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My poor betta fish Vinny has the ol' Dropsy. I've used Maracyn 2 to attempt to slow the process but it doesn't seem to be doing much after 3 days. She looks like she just might burst she's so bloated. I read the epsom salts can help but I haven't seen anything on how to administer a treatment. I feel bad for her and I want her to go peacefully if possible and not be in pain. I know that sounds weird for just a fish but it is a living thing after all.
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Nov 8, 2008 05:11
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| # ? May 14, 2024 03:16 |
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If you have the stomach for it, here are supposedly humane ways of euthanasia for fish. http://www.ultimatebettas.com/index.php?showtopic=15737&st=0&start=0
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Nov 8, 2008 05:54
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Meow Cadet posted:If you have the stomach for it, here are supposedly humane ways of euthanasia for fish. http://www.ultimatebettas.com/index.php?showtopic=15737&st=0&start=0 Oh god NO  Fiiishhyyy!!!quote:Destruction of the Brain - Blunt Force Method Ok, so again, any thoughts on the Epsom salts???
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Nov 8, 2008 06:07
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My dog is a dork with long toenails. Cyrus, my golden, does not like to have his toenails cut. Why I'm not sure. He doesn't mind his feet being touched and played with and we've never accidently knicked his quick or anything. He's just a big idiot pretty much. If you get the toenail clippers near his foot, he will immediately go into "You aren't going to catch me!" mode and runs around the house like a mad dog. This goes for any clippers, we've tried them all. BUT, he will let them cut them if he is in the bath tub getting a bath. The main problem is that his nails are dark and the quick is impossible to see. This makes me really nervous cutting them since I don't want to hit the quick and make him afraid of getting his nails cut in the bath. I'd try a Dremel but an electric appliance and bath water really don't mix. We've tried taking him to the groomers and he reacts the same as he does at home. No number of treats will cull his fear. And we don't want to have to pay for a vet visit just to get his nails cut. What do you guys reccomend?
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Nov 9, 2008 10:40
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Lava Lamp Goddess posted:My dog is a dork with long toenails.
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Nov 9, 2008 14:53
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Lava Lamp Goddess posted:My dog is a dork with long toenails. He's learned that he can be an rear end in a top hat and that'll get him out of nail trimming. Its not the tools that are causing the problem, I'll wager. The bath may be helping a bit because standing in the water softens the nail up, but it would be a pain in the rear end to have to give him a bath every time you clip. It'll take some hard work to reprogram him, but its certainly do-able. Clipping Jax's nails was a nightmare before I worked in a grooming shop. I learned that having the right attitude and consistency is 90% of the battle. Take him on a long, long, long run (better yet, have someone else do it so you're not tired for the nail clipping battle). Wear him completely out, and THEN work on the nail clipping. Make sure that nail clipping ends when YOU decide, not when Cyrus does. Its okay if you only do a few few nails at a time, its just important that you don't let Cyrus's misbehavior be the reason that you cut the session off early. It might help if you do the hard run + clip routine several times a week until he learns not to struggle. Positioning matters too, but its more a matter of what makes you comfortable and gives you a good view of the nail. He'll pick up on your nervousness, so be conservative but confident. You should also feel free to keep him leashed so he can't run away. Assmar has it right, that the key is not putting up with their poo poo. The reason that groomers tend to have better luck with difficult dogs is the no-nonsense attitude they develop.
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Nov 9, 2008 18:55
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My boyfriend woke up this morning to his cat crying and a RED gummy eye. We took her to the emergency vet since it's Sunday and expected some high bills, but for a checkup and blood work we didn't expect it to be $420. I don't have the bill with me but he said the "checkup" portion was $110 and $60 for two medications. That leaves over $200 for blood work and whatever surcharge they add to emergency work (though I'd think that would be included in the crazy checkup fee) I know it was great to have a place to take her on a Sunday, but it just seems like something is wrong with the cost of care. Any insight? Turns out she has high blood pressure due to diabetes and it detached the retina.... which I diagnosed her with the week of meeting the cat 
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Nov 10, 2008 00:34
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Lixer posted:My boyfriend woke up this morning to his cat crying and a RED gummy eye. We took her to the emergency vet since it's Sunday and expected some high bills, but for a checkup and blood work we didn't expect it to be $420. I don't have the bill with me but he said the "checkup" portion was $110 and $60 for two medications. That is pretty normal to me. The e-vet here is around $100 for just the visit. It depends on the medication she was given. Sounds like it is something she is going to need to stay healthy. As for blood work, it can be extremely expensive... over $200 is probably exactly right.
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Nov 10, 2008 00:55
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Does anyone here have any experience with exotic shorthairs? My entire life I've had rescue cats/kittens from the humane society and the pound, but I'm contemplating getting my first purebred. The exotic shorthair is not only visually appealing, but they are also quite personable. Like I said, I've never had a purebred cat before. Do they have the health problems that many purebred dogs have? What about the cost? I don't plan on showing this cat, so it doesn't need to be top quality. Does anyone have any experience with exotic shorthairs? What do I need to know? 
mattdev fucked around with this message at 01:10 on Nov 10, 2008 |
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Nov 10, 2008 01:06
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Lixer posted:My boyfriend woke up this morning to his cat crying and a RED gummy eye. We took her to the emergency vet since it's Sunday and expected some high bills, but for a checkup and blood work we didn't expect it to be $420. I don't have the bill with me but he said the "checkup" portion was $110 and $60 for two medications. That's about normal for an emergency clinic, as previously mentioned.
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Nov 10, 2008 02:07
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Were potty training the new pup and theres a lot of conflicting information on the internet as to how long you should be waiting for said poos to happen. Im taking him out every two hours but hes just not going, (hes running around like a loon and eating stuff). How long should i be waiting on average ? Hes 9 weeks old.
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Nov 10, 2008 19:46
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I got my puppy at 8 weeks and the first couple of days were iffy. We'd go stand outside for an hour and nothing, come inside and she'd go on the floor. So the third day I tried something that I'm sure not many would recommend, but it worked for us. I didn't let her outside at all but I observed closely. She was paper trained so I put the papers in the bathroom and would wait and see what signals she'd use before going to the papers. She'd sniff and circle for about two minutes then go to the papers. So the fourth day when she started sniffing and circling we went outside right away. Worked like a charm. She had maybe three accidents after that and that was the end of it. She's 7 months old now and we haven't had an accident since she was three and a half months. Crate training helped too. Now when she has to go she'll go and sit by the door. Except when she comes out of the crate when I come home for lunch or after work. We go outside as soon as she comes out. I also started saying "Go pee" so now she'll pretty much go on command. I realize I was very, very lucky though. I expected the training to be much harder. I think the first couple of days she just thought we were going out there to play.
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Nov 10, 2008 22:46
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pioneermax posted:Were potty training the new pup and theres a lot of conflicting information on the internet as to how long you should be waiting for said poos to happen. Mine used to poop every 2-4 hours or so, usually after eating and after play sessions. Getting the pup moving tends to get things moving, if you know what I mean. They also always had to pee after waking up from a nap. I recommend using a whiteboard and writing down when he gets fed, when he goes out, and when he pees or poos. Writing it down can help you see some patterns in his daily schedule, and give you some predictability about when he's going to have to go.
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Nov 11, 2008 00:02
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About a month ago, I adopted a kitten. Most of the time she's really sweet, but when the becomes excited she becomes violent! clawing my furniture or anything that moves. My legs have never been so scratched up. I have tried various forms of punishment including squirting her with water, tapping her on the nose with one finger (she's pretty small) and putting her in the restroom alone with the door closed. She doesn't seem too bothered by any of these and I'm curious if any of you have had similar experiences and/or know of any more effective punishments.
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Nov 13, 2008 15:09
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Whenever the kitten gets the claws out, let out a short, high pitched yelp. It's what other kittens do as a "Too hard!" cry, and it should startle her enough to make her stop. Locking her in the bathroom isn't really an effective punishment because kittens don't really understand the "time out" punishment, so she's not even aware that she's being punished. When it comes to the furniture, you can always cover the edges and corners with either tinfoil or saran wrap - cats hate the feel of those and will avoid scratching or clawing at them at all. You can also redirect her to a more appropriate scratching surface by bribing her with catnip or treats until she gets the idea that scratching here = good. Kittens are dicks though, so good luck with it.
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Nov 13, 2008 15:36
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A question that might have been addressed (but if so I missed it). I only have one cat, a 1 year old giant male cat. He's a pretty good cat most of time barring the usual attention seeking cat behaviors like jumping on my chest when I'm in bed or biting my toes when I am watching TV. But...he STINKS. His body itself isn't the problem. Pick him up and smell him and he just smells like warm fur. He just leaves this awful disgusting odor everywhere. The couch smells funny, the whole house has a funk, and his litter box is an unholy pit of despair. I clean it every single day and it still is deathly by the time I get home. He isn't sick or anything but he goes to the bathroom SO MUCH that a clean box in the morning will be filthy at night. I've gotten so tired of it I've taken to just dumping fresh litter over the mess when I get home so I can REST for a couple hours before cleaning it again. How the heck can I keep my tiny apartment smelling less like death??? I already have a system of cleaning the box daily, using spray (although it doesn't always help much), making sure the bathroom door is as closed as possible to keep the stink from spreading, and I just bought him a new covered box that might help too. Is there any secret to this? Am I missing something? It's winter here and too cold to keep every window open so I'm stumped.
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Nov 13, 2008 18:22
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Smam posted:A question that might have been addressed (but if so I missed it). It almost sounds like he's spraying to mark his territory. Is he neutered?
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Nov 13, 2008 18:35
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I need more help from you knowledgeable people. The flea problem is now under control (thanks again for your advice). However, prior to that, my Maltese's scratching was so bad that he ripped his little back open with his nails. I came downstairs one day to see blood in his white hair . So I've been cleaning his wounds and I filed his nails so they're not so sharp, but now he has this enormous scab healing on his back, and he keeps scratching it open and bleeding even more. How on Earth am I to keep him from reopening his scabs so they can heal? My only solution so far has been to keep a sweater on him to buffer his nails, and that's begun to fray and unravel, unfortunately.Is there a proper way to bandage the scabs? Any medicine that helps them heal more quickly? I wish I could be around 24/7 to keep him from scratching, but that's just not possible. If I take the sweater off, he scratches himself bloody in minutes. What should I do?
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Nov 13, 2008 18:44
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porkchoppie posted:It almost sounds like he's spraying to mark his territory. Is he neutered? It's definitely not spray, we had a cat when I was little that sprayed but my kitty is neutered and nothing smells like pee or musk. It's more the litter problem, but the whole house smells like cat poop even though he doesn't track any and I've checked his fur thoroughly and he's very clean. In fact, the white parts of his fur (hes tuxedo) are the whitest I've ever seen on a cat. It truly smells like he has the worst poop stink on earth, and is somehow carrying it all over the house. But there are no streaks or stains or anything at all to indicate that this is happening. Will a full litter box overhaul maybe help the whole house, or am I going to need to air everything out and Febreze all the time??
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Nov 13, 2008 18:55
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Noumena posted:Is there a proper way to bandage the scabs? Any medicine that helps them heal more quickly? I wish I could be around 24/7 to keep him from scratching, but that's just not possible. If I take the sweater off, he scratches himself bloody in minutes. What should I do? He could have basically scratched himself into having a skin infection, or he could have allergies that are acting up. You need to take your dog to the vet and get him checked out for these things.
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Nov 13, 2008 18:56
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So I tried my own thread for this a while back, and it didn't really work out. It appears that my 5 year old mini-dachshund has Multiple Disk Disease, and several weeks ago she lost use of both her of hind legs. After a couple of vet visits and some crazy medication schedule, she had surgery this past Monday, the vet removed the disk crushing her spine, or whatever it was. I'm at school, 400 miles away, so I've only seen her once since this whole thing started. She has a chance of walking again, but I was wondering if anyone else has had any experience with this sort of thing.
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Nov 13, 2008 19:02
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Lioness posted:He could have basically scratched himself into having a skin infection, or he could have allergies that are acting up. You need to take your dog to the vet and get him checked out for these things. Made the appointment now. I didn't consider that it might be an allergy, thank you. The vet tech I talked with agrees that this might be the case.
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Nov 13, 2008 19:04
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Smam posted:It's definitely not spray, we had a cat when I was little that sprayed but my kitty is neutered and nothing smells like pee or musk. It's more the litter problem, but the whole house smells like cat poop even though he doesn't track any and I've checked his fur thoroughly and he's very clean. In fact, the white parts of his fur (hes tuxedo) are the whitest I've ever seen on a cat. It could be gas as well as poop. What are you feeding him?
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Nov 13, 2008 20:18
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Smam posted:It's definitely not spray, we had a cat when I was little that sprayed but my kitty is neutered and nothing smells like pee or musk. It's more the litter problem, but the whole house smells like cat poop even though he doesn't track any and I've checked his fur thoroughly and he's very clean. In fact, the white parts of his fur (hes tuxedo) are the whitest I've ever seen on a cat. 1 - Try a high quality food from the nutrition mega thread, the poop should be less stinky, and less of it. 2 - A little fan near my litter box does WONDERS for dispersing strong odors. 3 - Some litter has better odor control than others, time to experiment. 4 - He's only a year old, so he's still a kitten, and kittens stink.
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Nov 13, 2008 20:28
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Smam posted:death poo It's been said, but this sounds like a food issue. If you feed him crappy store-brand food, then he will poop a lot and it will smell terrible. Even some "premium" foods (Science Diet, I'm looking at you) contain a lot of corn which doesn't digest. Check out the nutrition thread for some good suggestions. Other tip: don't switch his food quickly or you'll get runny stinky poo poo.
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Nov 14, 2008 00:08
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I adopted a kitten 5 weeks ago, and I am just curious as to how neccesary shots are? She is and will always be indoors, so I'm not really sure if I can justify the money. I plan on getting her a rabies shot for my own saftey, but beyond that I am sceptical, to say the least.
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Nov 14, 2008 03:41
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Seventeen-Five posted:I adopted a kitten 5 weeks ago, and I am just curious as to how neccesary shots are? She is and will always be indoors, so I'm not really sure if I can justify the money. I plan on getting her a rabies shot for my own saftey, but beyond that I am sceptical, to say the least. What exactly do you plan on doing if/when something happens to your kitty and she has to go to a vet for emergency? I don't think you really thought this whole money situation through, if you can't afford to get your cat what it needs, don't get one.
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Nov 14, 2008 03:52
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MockTurtle posted:What exactly do you plan on doing if/when something happens to your kitty and she has to go to a vet for emergency? I don't think you really thought this whole money situation through, if you can't afford to get your cat what it needs, don't get one. Pardon? I never said I couldn't afford the shots. Why bother if it isn't something the cat requires? Thanks for your reply though...
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Nov 14, 2008 03:55
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Seventeen-Five posted:I adopted a kitten 5 weeks ago, and I am just curious as to how neccesary shots are? She is and will always be indoors, so I'm not really sure if I can justify the money. I plan on getting her a rabies shot for my own saftey, but beyond that I am sceptical, to say the least. If the cat will be indoors only some vaccines become less important than others. FeLV (leukemia) in particular is spread by pretty direct cat-cat contact so it's not really needed for an indoor-only cat. Rabies would be for your own peace of mind, but I remember hearing somewhere that cats don't, or haven't been shown to transmit rabies to people, so if you are anti-vaccine you might be interested in finding more information about the risk of rabies for an indoor-only cat. In some places a rabies vaccine is required by law, though, so that could make the decision for you. The one vaccine routinely recommended for indoor cats is the respiratory combo vaccine, usually called FVRCP or something similar, that vaccinates for a few different respiratory viruses. These viruses are pretty contagious and you can bring them in on your shoes or clothes, so that's what the vaccine is recommended for indoor cats.
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Nov 14, 2008 04:38
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Chaco posted:...information... Cool, that's exactly the type of reply I was hoping for, thanks!
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Nov 14, 2008 04:47
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Seventeen-Five posted:I adopted a kitten 5 weeks ago, and I am just curious as to how neccesary shots are? She is and will always be indoors, so I'm not really sure if I can justify the money. I plan on getting her a rabies shot for my own saftey, but beyond that I am sceptical, to say the least. I would say definitely get her shots. If she somehow escapes one day as cats tend to do sometimes, you'll want to know when you find her that she doesn't have FIV or something like that. Also, if you ever need to board her for some reason, you won't be able to unless she has all of her shots. Edit: Must remember to refresh pages before I post :[
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Nov 14, 2008 04:50
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Olive Bar posted:I would say definitely get her shots. If she somehow escapes one day as cats tend to do sometimes, you'll want to know when you find her that she doesn't have FIV or something like that. Also, if you ever need to board her for some reason, you won't be able to unless she has all of her shots. FIV isn't commonly vaccinated for, but escapes are something to consider when deciding which vaccines to do. As for boarding, I think the most important one is the respiratory one, since those viruses are more contagious, but it may depend on the specific facility as to whether they want the rest.
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Nov 14, 2008 07:18
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Chaco posted:Rabies would be for your own peace of mind, but I remember hearing somewhere that cats don't, or haven't been shown to transmit rabies to people, so if you are anti-vaccine you might be interested in finding more information about the risk of rabies for an indoor-only cat. Mind giving a source for this?
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Nov 14, 2008 07:26
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Unfortunately it was one of those things a vet I worked for while ago said he read, or something to that effect. Nothing I can find online suggests cat-human transmission is impossible, just that cats are the suspected cause of far fewer cases than dogs, or, to a much greater extent, wildlife. Here's the source for that: http://www.mayoclinicproceedings.com/inside.asp?AID=552&UID=
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Nov 14, 2008 10:12
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Chaco posted:FIV isn't commonly vaccinated for, but escapes are something to consider when deciding which vaccines to do. As for boarding, I think the most important one is the respiratory one, since those viruses are more contagious, but it may depend on the specific facility as to whether they want the rest. The other thing to consider is that when you take your cat to the vet, she'll be around other cats in the waiting room. What if one of those cats is FIV+ and your cat isn't vaccinated? Honestly, it's usually better to be safe when considering whether or not to vaccinate. The vast majority of animals don't have vaccine reactions.
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Nov 14, 2008 13:56
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GoreJess posted:The other thing to consider is that when you take your cat to the vet, she'll be around other cats in the waiting room. What if one of those cats is FIV+ and your cat isn't vaccinated? Honestly, it's usually better to be safe when considering whether or not to vaccinate. The vast majority of animals don't have vaccine reactions. My point was that FIV isn't usually vaccinated for regardless of whether or not the cat will be around other cats. The three big ones with cats are FeLV, Rabies, and FVRCP.
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Nov 14, 2008 15:54
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GoreJess posted:The other thing to consider is that when you take your cat to the vet, she'll be around other cats in the waiting room. What if one of those cats is FIV+ and your cat isn't vaccinated? Honestly, it's usually better to be safe when considering whether or not to vaccinate. The vast majority of animals don't have vaccine reactions. If one of the other cats at the vet is FIV+ there is next to no chance your cat will get it because FIV is transmitted through deep bite wounds or from mother to kitten.
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Nov 14, 2008 23:47
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RazorBunny posted:If one of the other cats at the vet is FIV+ there is next to no chance your cat will get it because FIV is transmitted through deep bite wounds or from mother to kitten. I think I got my vaccines confused, sorry. Either way, the guy needs to get his cat vaccinated for rabies at the very least.
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Nov 14, 2008 23:55
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Seventeen-Five posted:Pardon? I never said I couldn't afford the shots. Why bother if it isn't something the cat requires? Thanks for your reply though... Sorry, reading back over this today I realize I was overly bitchy. I had about 5 too many experiences with idiots regarding animals yesterday so when I read "I'm not really sure if I can justify the money" and that you were "skeptical" on shots, I took it as you being idiotic and trying to avoid shots rather than doing your homework on what they all were for, and my brain went onto crazy mode. I hope you enjoy your kitty 
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Nov 15, 2008 00:18
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We got a dauchsund recently, rescued from a pet shelter. He wasn't abused in his previous home, which is what makes this habit so weird. There are times when we call him, and he will simply stand still, stare at you and make incredibly high pitched yelps, for no reason. there seems to be no pattern to this and I can't tell why he does it. can anyone offer some advice ?
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Nov 15, 2008 04:14
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