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Sunday 10 PM ET The Bull Pen
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Dog Hobbyist News In This Issue:
* From the Alpha Dog
Here are some tips for being prepared as pet owners: There's nothing more basic than identification. If your pets get separated from you, how could someone identify then or find you? Make sure your pets have name tags on and that they are up-to-date. Microchiping has become a standard way of identifying pets. If you must evacuate, take your pets with you. If it isn't safe for you, it isn't safe for them. Some emergency shelters may not allow pets, so keep alternatives in mind. Perhaps friends or relatives who live within driving distance will allow you to stay with them. Make up a kit with emergency supplies. Some things that should be included are: medications, medical records, recent photos, three-day supply of food and water is a good start. It is also important to have a crate or pet carrier large enough for your pet to be in for several hours at a time. Be sure to have a leash, flashlight, battery operated radio and blankets. Just because we may not live in a high profile area, or on a fault line, or have to worry about hurricanes, doesn't mean that an emergency can't happen. Be prepared and you'll keep yourself and your pets safe. American Red Cross Animal Safety Disaster Preparedness for Pets
Melody Golubski
Special Guest in Dog Breeding Chat: Dog breeders will be interested in reading a new article on Reducing Neonatal Mortality by Autumn Davidson DVM. The timing of this new article is also interesting, because Dr. Davidson mentions that she saw a reduction in puppy death from 9.5 percent to 2.5 percent in her reproduction practice when she started using the "WhelpWise" service. DogHobbyist.com is pleased to let you know that WhelpWise founder Karen Copely RNC, BSN, of Veterinary Perinatal Specialties will be a special guest this coming Friday, March 28, at 9 PM Eastern Time in the DogDen.
Karen is a high risk obstetrical nurse who co-owns two patents on methods to If you would like a free email reminder of the chat, you can sign up on any of the transcript pages, such as last week's on Understanding Genetics. Please let other breeders know, and we hope to see you there!
No, I'm not talking about tempting treats; I'm talking about dental health. Oral bacteria can enter the bloodstream through swollen gums and cause kidney, liver, and lung disease as well as blood infections, may cause heart disease, and can even cause death. At the very least, a chronic state of inflammation in the mouth can lead to, or worsen, other immune conditions, including allergies. It may come as a shock to you to find out that, according to the American Veterinary Dental Society, "80 percent of dogs and 70 percent of cats show signs of oral disease by age three. In fact, oral disease is the most common health problem treated in small animal clinics today." There are two camps with strong views on dental health, and which one you listen to depends on your own individual circumstances. Conventional Viewpoint Just as with humans, the answer to good dental health is daily brushing and regular checkups, with annual dental cleanings. Unfortunately in dogs and cats, annual cleanings need to be done under general anesthesia, which makes the procedures riskier and more expensive than many pet owners expect. However, once the consequences of neglecting oral health are understood, most pet owners realize it's not something that can be avoided. Bacteria are always present in the mouth and pose no real problem under normal circumstances. However, if the gums are irritated and inflamed, the bacteria can enter the bloodstream, giving them a superhighway to the bloodstream and internal organs. Oral bacteria have been found in the lungs, kidneys, and livers of dogs with periodontal disease, and are suspected as being the cause of cardiac disease as well.
Unfortunately, occasional tooth brushing is not effective in reducing dental disease. (Journal of Veterinary Dentistry, December 1996.) Brushing must be done every day to have any benefit. And while special foods formulated to support dental health, as well as special chews and toys designed for the same purpose, can reduce the buildup of plaque and/or tartar, they are a supplement to professional care and daily brushing only. They cannot replace it. Regular pet foods, despite the widely held belief that they "scrape" tartar or plaque from teeth, have never been found to have any benefit in cleaning the teeth. The caring pet owner can and must take pet dental health seriously, and needs to work with their veterinarian to have the teeth examined at least annually, and cleaned when needed. Few pets, especially those past the age of 3, do not need their teeth professionally cleaned. An Alternative Viewpoint Many people think that brushing a pet's teeth or even getting them professionally cleaned is ridiculous, because wild animals don't need a dentist. That's very true. Wild animals also don't eat a steady lifetime supply of starchy processed foods, as most dogs and cats today do. By moving away from the diet on which those pearly whites evolved, we have also moved away from the elements of the natural diet that serve as nature's toothbrush. Use your common sense for a moment. Wild animals who are not debilitated by habitat destruction, over-population, or some other adverse influence simply do not have a vast majority of the members of the species having dental disease by the age of three. There is simply no way a species is going to evolve over hundreds of thousands of years to inevitably have serious dental problems at a young age, with the attendant risks of kidney and other organ problems. It defies logic. It also defies evidence. Feral cats have less calculus than pet cats. (Australian Veterinary Journal, October, 1998.) Raccoons in unpopulated areas have fewer cavities and less dental problems than raccoons in populated areas. (Journal of Wildlife Disease, October 1999.) In the Journal of Veterinary Dentistry, researchers said that in zoo bears, "The composition of the food and feeding management are most likely responsible for the lack of natural cleaning and the resulting plaque and calculus formation." (March 1998.) Kim Henneman, DVM, reported to me in personal correspondence, "At the recent Western States Veterinary Conference (one of the biggest in the US), I attended the lecture on Mountain Lions and Grizzly Bears out of curiosity. The veterinarian was a gentleman from Canada who has worked on these animals for years including captive raised in zoos and wild animal parks (mimic natural environment) and research on the wild animals. He showed us photos of the teeth of 9-10 year old cougars (they know because they were tagged at birth) in the wild that look like they just erupted (white, no tarter, no gum irritation) as well as cougars that were kept in game preserves...same thing." According to Allen Schoen, DVM, and Susan Wynn, DVM, in the veterinary textbook Complementary and Alternative Veterinary Medicine, "An additional advantage to feeding home-prepared foods may be to enhance dental health; several studies have shown that gristly foods such as tough beef remove and prevent subsequent accumulation of dental tartar." DA Crossley, a British veterinary dentist and joint editor of the British Small Animal Association Manual of Small Animal Dentistry, states, "When animals feed in the wild they rarely develop a serious level of periodontal disease unless they are debilitated in some other way. By feeding animals unnatural foods we encourage plaque buildup and the development of periodontal disease."
However, whichever way you decide to go, make a veterinary examination of your pet's teeth part of your routine, and if you choose to feed commercial foods, or a natural diet is not sufficient to keep your pet's mouth healthy, brush your pet's teeth daily if at all possible, and get your pet's teeth professionally cleaned as often as needed. It will certainly improve your pet's quality of life, will make your relationship easier, might spare them pain, and may even save their life. Copyright 2003 by Christie Keith. Used with permission.
Parade participates get all in order and lined up. We have about 50 floats and 500 or so volunteers. The parade route covers about 3 miles with thousands of on lookers. Crowd control, that's PHDaMutt and Humans job. There is lots of fun, laughing, waving and just generally a great time for all. Until a Female Human from the Animal Control SPCA float came running up to me and said, "PHDaMutt, we need your help." I snapped to attention, ears perked, nose flaring. Female Human went on to say one of the pups on the float has disappeared. We can't find him anywhere. Female Human showed me the spot they had last see the pup. I sniffed and immediately went to work. Sniffing the float starting at the top, scent was there but no pup. I moved down and kept the scent, also sniffing at the humans on the way. Then quickly I went to the front of the float, no pup there. I went on down and toward the back to the last human on the float. As I approached the last human I heard a faint whimper. I sat straight down in front of the human and pawed at her long skirt. Yup, you guessed it, the pup just got tired and was taking a nap under the long skirt of one of the volunteers. Another case solved by PHDaMutt.
Monday 9-10 PM Sighthound Chat
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Alot is going on in the world right now and we all have a lot on our minds. Some people feel the need to have a plan in case of a disaster, not just from possible terrorism, but natural disasters which are more likely. We prepare ourselves for things that may happen, but are we prepared for our pets? We should all plan for an emergency and one that includes our pets.
monitor uterine activity and fetal heart rates in non-human mammals, used by breeders in their homes. The service is really quite amazing - you put the doppler on your bitch and then hook it up through your phone to their center, where they have 24/7 support. They read your bitch's uterine contractions and also ultrasounds of the puppies' heartbeats. You can get an idea if whelping is imminent, and if a puppy is in trouble.
The way to your pet's heart is through his or her mouth. It's the way to the kidneys, liver, lungs, and the bloodstream, too.
Furthermore, oral disease is painful. If it spreads into the bone the pain can be so severe that it is virtually uncontrollable even with powerful narcotics. While dogs and cats generally hide their pain as part of their heritage from their wild ancestors (a survival advantage is gained if a predator doesn't realize you are sick or injured), pain causes them suffering and can reduce both quality of life and their immune response. Bad breath also causes owners to spend less time petting or being near their pet, which can make them feel sad or lonely.
Those who are interested in feeding a diet as close to nature as possible can read a new book on the subject, called 
In March, the St. Patrick's Day Parade is an annual even around here. Human and I are in charge of security of the parade route. Not usually a problem around here nice people and all, but as you know in the day and age, we must be vigilant.