DEAR DR. FOX: My friend's dog came from a shelter and must have had some terrible experiences. At times, and for no reason that I can understand, when I am around the dog he will charge me. I do not understand what I am doing.

It seems to happen when I am close to my friend. At other times, he will come to me for petting, wagging his tail. He has some other issues -- flashing lights, thunder, charging when someone is picking up something off the floor, when I get close to his food bowl, mail trucks, mail carriers and other odd things.

Can you explain why he is acting strangely toward me at certain times? He has me baffled. -- N.L., Washington, D.C.

DEAR N.L.: You have every reason to be baffled by this "bipolar" dog. He is showing classic signs of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). You must learn to initiate interactions around such an animal only after you have made eye contact with him and when he signals he wants interaction. Put away all expectations you've learned from your prior experiences with friendly dogs.

You need to empathize with his need for space and control -- fear and aggression are triggered when he feels threatened or blocked. Try motivating him with toys that may appeal to him, like a ball, squeaky toy or rope. Initiate the interactions by letting him have his way at all times. Such engagements may lead to play therapy, enabling him to gain trust and self-confidence.

Get him used to enjoying being groomed, and eventually massaged, which can result in miraculous transformations in dogs like him. Let me know how things turn out.

DEAR DR FOX: My 16-year-old pug has anal gland and ear problems. She's had her anal glands drained twice in the last six months, but she still scoots when I take her outside and scratches her ears.

She eats Rachael Ray's Nutrish (beef) mixed with cooked carrots or green beans. I give her Special K cereal for a snack. Can either of these products be causing her discomfort? -- L.W., Chapel Hill, N.C.

DEAR L.W.: I checked on the basic ingredients of your old dog's food: beef, chicken meal, ground rice, brown rice, soybean meal, whole grain corn, corn gluten meal, poultry fat (preserved with mixed tocopherols) and dried plain beet pulp.

The brand claims, "No beef byproduct meal, fillers, wheat or wheat gluten," but what is beet pulp if it is not filler?

Stating that there is no wheat or wheat gluten but including lots of other gluten from corn, plus whole-grain corn and soybean meal, is disingenuous at best. I would not recommend this food when there are better formulas on the market. You may wish to try my recipe for home-prepared dog food and treats, purchasing known ingredients for human consumption in your grocery store.

Anal gland and chronic ear and skin problems are often associated with food allergy/hypersensitivity, which is what I suspect for your poor dog.

UPDATE FROM THE ORIGINAL LETTER WRITER:

DEAR DR. FOX: Thank you for the information on this dog food. After only one week off this food, all scratching of ears and scooting has stopped. She even seems livelier -- hopefully she will soon reach her 17th birthday.

I can't seem to find your recipe for homemade dog food on the website. Can you please give me the ingredients or where I can find it? I can't thank you enough for your advice. -- L.W.

DEAR L.W.: I appreciate your quick feedback about your dog's speedy recovery! Look on my website, DrFoxVet.com and click on "Dr. Fox's Library" for my home-prepared dog food recipe.

EUKANUBA DOG AND IAMS DOG AND CAT FOOD RECALLS

On Aug. 14, Procter & Gamble voluntarily recalled specific lots of dry pet food due to the potential for salmonella contamination. These lots were distributed in the United States. No salmonella-related illnesses have been reported to date in association with these product lots.

Consumers who purchased Eukanuba dry dog food or Iams dry dog or cat food products should stop using the product if the code on the bag matches one of the recalls, and discard it. Contact P&G toll-free at 800-208-0172 or via the brands' websites at iams.com or eukanuba.com. The products are also listed on my website.

The number of pet food recalls are commendable in terms of state and federal monitoring, but the high frequency and wide scope of many of these recalls is cause for concern over the safety of food ingredients and manufacturing and storage facilities.

(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: A recent Animal Doctor column addressed carsickness in dogs. Our poodle has no problems with cars -- he rides many miles with us every summer. But then we took him boating, and he got seasick.

Still, he loved going to the beach and frolicking with our kids, until the authorities posted a "No Dogs on the Beach" ordinance, and we couldn't include him on our excursions. He's a smart dog and could tell when we were going (we'd be putting our bathing suits on). He would sit by the front door, panting and whimpering to go. We tried not saying the words, but spelling them out -- "b-e-a-c-h" and "b-o-a-t" -- he still knew what we were up to.

It's heart-wrenching leaving him behind watching us drive away. Do you have any suggestions? -- M.K., Naples, Fla.

DEAR M.K.: Try my remedy for your dog's motion/seasickness: 1/2-teaspoon freshly chopped ginger root in a small ball of cottage cheese or peanut butter given 30 minutes before the boat ride. Put a bandana with a few drops of lavender oil around his neck. This will help calm him. The ginger will settle his stomach and is a potent anti-nausea herb that is used to alleviate morning sickness in pregnant women. If your dog is not a standard poodle, reduce the amount of ginger accordingly. The only harm of an overdose could be that he might throw it up.

As for beaches closed to dogs, there should be a "dog time" allotment, and an inspector posted who levies a massive fine on anyone who does not poop-scoop at once.

DEAR DR. FOX: Jake is an 8-year-old neutered male cat who came to me as a young stray. He has a very shaggy coat, and it turns out he's a Maine coon, although he must have been the runt of the litter since he never got larger than 10 to 11 pounds.

During a routine examination, my veterinarian found a mass in Jake's abdomen that he decided, after various tests, was probably a tumor of the spleen. That wasn't the case -- it turned out to be an enormous hair ball in Jake's stomach. The vet said he'd never seen anything like it before. He kept it to show me after the surgery, and it was the size of my fist.

Needless to say, the cat feels much better and eats better with this thing gone, but what can I do to keep this from happening again? Jake is a meticulous groomer, and he spits up hair balls like any normal cat, though that obviously wasn't bringing up most of what he's swallowed. -- C.H., Bowie, Md.

DEAR C.H.: I hope that people with cats will take note of Jake's massive fur ball. This is a not-uncommon issue with cats, and if not treated, it can be fatal.

Daily brushing is part of the solution, but not for too long, because it may stimulate more fur growth and shedding. Just brush your cat briefly to remove already-shed fur trapped in the coat.

A few drops of fish oil or 1/2 teaspoon of organic butter in your cat's food daily may help improve coat health. Adding a teaspoon of soaked psyllium husks or cooked mashed green or butter beans to the food can provide some fiber in the diet that can stimulate digestion and the passage of small accumulations of fur in the stomach. Some people find a teaspoon of olive oil helps prevent fur balls and periodic retching of fur from the stomach.

For one of our cats, providing a few leaves of crushed catnip triggers almost immediate vomiting and is done once a month or so. This results in a small "sausage" of fur being expelled from the body. My theory is that swallowed fur is biologically adaptive in the wild, binding up small chewed bones and insect parts to reduce internal injury.

(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 four pets -- two cats and two dogs -- who all get along very well. Our spayed female papillon has some dominance issues. She always wants to be in front when we go on walks, and she barks at every single dog, human, deer, cat -- whatever she sees or hears.

I would like to train her to stop, but I want to use positive reinforcement only. What do you suggest? I have seen some barking collars in catalogs and have been tempted to try one, but I don't like the idea of spraying her little face every time she opens her mouth. -- C.M.M., Silver Spring, Md.

DEAR C.M.M.: Some behaviors are so instinctively hardwired and reinforced by an element of obsessive-compulsive disorder that they are a challenge to inhibit. There is also a size issue, similar to some sort of Napoleon complex: The smaller the dog (like your little papillon), the more it barks.

First, don't use a collar when out on walks -- this could injure her neck and windpipe. Rather, fit her with a comfortable harness. Before resorting to an anti-bark collar, try click-reward training.

Get your dog used to hearing a clicker (available in most pet stores), and, after clicking, get her to sit and stay before receiving a treat. Once she's condition-trained, use the clicker to distract her when she barks on your walks; reward her only when she sits and remains quiet. Be sure she is hungry before walks, and, as I constantly advise, dogs are best fed after, and not before, they are walked or allowed out to run and play.

DEAR DR. FOX: I have read many of the articles on your website and have purchased a copy of your latest book, "Animals and Nature First." You cover many different topics and areas of expertise way beyond the scope of your Animal Doctor column. For us pet owners, can you give a synopsis of how your concerns for the environment and for public health relate to many Animal Doctor issues and what difference can we pet owners make? -- R.E., Silver Spring, Md.

DEAR R.E.: I appreciate the thoughtful nature of your letter and your challenge to provide a synopsis of my concerns and how we can all make a difference. Here you go:

-- Embrace the vision of One Health, where progress in human health is inseparable from animal health and a healthy environment.

-- Become environmentalists. Eliminate the use of all pesticides in and around your home and garden and on your pets.

-- Become kitchen/food anarchists, supporting local farmers markets, purchasing organically certified food (including pet food) and preparing more of your own meals from scratch. Follow the dictum of Hippocrates: "Let food be thy medicine and medicine be thy food."

-- Set up animal health/wellness exams for you animal companions that do not include animal booster vaccinations. Support national organizations such as Earthjustice, Center for Biological Diversity, Environmental Working Group, Greenpeace, World Vets and Animal Welfare Institute. Visit holisticvetlist.com to find a holistic veterinarian in your area.

-- Support your local animal shelter/humane society, Audubon Society or other local environmental and wildlife protection organization.

-- If you are a parent, look at what is being provided in school lunches. Get rid of soda pop and candy dispensers, and be sure environmental and animal protection issues are being included in food decisions.

DEAR DR. FOX: I have a pet rat that I took to the vet because she seemed to breathe noisily. She was fine otherwise -- healthy appetite, drinks plenty of water, playful and no discharge from the eyes or nose. Poop and pee are normal.

The vet decided to keep her for three days and quoted me a price of $250. When I went to pick her up, it was $450. Needless to say, I was upset. I talked to them twice a day when she was there, and they never said the price was going to be so much.

They gave her antibiotics and breathing ointments twice a day. She is home now and is still a noisy breather, but is fine otherwise. I feel they should have let me know of the new charges. -- M.S., High Ridge, Mo.

DEAR M.S.: It is quite beside the point that you could have replaced your pet rat many times over for the $450 that was charged for veterinary care -- there was no significant improvement!

There is a segment of the veterinary profession that puts business and profits before appropriate, ethical and cost-conscious animal care.

You should file a complaint along with an itemized bill to the state board of veterinary examiners and the Better Business Bureau. Did the attending veterinarian ask about or examine what food and bedding material you provided? Moldy food pellets could be a factor. More likely, irritating volatile oils from cedar shavings or dust and mold spores in bedding/cage litter material causes loud breathing. I presume your rat's enclosure is kept clean and is adequately ventilated.

(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.)