how to properly do it.

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Questions To Ask Your Vet Regarding Prescription Drugs

Modern drugs are surely a benefit to the practice of veterinary medicine. They have helped save the lives of many critically ill dogs and restored countless others to normal health. Yet improperly used, they cannot only fail in their intended function, but can actually create a more serious threat to your dog. An antibiotic given at haphazard and infrequent intervals can create a resistant strain of bacteria. A corticosteroid abruptly discontinued after long use can precipitate a dangerous adrenal gland hormone imbalance. A drug intended to be given four times a day may produce a dangerously high blood level if given, only twice a day, but at double the dose.

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Q & A: Part 7

Which breeds tend to have the greatest incidence of pyorrhea (bone degeneration), leading to loss of teeth? The two breeds with the most frequent incidence of periodontal disease are the Dachshunds and Schnauzers. The host resistance factor seems to be lower in these breeds.

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Q & A: Part 6

Do older dogs lose their teeth as do humans? Yes, but for slightly different reasons. Excessive tartar builds up. This creates a bacterial climate whereby destructive agents invade the gum and bone surfaces, causing damage or destruction to both, and eventual tooth loss in some dogs. Machines such as the cavitron have been used with some success in removing excess tartar from a dog’s teeth. Once the dog has bitten down on a piece of food, the outer surfaces are not utilized very much so most of the tartar forms on the outside of the teeth. The inner surfaces are being stimulated more by the action of chewing and therefore remain cleaner.

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Q & A: Part 5

Is the surgical risk greater in the older dog? Usually yes, again depending upon the status of the heart and the kidneys. All of this should be thoroughly checked out before the older dog is anesthetized. The anesthesia provides a greater risk than the surgery. If the dog is competently evaluated before surgery, there should only be a one-percent risk factor of anesthetic death. During the time when sodium pentobarbital was more widely used for anesthesia, many dogs never woke up because of a condition called acidosis. Over-dosing caused excess absorption of the pentobarbital into the body. Just when you would think the dog was nicely asleep, his fat began to release it, thereby effecting an overdose in the dog. When sodium pentobarbital is in the blood stream, there is no control or reversal. Today, with gas anesthesia, risk is almost zero because of the greater control the vet has.

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