DEAR DR. FOX: I recently purchased a KONG Wubba toy from Petco. It was covered in nylon and made in China. After a few minutes of play, my Weimaraner dropped the toy and started licking the air, his legs, the blanket, floor, cabinets, me, etc. He hadn't been outside or had any other new items. I phoned my veterinarian, and he said to watch him and give him a Benadryl. I took him in later that day, and the vet could not find anything wrong with him -- he guessed the toy might have had a substance on it that got on my dog's tongue. He suggested washing the toy to see if it was still a problem. I did that, and when I gave it to him a week later, he started licking again.

Have you had any complaints about dog toys made in China? I'm wondering if the toy had a chemical on it? I would like to find out if the U.S. government has any restrictions on imported dog toys, but I don't know where to start. In the meantime, I will not be purchasing any more toys made in China. -- D.S., St. Louis

DEAR D.S.: I hope many readers and the Food and Drug Administration will take note of your dog's reaction. Contact KONG at kongcompany.com, and have your veterinarian report your dog's adverse reaction to the U.S. Bureau of Veterinary Medicine.

Simply washing this toy will not remove chemicals impregnated in the synthetic material. Phthalates and bisphenol A (BPA), endocrine disruptors, and possible carcinogens and obesogens are all too common in plastic and synthetic food and water containers, children's toys and pet toys, and our government has been slow to regulate manufacturers and importers.

My advice is to never buy pet products, including pet beds, manufactured in China, or even in the U.S. if you are not sure they are pet-safe and there is no clear ingredient labeling. The foam filling of furniture and pet beds can contain endocrine-disrupting, thyroid-harming, fire retardant bromide compounds (PBDEs -- polybrominated diphenyl ethers). Check planetdogfoundation.org and ruffwear.com for safer pet products.

DEAR DR. FOX: My 21-month-old male wheaten terrier seems healthy and is very active.

He was born with a hernia, which was repaired by the breeder's vet at seven weeks of age -- he was neutered at the same time. Everything seemed to heal well, and he is a very active dog who eats and poops well. At his one-year checkup, he had a small, soft lump in the area of the hernia; the vet said it was probably just residual inflammation and was not concerned.

Now I am concerned because the lump has changed -- it is larger and harder. Can I wait until his two-year checkup, or should I take him to the vet now? He does not seem ill, but I am worried. I have three dogs, and the other two have scheduled vet appointments soon. -- K.J.M., Stroudsburg, Pa.

DEAR K.J.M.: Any time a dog develops a lump, one should be concerned, especially when it is increasing in size. In older dogs this is especially critical because it could be cancer, and the longer the veterinarian is delayed in taking a needle biopsy to determine if the growth is cancerous, the smaller the chances of the dog making a full recovery.

But do not panic with your young dog. I agree with your veterinarian, and I do not believe that there is any emergency at this time. If the navel/umbilical area was hot and inflamed or very soft and easily pushed into the abdominal cavity, then there is an issue. The veterinarian is correct that this is fibrous, healing tissue that helps close up the operated umbilical hernia area. Rub it with aloe vera gel or other herbal creams or ointments that help skin and tissue healing, such as calendula, frankincense and myrrh. Stop the dog from licking the area for at least 30 minutes after applying the creams twice daily. Measure how wide the swelling is, and make records every week for a month.

If there is any further growth, a veterinary appointment with the original surgeon is called for. There could be an embedded suture causing excessive inflammation and fibrosis, which would call for surgical correction -- at a discount price!

(Send all mail to animaldocfox@gmail.com or to Dr. Michael Fox in care of Universal Uclick, 1130 Walnut St., Kansas City, MO 64106. The volume of mail received prohibits personal replies, but questions and comments of general interest will be discussed in future columns.

Visit Dr. Fox's website at DrFoxVet.com.)

DEAR DR. FOX: We have an 18-month-old German shepherd/Lab/Akita mix who we adopted from the Humane Society at 5 months old. She is very smart, and I have trained her in good manners and many tricks at our house. My main problem is that she acts aggressive and hostile when she cannot get to another dog when on a leash.

She is fine at the dog park and has playdates with a neighbor's dog. However, when she is on the leash and sees another dog within 40 to 50 feet, she becomes almost unmanageable. She growls, snarls, lunges and acts like she wants to kill the other dog. Once the other person lets me come over and after sniffing the other dog, my dog is fine and we can walk together.

I have used the clicker for training and used lots of treats on walks, but she ignores me when she sees another dog. I am at my wit's end and do not know how to stop this behavior. Can you help me? -- S.Z.-D., St. Louis

DEAR S.Z.-D.: Your letter is important for many dog owners to understand why their pets behave as yours does when on the leash and being approached by another dog.

First, understand that a dog who is leashed feels restrained and, therefore, vulnerable. Excitement and pulling on the leash means you pull and jerk her collar, which acts as an inciting, if confusing, signal to her. So stay calm, because your emotional reactions are transmitted to your dog through the leash. Try fitting her with a harness around her chest, either alone or coupled with an over-the-muzzle halter, similar to those used to effectively and painlessly control horses.

Be patient and keep the faith -- she is still young and excitable, and she will calm down in a few months when she matures, around 2 1/2 to 3 years old. Never scold or yell. Just stand very still and let her pull and do whatever while you have your feet firmly planted. On walks, teach her to sit and stay with intermittent rewards of treats. Give her those commands when you see a dog coming. She may eventually make the connection and be still, but right now her brain is lacking in self-control/internal inhibition, which she will hopefully acquire with maturity.

DEAR DR. FOX: We read your column in the Fargo, N.D., Forum. Recently, you requested feedback on pet improvement after changing pet food.

Our cat is a female American shorthair, 11 years old, spayed and indoor-only. Her original food was Hills Science Diet Active Longevity. She was overweight at 14 pounds. For about a year, she had a cyst on her cheek that was the size of a large grape, which we had drained by the vet. It did not seem to bother her. She had bowel troubles from time to time, a dirty rear end and anal gland problems. She would chew at her fur a lot.

About five months ago, we switched her to Wellness Indoor Health Dry Food and Wellness Indulgence Poultry Packets (wet food). She quickly took to the new diet. As of now, the bowel and rear end problems have cleared up. She has lost 2 pounds. She is much more lively, alert and active. The cyst has shrunk considerably and seems to be drying up. She leaves her fur alone also.

Thanks so much for the information. -- E. & C.V., Torrance, Calif.

Dear E. & C.V.: Thanks for confirming the benefits that can come when one focuses not simply on the symptoms when an animal has health issues, but on what the animal is being fed. Some ingredients in many popular and widely advertised brands, especially corn and other genetically modified ingredients (GMOs), may be putting our animals at risk -- even foods sold by the vet. All pet and human foods should be labeled to indicate if they contain GMOs. It's best to buy USDA organically certified produce and cook from scratch using known ingredients. For an in-depth review of what goes into many pet foods, and for home-prepared recipes for dogs and cats, see the new paperback edition of the book that I co-authored with two other veterinarians, "Not Fit for a Dog."

(Send all mail to animaldocfox@gmail.com or to Dr. Michael Fox in care of Universal Uclick, 1130 Walnut St., Kansas City, MO 64106. The volume of mail received prohibits personal replies, but questions and comments of general interest will be discussed in future columns.

Visit Dr. Fox's website at DrFoxVet.com.)

DEAR DR. FOX: I was disappointed in your recent response to G.L. in Washington, D.C., the feral cat colony caretaker. Instead of providing him with a link to Alley Cat Allies (alleycat.org), a nonprofit group dedicated to helping cats, you persisted in providing antiquated arguments for the death of cats. The website has an entire section that would have answered G.L.'s questions much better than you did, which was to advocate he euthanize his cats.

You also maintain that cats kill birds and other wildlife. My feral cat takes out the moles that destroy my yard, kills copperhead snakes and keeps down the mouse and other rodent population. Take out the cats through your plan, and these creatures have no natural predator and their populations explode.

I would suggest you educate yourself before giving the public outdated information. You have lost credibility with me for perpetuating stereotypes. I hope you can inform the public in a future column that there are better ways and better answers than what you wrote. -- M.D., Labadie, Mo.

DEAR M.D.: While I appreciate what Alley Cat Allies is doing to help increase public awareness about the plight of free-roaming lost and feral cats, I am not alone in my opinion. Many in the veterinary profession, as well as other wildlife biologists, question the wisdom and humaneness of TNR (trap-neuter-release) and people maintaining colonies of feral cats. Your statement that I advocate only euthanasia is incorrect.

By your own admission, your cats are killing wildlife. The moles are part of the natural environment you occupy, and I, for one, welcome them. They were here on Earth long before we humans became an infestation, and in many cases, they benefit the soil. Copperheads and other snakes are natural rodent controllers, which helps control the viruses rodents transmit, such as the hantavirus.

According to the American Bird Conservancy, only about one-third of the 77 million pet cats in the U.S. are kept indoors exclusively, while free-roaming cats kill an estimated 500 million birds annually -- a staggering figure. Fledglings who have just left the nest are especially vulnerable to these domestic and feral predators.

Domestic cats have no place outdoors, and our compassion for these homeless animals should not trump common sense and sound science.

My home is enriched by two feral cats my wife and I trapped and saved from Minnesota winters. One took six months to venture out from a safe corner he chose as his refuge. Neither shows any desire to go back outdoors, and both are now wonderful companions who I can kiss on their tummies and play wild games with at night. Trap-neuter-rehabilitate is my TNR mantra, with release through euthanasia being the very last option.

DEAR DR. FOX: We, too, have taken in outdoor cats (more or less feral) who, once given the opportunity to be indoor cats, never wanted to run wild again. For years, my wife and I had a brother and sister from the same litter, Oberon and Titania, who had been outdoor cats for the first six years of their lives. (My wife fed them, but we didn't have the opportunity to take them in at first.) Once our situation changed and we brought them inside, they would frequently sit by the sliding-glass door and watch the outside for hours on end. If the front door was left open, they might slip outside just for a sniff, but they never left the front steps, and if the door closed behind them, they'd immediately scratch at it and meow to be let back in.

We now have a little cat, Oliver, who was found as the neighborhood stray when he was not quite fully grown. He, too, loves to sit on the window ledge and watch the outdoors, and if the door is opened, he gets excited and will investigate, but if it's held open for him he will rarely venture out. If he does, he never goes more than a few feet from the door. I think all three of these cats remembered what it was like to be an outdoor cat and had no desire to revisit that cold, wet, lonely experience. -- J.Y., St. Louis

DEAR J.Y.: Thanks for confirming just how sensible cats are when it comes to knowing life indoors is better than having to fend for themselves outdoors! Some people forget their ancestors came from the deserts of North Africa.

As I have shared with readers, our two formerly feral cats never want to go outdoors, but one of them loves to watch the creatures around our bird feeders through the screen door and from various window ledges. It's his TV!

Making provision for indoor cats to look out from an extended, carpeted window ledge or cat condo placed beside the window, ideally with a bird feeder outside in full view, is the kind of environmental enrichment most cats really enjoy.

(Send all mail to animaldocfox@gmail.com or to Dr. Michael Fox in care of Universal Uclick, 1130 Walnut St., Kansas City, MO 64106. The volume of mail received prohibits personal replies, but questions and comments of general interest will be discussed in future columns.

Visit Dr. Fox's website at DrFoxVet.com.)