DEAR DR. FOX: We have a small part-Chihuahua dog, age 7, and she loves to have sips of my husband’s home-brewed beer.

The other day she licked up some Diet Coke I accidentally spilled, and really liked it. Now she wants to drink some when I sit down with my husband, and I have my pop and he has his beer. She is not interested in the beer anymore. I know dogs like sweet things, and there’s no alcohol in the pop. Is that OK? Like me, she’s a bit overweight. -- H.W., Fargo, North Dakota

DEAR H.W.: Part of living with a dog is sharing treats, but ideally they should only be given as a reward for training purposes, and as a daily ritual (as we do with our dog when we come back from a walk). Once you start sharing while you are eating and drinking, you’ll have a dog who will always be pestering you and will be quite likely to get overweight with treat after treat.

I see nothing wrong giving your dog a teaspoon or so of beer when you and your husband are sitting back and having drinks together, but give it to her in her own saucer.

As for the soda: The sugar substitute aspartame, found in many diet sodas (check the ingredients in yours), is classified as a neuro-excitant. This excitotoxin is a brain nerve stimulant that may have addictive qualities for people. It can affect behavior, mood, sleep and judgment, and can increase appetite and impair metabolism, aggravating obesity and diabetes when consumed in significant daily amounts -- certain public officials being no exception.

My late mother-in-law, who had diabetes but craved sweets, used to put aspartame on much of what she ate, including tomatoes. She once phoned me to say that she felt she like was having seizures when she went to bed, and her doctor could not give her a reason. Knowing about her diet soda and artificial sweetener addictions, I advised her to switch to the herbal product Stevia. She immediately followed my advice, and her distressing neurological symptoms never recurred.

Aspartame was approved by the U.S. government (under protest from one expert panelist on the review board whom I knew well) as a safe substitute for saccharine, and is now in many manufactured foods and beverages, the absurdity of which borders on the insane.

Bake your own dog cookies as per the recipe on my website, drfoxvet.net, or get a good brand made only in the U.S. or Canada. The new freeze-dried meats are excellent options. All things in moderation. Many snack foods for humans are loaded with salt, sugar and other addictive flavorings, contributing to the obesity epidemic along with high-fructose sodas. Xylitol, found in candy, many diet cookies and other snacks, is poisonous for dogs.

OBESITY BIG ISSUE IN TODAY’S PETS

Twenty percent of the more than 1.4 million claims filed in 2016 with pet insurance carrier Nationwide involved conditions related to obesity, totaling more than $62 million in veterinary care. Obesity-related claims included care for arthritis, diabetes, bladder and urinary tract disease, liver disease and chronic kidney disease. -- San Jose Mercury News, Jan. 12

DEAR DR. FOX: I read your column in our local paper religiously. I am incredulous that you would defend the likes of pit bulls, who frequently kill their owners and others for little or no reason. I have never heard of a dog like a shih tzu guilty of such behavior. I would be very pleased if you would explain your position and defense of such behavior. -- J.G., Palm Beach, Florida

DEAR J.G.: Many of those reports of “killer” pit bulls are generally more a reflection of who raised and cared for these dogs, and how they were socialized and trained, rather than on the particular breed or mixed variety thereof. Animal shelters and local humane societies have a tremendous public responsibility in this regard, but it would be ethically unacceptable to disallow the adoption of, and instead euthanize, dogs who are assessed behaviorally, socialized, and found to have stable temperaments.

The crux of the matter is deciding to whom such dogs should be adopted out. But without adequate staff to do home checks and unannounced visits, killing them humanely is a regrettable but understandable solution -- especially considering demographic realities in some areas, where these dogs are deployed for protection and for illegal dogfighting events.

All of this I see as a sad reflection of the dystopia of modern day “civilization,” and it is tragic that some dogs are being blamed. Basically, these dogs are a product and consequence of violent families and communities across the U.S., and their unconditional persecution and execution is no solution.

(Send all mail to animaldocfox@gmail.com or to Dr. Michael Fox in care of Andrews McMeel Syndication, 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.net.)

The Trump administration has sided with the big dairy, meat and poultry industries to gut a major condition of the Organic Certification standards, ruling that livestock deemed “USDA Organic” need not be treated any more humanely than animals in conventional farming (the inherent cruelties of which have been well-documented).

This decision reverses years of policy at the Department of Agriculture, which, through the “USDA Organic” label, would dictate what may be sold as “organic” food in the United States. This label could not be used unless the stipulated animal welfare standards and practices -- which I helped initially formulate, several years ago -- were adopted and verified.

These new rules, called the Organic Livestock and Poultry Practices (OLPP), were finalized on Jan. 18, 2017, but that didn’t stop the USDA from delaying them multiple times in the wake of President Trump’s post-inauguration regulatory freeze. Scheduled to go into effect on May 14, 2018, the OLPP specified a set of standards for organic livestock and poultry designed to minimize stress, facilitate natural behaviors and promote animals’ well-being.

This reversal means that consumers will not have any government assurance that the animal produce they purchase comes from animals raised and treated with some humane consideration.

Reinstating humane livestock standards -- as well as those protecting the environment and public lands, which the current administration has trashed -- should be the first task of redemption by the next administration. But that all depends on an enlightened populace electing a more responsible legislature that equates the common good with those values that indeed were making America great, and beginning to put ethics and compassion into more responsible business practices, along with environmental responsibility.

In the interim, I urge consumers to consider vegan and “fake meat” options. The nonviolent revolution of the kitchen calls for saying “fork you” to the conventional food industry, seeing as it is petrochemical-based, pesticide-dependent, drug-addicted and inhumane. The lacto-ovo-vegetarian option (eating dairy and eggs, but no meat) is a relatively humane choice. Practitioners should support known, local producers whose bovine hormone-free (rBGH-free) and cage-free claims can be verified. Also, some animal produce that has been humanely certified by independent, nongovernmental organizations can be found in some stores and farmers’ markets; this may become more prevalent in reaction to the Trump administration’s negation of humane concerns for farmed animals.

Any government that puts making a profit over the higher ethical and spiritual values that define our humanity, especially over concern for fellow creatures and the natural environment, will ultimately justify violating human rights for the greater good of mammon -- and will not make America great again.

DEAR DR. FOX: My miniature long-haired dachshund Gus has exhibited “shaker syndrome” episodes since about age 2 or 3. He begins to shake and loses control of his hind legs. He maintains eye contact and does not appear to suffer any pain. He will sometimes vomit after an incident, and willingly enters his crate when the tremors subside, after he has regained control of his legs.

After these episodes, Gus appears to act normal again and resumes eating and playing. He will be 7 years old in a few months. My own research about this condition indicates it could be inherited, and that dogs with it can still live a normal lifespan.

In your experience, would any changes in diet or activity reduce the frequency of these episodes? Do medications help? I would prefer natural remedies. I appreciate your professional insight into this unsettling disorder. -- J.J., Falls Church, Virginia

DEAR J.J.: Your dog’s condition, evident in certain breeds, does point to a genetic susceptibility, but the actual cause has not yet been determined.

It may be an autoimmune inflammatory brain disease, possibly triggered by an infection, or so-called vaccinosis: an adverse reaction to vaccination. I would avoid further vaccinations and the use of anti-flea drugs, which can affect the nervous system.

I would put your dog on a whole food diet, as per my recipe on my website, that you can prepare yourself. Add some antioxidant-rich blueberries and other finely chopped or blended raw fruits and vegetables (apple, papaya, pineapple, kale or broccoli), plus anti-inflammatory fish oil. Discuss with your veterinarian a treatment with prednisolone (not prednisone) on a periodic regimen of increasing and then decreasing the dose, with intervals of no medication and possible maintenance on gabapentin. Melatonin, a natural plant product and potent antioxidant, may also be beneficial.

(Send all mail to animaldocfox@gmail.com or to Dr. Michael Fox in care of Andrews McMeel Syndication, 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.net.)

DEAR DR. FOX: After my husband passed away, our dog was very depressed for several days. She had no interest in her food or regular walks. Knowing from your books how animals can grieve, I gave her extra TLC; after about three weeks, she got back to her regular routines, but it is like a spark has gone out of her.

What really stood out, though, was her behavior around the time my husband died. A bit before the hospital called to tell me his heart had failed (after a long illness), Sophie became very restless. She whined and kept running to the door and crying, and then came to lie down next to me. It was like she knew that my husband had died.

Just wanted you to know that dogs seem to know things we don’t. -- J.M., St. Louis, Missouri

DEAR J.M.: My condolences to you and your family. Many, but not all, animals grieve after the passing of a family member with whom they were close, be it a human or another animal. I would like to hear from other readers about how their animals reacted after such a sad event: what behaviors they showed, how long they were in mourning and what helped them recover.

I am especially interested in animals seeming to sense when a loved one has died, sustained a severe injury or been hospitalized. I have summarized some of these instances of “remote sensing” or empathic connectedness on my website under the article title “The Emapthosphere: Animal Prescience, Remote Sensing and Life After Life.”

I would welcome hearing about similar events from readers whose animals may have shown such awareness around the time of death of someone they knew, but who passed away outside their homes.

2018: THE YEAR OF THE DOG

From the Chinese Zodiac (thechinesezodiac.org):

“According to the Chinese Zodiac, 2018 is the year of the Dog, and its characteristic word is ACTION! Chinese New Year in 2018 is on Friday, Feb. 16. ... In Chinese astrology, each zodiac year (rat, ox, tiger, rabbit, dragon, snake, horse, sheep, monkey, rooster, dog and pig) is not just associated with an animal sign, but also one of five elements: Gold (Metal), Wood, Water, Fire and Earth. The year of 2018 meets the element of Earth, so 2018 is an Earth Dog Year.

“The Chinese Horoscope 2018 predicts that this year of the Brown Earth Dog is going to be a good year in all respects, but it will also be an exhausting year. You will be happy, yet frustrated; rested, yet tired; cheerful, yet dull! Is this going to be a beneficial year for Donald Trump? Or will the Dog Year be an unlucky year for (the rare) American president who has no dog?”

Dr. Fox here: For my part, I would not put dogs in the hands of those people who evidently lack the best qualities of dogs -- the qualities that make them honest, empathetic and trustworthy companions, faithful to the end, and who reflect and inspire our humanity.

(Send all mail to animaldocfox@gmail.com or to Dr. Michael Fox in care of Andrews McMeel Syndication, 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.net.)