Week 2 - March 09, Weekly Ask a Vet Q&A

Q: : We have a newfoundland puppy who is 8 months old and already over 100 lbs. We want to start him on Heatguard Plus heatworm meds, but I noticed the largest dog which the pill accomodates is from 51-100 lbs. Is this pill going to work for him even though he is OVER 100 lbs. or is there another one for dogs over 100 lbs. 
Josh S, IL

Dr Mark: Hi Josh,

The largest size tablet/chew available in the Heartgard Plus is up to 100 lbs. For large dogs such as your fellow, you will need to give either 2 of the 51-100 lbs tablets or one of the 51-100 lbs tablets and one of the 26-50 lbs tablets. The Proheart does make a tablet for extra large dogs, 100-150 lbs. It only covers heartworm and comes as a tablet but is also only given once a month.

Regards
Dr Mark, Bvsc

Q: My 2-year old dog, Harley, has somehow acquired severe separation anxiety. If she is outside and I go inside the house she will do nothing but whine and cry and jump on the door wanting inside. She also pees in her crate every night and whines in there also. Any help would be great on how we can teach her that it's ok to be alone.?
Bekah, Springfield, OH

Dr Mark: Dear Bekah,

Separation anxiety is a very common problem and is often difficult to fix.  Most treatment involves behavior modification training and desensitization.  A great article on this problem can be found here.

Pheremones such as DAP – Dog Appeasing Pheromone -  help calm stressed and anxious animals and have been shown to help in cases of  separation anxiety. You plug the diffuser into an electric socket and it diffuses the pheromone around. We don’t stock this product at this stage but your local vet should be able to supply you with one

Regards
Dr Mark, Bvsc

Q: I have a petbull dog i have gave him worme medican and he still ant gain his weight back he use to weight 90Lbs. now he weight about 40Lbs what do i need to do?
Jesse, Jonesville, SC

Dr Mark: Dear Jesse,

If you have wormed him and he is on a good quality diet but still not gaining weight I think it is best that you take him to a vet for a check up. For a dog to go from 90 lbs to 40lbs is a dramatic weight loss and there may be other disease that is causing this.

Regards
Dr Mark
 

Q: Oscar has fin rot and white spots. White spots are gone but now using Pimafix anti fungal. What do you recommend? Dosage states once every 24 hours. Oscar now is eating and moving around a bit?.
Lawrence R, Elmhurst, IL

Dr Mark: Dear Lawrence,

The Pimafix will help control bacterial and fungal infections however you may also like to give another treatment for the White Spot (Ichthyophthirius). We do have a Rapid White Spot Remedy on our site

Regards
Dr Mark, Bvsc

Q: What is the best way to remove hair from the inside of a dogs ears and the canal.
Rick, VA

Dr Mark: Hi Rick,

Plucking the hair out is the best way to remove the hair from the ear canal. You will need to have your dog quiet, say sitting on your lap. Pluck out a few hairs at a time using a pair of tweezers. Don’t try to remove all the hair in the one sitting, but pluck out a few hairs at a time. You may like to have a vet or groomer, show you how this is done the first time.

Regards
Dr Mark.

Q: I have a 10+ y.o. cat with IBD.  She is skin and bones.  I'm so distressed.  The vet has her on prednisolone, she has demadexx mites and the vet has had her on .1 mg of ivormectin every other day.  I've just finished treating all the cats with metronidazole for giardia for 5 days.  She weights, or weighed just around 7 lbs. but she seems to be losing ground.  She gets mirtazapine, just a fraction of a tab, every 3 days for appetite stimulation, and it seems to work for a day or so, and she takes Tramadol about every 3 days for pain (I have been afraid she would get constipated, and I can't keep that close an eye on her).  I've given her lactated ringers a couple of times in the last week, approx. 100 ml.  The last 2-3 days if I give her a bowl of water on the bed, she just drinks and drinks the water.  However, previous labs did not indicated elevated blood sugar and her kidney function was WNL a few weeks ago when I took her in.  She did not appear to have elevated TSH, and as far as hyperthyroidism, the vet thought she would be ravenously hungry if she were hyperthyroidism.  There is no evidence on X-ray of a tumor.

My questions:  should I be force feeding her with her IBD?  Could it be the effects of the prednisolone, or could the IBD be causing her to effectively starve to death because it is keeping her from metabolizing the nutrients in her food?  I'm at my wit's end, and my vet is out of suggestions also.  I hope you can suggest some possible things I should be doing, or directions for more tests, etc.  She's also tested negative for FIV and FeLV.  Thanks for any help you can provide?
Deborah, Arvada, CO

Dr Mark : Dear Deborah,

It is possible that your Weimaraner may have an eye infection. Conjunctivitis is one of the most common eye diseases in dogs. It is usually caused by bacteria and it is treated with antibiotic ointments. Other causes could be allergies, mechanical irritation from hair, eyelashes etc, corneal scratches, foreign bodies such as grass seeds etc.

Regards
Dr Mark, BVsc

Q:I would like to know what is the best way to get rid of worms. The cats ate a flea and now they have worms.....
Stacy, FL

Dr Mark: Hi Stacy,

The best way to clear worms is with an allwormer tablet. Most adult cats should be wormed once every 3 months. Brands such as Drontal or Popantel are very effective. If your cat is difficult to treat with a tablet, there are pastes such as Felex paste which can be a bit easier to administer. Some of the topical treatments such as Revolution or Advocate will treat some of the gastro-intestinal worms however the most common worm spread by fleas is the flea tapeworm which these products do not cover.

Regards
Dr Mark, BVsc

Q: I have a 3 year old yellow lab. He sheds all the time. I rake him frequently but he still keeps shedding. Is the something I can give him to control this problem.
Carmine P, Shoreham, NY

Dr Mark: Hi Carmine,

There is nothing really effective that you can give a dog to stop them shedding. All dogs shed, though some dogs shed more than others and inside dogs tend to shed all year round rather than at certain times of the year such as the change of the season at the end of winter. The best thing to help with shedding is regular brushing and grooming.  The more you comb or brush out the less there is to fall out all over the house. Coat conditioner supplements such as Mega-Coat contain omega3/6 fatty acids and vitamins to help keep the coat healthy and shiny but don’t stop shedding.

Regards
Dr Mark, BVsc
 

Q: How about Sentinel, Is this a heartworn med? Do you have an equivalent? I have a Pembroke Welsh  Corgi?
Brenda, St Augustine, FL

Dr Mark:Hi Brenda,

Yes, Sentinel is a heartwormer, which also has another product that stops flea eggs from hatching. We don’t stock this product but have a large number of different heartwormer medications including Revolution and Advocate (Advantage Multi) which also treat fleas as well as heartworm. These products actually treat the adult fleas, the Sentinel does not, so often you will need to also use another flea product as well as the Sentinel.

Regards
Dr Mark, BVsc

Q:I have 2 dogs 12 and 18 pounds could I use frontline for medium dogs and split one vial in half for each dog?
Sandra P, Wadesboro, NC

Dr Mark: Hi Sandra,

Yes you can do this. You will just need to be careful with measuring the dose out to each dog. You may need a syringe so that you can accurately measure out half a dose each.

Regards
Dr Mark, BVsc