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Does anyone have any experience with steroid sots for doggy allergies? My dog has an unknown allergy and the vet recommended switching her to a more allergy friendly food which we have done (Orijen 6 Fish) she is also taking lots of Benedryl as per the vet at 50mg every 6 hours how she stays awake I don't know. But the vet mentioned giving her a steroid shot after she recovers from her spay but she used a few words that made me a little weary of it saying that it isn't used frequently because it is reserved for severe cases. I am also weary because the vet first prescribed prednisone and it didn't help her itchyness at all. What this all started with was she was chewing on the area one her back right by her tail to the point where it was raw and bleeding so the vet prescribed the prednisone and an antibiotic even during that she chewed and itched constantly.
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Jan 29, 2009 21:37
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Women's Rights? posted:What the hell is wrong with my cat? I took him in on Monday because he'd been more pukey than normal last weekend (vomitting has stopped), and the vet and I discovered that he's lost 3 lbs in the past 9 months (was nearly 15 lbs in April '08 when I brought him in for vaccines, is now 11 lbs 12 ounces). So far everything on him has come back normal - vet listened to all the major organs and felt for any lumps where there shouldn't be and that was totally fine, they ran a CBC on him and everything there came within the perfectly normal range. You just aren't having good luck are you.  I hope he's OK.
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Jan 30, 2009 00:02
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randomity posted:You just aren't having good luck are you. Nah Professor will be fine, his numbers all came back totally normal and his weight is still in the normal range I just don't like the drop for no reason.
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Jan 30, 2009 14:47
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DenialTwist posted:Does anyone have any experience with steroid sots for doggy allergies? My dog has an unknown allergy and the vet recommended switching her to a more allergy friendly food which we have done (Orijen 6 Fish) she is also taking lots of Benedryl as per the vet at 50mg every 6 hours how she stays awake I don't know. But the vet mentioned giving her a steroid shot after she recovers from her spay but she used a few words that made me a little weary of it saying that it isn't used frequently because it is reserved for severe cases. I am also weary because the vet first prescribed prednisone and it didn't help her itchyness at all. What this all started with was she was chewing on the area one her back right by her tail to the point where it was raw and bleeding so the vet prescribed the prednisone and an antibiotic even during that she chewed and itched constantly. Steroid injections usually work very well for itching. Long-term steroid use can have some serious risks, but they are very commonly used short-term to alleviate itching associated with allergies. If the anti-histamines work though many people will stick with that because it's thought to be safer. It really comes down to what works to keep her from itching while you figure out what she is allergic to.
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Jan 30, 2009 17:33
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The only behavioral problem with my dog is that she has no concept of proximity. Usually she recalls promptly, but when she sees another animal there's no stopping her from running off with/after it. She's also difficult to recall if she sees a person, as she likes to run over to them to be pet. Most people find this adorable, but many people are justifiably scared when a dog is bolting towards them. This severely limits my ability to let her run off leash, which is a problem because she's very high energy. Walking her and playing with her in the back yard just don't seem like enough most of the time. I've tried training her to come with positive reinforcement, and she almost always does. But her tendency to run away with other animals makes it impossible to let her off the leash in most situations.
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Jan 30, 2009 18:30
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Women's Rights? posted:Nah Professor will be fine, his numbers all came back totally normal and his weight is still in the normal range I just don't like the drop for no reason. Whew I was worried too This is kind of a long shot, but you just got a kitten a few months ago... has Professor been playing with him/her? Maybe he's getting exercise?
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Jan 30, 2009 20:44
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My 11 week old puppy, Jekyll, pants in his sleep. Is this normal? I'm taking him to the vet this coming Tuesday so I'll know then if it's normal, but he's been doing this since I got him a week ago and for now I'm just looking for a quick answer to help me figure out if I'm nervous about it for no reason. Thanks!
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Jan 31, 2009 05:36
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I've just adopted a second kitty and am in the process of slowly introducing him to our existing precocious female. She is around 8 months and the newcomer is said to be around 7 months on his adoption form (although this is likely an estimate). He looks younger than that and was malnourished when he came into the shelter, but has been eating well. We've done the whole keeping him in a seperate safe room with all his own stuff and have been swapping scents between them (and swapping which room they're in so they can sniff each other's stuff). The resident female has taken to sitting outside his room's door almost all the time she's awake (no hissing or growling from her, just a silent guard duty). We've carefully been introducing them to the sight of each other now and it's a bit of a mixed bag. The boy tends to look really at ease and nonchalant. He doesn't approach her, but seems interested in leaving his room to explore the house. She, on the other hand, tends to remain at a distance watching him, often in a pose that suggests readying for a pounce. However, a couple of times when he's been distracted, she's walked up to sniff his butt. Then he realises she's there and turns and there's hissing and occasionally she swats at him if he comes too close. If she approaches while he's watching he starts a low growl when he gets too close. So far it doesn't seem too bad considering they can be within about a couple of meters of each other without things exploding, and when things do get a bit less friendly, it seems to result in them running away from each other instead of attacking (we do have a water squirter ready to seperate them). Is the hissing ok at this stage? And are they maybe just trying to get a feel for who's boss? I should mention he's not fixed but she is (the house he came from apparently just fed him scraps off the table, and I doubt he'd seen a vet before the shelter took him in).
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Jan 31, 2009 15:52
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HYDE.lana.HYDE posted:My 11 week old puppy, Jekyll, pants in his sleep. Is this normal? I'm taking him to the vet this coming Tuesday so I'll know then if it's normal, but he's been doing this since I got him a week ago and for now I'm just looking for a quick answer to help me figure out if I'm nervous about it for no reason. Thanks!  Many dogs twitch, pant and sniff in their sleep - one of ours even growls and barks.
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Jan 31, 2009 18:09
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Plate posted:Is the hissing ok at this stage? And are they maybe just trying to get a feel for who's boss? Yup. You only need to worry if they end up seriously fighting. It can be kind of hard to tell serious from play fights, but a good rule of thumb is if they're not yowling or drawing blood, you're probably okay. For now, only let them interact when supervised, but it sounds like they are on the right track. I'm assuming you're getting him fixed soon
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Jan 31, 2009 20:29
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exactduckwoman posted:Yup. You only need to worry if they end up seriously fighting. It can be kind of hard to tell serious from play fights, but a good rule of thumb is if they're not yowling or drawing blood, you're probably okay. For now, only let them interact when supervised, but it sounds like they are on the right track. Yup, he needs his second lot of vaccinations soon so we'll ask the vet about when he can be neutered then (since we don't know exactly how old he is). Certainly don't want him spraying his territory. We've actually had them in an open area together more today, and I think they're maybe just vying for who gets to be top cat. They sort of sit about a couple of meters apart and then whenever he's not looking she tries to creep up on him (he's totally chill during this). Then when she gets a little too close, he growls, she looks sheepish and they either just have a stand off or she presses the issue, moves forward too fast and then hisses at him. Occasionally she's swatted at him with her paw, but they always seperate after that and she's never gone after him at that point. I guess we'll just keep sitting with them while they do this little routine until they get used to each other and stop weirding each other out.
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Jan 31, 2009 21:06
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This question probably has been answered a million and one times, but... My female cat sometimes bolts out of her liter box, which is located in the bathroom, after she has done her business. Sometimes she comes out really chill like, and all like "what.", but then there are the moments when she has to come out Mark 5. One night, I decided to chase her down, after hearing her cry. I found her, and she bolted again. What the hell? <  > I'm sure this is normal kitty behavior, but I'm still curious to know what is up.
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Jan 31, 2009 22:18
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Edoraz posted:This question probably has been answered a million and one times, but... My cat gets the "zoomies" after she uses the litter box too. Sometimes she is just fine, but most of the time she is running so fast around the house that she's running on the walls. Drives me nuts. But I've heard its normal. So I just laugh at her and try not to let her ninja cat me when she is hyper like that... she can be deadly in stealth zoomy mode.
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Jan 31, 2009 23:00
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Recommend me some treats for cats/kittens (These are ~5mos). Somebody gave me some Feline Greenies Chicken flavor. The beasts in question enjoy them, and I don't see anything too objectionable on the ingredients label. They are eating Iams Kitten formula (dry) after I weaned them off the purina stuff they were on when I got them, and I wanted to feed some treats as well.
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Feb 1, 2009 06:25
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BrutalDumpTruck posted:Recommend me some treats for cats/kittens (These are ~5mos). Somebody gave me some Feline Greenies Chicken flavor. The beasts in question enjoy them, and I don't see anything too objectionable on the ingredients label. They are eating Iams Kitten formula (dry) after I weaned them off the purina stuff they were on when I got them, and I wanted to feed some treats as well. You're probably going to be advised that before you worry about the quality of your treats you should look into upgrading their main diet - Iams isn't much better than Purina. They're both "acceptable" in the megathread list.
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Feb 1, 2009 06:29
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Cross-posted from the ferret thread: This is gonna be fairly long, and I'd love advice ASAP. So my younger sister received two ferrets last year for Christmas. We had had ferrets before, they lived to the ripe old age of 8. So we already were quite accustomed to ferret-care. On of them, Annie, has been super-lethargic the past week, and has lost tons of weight. She went to the vet today, and he found that she had a bowel obstruction (which was such good news, we thought she had an adrenal tumor). So the doc gave use a tube of laxative gel to feed to her. But she will not eat it willingly. I have to hold her up by the neck (I'm not sure what that hold is called- the one ferrets use on their kits?), pry her jaws open, and place my finger covered with laxative in my mouth, so she'll bite on it and eventually eat the laxative. I hate doing this (especially when she pushed my fingers away with her little paws) and I wish she would eat it willingly but she won't! Does anyone have any suggestions at all? The worst part about it is that if she doesn't pass the obstruction on her own, we will most likely have to put her to sleep. I know that we could surgically remove it, but our whole family is flat broke right now, as selfish as that sounds. It is breaking my heart to see our little spazzy baby wasting away. And if we have to put it down my sister will be absolutely devastated. So any help AT ALL would be greatly appreciated.
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Feb 1, 2009 06:53
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Edoraz posted:This question probably has been answered a million and one times, but... I saw a great post about this a long time ago about how apparently cats are so excited about their amazing dump that they get hyper. Unfortunately I can't in any way replicate it, but yeah. I figure that's what it is. What are these pies posted:On of them, Annie, has been super-lethargic the past week, and has lost tons of weight. She went to the vet today, and he found that she had a bowel obstruction (which was such good news, we thought she had an adrenal tumor). So the doc gave use a tube of laxative gel to feed to her. But she will not eat it willingly. I have to hold her up by the neck (I'm not sure what that hold is called- the one ferrets use on their kits?) Scruffing? Have you tried mixing it with some type of treat that she really likes? Maybe stinky wet cat food? Randomity fucked around with this message at 07:23 on Feb 1, 2009 |
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Feb 1, 2009 07:20
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randomity posted:
Scruffing! Hahaha thank you! Anyways, I would but the doctor said she couldn't have anything but her normal food... But that could be worth a try. If it would work, I don't see why not.
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Feb 1, 2009 07:25
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I would think if it's between her getting that laxative down or being put to sleep I'd do whatever it takes to get it down. And I'm sure you agree by the way I'm not insinuating otherwise.
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Feb 1, 2009 07:40
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What are these pies posted:The worst part about it is that if she doesn't pass the obstruction on her own, we will most likely have to put her to sleep. I know that we could surgically remove it, but our whole family is flat broke right now Do you know if your vet takes CareCredit or at the least would be willing to negotiate a payment plan? I know that a lot of vets will not take payment plans but it won't hurt to ask. For laxative, along with canned cat food you could also try mixing it with chicken baby food or her normal food warmed up and mashed together.
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Feb 1, 2009 08:13
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I've heard great things about pumpkin as a laxative for ferrets as well, but the stuff you've got probably works best. If worse comes to worst, put the lax in a syringe (without a needle, your vet can give you one) and force feed her. Do whatever it takes to save her life. In the future, try introducing things like this to your ferrets before crisis time to give them time to adjust to it while they're healthy and curious and not sick and unwilling to try new gook. It's not your fault since there's usually not any need to give them lax, but I remember how at first mine didn't like the lax, but came around pretty quickly since it tastes good. Ferrets can be picky about treats and take months to change their minds and decide they do like it after all. After this is all over (hopefully it ends well!), you should try giving the other ferret some lax too. It won't hurt to give him any even though he doesn't need it (though it'll make their poo all gummy), but it'll give you a chance to get them used to taking the lax in case something like this ever comes up down the line.
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Feb 1, 2009 10:23
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Alright, so, I'm masochistic and often peruse the pet listings on Craig's List, just to see what people are posting (I say I'm masochistic because my husband would probably kill me if I adopted another cat), and I came across a posting from a guy who has to re-home two Bengals, who are brothers. I certainly can't take two cats in, but, out of curiosity's sake, for those of you who have bought purebred cats before, what paperwork/records should he have? I'm guessing that it's probably not the same as what dogs come with. The poster says he has "pure papered bengals with vet papers as well."
Fire In The Disco fucked around with this message at 16:38 on Feb 1, 2009 |
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Feb 1, 2009 16:25
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Here's a question that REALLY doesn't deserve a thread (or maybe it does for comedy purposes) but why do showers register their fancy-rear end pets with the most retarded names under the sun? Is there some kind of regulation or space on a form that says "gayest thing you can think of" that they all have to fill out? Show-pet names I've encountered: A Bit of Brown For Luck HOT drat Here I Am (To be fair, this is awesome) Rhett Butler (  )Sunny Ridge Polar Express of Wishes Voluminous Crimson Pirate Actually, starting a thread of hilariously odd names doesn't sound like a bad idea. 
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Feb 1, 2009 18:29
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What are these pies posted:Cross-posted from the ferret thread: Dude I replied to you there. <  >Edit: oh wait, all your posts here are before I replied there. Oops. For the curious, I said "Are her bowels fully obstructed, or is she managing to poop at least a little? Is she still eating at all? If she's not able to poop at all and isn't eating, laxatives aren't going to fix this and it would be much kinder to put her down. If she is still pooping and eating a bit... is this just a generic veterinary laxative, or is it FerretLax or something else specifically marketed for ferrets? If it's the generic stuff, head to Petsmart and get some FerretLax. All the ferrets I've had have really liked the taste, and it should be given during shedding season as a preventative even if there's no obstruction."
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Feb 1, 2009 18:36
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What are these pies posted:ferret stuff Try this method: ask your vet for a syringe, a 5ml is plenty big. You don't need the needle. Squeeze the doze into the top, then put the plunger in. Depress the plunger until the medicine is just about to come out. Run the syringe under medium-hot water, enough to warm it up a bit and make it more runny. Scruff little ferret-face, jam the tip of the syringe into the corner of her mouth, and jam the plunger down really fast. The medicine will squirt into the back of the throat where it'll be swallowed immediately. Takes all of about 3 seconds. I use this on my mother's cat who gets hairballs and won't eat the medicine and it works like a charm. Maybe follow up with a treat or something to encourage the goo to go down.
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Feb 1, 2009 18:50
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To everyone who replied: THANKS YOU GUYS. To answer your question, Maple cheese, she is eating a little and pooping a little. So I don't think it is completely obstructed. Which is very good. To the syringe people: I'm sorry, I didn't put this in my original post. We did try the syringe at first, but she seemed almost scared of it, so i figured my finger would probably not freak her out as much. 100 Years in Iraq- the melting of the laxative is a good idea! I'll try that out. To all that are interested: she seems to be doing better today, although we're not sure if she's passed the obstruction or not yet. She's up and alert more, her eyes are brighter, and she wants to be let out to play, even though she is still sleeping lots. Her sister Izzy is a little pissed about all Annie's extra attention! So I think I'll go have some one-on-one time with Izz in a bit. Thank you again for all your help!!! I really appreciate it! I can post pictures in a bit so you guys can meet the ferret you helped out. 
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Feb 1, 2009 20:11
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What are these pies posted:To answer your question, Maple cheese, she is eating a little and pooping a little. So I don't think it is completely obstructed. Which is very good. How does her poop look? Is it super, super thin, like it's being squeezed through a very small space, or is it of a fairly normal width? Also, how experienced is your vet at treating ferrets? Not offering you some high-calorie canned food or telling you to pick up some calorie supplement paste when you have an animal that needs to be encouraged to eat seems... odd to me.
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Feb 1, 2009 20:38
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The vet is pretty experienced with ferrets but that's a good point, I didn't even think about high calorie food. And I'll have to go look at her poo to answer your second question. But from what I can tell it look normal width.
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Feb 1, 2009 21:24
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A couple times when our ferrets have needed to eat more, the vet's given us a can of prescription high-calorie cat food, like Hill's a/d. There are lots of recipes online for supplemental high-calorie ferret food, generally under the name "duck soup". (add the word "ferret" to that search string or you'll just get a Marx Brothers movie and recipes for soup made with duck meat) There are also calorie supplement goos like NutriCal, which you can generally find in the cat section at pet stores. These tend to be pretty sugary and aren't actually GOOD for the ferret long-term, but they're pretty decent as a temporary source of calories. Anyway, contact the vet and ask if you should be encouraging the ferret to eat more, and if s/he has any suggestions.
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Feb 1, 2009 21:41
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I dog sit for my brother & his partner occasionally when they are away. They have an adopted Boston Terrier/Pug. Usually it's great...she's fine & silly, playful, happy. She misses them but not too much. However last weekend when I was there, she was very mopey. I think I know why but I don't know what to do to make her feel better. My brother was only away a few days but his partner is on the other side of the country for 2 months for business. Perhaps Daisy (the dog) felt she was being abandoned? I will be there again this coming weekend. Any tips on helping her be not so mopey?
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Feb 2, 2009 01:21
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I posted this in a puppy thread already but this is probably a better place to ask anyway. The boyfriend and I are planning to get a puppy (most likely a Yorkie mix of some kind from petfinder.com) but we have to wait until our current lease is up at the end of April so we can move into a place that will allow pets. So, it will be May/June by the time we can get this puppy, and we already know that we will be away on a trip for 5 days at the end of July. Puppy will be staying at Boyfriend's sister's place down the street from us while we're gone, along with Sister's 2 dogs (who Puppy will be socialized with from very early on). Is that too early for us to be leaving? Will that be really disruptive for Puppy? I really hope you don't all tell me to wait until August to get the dog because 2 years of being petless (the first time in my life I've ever not had a pet) really really sucks. Of course if it's better for the dog then I will begrudgingly wait until August to get one. Thanks!
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Feb 2, 2009 02:01
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Was the Skye Terrier named Clover in the Eukanuba dog show last night the Clover from PI? I was on the phone and I did a double take and was like "Er, off topic, but I think I e-know the dog they're showing on this dog show!" lol
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Feb 2, 2009 04:04
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Yes I just did a little research and that is Solanaskyes's dog. That dog's name was Angelskye four-leaf clover and here's a post by Solana mentioning that being her dog's name: http://forums.somethingawful.com/showthread.php?threadid=3058287&pagenumber=1&perpage=40#post355246703 Edit: Here's the link from the Eukanuba website: http://www.akc.org/nationalchampion...mber=2008277101
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Feb 2, 2009 06:02
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randomity posted:Yes I just did a little research and that is Solanaskyes's dog. Edit: I'm also pretty sure that is Solana in that picture but I'd have to go back to Cathis's dogshow thread to be completely positive. Hey quote is not edit
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Feb 2, 2009 06:41
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randomity posted:Edit: I'm also pretty sure that is Solana in that picture but I'd have to go back to Cathis's dogshow thread to be completely positive. Yes, Solana was Clover's handler for the show. Every time I see Clover on tv I get all excited.
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Feb 2, 2009 14:02
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Fire In The Disco posted:Alright, so, I'm masochistic and often peruse the pet listings on Craig's List, just to see what people are posting (I say I'm masochistic because my husband would probably kill me if I adopted another cat), and I came across a posting from a guy who has to re-home two Bengals, who are brothers. I certainly can't take two cats in, but, out of curiosity's sake, for those of you who have bought purebred cats before, what paperwork/records should he have? I'm guessing that it's probably not the same as what dogs come with. The poster says he has "pure papered bengals with vet papers as well." I'm guessing my post was lost in the middle of ferret-ness. I'm not adopting the cats listed above; they're long gone by now. But I still want to know what kind of papers and/or records a purebred cat should come with. All of my own cats have been strays.
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Feb 2, 2009 16:02
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drat Bananas posted:Was the Skye Terrier named Clover in the Eukanuba dog show last night the Clover from PI? I was on the phone and I did a double take and was like "Er, off topic, but I think I e-know the dog they're showing on this dog show!" lol Yep, that was Clover and me. She's also on the 2006-2008 shows they broadcast from Houston and rerun on occasion. 
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Feb 2, 2009 16:17
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We're moving from a carpeted apartment, to a wood-floored house. During zoomies, I can tell the cats use the carpet for traction. Is there anything I should/could do to make their transition to wood floors easier?
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Feb 2, 2009 23:50
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Meow Cadet posted:We're moving from a carpeted apartment, to a wood-floored house. During zoomies, I can tell the cats use the carpet for traction. Is there anything I should/could do to make their transition to wood floors easier? Rubber bottomed rugs, particularly at corners and other places where they're likely to change direction. I use washable ones, and it's really nice to be able to just toss it in the washing machine if the cat throws up on it or wipes a dangling poo off on it or if a ferret shits on it.
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Feb 2, 2009 23:59
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Meow Cadet posted:We're moving from a carpeted apartment, to a wood-floored house. During zoomies, I can tell the cats use the carpet for traction. Is there anything I should/could do to make their transition to wood floors easier? Area rugs with non-skid pads underneath. You'll want them for yourself anyway - hardwood floors get cold, and are easy to slide on in socks. It also breaks up the visual plane of a hallway or large room and makes the space seem cozier without making it feel smaller. 
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Feb 3, 2009 00:09
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