Forth Valley Veterinary Clinic Blog
Our top tips and useful information regarding pet and animal health…
Flea Allergy Dermatitis
Flea Allergy dermatitis or flea bite hypersensitivity is one of the most common dermatologic disease. Cats also develop FAD, which is one of the major causes of Feline Miliary Dermatitis. FAD is most prevalent in the summer, although in warm climates flea infestations may persist throughout the year. Temperature extremes and low humidity tend to inhibit flea development.
Helping Children with a Fear of Animals
This post is not meant to be professional psychological advice for children with anxiety disorders, but rather a discussion of general ways that we can help prevent children developing a fear of animals and help relieve this.
Otitis
Otitis ‘inflammation of the ear’ is a common condition in dogs and is occasionally seen in cats.
Separation Anxiety
There are many reasons why dogs display problem behaviours when they are left alone. Boredom can be a common factor or it can often be a training issue. For some dogs it is due to the animal not being able to cope normally with separation from their owner.
Zylekene
Zylkene is a complementary feed for cats and dogs that contains a natural product derived from Casein, a protein in milk. It is a molecule well known to promote the relaxation of newborns after breastfeeding.
Stress Related UTI in Cats
Cats may seem like they live very easy lives, but the truth is they can get stressed very easily. Feline urinary problems can be one of the first signs your cat is experiencing stress. It’s important to know what behaviours to be on the look out for.
Fear Aggressive
Why do dogs become fear aggressive?
Problem Behaviour Vs Behavioural Problems
This may be controversial, but…pets are not people! Even if many of us love our fur-babies as much as most people (ok, more than 😉)!
Early Development and Exposure
A dog’s fear of strangers may be inherited, but some studies have shown that the experiences in early development and socialisation can trump the effect of genes. Neglectful or aggressive mothering, and relationships between siblings can influence your dog’s later psychological development.
Triggering
Negative associations from the past or unfamiliar stimuli can be triggers that generalise from one specific trigger, to wider and wider categories of events. Some fears can produce a state of hyper-arousal and chronic stress in your dog.
Train your Dogs Response
All dogs have many different triggers that can cause a fear response.
Unfamiliar dogs and people are common triggers. Loud noises can also be very problematic for fearful dogs. Fireworks are especially terrifying, trucks, motorbikes and excessively noisy cars can also be problematic.
Retraining your dogs response is vital for your dogs mental health and to help reduce stress and stressful situations.
Compassion
We’re feeling sad. One of our patients died. One of the vets spent an enormous amount of their own time working on this patient. There is a feeling of deflation.
Cat Aggression
This is where threatening or harmful behaviour is either directed towards a person, another cat or other animals. Aggression refers to a wide variety of complex behaviours that occur for different reasons under various circumstances. In pet cats, aggressive behaviour can range from cats who hiss and avoid the target of their aggression, to cats who attack.
Desexing your Cats
In the wise words of Salt-N-Pepa, “Let’s talk about sex, baby”.
It has been estimated that one breeding pair of cats could potentially lead to 420,000 offspring over 7 years. Though this number is probably wildly overestimated, we know that there are more kittens produced than people looking to give them homes. We also know that they can devastate local wildlife if left to roam outdoors.
Rat Bait
As we move into the cooler weather, we will do anything to escape the cold….. so do those pesky rodents! We all know how frustrating mice and rats can be, causing absolute chaos to our homes and property.
Unfortunately it can also be the case for our furry friends. They will eat it, despite what the packaging states. It is a condition to be taken seriously and early diagnosis and treatment may prove life-saving.
Bovine Kerato-Conjunctivitis
A common ailment seen in large animals is Pink Eye. Pink eye in cattle is a contagious bacterial infection of the eye caused by the bacteria Moraxella bovis, which infects the eye and releases a toxin that causes severe inflammation.
The disease is most prevalent in warmer months when vectors that spread the bacteria are more common. These vectors include flies, dusty conditions, bright sunlight, radiation and physical irritation from plants particularly thistles.
Parvovirus
You may have heard that Parvovirus has reared its ugly head (more!) along the coast recently. This virus is exactly that - UGLY and heartbreaking to see.
Parvovirus is a viral illness that causes vomiting, bloody diarrhoea and weight loss in dogs. In puppies aged between six weeks and six months, it can be fatal. Early vaccination has been effective at reducing death rates and providing protection.
Woody Tounge
Woody tongue – sounds funny but it describes the condition perfectly!
This disease syndrome found in cattle is one where the tongue becomes swollen, hard and immobile. For cows, the tongue is their main way of gripping feed and grass before chewing and if the tongue cant work, the cow cant eat!
Parasite Management in Cattle and Sheep
Parasites are considered to be one of the most economically important constraints in raising livestock. They can impact animal productivity by causing: severe scouring, Ill-thrift, reduced growth rates, loss of weight, rough coat, poor milk production and swelling of fluid under the jaw (“bottlejaw”) as a result of liver fluke.
Both internal and external parasites are developing resistance to all dewormers. Therefore we need to be using an integrated management approach encompassing nutrition, pasture management and strategic deworming use.
Xylitol Toxicity
Xylitol is extremely toxic to dogs and symptoms usually develop rapidly. It is quickly absorbed into the dog’s bloodstream, resulting in a potent release of insulin from the pancreas. This rapid release of insulin causes a rapid and profound decrease in the level of blood sugar (hypoglycaemia) which left untreated, can be life threatening.
Our staff are wildly passionate about animals and making sure your pet is living its healthiest and happiest life
Back that passion with expert qualifications and a love of learning, and it’s safe to say your fur family is in very safe hands.