Caring for pets can be tricky when you’re laid up from an injury, illness or surgery

By Kim Campbell Thornton

Andrews McMeel Syndication

When Rosemary George had a hip replacement five years ago, she sent her three collies and 15-year-old terrier-mix to stay with various people, expecting to have them back home within a few weeks of surgery. Instead, a serious postsurgical infection kept her hospitalized for weeks, culminating in five additional surgeries. She was finally able to go home, although she was still sick and weak, unable to drive for months.

Sherman, her terrier-mix, boarded with a pet sitter for three months while she recuperated. A friend was finally able to bring him home to her, but the prolonged stay was the beginning of a downward spiral for the geriatric dog. Her collie Bridget was away from home for six months, Shayna for nine months and Mick for nearly a year.

George’s experience is an extreme example of what can go wrong when pet owners get a bad case of the flu, break a bone or develop complications after surgery. Without a plan and friends who can pitch in, it’s all too easy for pet lovers to be stymied in caring for their animals.

“I could never have managed to get through this horrible time, which is known to family and friends as 'the hip replacement from hell,' without the help of so many, many kind and generous dog friends,” George says. “And you know what? As horrible as the experience was, the worst part was being separated from my dogs for so long. I'll never get that time back.”

It’s easier with cats, but their care in a postsurgical situation still requires planning and preparation. Barbara Cole Miller, who recently underwent knee-replacement surgery, left her cat Piper at home with plenty of food and water during the day and night she was hospitalized. She knew from past experience that Piper didn’t do well being boarded. The amount of food and water she left out ensured that she didn’t have to worry about getting around to feed Piper for more than a week.

“My primary concern when I came home was scooping the litter box,” she says. Knee replacement patients are warned to reach only between knees and shoulders. Miller was able to scoop Piper’s box almost immediately but was still concerned about the possibility of falling. Visiting friends helped as well.

Young and highly active dogs pose a different problem for injured or ill people who aren’t able or willing to have their dogs stay somewhere else. Tracy Weber, a yoga teacher in Seattle, broke her collarbone recently, which has put her in a sling for a couple of months. Because of the high risk of falling, it will be another three months before she can take her 18-month-old German shepherd, Ana, for walks. The experience is taking a toll on both of them.

A friend comes over and plays with Ana, but Weber is reluctant to hire a dog walker because Ana is skilled at slipping out of her harness and doesn’t always come when called.

“I’ve been doing some clicker training with her to train her to do new things and make her focus more,” Weber says. “My husband is taking her for a half-hour walk every night. I’m using treat toys so she has to play to get her treats out. I’m also using lots of chews, but it’s not easy.”

After a horse in a hurry for breakfast knocked down Gina Spadafori, causing her to fall and break her wrist, she called on a cast of friends and neighbors to help care for her four dogs, two horses, four goats and a dozen chickens; hired someone to clean the house; and had her dogs do tricks, play with puzzle toys and practice indoor heeling and long downs to keep their minds engaged.

“The key is not being ashamed or reluctant to ask for help, because you’re probably going to need it,” she says.

Q&A

What’s causing

marking behavior?

Q: Last year I adopted a 9-year-old chocolate Lab who was badly neglected and has permanent limited mobility. He joined my pack of two female Jack Russell terriers and my 13-year-old catahoula hound. Both males are neutered. After about two months, both males started marking the furniture. Now I think it may be only my old dog marking.

When I find urine, I’ve done everything from yelling to speaking calmly to not saying anything when cleaning the area. I have used every kind of cleaner I can find, have given my hound extra attention to make him feel loved and put diapers on him. Do you have any other recommendations? -- via email

A: It may seem as if the behavior is related to the new dog, but there’s a good chance it may not be. Our No. 1 piece of advice is to take the dogs to your veterinarian to rule out health problems that may be causing the behavior.

Often, dogs appear healthy, but if they don’t feel good, breaking housetraining or marking objects may be the only way they have to get their message across. Also, both of your males are seniors; problems with arthritis, cognitive dysfunction, kidney disease or other health issues could be contributing to their behavior.

If your dogs get a clean bill of health, the first thing to do is to make sure you know which dog is marking. Consider setting up an inexpensive video camera in the area where marking occurs to identify who’s doing what and when.

“Try to create opportunities for them to not soil in the house,” says Kathryn Primm, DVM, who often sees behavior issues in her practice. That may mean taking them out more often, rewarding them at the moment you see them potty outdoors and restarting the housetraining process as if they were puppies. -- Dr. Marty Becker and Mikkel Becker

Do you have a pet question? Send it to askpetconnection@gmail.com or visit Facebook.com/DrMartyBecker.

THE BUZZ

Students develop

slick pet product

-- Students at Cornell University came up with an innovative solution to a common pet owner problem -- dingleberries, small clumps of feces that hang onto fur after a pet poops. HygenaPet, a spray made with beeswax and carnauba wax, causes poop to slide off the fur instead of sticking. The product, priced at $10 by team members, took top prize at the 2018 Cornell Animal Health Hackathon, beating out 23 other teams with its low-tech but eminently useful product. “We’re avoiding the spread of germs that can be embedded in the fur, and owners can reclaim their clean homes,” says team member Adam Itzkowitz, an engineering major.

-- Following Delta’s lead and after an incident in which a person tried to bring aboard an emotional support peacock, United Airlines has tightened requirements for emotional support animals on flights. Beginning March 1, customers traveling with emotional support animals must notify the airline 48 hours in advance of the animal’s presence, provide a letter from a licensed medical or mental health professional stating the animal’s necessity and fill out a veterinary health form documenting the animal’s health, vaccination record and behavior training. Animals must stay in the floor space below the owner’s seat and not sprawl into the aisle and must behave politely and respond to direction from the owner.

-- Robodog Diesel is training Marines how to care for working dogs wounded in the line of duty. The canine simulator can mimic such injuries as broken bones, bleeding and burns, as well as changes in vital signs, reports Will Morris in Stars and Stripes. The realistic canine model even barks and whimpers. The Marine Corps hopes to have the robotic dog more widely available in the spring.

ABOUT PET CONNECTION

Pet Connection is produced by a team of pet-care experts headed by "The Dr. Oz Show" veterinarian Dr. Marty Becker and award-winning journalist Kim Campbell Thornton. They are affiliated with Vetstreet.com and are the authors of many best-selling pet-care books. Joining them is dog trainer and behavior consultant Mikkel Becker. Dr. Becker can be found at Facebook.com/DrMartyBecker or on Twitter at DrMartyBecker. Kim Campbell Thornton is at Facebook.com/KimCampbellThornton and on Twitter at kkcthornton. Mikkel Becker is at Facebook.com/MikkelBecker and on Twitter at MikkelBecker.

How to take the fear -- yours and your pet’s -- out of pet dentistry

By Kim Campbell Thornton

Andrews McMeel Syndication

My parents have a 12-year-old toy poodle named Spike whom they love dearly. Spike is as cute as he can be, but boy, does he have bad breath. My dad won’t get his teeth cleaned, though, because that means putting him under anesthesia, and he’s afraid Spike will die.

That’s a common fear. Many places try to counter it by offering non-anesthetic dental cleanings. In other words, they scrape the visible plaque and tartar off the teeth. And it’s not like the recent dental cleaning I had, which involved lying back in a comfy chair and watching Anthony Bourdain eat his way through Sicily. Pets must be restrained during the process, which can be distressing for them, or even cause injury if they squirm at the wrong moment and are accidentally jabbed with a sharp scaling device.

Pet dentals are done under anesthesia for many reasons. The aforementioned squirming, for one. Anesthesia ensures that pets remain still and don’t experience fear, pain or discomfort during the procedure. Besides reduced pain and stress for pets, anesthesia allows the veterinarian to better perform a complete examination of the mouth, clean tooth surfaces thoroughly, get beneath the gumline where bacteria hide, and take X-rays of teeth to ensure no damage or infection is lurking.

By the numbers, anesthesia is a low-risk procedure. The risk of death associated with general anesthesia in both healthy and sick dogs and cats is approximately 1 in 500, says Bruno H. Pypendop, DVM, a professor and veterinary anesthesiology specialist at the University of California at Davis School of Veterinary Medicine. In the case of healthy animals, the risk drops to 1 in 2,000.

“Many factors have improved anesthesia safety over the years,” Dr. Pypendop says. “These likely include drugs with more consistent and predictable effects, better knowledge of the effects of drugs on vital function, better ability to monitor and therefore prevent or treat abnormalities and better pre-anesthetic screening.”

Your pet won’t have the option to watch Animal Planet while he’s worked on, but pre-anesthetic blood work ensures that he doesn’t have any underlying health conditions that could be affected by anesthesia. Monitoring of blood pressure, blood oxygen saturation, respiratory rate, body temperature and other vital signs during the procedure helps all pets stay safe and comfortable.

“More advanced equipment for monitoring pets during anesthesia allows for thorough assessment of the pet’s status during the procedure,” says Cheryl Blaze, assistant professor of anesthesia at Tufts Cummings School of Veterinary Medicine. “There has also been increased emphasis on continuing education training for technicians to increase their skills.”

Sedation beforehand, in the form of drugs such as trazodone or gabapentin, help him relax before the procedure, and a local nerve block minimizes pain if extractions are necessary. Long-acting medications provide pain relief after the procedure.

Why the assortment of drugs? Pain travels the body through multiple pathways and involves different neurotransmitters and receptors. Using a combination of medications, known as multimodal pain management, ensures that as many routes of pain to the brain as possible are blocked.

If your pet is a senior or has health problems, your veterinarian may consult a specialist in anesthesiology about the best ways to minimize risk and manage pain.

“Even older animals can be safely anesthetized when a thorough pre-anesthetic evaluation and dedicated monitoring during anesthesia are consistently done,” Dr. Blaze says.

Ask to see a practice’s anesthetic safety record. There is always some risk when a pet (or person) goes under anesthesia, but advanced anesthesia drugs and techniques used help to ensure that all goes well.

Q&A

Does aspirin help

pets with pain?

Q: Is it OK to give my pet aspirin if he’s feeling sore or stiff?

A: I don’t recommend it. In an acute pain situation, a veterinarian may prescribe aspirin for a dog, or you may know someone whose dog or cat is taking aspirin, but that doesn’t mean it’s necessarily a good idea for your pet.

For an explanation of aspirin’s risks, as well as when it might be used, I turned to Tina Wismer, DVM, a veterinary toxicology specialist and medical director at the ASPCA Animal Poison Control Center.

She says aspirin can be problematic in pets who are on medications that could interact with the aspirin and increase the risk of side effects.

“Long-term, we like to go with medications that are a little safer and that tend to have fewer side effects,” Dr. Wismer says.

Vomiting is the most common side effect of aspirin seen in dogs. Stomach ulcers are a potential but less common side effect. Dogs who break into a bottle of aspirin and swallow a lot of tablets run the risk of liver failure and seizures.

Cats are more sensitive to aspirin than dogs because they don’t metabolize it as quickly, but it does have at least one beneficial use for them.

“In cats, the most common use for aspirin is actually heart problems, and veterinarians prescribe aspirin for its anti-platelet effect -- basically, so your cat doesn’t get blood clots,” Dr. Wismer says. “But the dosing in cats is very different, and they only get a dose every couple of days.”

Any time you want to give your pet an aspirin, check with your veterinarian first for two reasons: to make sure you’re giving the correct dose and to make sure it’s indicated for what’s ailing your pet. -- Dr. Marty Becker

Do you have a pet question? Send it to askpetconnection@gmail.com or visit Facebook.com/DrMartyBecker.

THE BUZZ

Cats have preferred

paw, study says

-- Take a look at your cat next the time he or she is reaching for a toy or patting your face to wake you up. Which paw is being used? A study of 44 cats at Queen’s University in Belfast, Ireland, found that female cats tend to be right-pawed and males left-pawed. Does it really matter? Surprisingly, the information may help you determine how your cat deals with stress. Researcher Deborah Wells, Ph.D., says limb preference might be a useful indicator of vulnerability to stress. “Ambilateral animals with no preference for one side or the other and those that are more inclined to left-limb dominance seem more flighty and susceptible to poor welfare than those who lean more heavily toward right limb use,” she says.

-- Nearly 80,000 people have signed an online petition to urge that pet food become an approved purchase with food stamps, reports Caitlin Dewey in The Washington Post. The rationale? People on a fixed income often share their own food with their pets, meaning they don’t get enough to eat and their pets may not be getting a balanced diet. Supporters say it would save money by keeping pets out of shelters. The change would require Congressional action, so don’t expect to see it any time soon.

-- Flying through Canada’s Calgary International Airport? Feeling frazzled? Keep an eye out for a tabby named Taz wearing a red vest emblazoned with the words “Pet Me.” Taz is one of a team of pet therapy cats and dogs who visit the airport regularly to provide snuggles and stress reduction to passengers and employees as they wait in long lines or deal with flight delays. Some 50 airports in North America have therapy pets patrolling the premises, including Los Angeles, Dallas/Fort Worth, San Francisco, Phoenix, Denver and San Jose, California. -- Dr. Marty Becker, Kim Campbell Thornton and Mikkel Becker

ABOUT PET CONNECTION

Pet Connection is produced by a team of pet-care experts headed by "The Dr. Oz Show" veterinarian Dr. Marty Becker and award-winning journalist Kim Campbell Thornton. They are affiliated with Vetstreet.com and are the authors of many best-selling pet-care books. Joining them is dog trainer and behavior consultant Mikkel Becker. Dr. Becker can be found at Facebook.com/DrMartyBecker or on Twitter at DrMartyBecker. Kim Campbell Thornton is at Facebook.com/KimCampbellThornton and on Twitter at kkcthornton. Mikkel Becker is at Facebook.com/MikkelBecker and on Twitter at MikkelBecker.

Canine influenza viruses continue to spread

By Kim Campbell Thornton

Andrews McMeel Syndication

The city of San Francisco and the province of Ontario, Canada, are the two latest areas where canine flu is making an appearance. The virulent respiratory disease has hopscotched the continent, with only four states remaining free of it: Alaska, Hawaii, Nebraska and North Dakota. Where it lands depends in large part on how social and mobile dogs are in particular areas.

“Dogs that travel are at risk, and dogs exposed to dogs who travel are at risk,” says veterinarian Cynda Crawford, a canine flu expert at the University of Florida College of Veterinary Medicine. Other dogs who are vulnerable are service dogs, police dogs, show or competition dogs, shelter dogs and dogs who visit dog parks, groomers or boarding kennels on a regular basis.

The two strains of canine influenza, H3N2 and H3N8, can infect dogs at any time of year, not just winter. Although she hasn’t seen many cases of the flu in her own practice, internal medicine specialist Lawren Durocher-Babek, medical director at Red Bank Veterinary Hospital in Hillsborough, New Jersey, says the flu seems to be worse in midwinter as well as late summer and into fall.

“However, it can be seen at any time of year, so it should always be on our radar,” she says.

If you’ve seen in the news that humans are being hit hard by the H3N2 flu virus and then you see that dogs also get H3N2, you may be concerned that you could catch the flu from your dog. Fortunately, that’s not possible, says virologist Edward Dubovi, a professor in the department of population medicine and diagnostic sciences at Cornell University College of Veterinary Medicine in Ithaca, New York.

Think of influenza viruses as automobile types, he says. A brand of sedans, pickup trucks and convertibles may all be made by the same manufacturer, but they all have different profiles and accessories. Flu viruses are the same way: There are H3N2 human viruses, H3N2 pig viruses, H3N2 dog viruses and H3N2 avian viruses.

Dogs do not transmit canine influenza to humans, but in at least one instance, cats in an Indiana shelter acquired H3N2 canine flu from dogs. Cats can also transmit influenza to each other. And although it is rare, your dog or cat may pick up human influenza virus from you.

“Pet owners sick with the flu should take care to avoid possible transmission to their pets,” says Dr. Christiane V. Loehr, a veterinary pathologist and associate professor at Oregon State University Carlson College of Veterinary Medicine.

Suspect that your dog has the flu because he’s coughing, sneezing and feverish? Don’t just walk him into your veterinarian’s lobby, where he could spread the infection to other pets. Alert your veterinarian beforehand so your pet can be examined in the car or taken to an isolation area through another door.

Dogs diagnosed with canine flu should be isolated from other pets for longer than you might think: at least 21 days, and perhaps even a month. Wash your hands thoroughly after caring for a dog with the flu before interacting with other animals. Disinfect dishes and bedding separately, too.

If your dog is one of those at risk -- a social butterfly or a road warrior -- or has physical characteristics such as a flat face or narrow nostrils that could make it difficult for him to breathe in the event of a respiratory ailment, consider getting him vaccinated for canine flu. Because it hasn’t been around for very long in the grand scheme of things, not many dogs have been exposed to it, so they lack natural immunity.

“The vaccine may not stop a dog from getting the flu, but it has been shown to decrease severity of signs and shedding (of the virus),” Dr. Durocher-Babek says.

Q&A

Why does cat

shred belly fur?

Q: My 11-year-old male cat keeps licking all the fur off his belly. I’ve tried Apoquel and Cerenia, my vet did an abdominal ultrasound and the cat is now on dexamethasone, but nothing helps. Any ideas? -- via email

A: “Fur mowing,” as this behavior is sometimes called, is usually caused by an underlying health condition such as hyperthyroidism, allergies (or some other itchy skin disease) or parasites. But sometimes it is behavioral in nature. You don’t say what type of cat you have, but Siamese and related breeds are most commonly affected by compulsive disorders that manifest through excessive licking and hair loss.

This condition, known as psychogenic alopecia -- or more simply, overgrooming -- can be a kind of compulsive disorder. The licking behavior may cause the brain to release natural painkillers called endorphins that relieve the cat’s anxiety.

If your vet has ruled out all possible medical conditions, including neurological diseases that may cause pain, discomfort or changes in sensation, you may want to seek the advice of a veterinary behaviorist who can help you discover what’s causing your cat’s stress or anxiety. Often, it’s the addition of a new family member -- a baby in the home, for instance -- or conflicts with other pets.

Depending on the cause, a behaviorist may suggest reintroducing pets in the household to each other and building more positive associations between them, providing a more consistent routine (or going back to the cat’s previous routine if that is what has changed), or making the cat’s environment more interesting with food puzzles, a window perch or tall climbing post with a view, or more playtime or attention. Some cats may benefit from anti-anxiety medication combined with behavior and environmental modification if the veterinary behaviorist determines that the cat’s behavior is related to fear, anxiety or stress. -- Dr. Marty Becker and Mikkel Becker

Do you have a pet question? Send it to askpetconnection@gmail.com or visit Facebook.com/DrMartyBecker.

THE BUZZ

Go ahead:

Clean your floor

-- You may have seen a post on Facebook or other social media sites recently suggesting that Swiffer WetJet Cleaning Solution can cause liver failure in pets. Not so, according to veterinarian Beth Malinich, who practices at Animal Hospital of Fairview Park in Cleveland. In an interview with News 5 Cleveland, Dr. Malinich said that a pet walking across a wet floor was unlikely to be exposed to enough toxin of anything to become ill from it, especially once the substance has dried. The rumor has been going around for a while. It was debunked in 2004 by hoax-busting website Snopes.com. Veterinary toxicologists at the ASPCA Animal Poison Control Center also issued a statement saying that the substances in question -- propylene glycol n-propyl ether and propylene glycol n-butyl ether -- are safe ingredients at levels used in cleaning products and do not cause kidney or liver failure.

-- If your pet needs surgery and the cost is beyond your means, check to see if there’s a veterinary school in the area with a program to help pets in need. At the University of California at Davis School of Veterinary Medicine, a community surgery service program allows senior-year veterinary students to perform spay/neuter surgery, removal of small masses, bladder stone removal and other procedures -- under supervision -- at a discount. Pets helped by the UC Davis program include shelter animals and owned animals.

-- Did you know that cats have built-in sunglasses? Instead of having round pupils like humans, a cat’s eyes reduce the pupils to vertical slits. This gives cats precise control over the amount of light that reaches their eyes, enabling them to zoom in on prey. And because a cat’s eyelids close at right angles to the vertical pupil, cats can reduce the amount of light even further by bringing their eyelids closer together. -- Dr. Marty Becker, Kim Campbell Thornton and Mikkel Becker

ABOUT PET CONNECTION

Pet Connection is produced by a team of pet-care experts headed by "The Dr. Oz Show" veterinarian Dr. Marty Becker and award-winning journalist Kim Campbell Thornton. They are affiliated with Vetstreet.com and are the authors of many best-selling pet-care books. Joining them is dog trainer and behavior consultant Mikkel Becker. Dr. Becker can be found at Facebook.com/DrMartyBecker or on Twitter at DrMartyBecker. Kim Campbell Thornton is at Facebook.com/KimCampbellThornton and on Twitter at kkcthornton. Mikkel Becker is at Facebook.com/MikkelBecker and on Twitter at MikkelBecker.