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Walking uphill, over low obstacles may help Fido stay flexible, study shows

TUESDAY, Aug. 31 (HealthDay News) -- Certain types of exercise may help ease stiffness and pain in dogs with arthritis, a new study suggests.

Using a special treadmill and a computer program, Austrian researchers examined the movements of joints in the front and back legs of dogs as they did three types of exercises: walking uphill, walking downhill and walking over low obstacles.

They concluded that walking downhill doesn't appear to provide much benefit but walking uphill and climbing over low obstacles could both help dogs with arthritis.

Walking uphill may improve the flexibility of affected joints, particularly of the hip, while walking over low obstacles may improve the bending of the joints in the front and rear limbs, said the team at the University of Veterinary Medicine in Vienna.

Researchers caution that dogs who have recently undergone surgery to the tibia, however, should probably avoid walking over obstacles since that could potentially strain the tendon that joins the knee to the shin.

They added that the exercises don't require expensive equipment, are simple and can easily be supervised by dog owners.

"These types of exercises are often...

Solo takes a double dose of Xanax (alprazolam) for his nerves during the 4 July festivities in the United States. That is in addition to the antidepressant, fluoxetine or amitriptyline, that the 11-year-old border collie takes year-round. Fireworks just set him off, as do thunderclaps, gunshots — practically any explosive sounds — sending him into nervous fits. Panting and drooling with eyes dilated, he desperately searches for a place to hide. If another dog is nearby, he might attack. "It's called anxiety redirection," says Melanie Chang, Solo's owner and an evolutionary biologist at the University of Oregon in Eugene.

As a postdoctoral researcher at the University of California, San Francisco, Chang helped to collect hundreds of border-collie DNA samples, including Solo's, as part of a project studying the genes for noise phobia. She estimates that at least 50% of collies suffer from it, with 10% severely affected, sometimes injuring themselves or others in response to loud noises. Steven Hamilton, a psychiatrist at the University of California, San Francisco, who runs the project, says that he sees parallels between the dogs' panic and human anxiety. And the same drugs work in about the same proportion of cases...

Earlier this year, ASPCA Humane Law Enforcement Agents arrived at a New York City apartment to find that dozens of cats and kittens had overtaken the small space. The cats were severely malnourished, and many suffered from upper respiratory disease. There were no litter boxes, and the floor was covered in several inches of feces and urine. Living among the filth and debris was an 85-year-old woman suffering from dementia—she had been hoarding animals for years.

Animal hoarding is a complex and intricate social issue with far-reaching effects that encompass mental health, animal welfare and public safety concerns. Victims can include cats, dogs, reptiles, rodents, birds, exotics and even farm animals. While it’s not clear why people become animal hoarders, current research suggests the cause is often attachment disorder in conjunction with personality disorders, paranoia, dementia, depression and other mental illness. The hoarder does not intend to inflict harm on animals, and in most cases, the hoarder can no longer take care of himself, much less multiple animals.

"We often see that animal hoarders have experienced some traumatic event or loss in their lives," says Fiona Knight, Cruelty Intervention Advocacy Manager at the ASPCA....

The following FAQs provide simplified explanations and answers about the VCPR.

For a complete definition of the VCPR, read the VCPR section of the Principles of Veterinary Medical Ethics.

Q:  What is a Veterinarian-Client-Patient Relationship (VCPR)?

   A Veterinarian-Client-Patient Relationship, or VCPR for short, exists when your veterinarian knows your pet well enough to be able to diagnose and treat any medical conditions your animal develops. Your part of the VCPR is allowing your veterinarian to take responsibility for making clinical judgments about your pet's health, asking questions to make sure you understand, and following your veterinarian's instructions. Your veterinarian's part of the VCPR involves making those judgments, accepting the responsibility for providing your pet with medical care, advising you about the benefits and risks of different treatment options, keeping a written record of your pet's medical care, and helping you know how to get emergency care for your pet if the need should arise.

Q:  How is a VCPR established and maintained?

   A VCPR is established only when your veterinarian examines your animal in person, and is maintained by regular veterinary visits as needed to monitor your animal's health. If a VCPR...

from www.PetMD.com

The Truth About 'Titering' Instead of Vaccination

  06-25-10 -- PSPCA Shelter Overrun With Thousands of Cats and Kittens
By:  Tara Murtha, Philadelphia Weekly


It's not as cute as it sounds.

Though there's some (relatively) good news in animal control--the lights won't go out in the city's main shelter June 30 since, according to Health Commissioner Don Schwarz, PSPCA will fulfill animal-control services into 2011--the bad news is there's yet another crisis. Last time it was dogs, this time it's cats. Thousands of cats and kittens will be euthanized unless some serious mass cat adoptions go down this weekend.

Like it does every year, kitten season has exploded. From early spring and through summer, unfixed street and pet cats hear the call of the wild, breed their brains out and create thousands upon thousands of kittens that will ultimately wind up flooding the shelters and, except for a lucky few, be euthanized.

Kitten season is why there tends to be highest euthanasia rates in July. Last July, the PSPCA reported that 76 percent of all animals that entered its doors were put down. The total number of euthanized cats reported in 2009 was 12,629.

The PSPCA sent out a press release shouting in caps: PHILADELPHIA SHELTERS...

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by Dr. Donna J. Spector

By Ahna Brutlag, DVM, Assistant Director of Veterinary Services

Pet owners who are serious about pet-proofing their home should start with their own medicine cabinet. Pet Poison Helpline is a 24-hour service available throughout North America for pet owners and veterinary professionals who require assistance treating a potentially poisoned pet. Nearly half of the calls received by Pet Poison Helpline involve human medications – both over-the-counter and prescription. Whether Fido accidentally chewed into a pill bottle or a well-intentioned pet owner accidently switched medication (giving their pet a human medication), pet poisonings due to medication are common and can be very serious.

Pet Poison Helpline is the only animal poison control with board-certified internal medicine specialists, emergency critical care specialists, and human pharmacologists on staff. With expert staff in both animal and human medicine, Pet Poison Helpline provides a unique advantage since more than 50 percent of all pet poisonings involve human drugs.

Below is a list of the top 10 human medications most frequently ingested by pets, along with some tips from the veterinarians at Pet Poison Helpline on how to prevent pet poisoning from human medications.

1....