DEAR DR. FOX: After having three healthy dogs over the years, I adopted a 15-month-old rescue dog. One vet said it's possible he has irritable bowel syndrome. I am not committed to supporting a sickly dog, so I hope to get this problem corrected. Two vets have suggested canned pumpkin. This works if the dog eats all of his food; however, if he doesn't, the problem is assured to manifest immediately.

My dog's first bowel movement of the day is normal. The second is characterized by straining (sometimes yelping that I assume indicates pain), mucus-textured bowel movement, concluding with further straining resulting in wet droplets. This is frowned upon at the dog park because it is interpreted as evidence of an owner who is lax in providing medical attention for her dog.

Regardless of the number of walking/dog park opportunities he is presented per day (usually four), the dog's bowels move on average only twice a day. Is there some kind of fix for this condition? -- A.R., Washington, D.C.

DEAR A.R.: If your veterinarian ran no fecal tests to rule out parasites, did not try a short course of treatment with metronidazole or Tylosin and only suggested you give your dog canned pumpkin, I would take your dog to another animal doctor.

Check my website, DrFoxVet.com, for details on the various factors that can trigger this common animal condition and its various treatments. These can range from a diet free of grain/cereal to giving psyllium husks, digestive enzymes and probiotics in the food. Peppermint tea can be beneficial for dogs and humans alike. This is also true for fenugreek, aloe vera and ginger. Veterinarians are leading the human medical profession in using fecal transplants from healthy donors to help animals in need of gut microbiome replenishment, especially after prolonged antibiotic treatments.

DEAR DR. FOX: Our 3-year-old bulldog has a serious problem. He has a kink in his tail, which makes it necessary to clean him after he does his business. It's not a problem for him or for us, but he has developed a hot spot at the base of his tail on top so he can't stand to be touched. Our vet has prescribed cleaning the spot twice a day with diluted Nolvasan, applying Vetericyn on the area two times daily and giving him cephalexin every 12 hours and Previcox once daily as needed for discomfort.

Someone also suggested removing his tail. It sounds like a terrible thing to do. He is in so much pain. Do you have advice for us? -- M.G., Ridgefield, Conn.

DEAR M.G.: Your poor dog who is suffering from the consequences of generations of selective breeding for these kinds of deformities. Bulldogs do need high maintenance for skin-fold dermatitis, chronic respiratory distress and eye problems associated with ectropion, all of which should be eliminated by breeding longer-muzzled, smaller-headed bulldogs with fewer wrinkles.

A healing application of dermatological aloe vera ointment may help. You can also try a mixture of essential oils applied two to three times daily at the ratio of 5 drops each of frankincense, myrrh and helichrysum in 100 drops of olive oil. The ultimate cure may well be corrective surgery. Imagine the discomfort and psychological effects of feeling pain every time he tries to wag his tail.

(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 year or so ago, Marco, our 11-year-old standard poodle, began to pant a lot while walking and during other nonstressful circumstances. Sometimes he'd gag as well.

This condition, especially the panting, has gotten worse over time, and our veterinarian concluded it is due to paralysis of the larynx, or "dropped larynx," which he said sometimes occurs in large, older dogs. He told us to raise Marco's food and water dishes and take care that he doesn't get overheated, but that the condition is progressive. There's not much we can do about it except for having a "tie-back" surgery performed by an experienced, board-certified surgeon.

For about a month now we have tried working with another vet who does acupuncture, homeopathy and chiropractic with the hope of slowing this down, if not stopping its progress, to no avail -- it seems to be getting worse. So we are contemplating the surgery.

We would be grateful for any suggestions or comments you might have regarding this condition and how it might be treated. We'd never heard of it before and cannot find much research about it when searching the Internet. Marco is healthy otherwise. -- J.S., Ashland, Ore.

DEAR J.S.: This disorder is serious and is often accompanied by hypothyroidism in older dogs. It can have a genetic basis and occurs as a congenital disorder in some breeds, such as the Siberian husky, and as a degenerative neurological disorder in dalmatians and rottweilers.

Elevating food and water bowls is very important to help prevent inhalation of food and fluids when the larynx does not function properly and the poor dog is gasping for air, which can lead to pneumonia.

Surgical correction through suturing one side of the larynx so that some of the collapsed cartilages are pulled to one side in order to make breathing easier is the best approach. No surgical procedure is without risk, and complications can occur, but performed by an experienced surgeon, your dog could have a new lease on life. Otherwise, he might suffer partial asphyxia, which this condition causes, to the point of collapse after even mild activity. The suture-widened larynx will make breathing easier, but the risk of pneumonia will remain.

DEAR DR. FOX: I acknowledge you've written about the risks of toxic plants, but I don't remember seeing anything discussing moss. Not the shade-loving, dense form, but the kind that looks a bit like slimy snot when lifted from wet rocks or perpetually wet areas.

For several years, our backyard has had a problem from runoff coming from a neighbor's pool. To their credit, they've tried to repair the pool and berm landscape; however, the water seems to have no boundaries, and the problem has gotten worse.

My concern here is that our dog -- our third in just a few years -- is suffering identical problems that our first two went through. He's constantly licking his paws and legs to a point of hot spots, and he has foamy hacking and frequent bowel movements. How do you test for toxic organisms in moss? My vet has only been able to treat the symptoms.

Our first dog lived for two years after we moved here. Our second dog only lived to be 4 years old. Our third is 6 years old now. When he was 3, he started developing focal seizures that seem to come about only in the rainy season and summer months. This dog has had greater exposure to the slime.

We've attempted to fix the problem with landscape solutions, but the water continues to surface, killing the grass and taking over the swath of ground our dog runs on. I'm perplexed as to a solution, short of building a bridge.

Is the moss what's making our pets' health compromised? Please let me know what you make of this. -- C.B., Clayton, Mo.

DEAR C.B.: Some pool chemicals, especially chlorine compounds, could cause serious dermatitis and possibly seizures. But the "moss" that you describe is most probably a species of algae that can be toxic to dogs -- it causes liver damage, nausea, vomiting and seizures. That is why I advise people to never allow their dogs to drink from standing water in the summer months when algae bloom. Blue-green algae are especially hazardous.

You need to get to the bottom of this health hazard with your neighbor. Where there's standing water with slimy, potentially toxic algae, there can also be botulism bacteria, producing one of the most deadly poisons to humans and other animals. Our communities would be generally healthier without swimming pools, lawns and golf courses, and with more attention to creating more environmentally friendly, chemical-free environments.

(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: Our 8-year-old female cat has been diagnosed with COPD (chronic obstructive pulmonary disease). The vet has her on prednisone. She also had a shot of a longer-lasting antibiotic to treat bronchitis.

Is there anything we can do to help with the congestion/coughing? -- F.P., Stratford, Conn.

DEAR F.P.: I am concerned about this standardized treatment that proves effective most often on a one-shot, hit-and-miss basis and can have some harmful consequences from steroid and antibiotic side effects.

Many cats with symptoms like yours actually have food allergy-related asthma, and they get better when triggering ingredients -- such as corn or fish -- are removed from their diets.

I would follow a holistic and alternative approach. In addition, provide your cat with daily probiotics that have been shown to significantly help children suffering from asthma. Also check the archives on my website, DrFoxVet.com, for more suggestions.

Cats who are allowed outdoors and who kill and eat birds and small mammals should be checked for lungworm parasites, since some wild prey can carry these worms and infest cats, causing respiratory problems. Slugs and snails also carry a parasitic worm species that has been implicated in lung disease in dogs and foxes.

DEAR DR. FOX: I enjoyed your article "Handling poodle's eye tear stains" that appeared in our newspaper.

I used to be a Pet Nutrition Specialist for a popular pet food company and learned another valuable tip for getting rid of some dog tearstains: Try feeding the tearstained pet filtered water instead of tap water. Many times the stains will lessen or disappear if the pet is hypersensitive or allergic to the chemicals in tap water, such as chlorine and fluoride. I've passed along that tip to hundreds of pet parents, and most have come back to me thanking me because it solved the problem. -- D.T., St. Louis

DEAR DR. FOX: A reader wrote to you recently about his poodle's eye tearstains. I have a suggestion that worked for my white shih tzu-poodle mix.

While I was walking my dog about 4 1/2 years ago, a woman stopped to admire my little Danny Boy. Unfortunately, he had those horrible tearstains. While we were chatting, the woman told me she worked for a pet food company and suggested I not give my dog tap water, but bottled water. Immediately I started using what I had in the house (Iron Mountain). It took a couple of months, but it worked! No more stains!

Thanks for your dedication to all God's creatures. --M.B.S., St. Louis

DEAR D.T. and M.B.S.: Many thanks for your mutually supporting letters sharing your evidently effective remedy for tearstained faces in your dogs. This is a common problem and is yet another reason why dogs (and cats, too) should not be given municipal tap water to drink, the hazards of which are detailed in "Dr. Fox's Library" on my website.

(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.)