DEAR DR. FOX: We have a 7 1/2–year-old pit bull/terrier-mix. She is a rescue dog. We adopted her when she was 12 weeks old. These last two years or so, it seems like her stomach gets upset easily. Often, she doesn't eat and just lies around. Sometimes I give her Pepto-Bismol, and sometimes she will eat a little of a certain grass that makes her vomit, then she is ready to eat.

Daily, I give her boiled chicken, green beans, dry food, her multivitamin (half of an adult tablet) and garlic juice, which she gets only in the morning. I can't figure out what is upsetting her stomach so often. I have caught her eating bunny and squirrel poop in the yard, but she doesn't get an upset stomach every time.

She loves raw pasta. I give her maybe 12 pieces of the no-yolk kind a day. The only other thing she will get is Pup-Peroni when we leave the house as positive reinforcement. Is there anything else I could add to her diet to cause her to not want to eat the poop?

My other question concerns her anal glands: I have to take care of them once a month like clockwork, and they are usually full. You mentioned something about an allergy or intolerance. The dry food I purchase is Purina One with lamb, rice and soft morsels in it. Is that why she can't release her anal glands on her own? -- G.S., Cedar Hill, Mo.

DEAR G.S.: If you are giving your dog the garlic juice on an empty stomach, this could be the problem. I would cut out this supplement and the snacks and transition her onto my home-prepared diet (available on my website, DrFoxVet.com). Also try my buckwheat dog treat recipe.

Many manufactured pet foods contain various food industry byproducts and other ingredients not always indicated on the label. Food hypersensitivity/allergy can manifest is chronic ear and/or anal gland disease. I would certainly avoid any manufactured food that contains GMO (genetically modified) ingredients such as corn and soy. Consider transitioning her onto a raw food diet such as Bravo or some of the whole-food and organic dog foods listed on my website.

The poop eating may indicate a nutritional deficiency, so she may benefit from a daily teaspoon of brewer's yeast and a probiotic supplement in her food. You can use live bacteria-rich organic plain yogurt or kefir as a backup.

DEAR DR. FOX: I have enjoyed your column for many years. You often get letters from people dealing with their cats who have symptoms of feline urinary syndrome. I had a cat who displayed those symptoms and, though no stones ever needed to be removed, I drove to the emergency hospital late at night on more than one occasion because I believed he would not live until morning.

I came across a book about cats and vitamin C, and the vet who wrote it suggested giving sodium ascorbate to cats for FUS. Sodium ascorbate, as you would know, is vitamin C buffered with salt for easier digestion. The book even gave recommended quantities based on the cat's weight. I gave my 12-pound cat 1/8 teaspoon mixed into his moist food every day for the rest of his life, and he never had any more problems with FUS. I found a vet who, when I told her I was giving my cat sodium ascorbate, responded, "Good idea, keeps the urine nice and acidic."

In learning about human natural medicine, I learned that for either diarrhea or constipation, bran flakes are effective. When my cat was straining to defecate and I took her to the vet to get checked out, the doctor said that one can treat a cat the same way as a human for constipation. I bought some bran flakes and now I mix a teaspoon in with my cat's moist food every day. Stools are softer and leave her body easier.

I really hope these natural and inexpensive treatments don't die with me. I don't hear veterinarians these days prescribing these simple "cures" found at any natural food store. -- D.S., St. Louis

DEAR D.S.: I hope that veterinarians and cat and dog owners will take note of your personal testimony of the benefits of such natural products for some serious health conditions in companion animals.

Vitamin C is a natural acidifier, which can help dissolve and prevent struvite crystals/calculi but may not be of benefit when animals have oxalate or other kinds of urinary tract-blocking calculi. Veterinarian Dr. Wendell Belfield was one of the first, I believe, to recognize these and other benefits of vitamin C for companion animals.

Bran can be effective, but I prefer psyllium husks, presoaked in water. When animals are on a dry food diet and don't drink enough water, bulk laxatives can aggravate constipation.

(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 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.)