DEAR DR. FOX: I lost my 10-year-old cat, Daddy's Little Boy, earlier this week, and it's taken until today for me to have the strength to write. I think there are lessons to be learned from his death at the vet's office for a relatively routine procedure -- radioactive iodine treatment for hyperthyroidism.

Daddy's Little Boy was diagnosed with hyperthyroidism about a year ago, and he was prescribed methimazole. It stopped working, so I decided on the radioactive iodine treatment, even though it was $1,200. I took him in for the treatment last week. The day he died, I asked to see him, but they wouldn't let me because he was "hot" -- I think that means radioactive. That evening he had a stroke and was dehydrated and disoriented, and the vet's office told me I should get there. He was in an oxygen incubator. I made two visits that evening to comfort him while wearing protective gloves and vest. They called me on my way home to say that five minutes after I left, he stopped breathing and they had to put a tube in his lungs. By the time I turned around and got back, his heart had stopped.

The vet told me this had happened only once before in 10 years. I believe him, but that's of little consolation. Whenever an animal is left at a facility overnight, there must be a sense of abandonment and separation anxiety. If the pet cannot go home by the next day, arrangements should be made for visitation. Even if the pet is radioactive, precautions, like the vest and gloves I wore, should make that possible.

Though this facility holds the pet only 48 hours, I'm told there are others that hold them them for up to two weeks. It's not a coincidence that my cat's death happened at the facility. It wouldn't have happened at home. -- B.H., St. Louis

DEAR B.H.: My deepest condolences. What a sad ordeal you and your poor cat went through. Hyperthyroid disease is almost an epidemic in cats today. Fire-retardant chemicals in carpets, furniture upholstery/stuffing and possibly even in the food chain; fluoride in drinking water; toxic levels of iodine in some pet food ingredients; and endocrine-disrupting BPAs and phthalates in pet food containers are contributing factors.

For most cats and many dogs, being left in a veterinary hospital for even a few hours can be stressful enough to compromise treatment and recovery. Veterinarians aware of this problem encourage visiting/petting hours for animals in for long-term treatment, and others do house calls and provide in-home treatments.

But with your cat's diseased thyroid, after methimazole treatment failed, large doses of iodine might have proven effective. Surgical removal of the gland under general anesthetic was another option. Treatment with radioactive iodine 131 is not advisable if there are any signs of poor renal function. Beta-blockers are often prescribed to reduce elevated heart rates and blood pressure in cats with this thyroid disease while undergoing treatment, which may lead to renal failure.

DEAR DR. FOX: I have a disgusting question about my 5-month-old female Lab-mix.

She was originally rescued from a barn as a tiny puppy. I had the privilege of adopting her at three months. I feed her and her 7-month-old male Lab-mix adoptive brother a broiled chicken breast for breakfast (split between the two of them), and a can each of puppy food for dinner. They get a rawhide each day and assorted puppy treats throughout the day, and I keep their bowl of dry food full.

She has access to a doggy door that opens to about a half acre of land. Although her adoptive brother is completely house-trained, she still, on occasion, goes in the house.

Now here is the disgusting part: I believe she might be eating feces. I have not seen her eat it, but I've noticed that occasionally her breath smells like poop. Fecal matter is missing from the lawn -- she has very solid feces that become like logs when dry, and when I return to pick them up, they are gone. I have joked that both dogs have pica because they are always eating things that are inedible (sticks, paper, feces).

Are they missing something from their diet? Is this typical puppy behavior? -- N.C.T., Mount Airy, N.C.

DEAR N.C.T.: This is the most unsavory of all dogs' behavior that is, to a degree, normal. Check the archives section on my website, DrFoxVet.com, for a host of letters addressing this issue.

"Cures" range from muzzling your dog when outdoors and feeding her digestive enzymes, probiotics and brewer's yeast to not letting the dogs see the poop being picked up. Cleaning up the den area and acquiring essential digestive bacteria and trace nutrients are some of the possible reasons for canine coprophagia. Unfortunately, there is no simple remedy.

As for the halitosis, PetzLife Oral Care for dogs will sweeten the breath and help keep teeth and gums clean and healthy.

(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: My boyfriend and I adopted our 4-year-old male tabby cat from a rescue a little over a year ago. He is a sweet, personable and playful cat, and he seems well adjusted to us and to our apartment. Unfortunately, we have a couple of problems.

He has a chronic ear infection -- he had one when we adopted him -- which three different prescriptions have failed to clear. While the prescriptions seem to help during treatment, the brown gunk comes back as soon as the drops run out. The vet ruled out mites on the first visit.

He shakes his head and scratches at his ears constantly, and it's heartbreaking. Is surgery an option? What can we do?

Secondly, he keeps waking us up hours before his breakfast time. We feed him moist food twice a day -- at 9 a.m. and 10 p.m. This worked fine for a while, but he is now waking up at 6:30 a.m., and he misbehaves and makes noise until we get up to feed him. The sleep deprivation is taking a toll. Any advice? -- J.P.H., Brooklyn, N.Y.

DEAR J.P.H.: Your cat may have ear mites that might not have shown up on the initial examination. Thoroughly clean his ears, then use a cat-safe insecticide in the ear canal. Have your veterinarian prescribe Zymogen, which will help reduce inflammation and possible bacterial and/or fungal infection.

You are not feeding your cat frequently enough. Dogs do fine, as most humans do, on two meals per day, but many cat owners are unaware that it is better to give cats three to six small meals a day. Weigh your cat and keep a note on weight gain or loss, adjusting the amount of his meals.

DEAR DR. FOX: I have a 6 1/2-pound Yorkie. He's a sweetheart. About three years ago, I found out he has an enlarged heart and a closed trachea. He loves to play, but when he does, he gets out of breath and tries to suck in air with his tongue. When I see him do that, I get tears in my eyes.

He takes pills twice a day. I've asked our vet if there's anything else that can be done. He shrugs his shoulders and puts his hands in the air.

Is there anything I can do or should have done? I hope so. -- J.P.V., Naples, Fla.

DEAR J.P.V.: These sorts of developmental disorders are all too common in toy breeds. Such health problems, and a host of others, have a genetic basis. This places the burden of responsibility on the breeders to help eliminate these problems by not breeding dogs whose puppies inherit such disorders. This is called progeny testing. I would think twice about advising anyone to purchase a purebred dog without some form of health guarantee.

I regret that there are no cures for your dog. Monitor his weight, and keep him trim. Take him for slow walks so he gets some mental stimulation. He should wear only a harness and never a collar. Toy breeds prone to tracheal collapse should never be walked on a collar. Engage in short play bouts, followed by grooming or a calming massage.

(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 a 3-year-old tricolor Australian shepherd named Coach. For the past two years, he has suffered from seizures.

Starting in February 2011, he began having episodes where he would jump as if someone poked him with an electrical prod. These types of seizures occurred every eight to 10 days through June. He would jump or spasm every 45 to 60 seconds for 45 minutes to an hour.

We took him to the vet, but by the time we got there, the seizure was finished. The vet checked him, did blood work -- and found nothing. We videotaped one of these seizures and took the video to the vet. At that point, the vet recommended we see a dog neurologist. She did a more thorough exam and ran a battery of tests -- all negative. We opted out of getting an MRI.

In July, Coach had his first grand mal seizure. The neurologist prescribed zonisamide, but she said it was up to us to decide whether to start the pills. She advised that we should start them when his quality of life (or ours) suffered. He had six more grand mal seizures over the next eight weeks. At that point, we started the pills. He gets two 100-milligram pills in the morning and two at night. He takes his pills with some peanut butter or soft cheese. He went for six weeks with no seizures, but began having them again, about once a week. His follow-up blood tests were OK.

The neurologist prescribed a second drug, Keppra, in addition to the zonisamide.

At this time, a friend who is a dog trainer gave us some advice about his diet. We removed all foods that have red dye, wheat gluten and corn. This seemed to help -- the seizures happened about once a month, so we did not give him any of the Keppra. However, the seizures are starting up again.

Coach has a loving, fun personality that has not changed since the seizures. He gets a good amount of exercise. He walks and plays with several neighborhood dogs daily, and he gets good rest and naps every day.

I make most of his food. He gets Iams dry food, but very little of it -- I usually have to add some shredded cheese to get him to eat it. He loves fish, especially tuna and salmon, but I am not sure if fish is OK for dogs and how much is too much.

Any advice you can give us would be greatly appreciated. -- P. & R.B., Machipongo, Va.

DEAR P. & R.B.: It seems from your letter that you have thoroughly considered the diet-related aspect of epilepsy.

I would avoid tuna for many reasons -- canned mackerel or wild salmon is preferable. I would suggest a pragmatic trial-and-test approach, including a twice-daily dose of melatonin, 2 tablespoons of coconut oil in his food daily, and 1 teaspoon of fish oil for dogs daily. Discuss potassium bromide with your veterinarian as an alternative medication, and put a few drops of lavender oil on a bandanna around his neck morning and evening for its calming properties. Try to get Coach to drink a calming chamomile or valerian tea. An ice pack on the lower and middle parts of his back may shorten the seizure duration and intensity.

Try my home-prepared dog food recipe (at DrFoxVet.com), and avoid all manufactured pet foods -- what the labels say may not be in the can or bag. Keep me posted on Coach's progress.

DEAR DR. FOX: We adopted a 1-year-old Siamese-mix cat from the SPCA two years ago. He is very skittish but affectionate.

Several months ago, he stopped cleaning his anal area. This is causing a lot of problems, as he resists any type of help and runs when we try to approach him. He is on Prozac because he was urinating in the dining room instead of his litter box, and the medication seems to work for that problem.

He weighs 12 pounds, and we feed him Purina Indoor Formula dry food and a half can of Friskies moist food daily. He has no problem reaching his anal area, but he won't clean himself. We are at our wit's end. Do you have any suggestions? -- E.H., Virginia Beach, Va.

DEAR E.H.: Have you ruled out chronic cystitis rather than some emotional distress factor as the root of your cat's house-soiling behavior, even though the Prozac seems to help?

The type of cat litter you are using, how often you clean out his box (which should be at least three times a day) and the location of the box all play a part in determining your cat's litter box behavior.

I am not clear from your letter why your cat's posterior needs to be cleaned regularly. Certainly, longhaired, obese and older cats may need cleaning when debris from the litter box, urine and fecal matter adhere to the hindquarters. If your cat is dribbling urine or has fecal incontinence or blocked, painful anal glands, litter box aversion and house soiling may happen. If that's the case, your cat needs to see a veterinarian who can offer more than the Prozac. Also, your cat may benefit from a change in diet. Some food ingredients can cause bladder inflammation and associated incontinence. For details, visit feline-nutrition.org.

(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.)