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Week 4 - Oct 08, Weekly Ask a Vet Q&A

  • Q: Front Line Plus (FLP)" kill red bugs or nats (little tiny bugs)? One of my cats will scratch his head from ear down to his eyes until he has no hair. Also there is no hair around his eyes. Why? I got some salve from the vet and his hair grew back, but I did not put it around his eyes; therefore, he is still bald around his eyes. I use FLP year round. What can I use around his eyes? Will Bag Balm harm his eyes? (Bag balm is used by farmers for cow's teetes. I have used this salve on his head because it is an anticeptic.
    Dee F, MD, (Question of the Week)

  • A : From the symptoms that you described I would be suspecting mites – especially a type called Notoedres. The skin on the ears are affected first, often then spreading to the face. It causes an intense itch. Frontline Plus does not treat this mite however the Revolution for cats does. Perhaps you would be better off changing products to the Revolution. For mite infections it is best to apply the Revolution every 2 weeks for 3 doses and then once a month thereafter. Bag Balm probably won’t hurt but as it is not insecticidal it won’t kill the actual cause of the problem.
     
  • Q: Can I use Revolution and Canex together? My dog is 7 weeks old and 2.5 lbs. Thank you
    Christine, USA
  • A : Yes you can use these 2 products together and that is actually recommenced to cover all of the intestinal worms in puppies. A common regime for treatment is to worm puppies every 2 weeks from 2 weeks old until 12 weeks, monthly from 3 months until 6 months then every 3 months as an adult dog. Each Canex tablet treats 22 lb so you will have to break the tablet down to an eighth or a quarter of a tablet depending on how much he gains weight.
     
  • Q: I have a 13 year old English BullDog that has developed signs of dementia, is there anything that I can do to help him? My Vet said there really is not anything that I can do.
     Kitsy B, Columbus, OH
  • A: There is a condition similar to dementia in older dogs called Cognitive Dysfunction. The signs are similar to what you would expect with dementia and include general confusion, vocalization at inappropriate times, sleeping during day and staying awake at night, soiling inside the house and personality changes. There is a medication available called Selegiline that helps reduce the severity of this condition. Can you ask your vet to look into this for you?

 

  • Q: Hi, I have an 11month old Cocker Spaniel (Girl) and I have tried everything from puppy pads taking her outside and I can't get her to stop peeing throughout the house. y husband is on his last nerve and I love her dearly. Can you please help me?? Thank you and God Bless
    Stacy W, Sounth Bend, IN

  • A: House training an older dog is still very possible, but does require time, patience and understanding. It is well worth the effort though and should make for a lot happier household! The basis of house training a dog is based on prevention of messing inside rather than discipline after the fact. Firstly though you will need to thoroughly disinfect and clean where she may have gone to the toilet before. You should use a bacterial enzyme odor eliminator to treat the area. Without doing this, a dog’s instinct is to return to where they have messed previously.

    House training comprises rewarding your dog for eliminating in the right place. Most dogs will go to the toilet within half an hour of waking up or after a meal. At regular times of the day you should take her outside and when she eliminates in the appropriate spot give her lots of praise and a treat. This technique though is difficult and will take a long time. Consider crate training for your dog.

    Dogs being den animals are reluctant to mess in their crate. When you are at home, leave your dog in her crate. Dog crates are easily portable, and so your pup may be confined in the same room as you. Thus, your dog will not feel excluded or isolated, and you may conveniently keep an eye on her to praise it for settling down peacefully or for chewing her chew toys. Every hour, say “Outside”, open the crate door and run your dog to the intended toilet area and then stand still and wait for five minutes.

    It is likely your dog will eliminate, since it has not done so in the past hour, and the speedy passage to the doggy toilet has jiggled the dog’s full bladder and rectum. If your dog pees or poops, praise it profusely. Since it is now empty, your dog may now be allowed the full run of the house (under supervision of course) for half an hour or so, before being put back in its crate once more. If your dog does not eliminate within the allotted time span, no matter – simply straight back in the crate for another hour and so forth.

    Never punish your dog if she makes a mistake. Once you have done this a number of times, and she is familiar with this routine, if you do catch her in the act, say loudly the word “Outside”. It will let her know she has made a mistake and also tells her what she needs to do to not make the mistake again.
     
  • Q: Hi, My dog weighs 113 pounds. I need to purchase Heartgard Plus. The largest weight on the package is for dogs up to 100 lbs. Is that sufficient medication to give monthly? Or do I need an additional package for the small dog weight for proper protection? Thank you
    Carol G, Engleqwood, OH

  • A: One chewable tablet won’t be enough for your sized dog. Unfortunately this is the largest size that the manufacturer makes. Heartworm is a very serious disease and under dosing will not provide your dog with adequate protection, so yes I would recommend giving one of the small dog size and one of the large dog size chew once a month.
     
  • Q: My vet said your ingredients may not be the same as the meds they prescribe. My question : Is Heartguard and Frontline meds the same ingredients as what Veterinarians have?
    Pat W, Branson, MS

    A: The products that we sell on our site are exactly the same as those that you can purchase through your vet. The Heartgard Plus and the Frontline Plus, are exactly the same, have the same active ingredients in the same concentration, as that sold in the US. The only difference may be slight differences in the packaging of the product. All products are manufactured in the same factories. All Frontline Plus made by Merial and sold throughout the world is manufactured in the one factory in Toulouse in France. All the vials are made exactly the same. All Heartgard Plus is manufactured in Puerto Rico by Merial. All chewable tablets are manufactured exactly the same.

    Sometimes vets say these things as they have a vested interest to sell you the products themselves at a higher price. Due to the massive quantities that we purchase from the manufacturer and the relative weakness of the Australian dollar we are able to sell these products a lot cheaper than you could otherwise purchase them from your veterinarian.


 

 

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