Easter Eggs Can Kill Your Dogs: Keep Chocolate Away!

Every year, the Monday after Easter Sunday, Vets are overworked trying to save Dogs that are victims of Chocolate Poisoning.  So please keep your chocolate eggs away from  your chocolate-loving canine friends.  After your Egg Hunts are over, make sure you pick up any unclaimed eggs! Indeed, keep your dogs away from chocolate on any occasion!

     

             

Dog Owners Simply Don't Know the Dangers finds UK Survey
A shocking survey for Dogs Trust in the UK has revealed that over 57 per cent of pet dogs have eaten chocolate intended for humans and more than 1 in 10 have become ill from it. Of these, 8 per cent died and nearly a quarter required urgent veterinary treatment.
    Many dog owners are simply unaware of the dangers – 39 per cent of the dogs who’d eaten human chocolate were given it by their owners, while the remainder ate it because it had been just left lying around in the home.
    Chocolate contains theobromine, which is extremely toxic to dogs. Toxic doses vary according to the size of dog and cocoa solid content of the chocolate; the darker the chocolate, the greater the amount of theobromine. As a rough guide, Dogs Trust estimates that 50g of plain chocolate could be enough to kill a small dog, such as a Yorkshire Terrier.
                 

  
To keep your dog safe, follow these simple rules from Dogs Trust 
● Keep your ‘Chocolate Away’ – hidden out of sight where your dog can’t reach them.
● Never feed your dog chocolate intended for humans.
● If an Easter egg goes missing and you suspect your dog is the culprit, contact your vet straight away.
● Look out for any of the following symptoms: vomiting containing blood, a sore tummy, excessive thirst, excitability, drooling, rapid heart rate and, in severe cases, epileptic-type fits.
● If your dog is displaying any of these signs take him to your vet immediately – there is no antidote for theobromine poisoning so the sooner treatment is implemented, the greater the chance of recovery.
● If you want to give your dog an Easter treat stick to natural doggy snacks.

Welcome the World's First Test-Tube Puppies

The world's first puppies have been conceived using IVF — the same test-tube method that leads to the births of tens of thousands of human babies every year.

World's first litter of Test -tube Puppies

And they're ... just plain cute.

The idea is to be able to produce lab animals for medical tests. But the method can also be used to preserve endangered species, the team at Cornell University's College of Veterinary Medicine said.

Why has it taken so long? It's because dogs are unique when it comes to making puppies.

"Dog reproduction is very, very different from that of other mammals," said Alexander Travis, an associate professor of reproductive biology who helped lead the work.

It's taken decades of work to figure out how to make a puppy in a test tube.


The world's first human test-tube baby, Louise Brown, was born in 1978. Since then millions of children have been born after scientists united egg and sperm in lab dishes and implanted them into the wombs of women.

In-vitro fertilization or IVF has been used to breed cattle, monkeys, and even cats. But not dogs.

It's because their reproductive cycle is a little bit different. They only go into heat - produce eggs — twice a year, for one thing.

"When they ovulate an egg, it gets released at a very immature stage compared to other species," Travis added.

"So for example in human or mouse, when the egg is ovulated, it's pretty much ready to be fertilized. In the dog, it has to mature in the oviduct or Fallopian tube for several days."

And the eggs cells are dark and hard to see.

The Cornell team came up with a way to make it work using a bath that includes the chemical magnesium, and finding the right stage of egg cell to use, they report in the Public Library of Science journal PLoS ONE.

The result? Seven puppies.

Travis says the method can be used to breed endangered species.


"There's currently five species of dog that are threatened with extinction," he said. They include the red wolf, the African painted dog, and the Ethiopian wolf.

"So by doing this now in a domestic dog, what we're doing is creating a platform or starting place to now expand this technique to be used for all these other species of dog. It may not turn out to be exactly the same, but it gives us a really good starting point," Travis told NBC News.

Researchers also can use the method to correct genetic diseases that plague many breeds of dog.

"In-vitro fertilzation itself can't help prevent disease but what it does is it gives us a way to generate embryos and then we can use new technologies - gene editing technologies - to hopefully go in and fix uh certain genes that cause those diseases," Travis said.

"Dalmations are known for getting urinary stones; golden retrievers are susceptible to different types of cancer. Collies get certain eye defects."

And dogs are very prone to cancer. They're often used in labs to study human diseases.

"There are many, many diseases — over 350 diseases — that dogs have that are genetic in origin that are shared with people," Travis said.

What about the puppies?

"What's next for the puppies is a lot of house training," Travis said.

Source NBC

No Obamacare for Dogs! But Don't Overlook Canine Health Insurance

Pet insurance is not like human health insurance. It is designed to be more like automobile insurance, helping you prepare for the costs of large medical issues. Subscribers pay a monthly premium (prices vary depending on plan and company) instead of being surprised by a major illness or injury. It is like a safety net to catch you when you fall. It is certainly nice to have in an event where price is the last thing that you want to worry about.

When your dog is critically ill or injured, the last thing you want to think about is money. Her life and well-being certainly are priceless, but unfortunately budget must be a consideration.  When your pet is covered with pet insurance, you can focus on the important things and know that the price tag is taken care of. It is one less thing to worry about when worry is all you can do.

There are many companies and brands to choose from.  There are certainly charlatans (like in every industry) and you should ask for referrals from people you trust, like your veterinarian or fellow animal lovers. Good companies are more than willing to discuss their products and offerings.  Call around and talk with several and if you do not feel comfortable with one, mark them off your list.

There are a lot of options out there for pet insurance.  You can choose your carrier, your plan and deductible. The plan and the company need to be right for your pet’s needs and yours. See if you can find out what would be the best fit for your pet, taking into account his age, breed, lifestyle and health up that point. Make sure the premium is something that your budget can live with and that the plan covers your specific pet’s requirements.

Each company and plan has specifics that you should familiarize yourself with. Most have age and preexisting condition limitations. Pet owners hesitate to explore pet insurance because they hope that will never need it. If you do not, you can consider yourself lucky and if you do, you will be grateful for the policy.

Human health insurance covers preventive care in most cases. Some pet insurance companies offer riders to cover preventive care as well as catastrophic care too.  Make wellness coverage a part of your research, so that you know the variables of the plan, like deductible and premium. Preventive care is an issue that touches every pet because all pets need it. Ask your vet to estimate for you an average yearly cost for routine care, so you will know a good value when you research it.

If you are the type of person that can set aside a monthly amount on your own to plan for catastrophe (or dog-astrophe), you might not find benefit from an insurance plan. But if you would prefer having a safety net that is planned for you, pet insurance is an important consideration.

Being proactive about the things you can prevent and having pet insurance are things that you can do to keep your pet and your budget happy and healthy!

Source  By Dr Kathryn Primm

The Great Escape! How to stop it

By Josh Weiss-Roessler - Source

Tell me if this sounds familiar. You’re doing some housework inside while your dog is safely hanging out in your backyard, barking every once in a while at interesting odors or offending sounds. Everything is normal until suddenly the barking is coming from a different direction — your front door!

Confused, you get up to see what’s going on and are shocked to see that your dog has gotten out. Thank goodness she ran to the front door and started barking, because she could have gotten herself into some serious trouble.

How to keep your dog from escaping is a frightening problem that has plagued many owners — though many may also simultaneously wonder if they should put their pup in some kind of Houdini-eque magic show to exploit his talents!

There are two things to consider if you have an escape artist of a dog: why he tries to escape in the first place, and what you can do to stop him.

Why dogs decide to roam

Dogs roam for all kinds of reasons, and in many cases, it will depend on the personality of your individual pooch. Here are some of the most common causes.

Protecting territory
If your dog tends to bark whenever neighbors come into their backyards or strange sounds are heard on the street, he may attempt to get out to keep his area safe and get those “bad” people to go away.

Loneliness
It’s all well and good to have a backyard for your dog to roam around in, but she needs your attention, too. For some dogs, this can be actual separation anxiety, and leaving is an attempt to find you, but others simply want to hang out with somebody — anybody! If you leave your dog alone in the backyard for too long, she may attempt to leave just to have some kind of social interaction. Along those lines…

Your dog has found something fun
When dogs escape and discover something exciting beyond the fence (another dog to play with, a field to run around in, food), they may keep trying to get out so that they can go have fun again. Why were they trying to escape in the first place? Probably because they were bored.

Your dog has found a friend
If you have an unneutered male dog and there’s an un-spayed female in heat somewhere in the neighborhood, he will smell her and he will try to find her — and have enormous incentive to get out of the yard however possible, whether over, under, or through the fence.

Chasing
Does your dog try to pounce on squirrels during walks and yank out of your grasp because he just knows he can get to that bird before it flies away? If you have a pooch that likes to hunt, he may be escaping because he’s after another animal and will do whatever it takes to get to it.

What to do to prevent roaming

First, install a fence
Hopefully this is obvious, but you never want your dog outside without your supervision if she’s not in an enclosed area of some kind. A physical fence is usually best, but if you are unable to do this in your neighborhood, using an electronic fence is better than risking the possibility of your dog running into the street.

Keep your dog engaged
If you believe that your dog is escaping due to boredom, try to find ways to keep him interested. This might mean getting a few more toys for the backyard, taking longer walks, or teaching him a new trick once a day.

Prevent digging
One of the most common ways for dogs to get out of fenced-in areas is for them to dig a big enough space to crawl under the wall or gate. You can decrease the chances of this happening by placing a chain link fence or large rocks along the edge of the yard, or by burying chicken wire under the ground at the base of the fence so they can’t dig through it.

Spay and neuter
If your male dog is neutered, he’ll be far less likely to try to escape in search of females, and if your female is spayed, she won’t turn your house into a magnet for every unfixed male dog in the area. Bonus points: spayed and neutered dogs can be healthier, live longer lives, and don’t contribute to the problem of too many unwanted dogs around.

For more tips and tricks about keeping your dog from escaping your yard, talk to your vet or a local dog professional. And of course, the best way to keep your dog from escaping is to not let her outside unless you are able to supervise her.

Dogs Suffer from Allergies Just Like We Do

There's few things worse than watching a dogs furiously and interminably scratching some part of his or her body, only to be ignored by the owner. What does the poor animal have to do to communicate his discomfort? This article describes the symptoms to look for and identifies the three main potential families of allergy...flee, food and environmental. Possible treatments are highlighted but a trip your local vet is essential!

If your dog seems to have an allergic condition, it's important to get an appointment with your veterinarian as soon as you can.

There are safer ways to relieve your dog's symptoms than pharmaceuticals while you and your vet work to discover the root cause of the allergic reaction.

Relieving symptoms without addressing the source of the problem is a short term fix to what can become a lifelong health problem. And certain drugs used to stop the allergic cycle have significant, potentially very serious side effects.

Flea Allergy Dermatitis (FAD)


Flea allergy dermatitis, which is actually sensitivity to flea saliva, is a very common condition in dogs. It's not the bite of the flea that causes most of the itching in dogs with FAD, it's the saliva.

The saliva causes irritation way out of proportion to the actual number of fleas on the pup.

Lots of dog parents assume if their pet isn't infested with fleas, the itching can't be caused by fleas. But if your dog has FAD, the saliva of just one or two fleas can make him miserably itchy and uncomfortable for many weeks (long past the death of those two fleas).

Suggestions for flea control:

•If you suspect or know fleas are a problem for your dog, I recommend you comb her at least once daily, every day during pest season with a flea comb. Do this on a white towel or other light colored cloth so you can see what's coming off your dog as you comb. Flea 'dirt' (actually flea feces) looks like real dirt, but when suspended in a little rubbing alcohol or water will dissolve and release a red color (blood) allowing you to discern real dirt from flea dirt.

•Bathe your dog often. A soothing bath will kill any fleas on your dog, help heal skin irritation, and make her feel more comfortable and less itchy. Also, clean animals aren't as attractive to fleas. Pick a non-grain (no oatmeal) herbal shampoo.

•Make liberal use of an all-natural pest repellent like Natural Flea and Tick Defense during flea season.

For some dogs with a serious case of flea allergy dermatitis, I prescribe an oral drug called Comfortis. It is a chemical, but it's considered the least hazardous of all similar drugs. All drugs can have side effects, but Comfortis has reportedly fewer than topical insecticides.

Food Allergies


If your dog has an allergy to something he's eating, it may show itself not only as digestive upset (gas, diarrhea, vomiting, etc.), but also as one or several of these symptoms:

•Itchy or oozing skin
•Red, irritated eyes
•Nasal discharge
 •Coughing or sneezing; asthma
•Inflamed ears
•Swollen paws


If you suspect your dog is sensitive to something in her diet, there are a number of things you can do to learn the source of the allergy and solve the problem:

If your pet has been eating the same food every day for months or years, there's a good chance she's developed an allergy to it. Contrary to what you've probably been led to believe, pets need diversity in their diets just like humans do. She might be sensitive to the single source of chemically-laced protein she's been getting (chances are the meat is loaded with antibiotics and hormones causing immune system over-reaction). She's also probably grown sensitive to certain allergenic ingredients in the food, typically grains and other carbohydrates.

 Work with your vet to develop an allergy elimination diet to help pinpoint the source of the problem. I recommend a three-month diet, which is longer than what many vets suggest. I like to give adequate time for an animal's body to clear the allergenic substances, detoxify, and clean out cellular debris.

 At the end of the elimination diet, new foods are added back in slowly, one at a time to gauge your dog's response. It's not uncommon for pets to be able to re-incorporate previous problem foods or clean proteins into the diet once the body is detoxified and the GI tract is healthy again.

•Your holistic vet should also suggest natural supplements to help with detoxification, allergy relief and immune system support during and after the elimination diet.

•To be optimally healthy -- which includes avoiding food sensitivities and building resistance to all types of allergies -- your dog should be fed a balanced, species-appropriate diet. The diet I recommend is preferably raw, either homemade (again, as long as it's balanced) or commercial. Rotating the protein sources your dog eats is extremely important, as is strictly limiting or eliminating grains.

Environmental Allergies

In addition to flea saliva and certain foods/ingredients, your dog can also be allergic to an infinite variety of irritants in the environment. These can be outdoor allergens like ragweed, grasses and pollens, as well as indoor irritants like mold, dust mites, cleaning chemicals and even fabrics like wool or cotton.

As a general rule, if your dog is allergic to something inside your home, he'll have year-round symptoms. If he's reacting is to something outdoors, it could very well be a seasonal problem.

Also, your pet's immune system is partly genetic, so he can actually inherit a tendency toward environmental allergies.

Finding the root cause of this type of allergy is extremely important, because what usually happens is the more your pet is exposed to an irritant, the more his sensitivity and reaction to it grows.

Some suggestions for finding and resolving environmental irritants:
•Clean up your pet's indoor air environment. Don't allow smoking around your pet. Switch to non-toxic cleaning products. Consider investing in an air purifier to control dust mites.

•Make sure your dog's drinking water is high quality and doesn't contain fluoride, heavy metals or other contaminants.

•Don't allow your dog to be over-vaccinated or over medicated. Vaccines rev up your pet's immune system – too many vaccinations can send it into overdrive. An over-reactive immune system sets the stage for allergic conditions.

 Antibiotics wipe out good bacteria right along with the bad guys. Since the majority of your pet's immune system is in her GI tract, the right balance of gut bacteria is crucial for her health. There's also the growing problem of antibiotic resistance in pets.

Steroid therapy (prednisone, for example) is often prescribed for pets with allergies. What these drugs do is turn off the immune system so it stops creating the allergic response. It does work for symptom relief, but unfortunately, the side effects make this a very serious, potentially dangerous drug.
•Bathe your dog. If your pet has irritated skin, bathing will rinse the allergens away and make her feel better immediately. Don't be shy about how often you bathe your pet, especially if she suffers from allergies that itch and irritate her skin.

 If you suspect something outdoors is irritating your dog, in between baths, do foot soaks. Chances are the allergen is coming inside on your pet's feet. She can't escape it, and she's spreading it around indoors to every room she visits.



Source Dr Becker  on Mercola Healthy Pets