Anal Sacs - Will my dog ever stop scooting?

Post by Zoe Forward, DVM, Dipl. ABVP (canine/feline)



Is your dog scooting and licking at her hind end? Perhaps she is emitted a foul odor reminiscent of dead fish? That indicates the anal sacs are irritated or too full. Maybe you already know this and find you need to have your dog in to the vet every 4 to 6 weeks to have those glands expressed? Sometimes the anal sacs experience an overproduction of secretion that leads to this scenario. But expressing them on a routine basis when your dog is not showing signs they bother her may not always be the best plan. If this is a NEW problem, then your dog may have an anal sac infection that needs medication.

THE BASICS

What are the anal sacs? Popularly called "anal glands", these are two small pouches located on either side of the anus at approximately 4 o'clock and 8 o'clock positions. The sacs are lined with numerous specialized sebaceous glands that produce a foul smelling secretion.

What's their function? The anal sac secretion acts as a territorial marker or could be seen as a dog's "calling card." The sacs are present in both male and female dogs, and are normally emptied when a dog defecates. This is why dogs are so interested in smelling each other's stool.


WHAT TO DO?
NEW PROBLEM: Bring your dog in for an exam with her veterinarian. She may have an infection that needs treatment. If not, then you can discuss long-term strategy to help your dog naturally express her anal sacs.

OLD PROBLEM, NOT INFECTION: Treating overproduction of anal sac fluid can be handled either by frequent manual evacuation of the anal sacs, or increasing fiber therapy. If frequent anal sac expression is chosen, please remember that the more often the dog's anal sacs are expressed, then the more likely she will be to need them expressed. The body will adjust to frequent expression and produce more secretion. This is not an ideal scenario.

Please phone to consult with us on how to increase your dog's fiber therapy, if you think this is what your dog needs: (704)220-0226.

WHEN IS IT TIME TO GO TO THE VET?

Guest post by Jessica Fellers, DVM

Sometimes it is tough to know when to make an appointment with your veterinarian for your pet. What symptoms should cause the most concern or even warrant a trip to the emergency clinic in the middle of the night? The most important thing you need to know is ask, ask, ask. Call us at (704) 220-0226 with any questions you may have.  It's always better to make an appointment, have your pet examined, and find out that your pet is fine. Peace of mind is of great value!

There are times when it is obvious that emergency care is necessary, such as traumatic injury, severe bite wounds, difficulty breathing, seizures, collapse etc. But what are some things that you can do, to help you to decide, when you aren’t so sure?

GUIDELINES FOR AT HOME TO KNOW WHEN TO HAVE YOUR PET SEEN:

If your pet allows you to safely take a rectal temperature with a digital thermometer, apply a small amount of petroleum jelly, and gently insert only the small metal tip. Normal values are between 100F to 102.5F for cats and dogs. Temperatures above or below these values indicate your pet needs to be checked by your veterinarian ASAP. A dry or wet nose is of little value. Also, if you can safely lift your pet’s lip and check their gums, they should appear pink, not red, yellow or white/pale. You can also gently press on the gums with your fingertip. It will briefly turn white, but should return to pink in less than 2 seconds. Three seconds or greater is a concern.

If your pet has ingested anything other than their normal food and treats, please call to find out if treatment is necessary. Items of significant concern include chocolate (especially dark), macadamia nuts, grapes, raisins, xylitol-containing chewing gums, homemade play dough, paintballs, fertilizer, rat poison, etc. Some of these can result in death if not addressed immediately. Please bring in the bag, wrapping, label, etc. for the product. This can be a critical piece of information.

Never give human medications without consulting a veterinarian. If you feel tempted to open your medicine cabinet, give us a call first. If there is an accidental ingestion of medications or supplements, please call to be sure they are safe.

A few instances of vomiting or diarrhea are not likely to be a concern unless your pet is not acting normally. If there are more than 2-3 episodes it is time to make an appointment.

 Anytime your pet has difficulty urinating, especially male cats, please bring them in immediately. This may also appear as vocalizing or even hiding.

Pain may not always be easy to assess. Some symptoms include restlessness, panting, not eating, whining, loss of appetite, acting withdrawn, aggression, or hiding.

Injuries to the eye should be taken seriously and treated quickly. Look for squinting, tearing, cloudiness, rubbing, or sudden loss of vision.

Since our pets can’t tell us when they don’t feel well, we have to be knowledgeable of signs that they need our help. Your pet’s safety and your peace of mind are important to us. Call us with your questions, we are here to help.

Happy Labor Day!

 
 

We want to wish you a happy Labor Day weekend.

We WILL be here on Monday Sept. 2: 7a.m-5p.m.

Cats get chin acne?

By Zoe Forward, DVM, Dipl. ABVP (canine/feline)

Notice any black debris on your cat's chin, or maybe even pimple-like lesions? Then your cat has chin acne. This is not a hormonal problem. Actually, we are not entirely certain why some cats get these lesions.   Some cats only experience one episode in their life, while others may have cyclic or near-constant disease.  There are several suspected causes, including poor grooming habits, abnormal hair follicles with overproduction of sebum, virus infection (calicivirus, herpes virus), stress, chin trauma (due to excessive scent marking by rubbing the chin on vertical objects, or from scratching the chin due to underlying allergy), plastic food dish contact allergy, underlying immunosuppressive disease or bacterial contamination from rubbing the chin in food (especially in old dried canned food). 

 

SIGNS: Early clinical signs include crusts and plugged hair follicles forming "blackheads" on the chin and lower lip.  Some cases stay in the blackhead phase, while others progress to form infected, draining pustules, nodules, or cysts.  In severe cases, a cat may develop painful swelling of the chin and lips.  Cats that develop the infected pustules will often act itchy and rub or scratch the chin.   The problem often recurs in susceptible cats and seems related to the hair growth cycle.

  

TREATMENT: Treatment varies according to the severity and extent of lesions, and how much the condition is bothering the cat.  Cats with only a few blackheads often require no treatment, but may benefit from cleaning the chin once a day with a medicated antibacterial wipe, changing to a dry diet, and feeding out of ceramic or stainless steel bowls that are washed with soap and water daily, rather than plastic.  In more severe cases, antibiotics may be necessary for 4 – 6 weeks to clear a bacterial infection. 

 

Call us if you are worried about this problem in your cat: (704)220-0226.

Pictures courtesy of Cat World: http://www.cat-world.com.au/feline-acne

Top 3 Dog Allergy Questions We Hear

By Zoe Forward, DVM, Dipl. ABVP (canine/feline)
Carolina Pets Animal Hospital



Why can't my dog's allergies be cured?

Allergies, whether due to fleas, food or something in your pet's environment are caused by the immune system overreacting, NOT a weakened or "sick" immune system. With flea allergy dermatitis, allergy shots (immunotherapy) doesn't work. The only treatment is avoidance, which means keep your pet on monthly flea control year round. The same is true for food allergies (your pet needs to stay on a prescription hypoallergenic diet).
     
For environmental allergies (atopic dermatitis), pets can be desensitized with allergy shots (immunotherapy). This type of treatment helps down regulate the body's overreaction to items in the environment, but even if it works these dogs require treatment for the rest of their lives. In rare cases after years of therapy, the dog may no longer need to be treated.








Why does my pet need such a high dose of antibiotics for such a long time to treat his skin infection?

Most pets, especially dogs, with skin infections have pyoderma  (or bacterial folliculitis) which means bacteria have colonized the hair follicles. This is not a classic "hot spot" an allergic dog may create after hours of scratching at one location where the infection is usually superficial. These pyodermas are deep infections. This is why topical therapy alone does not work well and antibiotics are needed. For a pet with standard pyoderma, at least 3 weeks of antibiotics are needed, and the rule is to treat at least one week beyond resolution of clinical signs (rash, itching).








Is my pet's condition contagious?

This depends on what type of infection your dog has. If your dog has an infection secondary to allergies such as yeast (Malassezia) or bacterial infection, then this is probably not contagious. We have rarely identified methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus infections in dogs, usually only those with very long-term recurrent infections; these do have potential to be contagious. But with these resistant infections there is some newer information to suggest the dog may have contracted it from a person.

There are certain skin conditions, such as sarcoptic mange (caused by Sarcoptes scabiei) that can cause lesions in people. The canine Demodex mites are not contagious to people, but Cheyletiella mites can be. Some ringworm infections can be contagious.

If you have any questions, give us a call: (704)220-0226!

Information for this article provided by Veterinary Medicine, June 2013 Vol 108, No. 6, p.13.

Fleas...old news but bad problem!

by Zoe Forward, DVM, Dipl. ABVP (canine/feline)

Carolina Pets Animal Hospital

 

Fleas…those icky little brown bugs that infest your dog or cat when you lapse in flea control (or sometimes in spite of flea control). They are terrible this year, primarily because of the weather. We are seeing a huge surge in the number of flea infested pets in the past two weeks. So, I thought it time to parade out this old problem and remind you it is time to put that flea preventive product onto your pet. Fleas in this area spike in August and September and will be in high numbers until well into November. Indoor only pets are susceptible to infestations too.

Newsflash on flea preventive products: The traditional Frontline Top Spot and Frontline Plus, and its knock-off fipronil-containing products are not working well in North Carolina. Most inexpensive grocery/pet store products will not work.

What does work right now? Frontline TRITAK, which is the newest generation Frontline product is working extremely well. Both Frontline Tritak and Advantix (only to be used in dogs) are our only reliably effective products for both fleas and ticks. For flea-only the other effective products are Comfortis tablet (or Trifexis which has both the Comfortis plus heartworm preventive), Revolution (topical) and Advantage (topical).

What to do if you are already seeing fleas on your pet? First step, treat ALL furry pets in the household with an effective flea product such as one of those listed above; and use it once a month unless your veterinarian tells you to apply more frequently. If you are already using one of these products, give us a call. There are guarantees on some of the products that, if purchased through our clinic, we may be able to help you activate.

Second, treat the environment. For indoors, you should do a good vacuum every 2 to 3 days for 2 weeks. This as effective, if not more so, than any chemical sprays/bombs/powders.  For the outdoors we recommend you use a sprinkle granule treatment that you can purchase at any home improvement store that has the active ingredient: imidicloprid. Follow directions on package for application outside.

 

Call us if nothing is working or you have any questions:

(704)220-0226.

WATCH OUT FOR THE HEAT!

By Zoe Forward, DVM, DABVP
Carolina Pets Animal Hospital

 

It’s 90-degrees, your dog is panting heavily and dragging behind, but you’re almost done with your 2 mile walk. This scenario is flashing a big red **DANGER** sign.

The only way for a dog to dissipate heat is by panting it off or sweat glands in their pads. Therefore, in this scenario your dog is highly susceptible to heat exhaustion or, even worse, heat stroke if it gets too hot. Heat stroke is a life-threatening (as in death) emergency.

The best plan? AVOID THE HEAT. Exercise your dog in the cooler parts of the day (early morning or just before dusk).

 

 

 

 

What are the signs of heat stroke? It starts with restless behavior as your dog becomes uncomfortably hot. You will see heavy, sometimes labored panting, excessive drooling or frothing at the mouth, and red gums. This will progress to weakness and lethargy often to the point the dog cannot move or might collapse. Eventually, affected animals will be in so much distress that they will become listless and slip into a coma. Unfortunately, the coma point is bad news… death is fairly imminent unless the dog receives immediate and aggressive medical treatment!

 

Who is at highest risk? Very young and very old dogs have a higher risk of developing heat stroke than do dogs in the prime of their lives. Brachycephalic breeds (e.g., pug, Boston Terrier, Bulldogs, etc), obese/overweight dogs, long-haired dogs and dogs that are black or dark in color. Dogs with hyperthyroidism, heart disease, lung disease or thick hair coats have an increased risk as well.

 

Bottom line: If you and your dog were out in the heat and you notice (s)he is restless, uneasy, having breathing problems or otherwise is just not doing right, call us or bring your dog in immediately.  This is an emergency.