Albuquerque Journal Articles
Canned Kitten Food is Best for Healthy Cats of All Ages Are chubby cats cute and happy? As youngsters their bodies can tolerate abuse but like us, as they reach middle age, they pay for the mistakes of their youth. Diet matters. Dry cat foods are marketed on the perception that kitties are just small dogs but with short ears. Kibbles conveniently baked into odorless nuggets make owning a cat almost as convenient as a house plant. But heavy on starch (carbohydrates) and proportionately low in meat (protein) dry diets have created a burgeoning population of muscle wasted, dangerously corpulent…
More than just Freaked-Out Fowl I want to discuss hen hysteria. Don’t get me wrong – this is not a pejorative term; I’m not a politician. Hen hysteria is a genuine behavior disorder, a significant challenge in commercial poultry operations. Stuffed into cages, row upon row, some laying hens suddenly wig-out with no apparent trigger. This syndrome is marked by sudden flying (or attempts at flight), squawking, and searching frantically for a hiding place. Sometimes it happens spontaneously but it can also occur in response to unexpected noises or movements. Hen hysteria is clearly related to crowding. The more densely…
Irritability can be Overcome with Targeted Medical & Behavioral Treatment Question: We have a 7-10 year old rescue Chihuahua. Whenever we attempt to put on her harness, leash or Velcro coat/dress she attempts to snarl and bite us and it is getting much worse. Our veterinarian sees her for a cardiac, liver and allergy ailment. There is arthritis but we are ever so gentle. “Miss Luna” does not know how to play and cries like a child when left alone. Dr. Nichol: Preteen girls can be fussy. The dress is just so 90s and the leash and harness don’t even…
Blood Pressure control becomes Key to Long Term Success Mungojerrie, the 14 year old kitty whose story graced this page last week, had become a heavy drinker and a world class urinator. His lab work led to a diagnosis of stage II kidney failure. Treatment with Hill’s k/d diet plus daily warm subcutaneous (under the skin) fluids would remain the foundation of his management but he needed more. Feline anatomy is veterinarian-friendly. We can actually feel cats’ kidneys by gentle external palpation, able to differentiate those of normal shape and size from a pair that’s shrunken and lobular. During Mungojerrie’s…
Lab Draws require Gentle Handling Mungojerrie, a 14 year old male kitty, has been a cherished companion to a man who fell for and married a woman of fine character with a penchant for dogs as well as cats. Mungojerrie swallowed his feline pride and adapted, only to be confronted soon thereafter by the entry of a baby boy, now an active toddler. Our protagonist in this tale of mirth and woe continues to accept life’s challenges with stoicism and grace. Cats don’t generally welcome change; Mungojerrie has soldiered through. Mungojerrie appeared to be aging gracefully until his people noticed…
Consult your Veterinarian for Perspective Question: We have a Staffordshire bull terrier, 14, stiff and a little weak on his back legs, sleeps a lot, and now seems to be going deaf, barks a lot, and stares into space. He asks to go to toilet and eats and drinks normally. A year ago we lost our rottie to a brain tumor. She was at her worst for two weeks before I realized what I was supposed to do, carrying her to the toilet because she could not stand. I was selfish and I knew that I had to end her…
Dirty Tricks & Booby Traps Question: Is there anything we can put around our trees to keep the neighborhood cats from using them as their personal cat box? Dr. Nichol: What? You don’t want your landscaping festooned with cat poop? Worried about getting parasites from gardening in your own yard? Are your indoor cats using your carpet as their bathroom because those local ruffians are taunting them with the feline equivalent of graffiti? Here are tips courtesy of the Cat Diva plus a pearl from the annals of operant conditioning. Cats like a soft, dry bathroom, so keep the soil…
Harsh Punishment can Work but Humane Treatment is Reliable & Safe Question: I appreciate last Friday’s column about shock collars. However there is one particular use for which I found it invaluable. My 4 month old terrier mix was chasing cars even on a leash. A neighbor k9 officer loaned me a shock collar with strict instructions to set it on maximum so that she would not acclimate. It worked beautifully; I only had to shock her twice. Now 14 years later she has never again chased a car. Dr. Nichol: It’s hard to argue with your success but it…
Rebuild Trust with Slow Desensitization Question: I brought our dog Oscar to a reputable trainer who recommended an electronic collar. I didn’t know how bad it would damage Oscar’s trust. Ever since the training, no one can get near him with a brush, especially around his neck. He goes nuts biting, growling to get me away. Otherwise, he loves me very much and trusts me. I tried the electric collar around my neck to see how bad it could be. It knocked me on my butt and made me feel even more horrible about what I did to my best…
Question: Our small rescue dog is 14 years old. During a recent senior checkup we discovered a bladder stone (from an ultrasound during a draw for urinalysis). She has no symptoms. She is increasingly distressed when we go to the veterinary clinic (panting, shaking, defecating). What is the worst case scenario if we do nothing? I love my dog, but I do not want to upend her mellow senior life. Dr. Nichol: I appreciate your concerns. We consider different factors with a canine senior on cruise control. Some problems advance so slowly that they never catch up to the pet’s…