DEAR DR. FOX: I have a 6-pound Yorkie who recently needed a cystostomy for removal of stones. They turned out to be calcium oxalate stones. The vet who performed the surgery suggested Royal Canin Urinary 50 for his diet, but I am totally against kibble, and am very conflicted.

I feed my dog Trudog Freeze (a dried, raw “superfood”) and he loves it; I just dilute it with a bit of water. But now I feel this might not be so good for his stones. I feel both of these manufacturers have too much of an interest in their product to give me the truthful answer.

I have no holistic vet in my area, and would appreciate your advice. I am a registered nurse, and I’m totally disgusted with medicine in general and the treatment of symptoms rather than root causes. -- L.S., Naples, Florida

DEAR L.S.: I would strongly advise against feeding this dry kibble to your dog.

First, because dry food is the last thing to give a dog or cat suffering from urinary calculi/stones: They must have plenty of moisture in their diets and drink plenty of water to dilute their urine and flush out the urinary tract well.

Second, the main ingredients in your vet’s recommended food are: brewer’s rice, corn, chicken fat, chicken by-product meal, corn gluten meal, natural flavors, salt, egg product and wheat gluten. This diet will not provide your dog with good-quality animal protein, it may contain oxalates in the cereal components, and the glutens can cause bowel inflammation and possible seizures in some dogs.

Poultry by-product meal (PBM) is a high-protein commodity used as a major component in some pet foods. It is made from grinding rendered parts of poultry carcasses and can contain bones, offal, undeveloped eggs and even feathers that are unavoidable in the processing of the poultry parts.

The “chicken” in many pet foods is of dubious quality. Consider the following from Karen Davis, Ph.D., president of United Poultry Concerns: “Hundreds of millions of male chicks, surplus and slow-hatching female chicks and unwanted baby turkeys are ground up alive (shredded, macerated by machinery) in the United States each year. Machines separate the female chicks bound for commercial egg production from the male chicks and unhatched embryos. The male chicks and embryos go to a waste removal system for transport to a rendering facility. ... Other byproducts trucked to rendering facilities include slaughterhouse blood, feathers, heads, feet, viscera, preen glands and dead birds too diseased to disguise even as sausages. All this, plus the ‘hatchery waste’ ... gets turned into farmed animal feed and pet food.”

Brewer’s rice is made up of the culled, broken grains resulting from the rice milling process. It adds the starch necessary to form the extruded pellet.

Corn gluten meal is a byproduct obtained when corn is processed into corn syrup or into ethanol for your car. Gluten has allegedly been associated with increased urinary tract stones in dogs.

“Egg product” is the processed remains of eggs unfit for human consumption and egg remains from the food industry. Repeated heat-processing destroys many nutrients in the product.

While there is a genetic aspect in dogs that develop oxalate stones, especially schnauzers, one may consider applying the basic steps to prevent such stones in humans. The Cleveland Clinic recommends:

-- Calcium citrate supplement to bind oxalates in the gut so they are not absorbed;

-- Lower dietary salt intake;

-- Increase daily fluid intake;

-- Limit vitamin C content of your diet.

The high salt content in the dry food prescribed for your dog is intended to make your dog want to drink more, and I consider that ill-advised. Boil up some chicken wings in lots of water, store the water in the fridge and add a little to your dog’s water to encourage drinking. Or try a little milk. I would mix one crushed 1,000-mg tablet of calcium citrate into one of his meals daily, and feed him a high-quality canned, meaty, grain-free dog food such as Cornucopia or Organix, or my home-prepared diet.

I do not know the ingredients of what you are currently feeding him, but with him being a small dog, I am concerned about how well he can process raw foods --especially non-meat ingredients, which may also be high in oxalates.

DEAR DR. FOX: I know about the seriousness of cat bites firsthand. I spent three days in the hospital when one of my own cats sank his teeth and claws into my arm. It wasn’t his fault; he was being tormented by a neighbor’s cat. This cat came around our house at night and teased my cats through the windows. We were trying to deal with the issue by chasing the cat away, as his owners wouldn’t keep him inside. Our Kaiser was looking out a window, and I thought the rumpus was over and brushed against him, not realizing he was still in that “protect my territory” zone.

I know Kaiser thought I must have been the other cat attacking from behind! -- M.P.V., Alexandria, Virginia

DEAR M.P.V.: I appreciate you sharing this traumatic experience, which underscores one of the reasons people with cats should be responsible and never allow them to roam off their property. As you experienced, outdoor cats can seriously stress indoor cats.

I would like to hear from other readers with similar experiences. When outdoor cats appear, often the indoor cats will attack each other, start spraying and house-soiling, or even develop cystitis and other stress-related diseases. Most municipalities have ordinances prohibiting dog owners from allowing their dogs to roam free, and the same should be applied and enforced with cats. Cats should be microchipped for identification, and helped to adapt to living indoors -- ideally with access to a secure outdoor enclosure in good weather.

(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 READERS: The labels on pet foods are often in such small print that a magnifying glass is needed. I read the contents of one widely marketed canned food that indicated, in bold print, “Prime Filets” and “Turkey Dinner with Gravy” and claimed “100 percent Complete and Balanced Nutrition for Adult Cats & Kittens.”

The main ingredients, in descending order, were: turkey liver (not turkey meat), meat byproducts, wheat gluten (not good for cats), soy flour (cheap protein, not good for cats), chicken (very small percentage), corn starch (not good for cats), modified natural and artificial flavors (probably monosodium glutamate), and Red 3 (not good for any animal, possibly carcinogenic).

“Meat byproducts” are defined by the pet food industry as the non-rendered parts, other than meat, derived from slaughtered mammals (mainly pigs and cattle). They include, but are not limited to, lungs, spleen, kidneys, brain, livers, blood, bone, and stomachs and intestines emptied of their contents.

Turkey livers may contain residues of drugs used to prevent disease and stimulate growth, including antibiotics and ractopamine, a drug that stresses animals and makes them grow more lean muscles -- widely used by pork producers.

This kind of food is not appropriate for cats, which are carnivores. As per the book I co-authored with two other veterinarians, “Not Fit for a Dog: The Truth About Manufactured Cat and Dog Foods,” these foods are likely to contribute to a variety of health problems -- from diarrhea /inflammatory bowel syndrome to a host of other conditions, including skin disease and constant hunger, which gives the caregiver the false impression that the cat really likes the food.

Consumers beware.

BLUE-GREEN ALGAE POISIONING: SEEK CARE IMMEDIATELY

Exposure to toxic blue-green algae is suspected in cases of liver failure in a 5-pound miniature Pomeranian and a 65-pound golden retriever in the Stuart, Florida, area. The owners of both dogs sought veterinary care quickly when their dogs began showing symptoms, which probably saved their lives, said veterinarian Cristina Maldonado.

“If you have any suspicion that your dog is vomiting or having diarrhea because of contact with blue-green algae, get it to a veterinarian -- quick,” Dr. Maldonado said. (TCPalm.com, 9/4)

Read on for more on this topic.

DEAR DR. FOX: I live in Florida, and I am scared for my dog if she gets out and drinks from any water with that poisonous blue-green slime. She does like to run off-leash. It’s never been this bad down here. Any advice? -- S.A., Tampa, Florida

DEAR S.A.: I am afraid that your dog must have limited freedom, and be kept away from any and all open freshwater sources where you live.

Your area also has the red tide, washing all those dead sea creatures up on your shores: a tragedy, indeed. The freshwater problem with blooms of toxin-producing blue-green algae is spreading nationwide as seasonal temperatures rise, which calls for extreme vigilance by public health and municipal water authorities.

I see these critical environmental health problems as arising from climate change. We have accelerated the metabolism of the planet by burning coal and oil, causing global pollution and warming, compounded by deforestation. These and other anthropogenic causes of climate change are compounded by forest fires, as well as by cosmogenic causes that some scientists have identified: notably, increased solar radiation. The impact may be lessened if we effectively rectify our contribution to climate change and engage in planetary CPR: conservation, protection and restoration.

VETS HAIL ENGLAND’S BAN ON ELECTRIC SHOCK COLLAR USE

Environment Secretary Michael Gove’s announcement banning the use of “cruel” electric shock collars in dogs and cats in England, following a public consultation earlier this year, has been applauded by the British Veterinary Association. It is time for such an initiative in other countries, including the United States, where these devices cause much suffering and are no substitute for proper training.

(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: As a regular reader of your column, I am impressed at the devotion so many people seem to have for their pets.

As a longtime cat owner, I can say they give me more than I give them, so I don’t mind paying for regular veterinary wellness exams. I give them a home, food, games and regular grooming, and in return they give me companionship, affection, sympathy (expecially when I have a migraine!) and so much more. I wonder what your other readers can say about what their animals give them. -- O.M.S., Arlington, Virginia

DEAR O.M.S.: As my mentor, the late professor Konrad Lorenz, would say, “I could not disagree with you less.” The Nobel Prize laureate and one of the founders of the science of ethology (animal behavior) asserted that you must first love animals before you can begin to understand them, and that those who believe that other animals do not have emotional experiences -- feelings -- similar to our own should be “in a psychiatric clinic.”

When our ability to love opens us up to what animals can give, we are indeed blessed in countless ways physically, mentally and spiritually. And this means that we suffer with them when they are ill, and commit to ensuring their quality of life is the best we can provide.

I would indeed enjoy hearing from other readers about what their animal companions have given them. Animals have given us so much since the beginning of human history, and payback is long overdue: namely, to acknowledge their basic rights and interests and apply the Golden Rule to all living beings.

DEAR DR. FOX: I have been hearing a lot more about cancer in dogs, and may have a theory. If you agree, I would love for you to educate the public about it in your forum.

So many dogs like to run and fetch balls. But if your grass is regularly fertilized, the chemicals may be getting on the ball, which Rover is happily chewing. We have lost three vizslas to mouth cancer.

Also, believe it or not, many people allow their dogs to drink reclaimed water. Down South, so much of the irrigation water is reclaimed -- it stinks, and is not fit for human OR dog consumption!

People need to be more vigilant about what their dogs are consuming. Don’t let them eat fertilized grass, even if your landscaper says the fertilizer is organic. And let’s not even talk about Roundup! -- L.B., Southport, North Carolina

DEAR L.B.: I agree with you that we need to exercise far greater caution when out with our dogs along sidewalks and grassy areas, especially when they come into contact with recently sprayed areas. When they lie down and run around, picking up a ball or other thrown toy, they also pick up any chemicals present. Municipal authorities and homeowners need to exercise due vigilance and post warning signs in treated areas.

I would add another concern to your plausible hypothesis: that potentially carcinogenic chemicals are present in various synthetic (especially plastic) chew toys and treated rawhide chews, ranging from phthalates to arsenic compounds. Dog owners should seek natural chew products, such as untreated rawhide strips and raw beef shank bones. Cooked bones can splinter and cause internal damage, and hard pieces of deer and elk antlers can break dogs’ teeth.

DEAR DR. FOX: I would just like to chime in that my vet recommended and sold me a Seresta collar for my 8-year-old female Doberman pinscher. ($60!) She became lethargic and wouldn’t eat, so I removed it. Within days, she recovered. I shudder to think what residual poison might be lurking in my home and threatening my grandchildren, who love dogs. We never really had a flea problem anyway. -- L.P., St. Louis, Missouri

DEAR L.P.: My article on this topic (posted on my website) should be read by all veterinarians who are selling these products to their clients, especially when there are no fleas or ticks around. The risks are not worth it, and the long-term consequences essentially unknown.

Treating cats and dogs with insecticides to prevent infestation is like taking antibiotics to prevent disease. This is a practice adopted by the livestock and poultry industries to compensate for poor animal care, especially overcrowding, and it has led to the evolution of antibiotic-resistant strains of bacteria.

“Meet disease as it comes” -- Venienti Occurrite Morbo -- is the motto of my alma mater, the Royal Veterinary College in London. Only when all efforts to control fleas and ticks have failed should these insecticides be used. Insecticidal products are no substitute for safe, effective prevention.

PET ADOPTION SCAMS PROMPT BBB WARNINGS

Scammers are setting up websites purporting to be pet adoption organizations, or individuals who need to rehome a pet. While they do not charge an upfront adoption fee, they require payment by wire service or prepaid cards for veterinary and shipping fees.

The Better Business Bureau’s tips for avoiding scams include adopting locally, avoiding online-only adoptions, picking up adopted pets in person, paying only with a credit card, demanding veterinary records and contacting the veterinarian. (The Herald-Dispatch, Huntington, West Virginia, Aug. 20)

(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.)