DEAR DR. FOX: I read your tribute to your cat, Pinto Bean. I had to put down my beloved Bella Charlotte last month after a protracted pancreatitis. She was 13 years and 7 months. I adopted her as a parvo survivor at age 3 months. She was just a little poodle mix that never had a good hair day in her life.

I am a critical care nurse and deal with death on a regular basis. But this was nothing like I've ever experienced. When Bella Charlotte became septic, my capable and trusted veterinarian and I knew we were in the fight of Bella's life.

From the onset, it was 33 days and my Bella was gone. Subsequent hydration and IV antibiotics were to no avail. There were multiple hospital days and sleepless nights for all of us.

My heart breaks for you. The guilt I felt and still feel is haunting. My Bella trusted me. I know she was suffering, and it was the humane thing to do. However, holding my sweet girl as she fought death was an image that I cannot escape. I believe I let her down, even though I know she was not ever to be well again.

Our babies are now free from this earthly chain. Your beloved Pinto Bean and my Bella are surely best buds, as they look for us to join them. Blessings and Peace. -- J.W., Tulsa, Oklahoma

DEAR J.W.: Thank you for your kind words. I have received several letters of condolence from readers about my having to euthanize an animal who loved and trusted me. It is a haunting experience regardless of any rational justification.

Your letter is a reminder that many animals don't have such lucky adoption stories. Regrettably, more animals are surrendered to often overcrowded shelters around Christmastime than at other times of the year, according to a recent report. (For more on this, see my commentary below on last December's Boston Globe story.)

The former owners may want their pets to be adopted, but do they follow up?

There are excellent adoption networks to assist people who face economic hardship with surrendering their animals to a shelter. Most, especially their children, would be better off keeping their cat or dog.

I am encouraged by pet food banks that are set up to help people keep their animals, along with community-supported veterinary outreach and care. These kinds of social services, along with grief and other emotional and spiritual support groups, are spreading among millions of people who treasure their animal companions.

PET EUTHANASIA RATES RISE DURING HOLIDAY SEASONS

The year-end holiday season brings with it as much as a 50 percent spike in pet euthanasia procedures, says veterinarian Dani McVety of Lutz, Florida-based Lap of Love Veterinary Hospice.

These pets have been declining for some time in most cases, says Boston-area veterinarian Jeremy Gransky. In addition, their poor health may be exacerbated by the fact that they are susceptible to the stress their owners experience during the holidays. (From The Boston Globe, Dec. 29.)

VETERINARIAN HELPS ANIMAL LOVERS SET UP CLINIC FOR STREET DOGS

Veterinarian Catherine Cortright worked with Fort Collins, Colorado, nonprofit The Street Dog Coalition to create a pop-up clinic in her hometown of Ithaca, New York, that provides veterinary care for the pets of patients in transient housing. (The Street Dog Coalition works to provide free veterinary care to homeless people's pets across the country.)

In Ithaca, veterinary specialists have volunteered to provide basic care for approximately 25 dogs and cats so far, and the clinic has moved from a parking lot to a dog grooming shop. (From The Ithaca Journal, Jan. 8.)

(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.)

Everyone is trying to save money these days, including pet owners. But in an effort to cut back on costs, you may receive advice that could end up compromising your pet's health and cost you more money in the long run.

With that in mind, the American Veterinary Medical Association (AVMA) has developed recommendations on how you can manage the cost of your pets' care with less risk with its "Money Tips for Caring Pet Owners" (avma.org). I encourage readers to check it out.

Good nutrition and exercise help prevent obesity in our pets, allowing them to live healthier lives and saving us money in the long run.

Still, there's one suggestion the AVMA makes that I would add a qualifier to: "Routine monitoring for tick-borne diseases and parasites (including heartworm), as well as keeping your pets up-to-date on medications, can save their lives," said Dr. Meghan McGrath, a Philadelphia-area veterinarian.

Anti-flea and tick insecticides should never be given for preventative purposes, especially for the millions of indoor cats, and dogs having only seasonal exposure. Ivermectin to prevent heartworm is my one seasonal medication for our dog here in Minnesota, but always check with your veterinarian first because this drug can harm some breeds.

Read on below to see my advice for one reader who is questioning whether to continue giving flea treatment to two indoor cats.

DEAR DR. FOX: I have two neutered male tuxedo cats. Each was found at about 7 to 8 weeks of age; one is now nearly 2, the other closer to 1. They are indoor cats and have never been out of the house except for vet visits. They are in exceptionally good health.

I have been using Advantage Multi as long as we have had them, but I am wondering if they really need this medication. We do not have mosquitoes in our home, so they shouldn't have heartworm. They are never outdoors, so they shouldn't have contact with fleas, ticks, etc.

Should we continue with this or another treatment? -- S.I., Sapulpa, Oklahoma

DEAR S.I.: I am disgusted, frankly, that the attending veterinarian is selling you this product. It could put your cats' health at risk with long-term use. Also, there are environmental concerns with the main ingredient being a broad-spectrum neonicotinoid, which has been linked to the demise of bees and other vital crop pollinators as well as to the starvation and death of other creatures dependent upon healthy insects for food.

Advantage Multi contains imidacloprid, the most well-known and widely used representative of the neonicotinoid insecticides. It is a broad-spectrum neonicotinoid with systemic and contact activity that supports its use on many food crops, turf and ornamentals, and for termite and flea control.

Because your cats never get outdoors, this product is not needed. Traces of the Advantage Multi's insecticide in cats' urine and feces raise environmental concerns with improper disposal of contaminated cat litter (such as spreading it in your garden as fertilizer or putting it in compost).

The less such insecticides are used on companion animals and elsewhere, the better for everyone. You should not need any anti-parasite drugs for your cats if they have no fleas or internal parasites. Instead, check for fleas with a flea comb, and check for internal parasites by taking stool samples to the vet for further examination.

DEAR DR. FOX: Our toy poodle loves to crawl underneath the covers in our bed at night and stay there. He always seems perfectly fine, but we worry at times that he will not get sufficient oxygen. Have you ever heard of anything happening to a dog engaging in this behavior? -- B.R., Boynton Beach, Florida

DEAR B.R.: I have never heard of an animal suffocating as a result of this behavior. However, sleep apnea is good for neither man nor beast, and this can be problematic for cats and dogs with pushed-in faces, like French bulldogs, pugs and Persian cats.

So, just as airlines refuse to fly such animals because of their breathing difficulties, I would not encourage them to get under the sheets in bed. They have difficulty breathing at the best of times, and being under the sheets with limited oxygen could cause even more cardiovascular strain.

Give your toy poodle his own loose, light blanket or towel to snuggle under.

(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: Coyote and fox killing contests occurred last month in Minnesota. These wildlife killing contests are cruel, ineffective, and do not reflect the state's tradition of sportsmanship and respect for the outdoors.

Hunts like this are unregulated, with no rules and no limits. There is no place in a civil society for these contests. These types of tournaments are disastrous to wildlife and the balance of ecosystems, and they glorify violent behavior by encouraging killing simply for the sake of killing. Organizers of these events often claim that they are helping to control predator populations, when in fact this is not about controlling wildlife populations. This is a nonsensical, savage contest to see who can kill the most wildlife.

Minnesota deserves better than this. -- Maureen Hackett, M.D., president and founder of Howling for Wolves, Minnetonka, Minnesota

DEAR DR. HACKETT: Minnesota is not the only state having such competitions, according to conservation nonprofit Project Coyote, an organization founded by my daughter, Camilla.

As a veterinarian, I appeal to all parents and citizens in communities where such activities are sanctioned: Stop them for your children's health and for your own.

According to Project Coyote, "Wildlife killing contests are a violation of the Public Trust Doctrine, a foundational judicial principle mandating that governments hold natural assets, including wildlife, in trust for the general public and future generations. Allowing a minority of the population to slaughter coyotes en masse at the expense of the majority of people who value the intrinsic, ecological and aesthetic value of native carnivores damages the reputation of state wildlife management agencies and sportsmen alike."

My concern is the potential spread of Lyme and other tick-borne diseases and flea-borne sylvatic plague that are carried by rodents. Foxes and coyotes, along with various raptors, keep the rodent numbers in check, thus reducing the chances of ticks carrying the infection to humans and to deer.

Instead of a hunt, perhaps a community could have a photo contest and offer cash prizes for the most photogenic live, free red fox or coyote. Let's put respect and understanding over outmoded traditions and questionable customs, such as the sport of competitive killing. What does that teach children? And what does it say about the state of humanity in those living close to the last of the wild?

(For more information on these hunts, visit howlingforwolves.org and projectcoyote.org.)

ONE GREAT STATEMENT FOR THE ANIMAL KINGDOM

"We need another and a wiser and perhaps a more mystical concept of animals. Remote from universal nature and living by complicated artifice, man in civilization surveys the creature through the glass of his knowledge and sees thereby a feather magnified and the whole image in distortion. We patronize them for their incompleteness, for their tragic fate for having taken form so far below ourselves. And therein do we err. For the animal shall not be measured by man. In a world older and more complete than ours, they move finished and complete, gifted with the extension of the senses we have lost or never attained, living by voices we shall never hear. They are not brethren, they are not underlings: They are other nations, caught with ourselves in the net of life and time, fellow prisoners of the splendor and travail of the earth." -- Henry Beston, "The Outermost House: A Year of Life on the Great Beach of Cape Cod."

(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.)