Here we are going to take a look at two of the most popular questions asked of dog and cat owners in regards to their furry friend’s health, well-being and long-term health. These are by no means all issues that a pet owner need learn about when taking the role of animal stewardship, but it’s a start. The internet is a fantastic resource for dog and cat owners to learn how best to care for their pets though this information should always be reviewed with a veterinarian to assure the best facilitation for the animal.
What are main concerns when raising a puppy or kitten?
Of paramount importance is pet diet especially when in the first few days of life when collistrum is needed in milk so as to ensure a healthy immune system can develop and protect your pet throughout it’s life. After eight weeks of life the consideration of vaccination should be reviewed with a veterinarian or pet health clinic. Vaccinations are available for the prevention of a wide variety of pet health conditions, and are often needed to be given in intervals over a span of about four weeks as is the case in the Rabies vaccination for cats and dogs. Spaying or neutering is done to pets to prevent them from reproducing, which is of utmost importance if your animal is going to be an ‘outside’ pet. This prevents your pet from impregnating neighborhood pets or strays, which sadly results in more strays which often are unfortunately brought into shelters and killed for lack of a home. Spaying is the removal of ovaries in the female cat or dog, and Neutering is the removal of testicles. If you are adopting your pet from a shelter they most likely will be released to you having already not only been spayed or neutered, but also microchipped or tattooed for identification purposes should they ever be lost. It is important that you keep your contact information current with the microchipping or other pet recovery system so that you can be contacted should your pet be lost, found and then ‘turned into’ a shelter.
What parasites can harm my dog or cat’s health?
There are different parasites that can host on your pet, both internal and external, and steps should be taken to prevent their interference with your pet’s health regardless of whether your pet is allowed to play or roam outside or if they are strictly an ‘inside pet’. Tapeworms are very common, which are actual worms that are unable to be seen by the naked/unaided human eye. Sometimes you can see them though, actually, as segments of the large worm that has infected your pet’s insides. If you see white, moving bits the size of a grain of rice around your pet’s tail then your dog or cat may have worms. Tapeworms are caused by the ingestion of fleas or mice and they reside in your pet’s intestines. Another sign that your pet may have worms is if they do a strange scoot of their bottom across the floor, which is their way of ’scratching the itch’ caused by the segments of Tapeworm irritating their bottom. Fleas are an external parasite which as we just mentioned can cause tapeworm. Most notably fleas are a nuisance in that they feed off of your pet and cause irritation and itching. A home that has a pet with fleas will most likely see the humans being affected as well, with flea bites that leave itchy welts. There are many over-the-counter remedies for preventing or repelling flea infestations though the most reliable methods can be obtained via your veterinarian. Another external pet parasite is the tick, which can be repelled / prevented with some pet products. Ticks can cause Lymes disease in both humans and dogs so it is best to take measures to prevent infestation. Heartworms are another parasite, internal, which affect the dog and they are caused by mosquitos. They are parasites that infect the dog’s heart and can only be detected via blood test. Again, prevention is key with this parasitic pet infection and this can be obtained with a once-a-month tablet administration.
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