ePetDrugs Blog

Jodi Webb

A study by UK veterinarians found that 43% of the animals they saw were overweight.  Even though, in the tradition of that cartoon favorite Garfield, we think of cats as the fatties only 20% of cats were overweight compared with 47% of dogs.  And being overweight can cause or exacerbate many medical conditions for animals such as arthritis, diabetes, and kidney problems.  So it’s time to call in the fat busters.

Remember to discuss all your plans with your vet and keep him informed of your pet’s progress.  Cats shouldn’t lose more than a pound per month and dogs weight loss depends on their breed.  Larger dogs can lose up to 5 pounds a month.  Most vets will recommend the dieting triangle.

1.    Meals—With your vet, discuss diet dog foods and determine just how many calories your pet should be eating daily.  Feed your pet twice a day and leave the food out for only 20 minutes, not all day.  He might complain but he’ll learn to eat during mealtimes.  And you’ll eliminate the risk of your pet being fed over and over again throughout the day by family members who think everyone else forgot to fill the bowls.

2.    Snacks- Sticking to your feeding schedule doesn’t work if, in between meals, your pet gets a steady supply of treats. Treats full of fiber can satisfy your pet without adding a lot of calories.  Many dogs like vegetables such as carrot chips or green beans(no butter!) while some cats like a spoonful of canned pumpkin.  If you must stick to traditional treats cut the amount.  Instead of giving your cat three treats, give him one.  Buy the smallest size treats you can for your dog—no matter what size he is.  And start reading labels.  Not all pet treats are created equally as far as calories are concerned.

3.    Exercise—The third corner of the dieting triangle is exercise.  Try an extra walk for your dog or rev it up—a little faster pace if he’s up to the challenge.  Most cats won’t submit to a walk but you can add exercise to their daily routine.  One thing cats will exercise willingly for is food.  So divide his food into three smaller bowls that you hide around the kitchen or house forcing him to wander about or even jump if he wants to enjoy a meal.  Same with treats.  Both dogs and cats should have to participate in a bit of physical activity to get a treat.  Being cute just doesn’t it cut it anymore.

Discount Pet Meds and Pet Supplies

Jodi Webb

For many pet owners, saying goodbye to their kids at the school bus also signals another goodbye: goodbye to worrying about fleas and ticks. But don’t heave a sigh of relief yet.

Although fleas prefer warmer weather, ticks are the opposite. They actually prefer the more moderate temperatures of autumn and spring. And with the cooler weather you and your pet may be spending even more enjoying the outdoors: romping in the leaves, hiking, watching your kid’s soccer game. And offering more chances for ticks to hitch a ride.

So don’t give up checking your pet for hitchhikers or using a prevention medication like K-9 Advantix or a Preventic tick collar. Don’t overlook your cat, even if he is strictly an indoors animal. Ticks have a way of getting indoors—on other pets or humans. Check your indoor animal for ticks also.

Discount Pet Meds and Pet Supplies

Jodi Webb

We all know why we take our dogs for walks—physical activity. Just like we need daily exercise so does our dog. And a tired dog is a well-behaved dog. Sure, exercise contributes to a dog’s behavior but there’s another part to the equation—mental activity. Because a bored dog is much more likely to misbehave. So what is mental activity for a dog?

Well, walks can be one kind of mental activity. All that sniffing, wandering, and other exploring he does as he make your way down the road wishing he’d just WALK IN A STRAIGHT LINE? That’s him thinking. “Oh, a dog was here…someone dropped food here…what’s that weird smell.” But don’t rely solely on walks to get your dog thinking. Learning tricks, new toys, games, even just sitting watching a busy street can rev up his brain. Just remember, if you take time to play that old favorite “Find the Hidden Treat”, he has less time to create his own games “Chew the Shoe”, “Knock the Box of Cereal to the Floor(and Eat it), or “Destroy the Sofa Cushions”.

Discount Pet Meds and Pet Supplies

Jodi Webb

We’ve all heard about chocolate and pets—a strict no-no. But what other foods can cause problems with your pets? And remember, it doesn’t have to be just the foods listed. Any food that has one of these foods as an ingredient can also cause problems. They may not kill your pet but they can cause a host of health problems ranging from anemia to digestion.

Discount Pet Meds and Pet Supplies

Jodi Webb

I don’t know about you but I always seem to get invited to more parties where food is a key element once the weather cools—not just Thanksgiving, Christmas, and New Year’s Day—but get togethers for football games, PTA meetings, birthday parties. With all that yummy food around we’re all tempted to give our pets “just a taste”. There are several reasons to ignore those sad “I haven’t been fed in days” eyes staring up at you. First, it encourages bad habits. Sure, you don’t mind the begging but do you really want Fido howling for roast beef when you have the boss over for dinner? Second, for every bite of human food they have that’s on less bite of their pet food that they eat. Seems like a fair trade but the fact is that commercially prepared pet food also includes a mix of minerals and vitamins your pet needs—a mix they might not get from that slice of pumpkin pie. Third, the food could be toxic. Yes, we know you’d never feed your dog a chocolate bar. We all know chocolate and animals don’t mix. But there are plenty of other human foods that animals don’t eat and sometimes it isn’t that obvious. For instance, dogs shouldn’t eat onions. But what about meatloaf? Meatloaf’s fine. Except for the chopped onion that you forgot about inside the meatloaf. Oops. It’s simpler to just declare all human food off limits.

Discount Pet Meds and Pet Supplies

Jodi webb

In 1930 a flat-coated retriever named Jack lived on the North Docks of Swansea, Wales with his owner William Thomas. In his lifetime he was credited with saving 27 people from drowning. He was named the Bravest Dog of the Year in 1936 and awarded two bronze medals by the National Canine Defense League. He was immortalized with a statue of Swansea Jack on the town’s promenade but this year the town is trying a little something new to commemorate his bravery.

This year’s Swansea Festival of Music and the Arts will feature “A Song for Jack”, a pre-recorded concert of some songs celebrating the relationship of man and dog. Some of the numbers will be a new take on an old Beatles favorite: “All You Need Is a Dog” and Elvis Presley’s “Can’t Help Falling in Love”. All the singers will be making their doggie debut. The town had tryouts but only ten dogs made the cut including a Basset Hound, Bichon Frise, Border Collie, German Shepherd, Jack Russell, two Lurchers. The problem is a different song inspires each dog to sing: one prefers “Happy Birthday” another “Hooray for Hollywood” another “Knockin’ on Heaven’s Door”. Hopefully they can all come together at the same time.

Discount Pet Meds and Pet Supplies

Jodi Webb

I’m sure that’s what our neighbor’s dog was thinking earlier this week as she paced nervously along the fence line of her yard. We thought she was just stressed by the picnic her owner threw and all the canine guests but that wasn’t it. Turns out she was trying to pass a few kidney stones(a few dozen it turns out). Eventually she was so restless our neighbor took her to the closest vet he could find on a holiday weekend—45 minutes from our street. The stones had migrated and were blocking the tubes to her bladder. She’s back home now recovering from her surgery. I never even knew dogs(and cats)could get kidney and bladder stones. Seems they’re pretty common in certain breeds such as Dalmatian dogs and Persian cats. But there are some steps to take to help ward off stones, especially if your pet is a susceptible breed.

Eat—Stick to a commercially prepared food since a diet high in vegetables and grains can cause certain stones to form. Yet another reason to forgo the scraps from the table. Sometimes canned food is preferable to dry food because of the added water content.

Drink—Stones are cause by minerals and the minerals are more diluted if your pet drinks a lot of water. Some vets recommend that animals that have had stones drink salted water( 1/4 teaspoon salt for each pint of water)so they drink more.

Be Merry—Make sure your pet has plenty of outdoors time. All that drinking doesn’t help if they don’t also have the opportunity to urinate frequently. And keep a close eye on your pet when outdoors. Some of the symptoms of stones are painful or blood urinating, decreased urine output, vomiting, or a changed mental state: depression or agitation.

Discount Pet Meds and Pet Supplies

Jodi Webb

Ah, Labor Day weekend. A time for picnics, a time for friends and family, a time for unwanted guests…

Almost everyone of my friends has a pet, usually a dog. I like dogs—big dogs, little dogs, fancy dogs, roll-around-in-the-mud dogs. What I don’t like are uninvited dogs. I suppose many people assume that since a picnic is outdoors it’s OK to bring their dogs. I don’t know about Miss Manners but Miss J. is telling you don’t do it. For so many reasons.

1. Space—even a huge backyard will seem smaller when it’s packed with people, tables, grills, and food.
2. The Call of Nature—do you want to spend the entire party following your dog around with a pooper scooper or watching him urinate on the host’s favorite rosebush?
3. The Guest Factor—there may be guests at the party who aren’t dog people, or allergic, or wearing a white sun dress(this is particularly disastrous if your dog is black, shedding, and likes to sit on laps).
4. The Dog Factor–there may be dogs at the party who aren’t dog friendly. Even if the host’s dog is normally friendly, he may be feeling territorial with so many people at the house.
5. Food—will people feed your pet food you don’t want him to have(or alcohol?), will he beg, will you have to cart along food and water for him?
6. Stress—even if your dog is friendly and easygoing he may not like parties. Chances are you’ll want him to behave—for a long period of time. No barking, no begging, no running, no eating the delicious food. Sound like fun to you?

Leave Fido at home—he and the sofa will have their own party.

Discount Pet Meds and Pet Supplies

Jodi Webb

Many pets, especially dogs, miss us when we go on vacation. Thinking about taking Rover on your next weekend getaway? It’s not a simple as throwing his favorite chewee toy in the car.

What’s Up Doc? — The first thing to do is make an appointment with your vet. Make sure he’s in tiptop shape and don’t forget a health certificate which will be needed for many types of transportation and by many hotels. Ask your v