DEAR DR. FOX: I read your column every Sunday, and know your concern about flea and tick treatments. I refuse to use the topical or oral treatments on my dogs any longer, no matter what the vet says.

Instead, I have been giving my 18-month-old adopted pit mix garlic chewables since he was 7 months old. I buy them from a company that makes natural health supplements for dogs, cats and horses. Knowing garlic is on the list of toxic foods for dogs, I was wary at first, but the company provided me with information on why their garlic is safe and why it would keep fleas and ticks off my dog.

It works. Spanky has never had any fleas, and only a couple of ticks, ever. He goes to dog daycare once a week, and plays with other dogs in backyards and parks. No problem. He’s very healthy.

Since I have never seen you address garlic as a pest preventive, I was curious if you have concerns about giving it to dogs. If not, it would be great to spread the word, so that other owners can stop using chemical treatments that risk harming their dogs. -- M.A.S., High Point, North Carolina

DEAR M.A.S.: I have often mentioned in my column that garlic will help keep fleas off dogs. Give one large, raw, organic clove per 30 pounds of body weight, chopped, mixed daily into the dog’s food, plus 1 teaspoon of nutritional yeast. Garlic can upset dogs’ stomachs, so only give it with food. Garlic is not safe for cats, since it causes a kind of anemia. But cats can have nutritional or brewer’s yeast (NOT live baker’s yeast) at one half-teaspoon daily in the food for a 12-pound cat. Onions are unsafe for both species and can cause anemia.

For an integrative approach to the problem of fleas, see my report “Preventing Fleas, Ticks and Mosquitoes” on my website, drfoxvet.net.

DEAR DR. FOX: My 4-year-old cat, Sam, and I want to thank you so much for writing about the benefits of getting a second cat.

My husband and I decided to do just that. We both worried Sam was bored being alone all day when we were at work. We adopted a neutered male, about 1 year old, from a cat rescue place, and followed your advice on introducing a new cat. Sam loves the new cat, Teddy. They play together all the time, groom each other and sleep together. Sam is so much happier, and with all the activity, seems in better shape mentally and physically. -- J.L., Alexandria, Virginia

DEAR J.L.: Thank you for confirming what so many cats need. I think it is a sad situation for thousands of cats, and dogs too, who spend all day alone in the home with no stimulation, month after month and year after year.

This is a form of cruelty for these sociable animals, and you have confirmed the best remedy: Get a cat for the cat -- or a dog for the cat, or a cat or dog for the dog!

SEZURE WARNING FOR SOME FLEA & TICK TREATMENTS

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration is alerting pet owners and veterinarians to be aware of the potential for “neurologic adverse events” in dogs and cats when treated with drugs in the isoxazoline class.

Since these products have obtained their respective FDA approvals, data received by the agency as part of its routine post-marketing activities indicates that some animals receiving Bravecto, Nexgard or Simparica have experienced adverse events such as muscle tremors, ataxia and seizures. Another product in this class, Credelio, recently received FDA approval. These products are approved for the treatment and prevention of flea infestations, and the treatment and control of tick infestations.

The FDA is working with manufacturers of isoxazoline products to include new label information to highlight neurologic events because these events were seen consistently across the isoxazoline class of products.

For more information on the hazardous nature of various insecticides to cats and dogs, see my article “Companion Animal Risks of Flea & Tick Insecticides,” posted on my website.

(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: I was so glad to read your letter about “community cats.” I recently became aware of this craziness when I took yet another feral cat to our local animal control facility.

When the worker looked at the cat in my humane trap, she informed me that the cat had a notched ear. I asked what that meant, since I had no idea. She then sternly informed me that the cat is a community cat, and that I cannot touch him. I told her the cat was in my yard, and I do not want cats in my yard. She did not care. She repeated that I cannot touch or remove the cat, as per some ordinance that was passed three years ago. When I asked to see a copy of the ordinance, she did not comply, and I have taken cats there since the ordinance was passed and did not have this problem.

After taking down my name and information, she told me that the cat would be returned to the location he came from.

I was to the point of crying when I left that facility. Lots of native birds come to my yard, which has been certified as a wildlife habitat by the National Wildlife Federation. I have seen cats kill birds and squirrels. They are just killing machines, and I don’t understand why they are being protected. Even the native Florida panther doesn’t get this much protection. We don’t see dogs running around loose, so why are cats not being controlled? It’s all very strange.

I’m forwarding a letter my husband wrote to the commissioner who passed this idiotic ordinance. She never contacted us. She had a man from animal control contact my husband, but with no positive results. I wonder how many people don’t even know about this law. I really hope that Palm Beach County Commissioner Melissa McKinlay reads your letter. -- C.B., Palm Beach area, Florida

DEAR C.B.: This issue has been repeatedly raised in my column. It is an ethically complex issue; I see the people advocating for TNR (trap/neuter/release) as seriously misguided pro-lifers.

KEEP PETS AWAY FROM SAGO PALM PLANTS

A dog in Destin, Florida that nearly died after consuming a piece of sago palm is unusual only in that she survived, says emergency veterinarian Stephen Davis. Davis says he sees sago palm poisoning cases every week, most of which are fatal. The plant is commonly used in subtropical landscaping. Cases of sago palm toxicity have risen 200 percent since 2015, according to the Animal Poison Control Center.

(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.)

GENE EDITING HELPS DOGS WITH MUSCULAR DYSTROPHY

Dogs suffering from a form of muscular dystrophy seen in humans were deliberately bred to serve as models of this disease. Using the new technology of gene editing called CRISPR, some promising treatment results were reported.

The researchers first packed the instructions for the CRISPR gene-editing components into a virus with an affinity for muscle cells. Then they injected millions of copies of that virus into four 1-month-old dogs: two by direct injection into the leg, and two by IV. After eight weeks, CRISPR had restored dystrophin levels in the second group to more than 50 percent of normal in the legs, and more than 90 percent in the heart. This helped compensate for the gene mutation that caused a deficiency of dystrophin, which is seen in children suffering from Duchenne muscular dystrophy. (Science, Leonela Amoasii et al, Aug. 30)

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.)