Ticks promise to be in large numbers this year, according to parasitologists. The mild winter we just had, combined with our record population of deer, the natural host of many tick species, provides the nearly ideal environment for ticks to multiply.
Ticks can transmit a number of diseases which can affect pets, as well as people. Among these are Rocky Mountain Spotted Fever, Lyme Disease, Ehrlichia and Anaplasmosis. Symptoms for Rocky Mountain Spotted Fever usually show up within days of a tick bite, but most other tick-borne illnesses may not manifest for days or weeks. Also, many tick stages are so small they may go unnoticed, particularly in a thick-coated outdoor dog. Thus, diagnosing a tick-borne illness can be difficult, especially when ticks may go unnoticed.
The best way to avoid tick-borne illness in pets and people is prevention. For people, apply repellents such as DEET before venturing into woods, tall grass, or brushy areas. Also, inspect yourself and family members carefully after such an outing. Remember, DEET cannot be used on pets.
To protect pets, clear away brush, weeds and tall grass. Contrary to popular belief, ticks do not drop from trees. Rather, they climb to the top of a blade of grass or other plant, and wait for a potential host to brush against them.
Finally, regularly use commercial topical tick control products such as Advantix or Preventic collars. Pay close attention to the label-size matters! And some products can not be used on cats.
One interesting side note on the topical tick control products: Many work by hyperstimulating the ticks nervous system. They detach and begin to crawl rapidly. I have received a number of calls from clients who claimed that they saw a few ticks, applied a topical product, and now see “ticks crawling everywhere.” That means the product is working! Within a few hours those ticks will be dead.
Don’t wait until you see ticks to begin prevention. Apply products now and continue year-round. Our mild winters do not adequately kill off ticks and allow us to stop prevention, especially on outdoor pets.
Signs of a tick-borne illness may include, fever, lethargy,muscle and joint pain, bruising, nose-bleed, or other unexplained hemorrhage. If you suspect a tick-borne illness, or see any of those symptoms, please call for an appointment.
When attempting to remove a tick, grasp close to the skin with tweezers. Wear gloves and wash the area with soap and water afterwards. If a large number of ticks are attached to your pet, call for an appointment.
Do not apply vaseline, nail polish or use a lit or unlit match. These do not work, and may cause the tick to deposit more disease-carrying saliva.
Please call our office if you have any questions about ticks or any other pet-related questions.
Randal Burris, DVM
March 6, 2012
What is a cherry eye?
Cherry eye is a common term used to describe the prolapse of the gland of the membrana nictitans. Huh?! Dogs, unlike people, have three eyelids per eye-the upper, the lower as well as a third eyelid, also known as the membrana nictitans. This third eyelid attaches at the corner of the eye and appears like a pink membrane. It provides additional protections especially from dust, airborne particles, and other foreign material.
Within the membrana, nictitans is a gland which will occasionally enlarge and protrude from under the third eyelid, like a small pink or red cherry, hence the term “cherry eye”. This is usually seen in young dogs; and certain breeds such as cocker spaniels and bulldogs seem to be more prone to this gland prolapse.
Performing “Cherry eye” surgery
Various surgeries exist to address this problem. Most veterinary ophthalmologists, eye doctors, agree that the gland should NOT be surgically removed except as a last resort. Removing the gland may result in the under production of tears and eventual damage to the eye. Instead, the surgeon should attempt to reposition the gland back inside the third eyelid. Post surgical complications such as swelling, can be addressed with eye drops, oral medication, and the use of E-collars to prevent trauma to the eye as it heals.
Patient recovering from “Cherry eye” surgery
Occasionally the gland may re-prolapse requiring additional surgery and only if all else fails removal of the gland. If you are concerned your pet may have a cherry eye or for any other questions, give us a call. Randal Burris, DVM
My pet has fleas. What can I do to help my pet?
Successful flea control involves eliminating fleas from your pet and controlling fleas in the environment. Dogs and cats share the same fleas. All pets in your home should be on flea prevention. There are many choices for flea control these days so discuss with your veterinarian which product would be the most appropriate for you pet. Remember, cats can only use cat products. Using a dog product for fleas on a cat can have dangerous side effects.
For cats, we recommend Revolution which is a topical product for not only fleas but for intestinal parasites, ear mites and heartworms. It is applied once a month. This is a prescription product; your pet must have seen the veterinarian within one year when the product is purchased.
For dogs we recommend Advantix. Advantix is a topical solution applied monthly for the prevention of fleas, ticks, and mosquito bites. We also sell Comfortis which is a monthly pill for flea control. Comfortis must be given with a meal. Advantix and Comfortis are not heartworm preventions, so your dog will still have to take a monthly pill to protect against heartworm disease and intestinal parasites. Trifexis is the Comfortis product combined with a heartworm prevention to give protection against fleas, heartworms, and intestinal worms in one pill. Comfortis and Trifexis are both prescriptions.
To treat the pet's environment, we recommend vacuuming the carpet to stimulate the pre-adult fleas to emerge. Be sure to empty your vacuum container or throw away your vacuum bag. Ask your veterinarian which home product they recommend for you. Bayer, who makes Advantix, also makes products for treating the home and yard.
Outdoor areas need to be treated as well. Concentrate on dark, shaded areas. Spray a product containing an IGR or Insect Growth Regulators every 14-21 days for three to five applications.
Deworming- Nearly all puppies are born with intestinal parasites such as roundworm and hookworm, whether the mother was dewormed or not. The reason for this is the life-cycle of the parasites. Both roundworms and hookworms spend the majority of their life in the migratory phase. Immature larval worms migrate through the tissues of the body until they eventually make their way into the lungs, from which they are coughed up, swallowed, and develop into adult worms in the intestines which lay eggs that can be found via a microscopic examination of the pup's feces. This migration of parasites has a number of implications. Dewormers are not very effective against the migratory phase. Therefore, mothers can pass the worms to their pups in utero, or to nursing pups in milk. That's why nearly all puppies have worms.
More importantly, these parasites may, on occasion, infect people, especially children, through exposure to eggs or hatched larvae in the soil. A child who plays in dirt in which an infected dog had defecated weeks before may be infected by hookworm larvae penetrating the soles of wet feet, or by hookworm or roundworm eggs from teh soil on their hands entering the mouth when the child eats or drinks. The larvae can migrate to major organs such as the liver or eye.
The way to protect ourselves is to deworm our puppies at least 3 times with four weeks between dewormings. This allows migratory phases of the worms to develop into adult in the intestines susceptible to our dewormers. Following this, if we keep our pets on monthly parasite prevention for heartworm, this will also help protect against hookworm and roundworms.
The American Academy of Pediatrics recommends at least 3 rounds of dewormer for puppies and kittens, in order to protect our childre. Other precautions include: wearing gloves when gardening, restricting where our pets are allowed to defecate, cleaning pet droppings from the yard, and washing our heands after handling pet feces or soil.
Please see your veterinarian to set up a series of "well-puppy" visits for that new family member. A happy healthy puppy is a joy to all who meet him. Feel free to post any questions.
Congratulations! That bouncy, energetic, lovable ball of fluff is now a member of your family. This is the start of a wonderful relationship that will provide both of you hours of companionship and devotion. I once read a quote that dogs make great friends because they wag their tails instead of their tongues. That new puppy will need a number of things during its first year. I'd like to cover vaccines and deworming.
Vaccines- Vaccines stimulate the immune system by providing either a killed or attenuated (weakened) version of disease-causing, microorganisms to the pet. The activated immune system is then able to protect the pet from the possibly life-threatening version of these diseases. The reasons puppies receive so many vaccines their first year are two-fold. One reason is to boost the immune system. By giving vaccines between 2 and 4 weeks apart, the immune response is enhanced. The second and most important reason puppies receive several rounds of vaccines is to time the moment when the individual puppy's immune system is competent to respond to the vaccine. This time to respond to the vaccine. This time is different for every individual, but lies somewhere between 6 and 16 weeks of age. Prior to 6 weeks of age, antibodies from the mother circulate in the bloodstream of the puppy, protecting it from any disease for which the mother was protected, but also blocking any vaccine give to the puppy. That's why any vaccine given before 6 weeks of age is useless. Since this maternal antibody wears off at different times for different puppies, we begin vaccinating at 6 to 8 weeks and continue every 3-4 weeks until 4 months of age. This will help ensure that vaccines are given at the critical moment when the puppy's immune system can respond. Please watch for the next posting about deworming. Randal Burris, DVM
Pets with ear mites often have black or brown debris in the ear and the pet is very itchy. Ear mites are not as common as say a yeast infection in the ears. Ear mites are more commonly found in puppies and kittens rather than adults. We offer a one-time only treatment for ear mites so there is usually no need for owners to treat at home. If you can stomach it, check out this microscopic view of an ear mite.
It depends on the breed and size of your pet. Obesity leads to several diseases both in pets and people. Type II diabetes, heart disease and arthritis are the most common weight-related disorders. Diet and weight reduction are the key to ensuring your pet lives a healthy, long life. Obesity is defined as weighing more than 30% of the ideal weight. With humans, this is fairly straightforward and can be determined by consulting weight and height charts. Dogs and cats are often diagnosed as obese by a combinations of weight charts and body scoring.
GO TO THIS SITE TO SEE AN EXAMPLE OF HEALTHY AND UNHEALTHY BODY CONDITIONS.
There are multiple reasons for foul breath. Reasons can include serious medical problems, such as kidney failure or diabetes, or can be as simple as eating something smelly. Remember, our furry friends don’t brush and floss!By far, the most common reason for bad breath is due to plaque, tartar and decay of teeth and gums. If your pet consistently has bad breath, a visit to your veterinarian is due. Dental plaque and tarter removal is accomplished by placing your pet under anesthesia, the plaque is then scaled off, both on the tooth surface and under the gums. Next, the teeth are polished, and many clinics apply fluoride.
Once your pet’s oral health has been restored, you can help maintain their clean teeth. Brushing is still the best method. Use soft-bristled brushes or finger-brushes and toothpaste made for pets. Children’s toothpaste can be used, but don’t use adult paste, as pets don’t spit! If your pet won’t stand for brushing, there are many other products that help reduce the build-up of plaque; rinses, chew-bones and even special foods that can help.
For more information, please visit our web-site: GTVets.com
Processing ....
Ticks promise to be in large numbers this year, according to parasitologists. The mild winter we just had, combined with our record population of deer, the natural host of many tick species, provides the nearly ideal environment for ticks to multiply.
To protect pets, clear away brush, weeds and tall grass. Contrary to popular belief, ticks do not drop from trees. Rather, they climb to the top of a blade of grass or other plant, and wait for a potential host to brush against them.
