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Week 1 - Oct 08, Weekly Ask a Vet Q&A

  • Q: Our (almost) 2 year old pitbull mix was suspected of having Acral Mutilation Syndrome. It was so bad at one point that she went for months with her back paws always wrapped and even had to have a digit removed. After spending over $8,000 in vet and emergency room visits, she now has to wear a cone at night or when we are unable to give her all our attention. She must always stay in her crate with the cone on when we are not home. Recently she has been trying to get at her feet more often. We were thinking of having a series of allergy tests done to defiantly rule them out. I recently read however that an Electromyography can prove/disprove her suspected syndrome. Can this be done at our veterinary office or would we have to go to a specialist? How much does it typically cost? We are desperate for a definite answer whether is be AMS or allergies, but not knowing how to help her accordingly is the worst feeling! Please help! Also, any additional information on AMS would be appreciated-it's very hard to find good information on such an unknown disease.
    Allison, Lweisville, TX (Question of the Week)

  • A : I’m sorry to hear that your girl has such a severe disease. Acral Mutilation Syndrome is fortunately quite rare, however is a very serious disease. In this syndrome dogs lose pain sensation in their toes, due to a slowly progressive degeneration of the sensory neurons in the spinal cord and in peripheral nerves. The hind limbs are affected the most and it is believed to have a genetic cause. Other causes of hind limb self mutilation may be caused by behavioral problems or triggered by an underlying allergy such as is found in lick granulomas. Electromyography will determine whether or not the condition is caused by degeneration of the neurons. If this is ruled out then treatment can be initiated for the other causes. This is a specialist procedure. You should ask your vet for a referral to the nearest university teaching hospital or specialist veterinary neurologist. I’m sorry I can not give you an indication of the costs for this procedure. Here is a link with more information.
     
  • Q: Hi there! I have a small female chihuahua named Cha-Cha. She recently started her first period. I'm wondering approximately how long do they last and how frequently do they occur? Thank you
    Bonnie M, Seymour,IN
  • A : The length of time that a female dog will remain in season varies between individual animals, however the accepted norm is about 21 days from first swelling of the vulva to finishing the season. They usually come into season twice a year, every 6 months or so.
     
  • Q: I have recently started as a foster mom to about 30 kittens I'm having problems with upper respitory infections which I'm giving amoxicillan. it isn't working also they have blood in their stools I've wormed them ,looks like they had roundworms,I can't take them to the vets I'm paying for all their food and litter,and I can't seem to get any help from the woman that brought all of these kittens to me,tey range in age from 3 to7 months thankyou for any help.
     Tammy G, Mcminnville, OR

  • A: Most upper respiratory tract infections are caused by viruses, The Amoxicillan will only help control secondary bacterial infections and won’t have a direct affect on the virus. Treating a large number of kittens with upper respiratory tract infections is very difficult. General nursing of each kitten is required. Dehydration is the main killer of kittens with URT infection. You will need to make sure they are taking in fluids and not dehydrating. Maintain the kittens body temperature with a warm environment. Syringing of mashed up food or a high energy supplement such as Nutrigel will help maintain the kittens. Gently bath away any nasal or eye discharges. Very sick kittens need to be isolated from others that can eat and drink by themselves. 
     
  • Q: My German Shepherd mix, Roscoe, has been losing a lot of weight and his stool looks like cow pies. I feel like he may have worms. I have ordered Drontal Plus, but am worried about him in the meantime. My Vet is out of town on a personal matter, so I can't get advice from him. He had been very active until the last couple of days, he seems to be sleeping more and not as interested in participating with the goings on outside. I'm terribly worried. Any comments?
    Linda, Dallas,TX
  • A: There are a number of conditions that can cause similar symptoms of loose bowel motions and weight loss. While worms may cause these signs and are very common, other disease that can cause these signs are diseases causing malabsorption or  maldigestion, neoplastic diseases, infectious diseases etc. I think it best that you have your dog checked by a vet as soon as you can.
     
  • Q: my dog is six years old and she has arthristis and she only in pain when it gets cold. what can i give her to stop the pain and get her walking again
    Christine,TX
  • A: There are a number of supplements that help with this problem. These supplements contain glucosamine and chondroitin which have been shown to reduce pain and inflammation, stimulate healthy joint function, protects cartilage and stimulate healthy joint fluid production. Most dogs show a noticeable improvement on these products. Brands that we stock are Sasha’s blend powder and Glucosamine tablets..
     
  • Q: MY cat's had fleas, and i have bought them frontline to help control this. But they have been scratching so much that they have pulled the fur off of their necks. They each have some bald spots. Is there some type of cream or other treatment that I should used for this problem?
    John S, Bethel Park, PA
  • Dr Mark: You can use a cream such as Dermaclens cream or a spray such as Wound-Gard. Both will help speed up the healing time and minimize the chance of any secondary infection.


  • Q:My vet mentioned that my 12 wk. old Shih-tzu has an umbilical hernia. I asked what do you about it,and was told probably nothing. What is this and does it ever require treatment
    Terry M, Delaware

  • A : An umbilical hernia is a deficit in the abdominal wall in the area of the umbilicus which allows the abdominal contents to protrude through. Normal the umbilicus closes over shortly after birth and the abdominal fat, omentum and intestines stays within the abdominal cavity. With a deficit the omentum and abdominal fat and in larger hernias the intestine can protrude out. Small hernias are generally not a problem and dogs can live with them all of their lives without any problem. For larger hernias it is recommended that these be surgically repaired to stop the risk of strangulation of the intestines. Your veterinarian should be able to quickly say whether a hernia should be repaired. Often this can be done at the same time as the spay or neutering operation..  
     
  • Q: I've been useing frontline spot control for flea for my cats, the problem being i really need to find  something that works just as good or better at a more reasonable price, simply because i need so many at once. What would you say i could use?
    Linda, OH
  • A : Unfortunately with flea control the more you pay the better the product is. All of the once a month treatments can add up in cost, but the cheaper products don’t work as well or last as long. The large dog sizes of Revolution and Advantage contain the same active ingredient as the cat product. I do know of some breeders with multiple cats who use the large dog sizes but break the dosage down so as to save on costs.

 

  • Q: I give my dog Advantage-Multi which is for worms, fleas and flea eggs. But it doesn't say anything about ticks. And I have not found a medicine that is just for ticks...they all are for both fleas and ticks. Can I give her that medicine in addition to the Advantage-Multi, or is that too much? And if not, do have any suggestions for switching her medicine so she can get all three areas covered--fleas, ticks, and worms? Thank you!
    .
    Maria L, Rialto, CA
  • A : Unfortunately there is no one perfect product that covers all that you need.

    Advocate (Advantage Multi) - is a multi-purpose product that combines imidacloprid (as found in Advantage) with moxidectin so it kills fleas, as well as prevents heartworm, hookworm, roundworm and whipworm in dogs a with monthly application – however it has no real effect against ticks.

    Revolution – also has a multiple action. It is easy to use, controls ticks as well as fleas, heartworm and some intestinal worms – but not whipworm.
    You could use Revolution but still need to give a separate wormer to cover the whipworm, such as Drontal, Canex or Popantel every 3 months.

    K9 Advantix – is easy to use, controls ticks as well as fleas. Also repels mosquitoes so is very good for dogs in high mosquito areas.  If you were to use Advantix you will still need to give a heartwormer such as Heartgard Plus or Nuheart to cover heartworm and a separate wormer to cover the whipworm, such as Drontal, Canex or Popantel every 3 months.

    There are tick collars available such as Preventic which you can use with the Advantage Multi.
     
  • Q: do cats need heart guard? Do you sell it?.
    Linda N, NJ

  • Dr Mark: The incidence of heartworm in cats is a lot lower than in dogs, however the consequences of the disease can be very serious with some cats dieing suddenly. If you live in a heartworm area then it is recommended to use a heartworm preventative on your cat. We don’t stock Heartgard for cats, however we do have Revolution which does control heartworm as well as treat fleas in cats. It is very easy to use as it is a once a month topical treatment applied to the skin at the back of the neck.

 

  • Q: My dog had puppies 12 days ago. And I noticed today that the babies have fleas crawling on them. Can I use anything on the puppies to help get rid of the fleas.
    Eric G,
     
  • A : Most of the popular range of spot on flea meds like Frontline Plus, Revolution and Advantage are recommended for puppies 6 to 8 weeks of age or older. You can however use Advantage on the mother and as the puppies lactate, crystals of the active ingredient drop off the mother and onto the puppies, where it kills the fleas there also.

 

 

 

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