DEAR DR. FOX: I have a standard poodle who is about 7 years old. He developed sores and flaking skin on his nose that wouldn't go away. It seemed to expand to around his nostrils.

I took him to the vet, and he said my dog likely had lupus but could not tell for sure without a biopsy. I was saddened by this preliminary diagnosis. The crustiness would improve and get worse. Home treatment of Vaseline improved the appearance.

After a few months, I took him in for the recommended biopsy, which appeared painful and was also expensive. It turned up nothing but a crusty nose. Since then, I've looked online and found the problem is reported to be a common cosmetic issue. I treat it successfully with Blistex.

Now, I have two questions. Should my vet have been able to diagnose the crusty nose without all the cost and trauma of a biopsy? Also, is crusty nose truly benign and nothing to worry about? -- J.G., St. Louis

DEA J.G.: I have seen this kind of condition in standard poodles, and it certainly can be a lupuslike autoimmune disease, which I've seen lead to lesions around the nose, lips and face and broken and bleeding toenails.

Taking a biopsy can help in the diagnosis of autoimmune disease versus a benign skin condition, such as solar dermatitis or allergic contact dermatitis. In many instances, a treatment trial with antihistamine or steroid cream -- or my formula of 10 drops each of frankincense, myrrh and helichrysum in 100 drops of olive or almond oil, applied two to three times daily -- can be more cost-effective and less distressing for the canine patient. Increasing the amount of omega-3 fatty acids in the daily diet may also help.

DEAR DR. FOX: I read your article about dogs sleeping under blankets, and there is wisdom with your words. However, our doxie, Boomer, sleeps with me and cries or barks if I don't hold the cover up so he can crawl under the blanket. If the crying or barking fails, he goes to the foot of the bed and pulls the covers up until he can crawl under.

Don't bother telling us he should sleep in his own bed. On his first night here, it was total chaos until he was in bed with us. The only time he uses his own bed is during the daytime. If we want to sleep, he's in our bed. -- J.M., St. Louis

Dear J.M.: I am sure that you are not alone in having a dog who likes his own bed for napping but insists on sleeping with you at night. This is an ancient behavior pattern of pack mates sleeping close together for safety in numbers.

At my wife Deanna Krantz's animal refuge in India, small groups of three or four dogs will sleep with resident staff, each dog knowing to which group and bed he belongs.

Most dogs like light covers for additional security as much as warmth, which is better than allowing the dog to lie between the sheets with you, especially if the odd tick might have been picked up outdoors.

PET OWNERSHIP WIDESPREAD BUT DOWN OVERALL

According to the latest American Veterinary Medical Association's United States Pet Ownership and Demographics Sourcebook, more than half of U.S. homes include a pet. However, ownership is down 2.4 percent compared with data collected in 2006. "That is something I was not expecting," AVMA President Dr. Douglas Aspros told USA Today. "Pets are important for people's mental, psychological and physical health. The decline is also bad for pets because there are a lot of animals left in shelters."

As I see it, the economic hard times afflicting so many families and individuals is a major reason why dogs and cats are filling up animal shelters in many communities across the country, too many of whom are euthanized. In some communities, there are now pet food banks and low-cost vaccination and health care outreach programs. I believe that many more are needed, modeled after the famed PDSA (Peoples' Dispensary for Sick Animals) in the United Kingdom, to enable people to keep their animal companions and maintain their health.

In the long term, this would be of significant economic savings because of the documented health benefits that companion animals can provide to children, adults and the elderly.

(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 have two Irish setters: a 7-year-old male and a 12-year-old female. For a few years, they would nose around the backyard grass as if looking for something. I couldn't see anything.

Two weeks ago, my husband laid some sod in some bare sections of our yard. Overnight the dogs started pulling it up, eating the dirt and leaving the grass wherever it fell.

I feed them dry Purina mixed with half a can of Pedigree each. What are they lacking -- iron? -- B.A., Alexandria, Va.

DEAR B.A.: You are right that dogs, humans and other animals will eat dirt when they are suffering from anemia. But your dogs are more likely exercising their innate nutritional wisdom, seeking organic trace nutrients and digestive- and immune system-enhancing bacteria in the soil.

Since they are both getting on in life, one of my geriatric suggestions is to provide them with digestive enzymes and probiotics, available in health stores, better pet supply stores and from holistic veterinary practitioners.

The kinds of manufactured pet foods you are giving to your dogs could be improved upon. Try to reduce the grain/cereal content and increase the nutrient value of their food. You can feed them wholly or partially on my home-prepared diet, detailed on DrFoxVet.com. When they are outdoors, let them eat dirt! ... In moderation.

DEAR DR. FOX: We fed a feral cat for the last six years. Once our elderly indoor cats died, we enticed the feral one indoors. He now sleeps in the house and loves to avoid the cold and bad weather by coming indoors.

The problem will be when we move sometime later this year. What kind of sedative will help a cat "chill out" for a 9 1/2 hour car trip? Also, he is used to going outside daily. How do we acclimate him to the new environment? He won't wear a collar, so I am fearful he will disappear. -- J.D., Belleville, Ill.

DEAR J.D.: I am so glad to hear that you were able to bring this feral cat inside. I would begin to acclimate him to his new environment now by not allowing him outside anymore except in a secure harness. Let him walk you around on the end of an attached leash.

Make indoor life fun with a cat condo and padded window shelves/perches so he can look out. Try installing a few bird feeders for him to gaze at -- we call it cat TV for our two ex-feral cats who have never wanted to go back out by themselves again.

If he ever gets out at the new home, he is likely to try to get back to his old home environment. In case he ever does, be sure to have some good ID photos and have him microchipped.

Do not use any sedatives for the long journey, but get him used to sleeping and eating in the carrier. Keep a strip of gauze with a few drops of lavender essential oil in the car, which you can freshen after a few hours on the road.

THINK TWICE ABOUT CANINE TORN KNEE LIGAMENT SURGERY Some readers have told me that when they take clippings from my column to their veterinarians, they are not always well received. I received flak some years ago when I cited studies from England supporting my contention that dogs, especially smaller ones and those who are not overweight, will gradually heal from torn knee cruciate ligament injuries if physical activity is restricted. My detractors insisted that surgery is the only solution.

Now a study by Dr. K.L. Wucherer and others, published in the Journal of the American Veterinary Medical Association, reports that almost two-thirds of a study group of medium and large-sized, overweight dogs not treated with surgery had successful outcomes when evaluated after a course of treatment including anti-inflammatory medication, weight loss diet and physical therapy.

My advice is to try this approach before costly surgery. If knee surgery is done, follow this same nonsurgical treatment protocol after the operation.

(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 am a cat owner/lover, and I read your column regularly. You give excellent advice, and I have learned many things from you. I have one problem with your advice, however: I am concerned that your descriptions of ideal cat care, especially diet, may discourage some folks from adopting a shelter cat.

The home preparation of some foods and the purchase of specialized and expensive prepared foods may be more than many people want to take on. My own cats have lived long, healthy lives with supermarket foods.

As you well know, thousands of cats are put to death in shelters because there are no homes for them. Wouldn't you choose life for a cat in a comfortable, loving home with a less-than-ideal diet rather than euthanasia?

Your advice is good, but I'd like to see you do more to encourage adoption by people like me. -- C.G., Hendersonville, N.C.

DEAR C.G.: I appreciate your comments, and I must stress that pet food manufacturers often provide free cat and dog food to shelters, which is better than nothing -- or whatever might be rounded up from local butchers, bakers and grocers, as was done in the old days. Also in the old days -- I am talking about 20 to 30 years ago -- pet food manufacturers, while having less nutritional science knowledge, often had better ingredients from U.S. family farms with minimal pesticide use and no GMOs (genetically modified foods). Today, manufacturers rely on food and beverage industry byproducts and imported ingredients, like those from China that have sickened and killed thousands of dogs and cats. Certainly, adopting a pet with a pack of free food from the shelter is good salesmanship when it comes to pet food manufacturers marketing their products.

I agree with you that cats and dogs can adapt to the kinds of diets that I do not endorse because they are not biologically appropriate -- too high in soy and cereals with poor-quality animal protein and fats. But many do not, and they develop costly chronic diseases, as documented in this column on a near-weekly basis.

I constantly beat the drum for good nutrition for humans and animals. It is not simply a matter of food costs, but of what manufacturers are putting into pet foods and prepared human foods that contribute to the obesity, diabetes and metabolic syndrome epidemics and a host of other physical and behavioral maladies plaguing the Earth.

DEAR DR. FOX: Snoopy, my brother and sister-in-law's 11-year-old beagle, is ailing. A year ago, they were told he had an inoperable tumor on his heart. But after a lot of TLC, he revived, recovered energy and became like his old self. It appeared his tumor had shrunk.

But now he is lethargic again. He hardly has the energy to go outside or walk to his pillow bed on the floor. He sleeps a lot, will eat when fed directly and occasionally drinks a small quantity of water. Family members pet him gently for long periods, and this puts him to sleep. When he wakes up, he is perkier.

I am writing to ask if there are some foods (or better still, liquids) you recommend to make him as comfortable as possible. Since his tumor shrank before, I wonder if it could shrink again. -- A.G.S.

DEAR A.G.S.: Strange things can happen with various cancers when the immune system kicks in and is supported by good genetics and good nutrition.

There is a movement gaining momentum for human and animal cancer patients that recommends going on a high-animal protein (meat, eggs, poultry, fish), high-fat (fish, flax and coconut oils) diet with lots of variously colored fruits and vegetables that are high in antioxidants, all blended together and fed raw or lightly cooked. Always transition gradually onto any new diet, therapeutic or otherwise, and provide probiotics and digestive enzymes. In addition, supplements such as canine resveratrol; vitamins A, E and C; coenzyme Q10; magnesium; and selenium may also be of benefit. Some holistic practitioners also prescribe the amino acid L-arginine and various anti-cancer mushroom formulations.

To find a holistic veterinarian in your area, a searchable list can be found at ahvma.org. Veterinarians wishing to learn more are encouraged to become members of the American Holistic Veterinary Medical Association. The winter 2013 issue of the journal Integrative Veterinary Care has an excellent article on nutrition and cancer.

(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.)