Heart Disease & Failure: Seen in middle and old age, this is the most common problem to affect our beloved canine companions. This disease is particularly prevalent in small breeds such as Chihuahuas and even more frequently in Cavalaier King Charles Spaniels, but that is not to say we may not come across heart valve […]
Vaginal Discharge & Pyometra: Vaginal discharge is not actually a condition in itself, but rather the indication that something is wrong with either the reproductive tract or the urinary tract. There are many possible causes for this problem: Uterine Problems: * Uterine infection called pyometra – in bitches who have not been spayed. (this is […]
Facial Paralysis: Oh My Goodness! My dog has a droopy face on one side, whatever can have happened? Scary right? Sometimes, you may notice that your dog’s face is droopy on one side – perhaps he can’t blink properly or maybe one of his lips is saggy. There may be excess drooling from that side and […]
Cheyletiella Mites (or walking dadruff as they are often known) are Zoonoses. Zoonoses are diseases that can be transmitted between vertibrate species, including man, which means they are not restricted just to our furry friends. As with the Harvest Mite, “walking dandruff” lives on the surface of the skin and feeds on skin cell debris. […]
The most recent information suggests that there might well be a link between Harvest Mites and SCI (Seasonal Canine Illness). With that in mind, I thought we’d take a look at what they are and what to do about them. Harvest Mites (known as chiggers or berry bugs) appear, as the name suggests, around harvest […]
Conjunctivitis can be caused by several different things including:- * allergies, * irritation (dust or smoke), * foreign bodies like grass seeds, * hairs or eyelashes facing the wrong way and poking inwards, * infections * poor tear production. Symptoms * most common symptom is redness of the eye, * may also be discharge weeping from the eye […]
When we refer to a Stroke in dogs, this is not actually the same as what we understand as a stroke in humans – it’s just a kind of shorthand that vets sometimes use to help us understand. In actual fact, it is Vestibular Syndrome, which is caused by damage to the inner ear or […]
Canine First Aid Cross Word ACROSS 1 Grass seed in the ear (6,4) 2 Type of honey (6) 3 Carries de-oxygenated blood (4) 4 Lack of oxygen (7) 5 Act of bringing back to life (13) 6 Number of compressions in CPR (6) 7 Body’s response to lack of oxygen (5) 8 Toxic bloom […]
Currently in the UK we are experiencing a high influx of jellyfish (and therefore jellyfish stings ) to our coastline. Although the majority are not dangerous, some are, so here’s our guide to jellyfish treatment – for both ourselves as well as our dogs. Before we go any further, the advice below in no way […]
Before reading this article, please: DO NOT ATTEMP THIS PROCEDURE WITHOUT PROPER SUPERVISION FROM A QUALIFIED PROFESSIONAL AS DOING SO COULD CAUSE SERIOUS INJURY. All dogs have anal glands. They are scent glands under the skin on each side of the dog’s anal area (at about the 4 and 8 o’clock positions). The openings to these […]
At this time of the year especially, we often see something in our lakes, ponds and rivers called Blue-Green Algae (though sometimes, rather confusingly, it can appear red, black or even a murky brown colour!) I know lots of you will have heard of it, but what exactly is it and what dangers does it […]
I confess that until recently, Id only ever heard rumours about Water Intoxication but of late, and especially due to the hot weather, this is something that has come to my attention a couple of times (once in a really good, straight forward blog by JoAnna Lou of TheBark.com) so I thought it worth chatting about, […]
There are many different causes for nasal discharge or sneezing in our furry friends and it seems that longer-nosed dogs are more likely to suffer than their shorter-nosed counterparts. The more common ones would be foreign bodies, allergic reactions, kennel cough viruses, fungal infections and, sadly, nasal tumours. Occasionally, severe dental infections can cause a nasal discharge […]
The document below was created by a Facebook friend of mine, the lovely Jodi Davies. Many people are opting to try to reduce the amount of chemical medication, pesticides and wormers they use with their dogs and one way of checking to see if your dog actually needs to be wormed is by carrying out […]
Is it bad to give your dog Iced Water or Ice Cubes to cool them? Straight answer = NO It seems that there has been a post floating around the net and on Facebook over and over telling of a very tragic incident which was put down to the use of iced water. (see link for […]
Often when our dogs are ill, we trundle off to see the vet and he recommends various diagnostic tests to try to shed a bit of light on exactly what is wrong with them. In the absence of their being able to talk to us to tell us exactly how they are feeling, these tests […]
In my local area I have recently been made aware of at least 3 instances where dogs have ingested rat poison – sadly, one of those dogs didn’t make it. Since then, another of my friends has found rat poison dumped in the garden after their neighbours took exception to the dogs barking. So, firstly, would you […]
Vomiting, shaking, anxiety and drooling can be as a result of car travel or nervousness, and this is very common indeed in puppies – with my boy Axl having just sired a litter, Im in constant contact with our new puppy owners and this is something that all of them, my puppy Chi included, have suffered […]
Ive been asked several times recently about Colloidal Silver; what it is, how it works, what you can use it for etc. It is gaining quite a bit of a reputation and, due to the enormous list of uses, illnesses, bacteria etc that it is reputed to help, this topic deserves a section all to […]