DEAR DR. FOX: Some 50 years ago, we adopted a dog from a family who was going to destroy her. We agreed to have her for a week and see how it worked out. Tammy was about a year old and already spayed. In those days, dogs were not required to have shots or a license.

All her life, we fed our Tammy Daily Dog Food from the A&P. She lived to be 19 and never saw the inside of a vet's office until her final visit, when it was obviously time to say goodbye. I seriously doubt whether better nutrition would have prolonged her life or made it any healthier. -- B.B., Fairfield, Connecticut

DEAR B.B.: Fifty years ago, manufactured dog foods contained mainly whole-food ingredients rather than ever more highly processed and denatured human food and beverage industry byproducts, additives and preservatives. The food had very few -- if any -- pesticide residues, and certainly no genetically modified organisms. While they were often too high in grains, they came from better soils than the nutrient-deficient ones of today.

Most crops that are not certified organic now come from depleted soils and finish up on our plates and in pet foods. Most dogs adapted to the high cereal content, along with table scraps, which were generally plentiful when most folks cooked meals from scratch. The composition of dog food was also low in fine particle processed gluten/lectin elements from highly processed grains, which can harm dogs' dental health and cause digestive and intestinal problems.

Fifty years ago, there were fewer pure breeds and "designer dogs," whose genetics now call for special diets, opening up the field of nutrigenomics and the pet food industry's lucrative special prescription diets market. Annual veterinary wellness evaluations are now called for, especially for pure breeds. As for vaccinations, much suffering from distemper and parvovirus has been greatly reduced in the canine population, though some pure breeds in particular have occasional, serious adverse reactions, called vaccinosis.

Veterinary hospitals, boarding kennels and groomers' insistence on up-to-date full vaccination records and vaccination regulations against rabies have certainly helped reduce the incidence of contagious canine diseases, but it brings with it various health problems.

DEAR DR. FOX: After Christmas, we took our 13-year-old Labrador-Rottweiler mix for her yearly checkup. We've been going to this office for approximately three years. I questioned the vet regarding my dog, Reille, getting the rabbi (sic) shot due to her age, but went ahead since the vet said it wouldn't bother her (and she said it was the law). A week later, Reille had a huge lump in the location where the shot was given. The vet says the big lump was a tumor and not a cyst, as I thought. She thought the tumor was cancerous, but said she'd have to get a biopsy to know for sure. We decided not to have the biopsy due to her age.

Could the shot have caused this mass? Now she has difficulty walking. She also sleeps all the time, but she still eats a lot and goes outside to potty.

I'm just concerned that this was caused by the shot. Can you clarify for me? -- D.G., Fenton, Missouri

DEAR D.G.: First, let me correct your error and give an amusing anecdote: It is "rabies," not "rabbi." At an international conference in Boston in the 1980s, where I gave a lecture on animal rights and the horrors of factory farming, an Indian veterinarian gave a lecture discussing rabies in India and said several times, "we are fighting rabbis and we must eradicate rabbis." He was disconcerted when some people began to laugh, but apologized when the moderator intervened and gave him the correct pronunciation.

I regret the experience that you and your old dog have gone through with this vaccination, which is mandatory under the law, but can be given every three years rather than annually. The injection site the veterinarian used is not unusual, but the reaction is. It could be a rare cancer called a fibrosarcoma, which is more common but still of low incidence, at the vaccine injection site. Fibrosarcoma tends to occur more often in cats than dogs.

Sorry to give you the probable bad news, which only a biopsy will confirm.

MORE PET FOOD & TREAT ISSUES

-- The Food and Drug Administration just released a jerky treat investigation update. For more than eight years, pets have been dying and sickened from Chinese jerky treats, and the FDA still can't determine why. The "adverse event reports" total more than "5,800 dogs, 25 cats, three people, and include more than 1,000 canine deaths."

-- J.J. Fuds expanded the list of pet food products it is recalling because of potential contamination with salmonella and Listeria monocytogenes. The recall now covers all products and lots of J.J. Fuds Beef Tender Chunks, Chicken Tender Chunks and Duckling Tender Chunks pet foods. The affected products were distributed to wholesale and retail stores in Illinois, Michigan, Indiana, Wisconsin and Minnesota.

-- A nationwide class-action lawsuit was recently filed in California charging Nestle Purina with breach of warranty, negligence and negligent misrepresentation (among other things). Visit truthaboutpetfood.com/class-action-lawsuit-filed-against-beneful-dog-food/ for more information.

(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 cousin has a 7-year-old poodle, Norman, who weighs about 20 pounds. She got him from a shelter, and he suffers from an enlarged heart, collapsed trachea and chronic cough. Her vet prescribes Vetmedin, hydrocodone and a diuretic. Norman will not take the medicine unless he is quite hungry, so he is not being given as many snacks as he is used to.

The vet says that Norman is not in pain, and he has been coughing all of his life. But he does cough a lot, and it is hard to believe that his throat is not raw. What do you think?

Also, the vet says that if Norman goes to a specialist, the specialist will merely tell my cousin the same thing that she tells her. -- P.K., House Springs, Missouri

DEAR P.K.: Sorry, I have nothing to add. This is a fragile breed with inherited anomalies, human-created through selective breeding. In my professional opinion, the attending veterinarian is on the right track.

Note: Never put a leash on the dog's collar; only walk outside with a harness so there are no more traumas to the weak trachea.

DEAR DR. FOX: My husband and I are responsible for approximately 20 cats, most of whom are strays we have fixed, fed and sheltered for 8 years. One female, Charlotte, is 2 1/2 years old. She was spayed when she was a kitten by the same spay and neuter clinic that has taken care of all our cats.

A year ago, she started to exhibit signs that she was going into heat. She yowls, rolls around and urinates all over the house, which is something she never does at other times. This has happened two more times, months apart. We took her to the vet, where they did almost $300 worth of tests to rule out other problems, but never found anything. We were told that when she was spayed, they must have missed a cell and that she would need another surgery to find it. I have never heard of an animal not being completely fixed. Can this really be what is going on, and can it be corrected? We worry about another surgery. -- A.O., Jackson, New Jersey

DEAR A.O.: It is very rare, fortunately, but it does happen that after a cat's ovaries have been removed, the surge of stimulating hormones from the pituitary gland in the brain can awaken possibly embryonic, aberrant ovarian cells, sometimes located around the kidneys or around the tissues supporting where the ovaries were situated.

In some instances, these aggregations of cells can be located and removed, but that calls for major surgery. The alternative is to seize your cat by the scruff of the neck and gently stimulate her genital area with an ear swab. This may put her into a hormonally more quiescent state of false pregnancy. The alternative is to have her given progesterone, but no hormonal treatment is without health risks.

ANOTHER DOG REMOTE-SENSING IN THE "EMPATHOSPHERE"

Sissy, an 11-year-old miniature schnauzer in Cedar Rapids, Iowa, ended up at Mercy Medical Center, 20 blocks from her home where her co-owner, Nancy Frank, was recovering from cancer surgery. A surveillance camera in the hospital lobby caught the dog entering through the automatic doors and wandering around.

Husband Dale Frank finally got a call at 5:30 a.m. from a security officer who found his phone number and house address from the tag on Sissy's collar. Frank's daughter went over and got permission to take Sissy up to Nancy Frank for a few minutes, he said. His theory about how Sissy might have navigated 20 blocks to his wife was that Sissy used to ride with him to pick up his wife from work next door to the hospital, though they'd never walked that route before. I disagree with this theory, because Sissy's story is like that of the 7-year-old Samoyed-husky mix, Dolan, who made a hazardous 2-mile journey from his home to the hospital in Islip, New York, to be with his ailing human companion, and he had never been near that hospital before. These canine feats support my "empathosphere" theory that animals can enter this realm of feeling-seeing or remote sensing consciousness and navigate on the basis of their emotional connectedness. Many such instances are documented on my website, DrFoxVet.com, and in my book "Animals & Nature First."

(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: What do you recommended when a 35-pound dog eats sugar-free gum? The gum has xylitol in it, and she ate the whole pack. She threw up once and was staggering around. -- D.S., Winston-Salem, North Carolina

DEAR D.S.: This situation is an emergency, and any dog who eats xylitol-containing human consumables -- including diet cookies, mouthwash, children's multivitamin chews, candy and gum -- should go to an emergency clinic. A mere 50 to 100 milligrams per pound of body weight can trigger the pancreas to release insulin in massive quantities. This causes acute hypoglycemia that can lead to seizures and death. Surviving animals can also suffer liver damage.

Dogs not only have a sweet tooth, but they also want to share, or steal, whatever we are eating or have left within easy reach.

While I encourage dog owners to learn about dental care for their canine companions, I advise them to use products that are dog-safe and effective, such as those available on my website, DrFoxVet.com. Do not use human toothpaste or any other oral care products containing xylitol.

DEAR DR. FOX: We have two very gentle cats, both 4 1/2 years old. The other day, we had a couple over who were interested in buying our house. They brought their 6-month-old baby and 3-year-old toddler. Neither of our cats had ever seen a child younger than 10 years old, so they were both very curious -- sniffing and staring, but not touching. After about an hour, the 3-year-old started getting restless and started crying. Both cats looked alarmed, but after a few minutes, the father picked up the crying child, at which time Sasha attacked him! I'd never seen anything like it. She latched onto his leg and started growling, hissing and biting him. Olivia started hissing and mewing. Due to Sasha's size, I reached for her, and she swiped at me. We were, quite frankly, scared, as they have never behaved aggressively.

I suggested the father put the child on the couch, at which point he did. The cats immediately settled down. It was like flipping a switch. Sasha walked over to the child, sniffed, and then walked away as if nothing happened. We are all speechless. It is as if they believed the father was harming the child.

I'm a beekeeper and have a few chickens; my observations of both (along with the cats) make me firmly believe all animals have some sense of self in relation to their world. I can't imagine how people can be cruel to them. Thank you for listening! -- G.S., Cornwall, Vermont

DEAR G.S.: I believe that your interpretation of your cat's behavior is correct. A few days after receiving your communication, one of our cats was on my lap, and he gave some low yowls in protest while I was clipping the long fur on his hindquarters. Our other cat came running over and seized my hand holding the scissors in his jaws. The bite was firm but painless; he was evidently very concerned and being protective.

PET FOOD AND TREAT RECALLS

Tuffy's Pet Foods Inc. of Perham, Minnesota, is voluntarily recalling specific lots of 4-pound bags of Nutrisca chicken and chickpea recipe dry dog food because they have the potential to be contaminated with salmonella. Tuffy's manufactured the product for Nutrisca.

Consumers who purchased the dry dog food product subject to the voluntary recall should stop using the product and contact Nutrisca at 1-888-559-8833.

Pet International of Miami is recalling 1,500 units of Buster's Natural 6-inch Beef Trachea treats because it may be contaminated with salmonella.

The affected product was distributed to retail stores in Conifer and Lakewood, Colorado. The recall may soon be expanded. Purchasers are advised to take these dog chews back to the place of purchase and can contact the company by phone at 305-591-3338 or via email at sergioh@petint.com.

I have grave concerns that these kinds of processed animal parts, many subjected to irradiation, could still harbor potentially harmful bacteria resistant to antibiotics, which are grossly misused in many countries. My advice: Read the label, and if the country of origin/manufacture is not indicated, only a "distributed by" country -- DO NOT PURCHASE.

(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.)