Emergencies always seem to happen when your family veterinary office is closed, don't they? You're having a great time and suddenly your pet seems ill. Is he sick enough for a trip to the emergency clinic?

No one wants to see a pet in pain or in danger. But every day, people spend money they didn't need to for emergency clinic trips they didn't have to make.

Some of the things that get people in a panic can be of no concern at all. One time, while working overnight in an emergency veterinary clinic, I saw a woman frantic because she thought pieces of her dog's intestines were leaking out his back end. In fact, the dog was infested with tapeworms. Definitely in need of treatment, but nothing that couldn't wait until the weekend was over.

Knowing what's a true emergency and what's not can save you hundreds of dollars, since emergency clinics -- like human emergency care -- can be quite expensive.

With the holiday season coming up quickly, it's a good time to review when a pet needs to see a veterinarian. Anything is worth at least a phone call if you're not sure what's wrong, while some things require immediate attention by a veterinarian.

How to tell the difference? Here are some signs that should have you heading for a veterinarian, day or night:

-- Seizure, fainting or collapse.

-- Eye injury, no matter how mild.

-- Vomiting or diarrhea -- anything more than two or three times within an hour or so. Also, a dog who's trying to vomit (or may be vomiting foam, licking lips), has a drum-tight abdomen and a "roached-back" appearance indicative of abdominal pain.

-- Allergic reactions, such as swelling around the face, or hives, most easily seen on the belly.

-- Any suspected poisoning, including antifreeze, rodent or snail bait, or human medication. Cats are especially sensitive to insecticides (such as flea-control medication for dogs) or any petroleum-based product.

-- Snake or venomous spider bites.

-- Thermal stress -- from being either too cold or too hot -- even if the pet seems to have recovered. (The internal story could be quite different.)

-- Any wound or laceration that's open and bleeding, or any animal bite.

-- Trauma, such as being hit by a car, even if the pet seems fine. (Again, the situation could be quite different on the inside.)

-- Any respiratory problem: chronic coughing, trouble breathing or near drowning.

-- Straining to urinate or defecate.

Although some other problems may not be life-threatening, they may be causing your pet pain and should be taken care of without delay. Signs of pain can include panting, labored breathing, increased body temperature, lethargy, restlessness, crying out, aggression and loss of appetite. Some pets seek company when suffering, while others will withdraw.

When in doubt, err on the side of caution, always. Better to be dead wrong about a minor medical problem than to have a pet who's dead because you guessed wrong about a major one.

Call your veterinary clinic or hospital before you need help to ask what arrangements the staff suggests for emergency or after-hours care. If your veterinarian refers clients to an emergency clinic after regular business hours, be sure you know which clinic, what the phone number is and how to get there quickly and safely.

Q&A

Rats! Do parents

have a chance?

Note: A reader pointed out this question-and-answer in our PetConnection.com searchable archives, and we liked it so much that we're sharing it again. The e-mail is from 2006, so this young woman wasn't at a top medical school ... yet. And we bet she got her pet.

Q: I'm an academics-oriented-to-the-point-of-mania student in high school. My dwarf hamster died a few months ago, and I'm very eager to purchase another domesticated rodent.

I've researched rabbits (I know, I know: They're lagomorphs, not rodents) and guinea pigs, and I've come across an unsettling plethora of setbacks. However, I stumbled upon rats, and I'm now smitten. I've read that they're exceptionally intelligent and willing to be handled by humans (two factors I value), and I've simply realized that I'm quite compatible with them.

Unfortunately, my parents are completely averse to keeping a "filthy creature" that spread an abhorrent plague in "their house," in spite of my fervent assertions that domesticated rats are different than wild rats. My city-bred mother always mentions the fact that rats have infiltrated New York City. She's being so close-minded.

Responsibility isn't an issue, for my parents are completely cognizant of my maturity and dedication. During the school year, I study maniacally, and my parents have always been worried about my unhealthy devotion to my studies. I believe that owning such active pets as rats will calm me during my scholastic frenzies. Could you aid me in this seemingly fruitless quest to persuade my parents? I see a pair of rats in my future. -- P.C., via e-mail

A: I have a feeling that your parents don't stand a chance when you really have your mind set on something. I imagine you will have your rats, and that you will soon have them trained to negotiate mazes, run through tunnels, climb ladders and jump through hoops on your way to winning the state science fair for the best-ever project on operant conditioning.

Like all pets (even dogs and cats), domesticated rats do present some risk of disease transmission, but proper handling, care and sanitation will reduce those risks substantially. Domesticated rats are friendly, easy to train, and much cuter than their wild counterparts, thanks to years of breeding that have introduced all manner of interesting and attractive markings.

I know you won't have any problem presenting a good case to your parents. Just be sure you don't let them see "Willard" on DVD or read the utterly fascinating but unhelpful-to-your-cause book, "Rats: Observations on the History & Habitat of the City's Most Unwanted Inhabitants," by Robert Sullivan.

After they relent, consider adopting a rat from a rescue group or shelter. You can connect with rescue groups through the Rat and Mouse Club of America (www.rmca.org). My favorite sites for rat care information are Rat Guide (ratguide.com) and the Rat Fan Club (www.ratfanclub.org).

Do you have a pet question? Send it to petconnection@gmail.com.

THE BUZZ

Vets' advice on ears:

Leave the flaps alone

-- While ear-cropping is often defended by breed traditionalists as a preventive measure against ear infections, the American Veterinary Medical Association has long countered that view, pointing to research showing otherwise. In the trade group's online question-and-answer on the subject, the AVMA notes that while surgery to open the canal can be helpful to dogs with chronic ear infections, changing the appearance of the ear flap doesn't do the same. The AVMA first advocated for an end to ear-cropping in the American Kennel Club's standards for the show ring in 1976; the ASPCA first called for an end to the practice more than a century ago, in 1895.

-- One-third of married women believe their pets listen to them better than their spouses do, according to an Associated Press-Petside.com poll. Among married men, 18 percent hold the same belief.

-- Cancer detection for dogs may be a blood test away. The BioCurex company reports that its test has detected 85 percent of a variety of cancers in dogs in premarket studies. The same blood test is used in humans and detects the so-called RECAF marker in the blood, a sign of malignant cell growth. The RECAF marker is produced from rapid cell growth, a characteristic both of cancer and fetal development. -- Dr. Marty Becker and Mikkel Becker

ABOUT PET CONNECTION

Pet Connection is produced by a team of pet-care experts headed by "Good Morning America" and "The Dr. Oz Show" veterinarian Dr. Marty Becker and award-winning journalist Gina Spadafori. The two are also the authors of many best-selling pet-care books. Dr. Becker can also be found at Facebook.com/DrMartyBecker or on Twitter at DrMartyBecker.

The more you know about how the kidneys work, the better you'll be able to care for a pet with kidney disease.

The kidneys act like a water filtration system in reverse, trapping and recycling substances the body needs, such as proteins, and letting waste materials pass through. If any part of this complex filtration process breaks down, toxins in the bloodstream can rise to life-threatening levels.

Treatment -- often giving massive amounts of fluids -- is aimed at restoring the kidneys to normal function, so they can resume doing their job of filtration. If that's not possible, the toxins in the blood must be reduced to safe levels some other way. Dietary changes, drug therapy, agents that bind toxins and eliminate them, and even dialysis, can be used.

Chronic kidney failure is usually found in aging pets and can be detected with a simple blood test. Acute kidney failure is typically marked by vomiting, increased thirst, increased or lack of urination, lethargy, bad breath, diarrhea and lack of appetite. These symptoms signal a health crisis, with time being the difference between whether an animal lives or dies.

The critical issue of response is why veterinarians don't recommend that pet lovers wait a day or more after the onset of symptoms in the hope that a problem will go away on its own. When sick pets finally arrive at the veterinary hospital, 75 percent of kidney function can already be gone for good. Wait much longer, and the chances of survival are not good.

For younger dogs and cats, a kidney problem is more likely to be acute, the result of a poison, such a pet ingesting anti-freeze, lilies (typically cats) or grapes/raisins (typically dogs).

No matter what's the cause of sudden-onset kidney failure, the treatment needs to be swift. At the very least, the pet will need to be placed on intravenous fluids, and may need antibiotics as well as other medications to suppress vomiting and diarrhea. The treatment plan is designed to help flush the kidneys while supporting the rest of the body through the crisis.

If the intervention is successful, the animal will be left with enough kidney function to survive, though perhaps with chronic kidney issues that will need lifetime treatment.

Although the prognosis can be grim in many cases of sudden kidney failure, it's always worth trying to save a pet. With swift veterinary intervention and good follow-up care, many pets can live with their kidney disease for many happy years.

Q&A

Owners can care

for diabetic cat

Q: My 6-year-old cat has been diagnosed with diabetes. Can she get better on her own if I decide I don't want to do the shots? -- via e-mail

A: For the diabetic cat, the levels of sugar in the blood -- glucose -- cannot be normalized without treatment. Although a cat may be able to go a few days without treatment and not get into a crisis, treating the disease should be looked upon as part of the cat's daily routine. Treatment almost always requires some dietary changes. And whether a cat will require oral therapy or insulin injections will vary from case to case.

For the owner, there are two implications: financial commitment and personal commitment. Once a cat's diabetes is well-regulated, maintenance is not that expensive, with costs that may include a special diet, oral medication, insulin and syringes.

For many people, the personal commitment seems more difficult than the financial one, but that, too, is not insurmountable. You'll need to pay close attention to your veterinarian's instructions about medication, diet and home monitoring.

Consistency is the key to keeping a diabetic cat healthy. The more you keep the medication, diet and activity the same from one day to the next, the easier it will be to keep your cat's blood sugar regulated.

Insulin injections always worry people the most. But cats seem to be more comfortable getting shots than their owners are about giving them.

If the idea of giving your cat regular injections is upsetting, consider these points:

-- Insulin does not cause pain when it is injected.

-- The injections are made with very tiny needles that your cat hardly feels.

-- The injections are given just under the skin in areas in which it is almost impossible to cause damage to any vital organ.

Although diabetes is a diagnosis that may seem like a death sentence to many distraught people with newly diagnosed cats, it doesn't need to be that way. Work with your veterinarian and give your cat a chance. You may be surprised at how well things work out.

By the way, you can find a lot of information and support on the Feline Diabetes website (felinediabetes.com), which was started by a physician after her own cat was diagnosed with the disease. -- Dr. Marty Becker

Do you have a pet question? Send it to petconnection@gmail.com.

THE BUZZ

Safe driving means

securing your pet

-- Crating or harnessing your pet in the car is an important safety measure for you, your dog and everyone else on the road. In a survey by AAA, nearly 60 percent of those polled admitted to having driven while distracted when their dog was in the car. Only 17 percent of respondents said they restrained their pet in a crate or with a seat-belt harness. An unrestrained 10-pound dog in a crash at 50 mph delivers 500 pounds of force on whatever the animal strikes; an 80-pound dog in a 30 mph crash delivers 2,400 pounds of force.

-- Water 4 Dogs, a hydrotherapy center for dogs in New York City (water4dogs.com), recently began treating its first cat, a 6-year-old Turkish Van whose left side was paralyzed after an accident in June. When veterinarians diagnosed a swelling in the cat's vertebrae, the animal overcame her initial fear of the water and is showing improvement after thrice-weekly sessions.

-- Poor circulation in horse barns may be causing respiratory problems for people who have or work with horses. A study conducted by Tufts University's Cummings School of Veterinary Medicine surveyed barn workers and a control group of non-barn workers and found that half of people working in barns complained of coughing and wheezing, compared to only 15 percent of the control group. Higher rates of self-reported respiratory ailments were also found for barn workers. Horses have been known to get respiratory illness from the excess dust found in barns, and it seems the effects of poor air circulation and dirt are reaching the humans as well. -- Dr. Marty Becker and Mikkel Becker

ABOUT PET CONNECTION

Pet Connection is produced by a team of pet-care experts headed by "Good Morning America" and "The Dr. Oz Show" veterinarian Dr. Marty Becker and award-winning journalist Gina Spadafori. The two are also the authors of many best-selling pet-care books. Dr. Becker can also be found at Facebook.com/DrMartyBecker or on Twitter at DrMartyBecker.

The subject of pets on the bed always makes me laugh, thinking of an old relationship and the new bed that arrived after we'd already split.

The bed in question was the biggest bed I could find. When informed that it would take three months to be manufactured and delivered, I kiddingly asked the man in my life if he would be there when the bed arrived, even though I already had a feeling he wouldn't be.

"Oh sure," he said. "And if I'm not, you have plenty of pets to take up all that space. They'll love it."

Which, of course, is exactly what came to pass.

I'm not sure what that says about the relative constancy of romantic relationships and pets, but I have to give the man credit for being right. The animals did indeed love the big new bed -- and they still do, even if they have to share it.

Every now and then I hear from someone who wants me to write about how awful it is to have dogs or cats on the bed. I've had grandparents who want to convince their sons or daughters that a pet on the bed is unhealthy for children, and new sweethearts who disagree about where a pet should sleep.

"To have pets in the house is bad enough," wrote one frustrated woman, who clearly had much larger issues with her daughter than the younger woman's pets. "But to have them on the bed? That's dirty and disgusting!"

Such folks won't find much agreement from me. I like having pets on the bed. In the wintertime, my cats and dogs are like heating pads I don't have to plug in or recharge -- and they'll readjust automatically every time I move. This surely won't mollify anyone who believes pets are disgusting, but I've always kept things clean by putting a washable cover on top of the bedding to catch all the dirt and stray hair.

Still, there are good reasons to keep your pets off the bed, and maybe even out of the bedroom -- among them, behavioral problems and allergies.

For dogs who want to be bossy, allowing access to the bed isn't recommended, since it gives the animal the idea that he has status equal to -- or better than -- the human family members. For these dogs, sleeping elsewhere will likely be part of a retraining program to modify the animal's exalted opinion of his own value. (As with all such issues, please work with a veterinary behaviorist or trainer with experience in aggression to modify the dangerous behavior of such a pet.)

For people with allergies, turning the bedroom into a pet-free zone is common medical advice that ought to be followed. Maintaining a pet-free bedroom is part of an overall strategy to minimize the impact of pet dander. It will allow allergy sufferers to sleep without sneezing or wheezing, and awake rested without allergy symptoms or headaches. For these pet lovers, keeping pets out of the bedroom gives them enough "breathing room" to make it possible to keep both their pets and their overall good health.

And what about those couples who don't have pet-behavior problems or allergies, but still argue over letting their pets on the bed? That's the sort of thing you have to work out for yourself, since I have enough work giving pet advice without venturing into relationship counseling.

If you're lucky, though, you'll be able to find a bed big enough for everyone to be happy in.

Q&A

Poinsettias

are not poison

Q: Dr. Becker made a mistake recently on "Good Morning America." My veterinarian handed me a list of plants to watch out for when I got my puppy a few years ago and poinsettias were definitely on it. Please tell your readers before someone's pet is killed! -- via e-mail

A: There's no mistake. According to the Animal Poison Control Center (www.aspca.org/apcc), the poinsettia can cause little more than a bad tummy ache, even if ingested in fairly large amounts. That doesn't mean you should put poinsettia foliage into the food processor and then add it to your pet's dish, but it does mean that you can quit worrying that the plant your aunt gave you for the holidays is going to do in your dog. -- Dr. Marty Becker

Q: Our two-story house has a loft that overlooks the living room. The ledge for the loft opening is more than 20 feet off the ground. Our recently adopted 6-month-old kitten jumps on the ledge every time she's in the room. We are afraid she may attempt to jump off the ledge, or fall and injure herself. -- via e-mail

Do you think she would actually jump?

A: You're right to be concerned: Studies of cats falling from buildings (for example, off an apartment balcony) show that the animals are often injured more in falls from relatively low heights than from those a couple of floors higher, presumably because they haven't the time to rotate themselves into "landing position" to minimize potential injury. (The benefit of being higher only goes so far, since cats falling from more than a handful of stories up are usually seriously injured or killed.)

Kittens don't have the common sense that an older cat does, so I think it is entirely possible she might jump or be startled into falling. Try covering the ledge and, especially, the approach to it with something sticky, such as upside-down contact paper secured with double-sided tape. Cats loathe having their paws stick to anything, which is why sticky substances are great for discouraging furniture scratching as well.

I'm guessing your above-it-all kitten will decide that her perch isn't a place that's worth visiting if she has to step on sticky paper to get there. -- Gina Spadafori

Do you have a pet question? Send it to petconnection@gmail.com.

THE BUZZ

A baby changes

the priorities

-- Having a baby affects the way a pet is treated, according to a survey of 600 pet-owning parents by researchers at Indiana University's South Bend Campus. The research found people were more likely to refer to a pet as a child before a baby joined the family; afterward, they were less likely to hold that view. However, the research also found older people reported that their relationships with their pets grew stronger once the children grew up and left home.

-- A little more than half of baby boomers say pet care is a basic need, according to a study by MainStay Investments. To put this in context, 43 percent feel the same way about a professional hair color and cut; 38 percent about dining out. Providing for the education of children and grandchildren came in at 42 percent.

-- Animal charities have been hit hard by the economic downturn, according a recent economic study by GuideStar USA. The organization collected 7,000 responses from IRS-recognized nonprofits, 5 percent of which were pet-related. The study found 40 percent of nonprofits reported a decrease in donations in the first five months of 2010 as compared to 2009. The demand for the help requested from the charities increased 63 percent in the same period. -- Dr. Marty Becker and Mikkel Becker

ABOUT PET CONNECTION

Pet Connection is produced by a team of pet-care experts headed by "Good Morning America" and "The Dr. Oz Show" veterinarian Dr. Marty Becker and award-winning journalist Gina Spadafori. The two are also the authors of many best-selling pet-care books. Dr. Becker can also be found at Facebook.com/DrMartyBecker or on Twitter at DrMartyBecker.