4 Tips for a Safe Trip to the Dog Park You’re ready to take your dog to the nearest dog park and thisidea is greeted with an enthusiastic “Woof!”. That’s great since a dog park is a wonderful way to let your dog socialize with other people and their pets while getting a fair amount of exercise playing with his furry friends. However, if you’re taking your pup to the park for the first time, here are 4 tips you must remember to make this trip a fun-filled, happy and safe experience for your pet. Tip #1 Choose a dog park carefully While a clean and well-maintained dog park should be your first priority, it’s also important to know the kind of crowd you would expect there. Therefore, it’s advisable that you visit the park once before hitting the place with your dog. Look for any signs of low-maintenance such as dog poops lying everywhere, unkempt surroundings, pits and holes etc. Notice the times when the park is too crowded and avoid bringing your dog during the busiest slots. Tip #2 Keep in mind the size of your dog Size matters when it comes to letting your dog loose to play with other dogs. If you own a small breed or you have a pup, you should look for a park that has a separate section for small dogs to keep them safe from the rough games of adult dogs. However, if you take your dog to a dog park that has no such facility, keep a close watch on him at all times and be ready to intervene at the slightest hint of trouble. Tip #3 Read the signs of aggression It’s always a better move to prevent a fight rather than having to pull the wrangling pets apart. You must learn to identify[Read More…]

Ain’t Misbehavin’ : A Balanced Approach to Dog Training “If your puppy growls when you try to take his bone away, grab him by the scruff of the neck, flip him onto his back and hold him down until he submits to you.” When I was a young veterinarian fresh out of school, this is an example of “puppy training” advice I’d offer my clients. Mind you, I’d received no animal behavior training in vet school – everything I thought I knew about dog behavior I’d learned from reading articles or from my boss at the clinic. At the time, popular theory asserted that a dog’s behavior is patterned after its wild ancestors. This meant that in order for a pup to learn its proper place and grow up to be a well-mannered adult dog, you’d have to demonstrate who was the “alpha dog” (you!) of his pack. While this theory seemed perfectly reasonable to me at the time, it turned out to be based on incorrect assumptions about pack behavior gleaned from studies of captive wolves rather than in the wild. Leading wolf expert Dr. L. David Mech writes in The Canadian Journal of Zoology, “In the wild, the typical wolf pack is a family, with the adult parents guiding the activities of a group in a division-of-labor system;; dominance contests with other wolves are rare, if they exist at all.” Looking back, I now realize that my pack-centric advice actually resulted in some puppies becoming fearful, withdrawn and even aggressive as adult dogs. Certainly this was not the outcome I was expecting as a committed and compassionate young vet. Up through the 19th century, the prevailing attitude was that dogs, like horses, had a wild nature that needed to be “broken” by whatever means necessary. A more enlightened[Read More…]

Feelin’ Hot, Hot, Hot The full force of summertime is upon us here in the Rogue Valley. It’s something that folks who’ve lived here for many years are well acquainted with, but even old-timers will tell you that this is an exceptionally hot, dry summer. In many respects, these conditions directly impact our daily lives and the animals unde r our care. Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) can offer practical ways for us to keep our animals comfortable and healthy in extreme weather conditions. The most basic concept in TCM is the ever-evolving balance between Yin and Yang, the two opposing principles in nature. Yang is hot, active, dry and bright; Yin is cool, calm, moist and dark. Too much Yang? You need more Yin. And vice versa. The two opposites need to be in balance with each other. But right now, at least climate-wise, we’re experiencing total Yang. Individuals who are already shifted a bit toward the Yang side of things will be more adversely affected by our hot, dry weather. So, for example, an Arabian mare with a hot, “fiery” disposition would be more likely to become agitated and restless in hot weather than a laid back Warmblood. An elderly cat with poor kidney function and a lack of Yin could easily become dehydrated and possibly constipated in the heat. Not only can TCM explain why some individuals are prone to problems at certain times of the year, it also gives practical advice on helping our animals thrive during extreme weather conditions. One of the most important concepts to understand is the energetic nature of different foods. Almost anyone would agree that watermelon and cucumbers sound much more appealing right now than say, a pot roast. This is because our bodies are naturally attracted to foods that cool us[Read More…]

                                                                                          Ick…It’s a Tick! More than once this year, I’ve heard my wife react with disgust at the discovery of a tick on one of our dogs or cats. It does seem to be a particularly bad year for ticks here in Southern Oregon, but it’s no reason to fear venturing out with your pooch onto one of our incredible regional hiking trails. My wife and I live in an area just outside of Jacksonville that is prime tick habitat, and it’s been necessary for us to come to terms with this reality. But while ticks are no doubt repulsive creatures, encounters with them and the potential hazards they bring can be minimized with some simple nontoxic strategies. Prevention measures, such as keeping grass short and brush cut back on your property, can reduce tick habitat. Guinea fowl are particularly adept at clearing ticks and other insect pests from the land although your neighbors may not appreciate the birds’ raucous vocalization! Also be sure to keep dogs from running into tall grass, leaf debris and brush during tick season. Ticks find a meal by perching on vegetation and waiting for an unknowing host to brush by. Always check your dog (and yourself) for ticks after a walk. It’s much better to find and remove a tick then drown it in soapy water before it has had a chance to attach itself. If you do happen to find a tick attached to your pet, don’t panic. Grasp the tick by the bodyand slowly pull directly outwards until it disattaches. Better yet, a little device[Read More…]

What the Heck is Homeopathy?   While most of my clients are familiar with acupuncture, herbal and chiropractic medicine, many have never heard of homeopathy ­ or at least have limited understanding of what it is. Sometimes there’s confusion between “homeopathy” and “holistic,” which is understandable, because many people have only a vague idea of what these terms really mean. While the term “holistic” refers to an entire medical philosophy, homeopathy is actually just one of many modalities a holistic or naturopathic medical practitioner might use. Homeopathy is a medical treatment system that was developed in Germany in the late 1700s by Dr. Samuel Hahnemann. The common medical treatments of the time were quite crude by our modern standards, and included bloodletting and administration of mercury and other extremely toxic substances. Dr. Hahnemann became so disillusioned with medicine that he quit his practice and began translating medical texts for a living. In one of these texts, he encountered the claim that malaria was remedied by cinchona (quinine), a substance made from the bark of a Peruvian tree. Wondering what it was about this bark that made it effective, he experimented by ingesting progressively higher doses of the substance himself. To his amazement, he found that by taking enough of the cinchona solution, he created symptoms in himself that were very similar to that of a malaria patient, though not as severe. Further experimentation led to him to conclude, “That which can produce a set of symptoms in a healthy individual, can treat a sick individual who is manifesting a similar set of symptoms.” This “like cures like” principle became the basis for homeopathy (homeo = same; + pathy = suffering). Because he wanted to use medicine in the gentlest and safest way possible, Hahnemann experimented with smaller and smaller dilutions of what were[Read More…]

It didn’t take long to figure out why Sophie was limping. On the previous day, the active six-year-old Labrador Retriever had been chasing a ball when she suddenly let out a yelp and began limping on her rear leg. When I examined her knee, I immediately knew that she had torn her ACL, or anterior cruciate ligament. When I told Sophie’s “mom” that surgery was the best option to ensure that her dog could return to normal mobility, she was shocked to learn that the procedure would cost $2,500 $to 4,000.   Unless you’ve had a dog with an ACL injury, you may not be aware that it’s by far the most common orthopedic injury of dogs. The ligament is found inside the knee joint and is responsible for maintaining front to back stability of the knee. When the ligament is completely torn, the dog will not be able to put its full weight on the leg. Frequently, the ligament tears without any obvious trauma in dogs that are overweight or that have genetically poor conformation of their knees. Because the ends of a completely torn ligament inside the knee do not reattach on their own, surgery is frequently recommended to stabilize the joint and allow normal use of the leg.   Not every dog with an ACL injury needs surgery, however. Dogs weighing less than 30 pounds usually do well without surgery because they don’t bear as much weight on the affected leg. A nonsurgical option for ACL injuries in larger dogs is to have a custom knee brace made for the dog. I have two cases where the clients have opted to use a brace instead of surgery, and the dogs are able to walk quite well. It also appears that if used properly, these braces may allow the dog’s knee to tighten[Read More…]

                                                                                     The Year of the Horse Our little town of Jacksonville has a rich and colorful history, part of which includes a significant population of Chinese immigrants who lived here in the late 1800s. In recognition of this unique part of our cultural history, Jacksonville recently celebrated Chinese New Year. This is the Year of the Horse in the Chinese calendar, so it seems like a good time to take a look at a very Chinese medical modality for horses: acupuncture. The practice of acupuncture and herbal medicine for horses is thought to be more than 2,000 years old. Legend has it that veterinary acupuncture was discovered when lame horses used in battle were found to become sound after being hit by arrows at distinct points. Veterinary acupuncture is documented to have been practiced in China from around 2,000 to 3,000 BC, and the first text on the subject was written in 650 BC.  Even though the TCM (Traditional Chinese Medicine) premise of energy flow and balance is quite foreign to Western medical principals, this ancient healing modality has survived to this day, and finds a place alongside the most modern veterinary and human medical technologies. Acupuncture can be used to treat a wide variety of ailments in horses, from lameness, foot and back problems to stomach ulcers and behavioral issues. There is point on the edge of the nostril that can get a horse out of an episode of colic in less than 15 minutes. Treating points on the tips of the ears and the tip of the tail can[Read More…]

  Arriving home after work, I was feeling tired after a long busy day. It was already dark and chilly outside, and I was looking forward to grabbing a beer from the fridge, polishing off the rest of last night’s chili, and settling onto the couch for the evening. But my wife was quick to remind me that the dogs hadn’t been out all day and were in need of a walk. Not really what I had in mind, but I dutifully put on my coat, hat and head lamp, grabbed the leashes and headed outside with the gang. The dogs were thrilled, of course, and after a few minutes I realized that this was what I really needed myself. Yes, it sometimes takes some prodding when the couch is calling, but the benefits of exercise – for you and your pets alike – are far-reaching and profound. Studies show that exercise has important physical, mental and emotional benefits not only for humans, but also for the dogs, cats, birds, horses and other domesticated animals in our care. Obesity and musculoskeletal issues are rather obvious problems associated with inadequate exercise. But what about diabetes and senile dementia in dogs, and urinary tract disease and cardiomyopathy in cats? Laminitis and gastric ulcers in horses? Or feather picking and fatty liver disease in caged birds? The list goes on. The truth is – in order to have optimal health – all domesticated animals need a level of physical activity that mimics the behavior of their wild ancestors. This is pretty easy to understand with domestic dogs. Going for walks and chasing objects mimics the activity of an Australian dingo in the Outback and an African dog in the savanna. But does your cat need to go for walks too? Well, our two[Read More…]