Dog Bite Prevention Week Part 2: Bite-proofing your child

A dog can be a boy’s best friend.

Every year, 4.5 million people in the United States are bitten by dogs. 50% of these bites are to children 12 and under, with the highest rate among children between the ages of five and nine years old. Fortunately, of all dog bites treated in emergency rooms, 96% are treated and released (source).

While few of these bites are serious, dog bites to children are a serious and scary problem. Thankfully, there are many steps a parent and a child can take to lower his risk.

The first, and I think the most important, is for parents to closely supervise their childrens’ interactions with dogs. This is especially important with new or strange dogs, but it is also important with the family dog. Dogs are animals. Sometimes they lose their patience. Sometimes their warnings go unheeded and they end up warning more strongly than tender human flesh can tolerate. Sometimes they’re in pain.

The best way to counteract this unpredictability is to learn to read and understand the dog’s body language and comfort level. While some dogs will tolerate a child climbing all over them, but for most dogs it is very stressful. So even though the dog is putting up with it, he might be trying very hard to communicate how uncomfortable he is with the situation.

We have fallen into the habit of “Disney-fying” dogs. Yes, dogs can be man’s best friend, but they are still living, breathing, feeling animals who don’t always respond in the ways we want or expect.

Here is an excellent guide to understanding how to read stress signals from your dog. Often the easiest to see are yawning, tucked tail, pinned-back ears, nose-licking, and trying to avoid the situation. All of these need to be cues to parents that it is time to intervene now because the risk of something bad happening is steadily increasing.

Children, especially older ones, can be taught to recognize friendly vs stressed vs go away messages from dogs. Doggone Safe’s Learn to be a Dog Detective is a terrific child-oriented webpage for helping kids understand what a dog is feeling at any given time and what the best response is.

Teach your child that if he is approached by a strange, loose dog, do not run but instead Be a Tree. Running or screaming makes a child more interesting and a more appealing target. Being still and quiet is boring, and less interesting to a dog.

It is also vitally important to teach children not to approach strange dogs without the owner present. Statistically, dogs who are chained, kenneled, or contained in a backyard are a high bite risk. They are often poorly socialized with people and protective of their space. This can be a recipe for disaster if a child approaches. Between 1976 and 2001, at least 98 people were killed by chained dogs. 92 were children.

If an owner is present, the child must know to ask first before trying to pet the dog. Not all dogs are comfortable with children, and some dogs, such as service dogs, should not be interrupted from their work. If the owner says it is ok, the child should be taught to extend a fist for the dog to sniff and to let the dog come to him. If the dog wants to say hi, he will!

Let sleeping dogs lie! Teach your child that if the dog is sleeping, chewing a bone, or otherwise occupied by himself, it is best to leave him alone.

Give your dog a safe place to go when he wants to be left alone, and teach your child to respect that. I cringe when I see pictures of kids in crates with dogs. If things were to go bad, they could go very bad very quickly with neither dog nor child able to quickly escape.

Teach your child to never try to take something from a dog that the dog will not willingly give up. A hard stare, a stiff body, crouching over the item, and growling are all signs that your child needs to back off and go to an adult if the dog has something that he shouldn’t. Also, a wagging tail is not necessarily a sign of a happy dog! A loose, full-body wave is a sign of happiness. A stiff or slow wag is not.

Dogs should be fun, not scary.

Some older children can be taught to “trade”. Trading is taking something that the dog values highly (food, a favorite toy), and offering it to the dog in exchange for whatever he is guarding. If the dog shows desire for the trade object, toss it several feet away so that you are able to retrieve the item while the dog is occupied away from it.

Resource guarding can become very dangerous, so getting in contact with a trainer or behaviorist as soon as possible is highly recommended.

Last but not least, please do not ever leave an infant alone with a dog, even if the baby is in a crib. Babies smell funny, they sound funny, and they move funny. All of this has the potential to trigger prey drive in a dog who would never hurt someone he recognized as a human.

With all of these things in mind, it is possible to minimize the risk of your child being bitten either by a strange dog or the family dog. Kids and dogs can make a great combination, but keeping safety in mind is a must!

Other resources:
Doggone Safe!
Be a Tree!
And for all things dog-bite-statistics, The National Canine Research Council

 

Dog Bite Prevention Week Part 1: Bite-proofing your dog

My dogs are family.

This week is considered Dog Bite Prevention Week, a week in which professionals who work with animals strive to put out good and useful information about dog bites and about how to prevent them. In a country where more homes contain dogs than don’t, it’s an important topic. Dogs bite humans every single day. The good news is that according to the National Canine Research Council, greater than 80% of reported bites require no medical treatment at all. 19.4% of reported bites require minor medical attention, and the last 0.01% of bites are the ugly ones requiring major medical attention.

This is probably not the impression you get from the media. So frequently there are dramatic news stories about children attacked by vicious pit bulls, or police having to shoot attacking dogs. The truth is, a lot of this is media and attention-driven. In 2010, there were 33 dog attacks that resulted in fatality. In contrast, there were 33,041 unintentional poisioning fatalities, and 3,782 unintentional drowning deaths. (Source: NCRC).
According to Janice Bradley’s book Dogs Bite But Balloons and Slippers are More Dangerous, you’re more likely to be struck by lightning twice than you are to be killed by a dog. There are more cow-related human deaths every year than dog-related ones.

So why this great fear of dog bites?

I think it is just something primal in us. As a society, we have in many ways taken the “animal” out of dogs. We’ve tried to turn them into Disney characters– always affable, never dangerous. They are “man’s best friend” and they are supposed to fit neatly into our cultural expectations. But the truth is, dogs are living, breathing, thinking, emotional animals. They are the sum of their genetics and their environments, and when they get into serious trouble, it is almost always the result of human error in one way or another.

The next question: How do you bite-proof your dog?

First off, choose a breed or dog that is appropriate to your lifestyle and experience. If you’ve never owned a dog before, it’s probably not the best idea to go out and get a dog who is going to react to everything he sees in his environment by wanting to bite it. If you have kids, you are going to be better off looking for a dog who likes kids and is pretty go-with-the-flow, not a dog who is scared of his own shadow. If you plan to use a dog-park to exercise a dog, do not choose one whose entire breed is built around fighting with other dogs. Do your research! There are lots of breed-selectors available online that can point you in the right direction. Here’s one from Animal Planet that’s pretty nice. Iams has an interesting breed selector as well.

If you bring home a puppy, it is so very important that you socialize him so that he learns to roll with the punches and tolerate having to deal with new things. Helping him to have plenty of good experiences in all kinds of locations with all kinds of people will set him up to be more tolerant later on, and tolerance is always something we prize in a pet dog.

Buy your dog either from a responsible breeder who is breeding dogs who have been proven to have good temperaments or rescue one from an organization that temperament tests its dogs, and ideally keeps them in foster homes. Meet the dogs. If from a breeder, meet the dogs’ relatives. Make sure you are seeing dogs who are steady and engaged, not dogs who are shrinking back from the world, and not dogs who are aggressively approaching every person they meet. You don’t want to see hard eyes, raised hackles, stiff bodies. Look for fluid motion and appropriate interaction.

Please please do NOT buy your puppy from a petstore, online vendor, or a puppy mill or farm where the pups have lived their whole lives in cages or a pen, rarely handled, and not at all socialized to the world. Socialization in puppies is HUGE and if your pup is not exposed to a variety of people and sounds and experiences and textures under his feet at a young age, life is going to be that much harder for him, and he’s going to be that much more of a bite risk.

Whether your new dog is a baby or an adult, attending a postive-reinforcement-based obedience class dramatically decreases your dog’s future bite risk.

All dogs should go to school.

One of the biggest factors in serious dog attacks and fatalities is that they frequently involve dogs who are not considered members of the family. These dogs are referred to as “resident dogs”, and while they live on the property, usually chained or penned or relegated to the backyard, they miss out on the bond with humans, they miss out on the opportunity to learn appropriate behavior, and they miss out on the constant mental and physical stimulation of life shared with people.

The dogs with the highest risk of getting into trouble are those who are recently acquired, kept as “resident animals” instead of pets, are chained and rarely if ever let off the chain to lead a normal doggy life, who are not spayed or neutered, not trained, and have had little socialization.

So basically, to bite-proof your dog…. Do the opposite! Include your dog in your family, train him, teach him the ways of the world, let him have good experiences, protect him, and learn to read his body language and what he is telling you. Dogs are pack animals. You are his pack.

Family dogs who bite very frequently give you plenty of notice (unless this notice has been punished out of them) but you have to know what you’re looking for and you have to respect it. A dog is growling at you over a toy is communicating important information. And this should be a red flag that you need to contact a trainer ASAP so that you can learn how to change your pup’s reaction to your approaching his toys. A lot of bites could be avoided by learning to recognize stress signs in your dog and by seeking help as soon as you notice the beginnings of the problem, not after somebody gets bitten.

Hopefully this post gave you a basic overview of why dog bites happen and ways to “bite-proof” your dog. But what about bite-proofing your child? Stay tuned. We’ll look at that later in the week.

 

Why we recommend heartworm preventative for all dogs.

You might notice that we are starting to get more vocal about our recommendation that all dogs either be on monthly heartworm preventative year-round or tested for the disease annually. In the past, we’ve encouraged it, but we’ve kind of slipped a bit recently. It’s easy to get neglectful about preventative when you live in Pennsylvania– it’s not like we’re in The South where they have hundreds upon hundreds of afflicted animals. Heartworm has never been a huge risk in Pennsylvania, and it’s still not.

But.

It is a growing risk.

Heartworm disease is quite literally worms living and growing in the heart. The larvae are passed from infected mosquitos biting and transmitting them into a dog’s bloodstream. From there, they spread throughout the bloodstream, and as they mature and grow they migrate to the heart and lungs, where they take up residence. Left unchecked, a heartworm infection can lead to severe heart disease, failure, and death. It is not a nice disease. It can be treated, but the treatment is expensive and somewhat risky depending on the severity of the infection. Often, the damage to the heart is permanent.

Check out this nifty interactive map on the Pets and Parasites website. Click on Heartworm and follow the prompts to check out the PA map. This map shows the number of reported tests and positives. There is not a lot of heartworm… but there is not no heartworm, either. We don’t know how many positive tests were not reported, and we also don’t know how many infected dogs are going undetected. This is the scary part, because these dogs form a reservoir from which heartworms can be spread. If a mosquito bites an infected dog and then later bites your dog, your dog can become infected. It happens as quickly and easily as that.

Our world is changing, and with it, the incidence and distribution of parasites and diseases such as Lyme disease and heartworm disease also changes. It used to be that heartworm disease was not a big concern because we get cold cold winters that killed off all the mosquitos. This past winter was cold, but unusually so. We have seen a trend toward milder weather, and mosquitos like mild.

Another big change is with the animal rescue community. We are seeing more and more small rescues which are rescuing dogs from poor Southern animal shelters and bringing them up here. These dogs frequently carry heartworm disease, and while they might be treated once they get here, they still bring that disease to the area. In addition, many of these rescue groups use a slow-kill method of treatment, which we are now discovering is leading to heartworms which are immune to all of the heartworm preventative drugs we have. Fortunately, this has so far been contained to the area around the Mississippi River, but it’s a scary scary thought.

Dogs left in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina. Photo by Tom Fox.

All of these factors contribute to our goal of testing and protecting all dogs against heartworm disease. A monthly tablet (Sentinel) or chew (Heartgard Plus) can stop heartworm infections before they develop by killing any of the larvae your dog might have picked up in the last month. If you kill them off monthly, the worms never have a chance to grow and cause harm. In addition, our heartworm preventative medications help control many of the intestinal parasites which are more common to our area– things like roundworms, hookworms, and whipworms.

If your dog is not currently on heartworm medication, or if you’re not very consistent about giving it and you would like to schedule an appointment to have your dog tested, please give us a call at 717-665-2338. Our staff can give you the information you need and point you toward the test that would best fit your dogs’ lifestyle. We can also get your pup started on preventative to make sure he does not develop this horrible disease.

 

New weapons in the war on bugs!

Flea season last year was horrible. We saw so many clients with flea infestations who had never ever had flea problems in the past. It was frustrating and expensive for clients, and frustrating for us because they were so hard to treat. While we have an excellent step-by-step treatment guide for dealing with fleas, it seemed that no matter what people were doing, it just wasn’t working.

Recently, a few new products have come onto the market. One is just for fleas, the other is for fleas and ticks. White Oaks Veterinary Hospital is carrying both of them in order to give our clients more options when it comes to fighting the dreaded bugs that our pets can harbor.

The first one is for fleas only and is available for both cats and dogs. It is called Activyl, and we’ve been getting great reviews from clients.

Nobody wants fleas.

We are only carrying the flea-only version of the product (the one that also kills ticks is toxic to cats), and it is currently only available for purchase as a pack of six, but at this point it does appear to be a powerful weapon against those dreaded blood-sucking, home-infesting fleas. If you have a kitten and you’re just looking for a general flea preventative, we would still recommend Advantage because it is a bit more gentle. If you’ve been using Frontline or Advantage and it’s working for you– fantastic! No reason to fix something that’s not broken. But we want to make you aware that we do have a potentially more potent option for the really tough flea problems.

Our other new product is something we’re pretty excited about– the first once-a-month ORAL flea and tick preventative called Nexgard.

There have been other oral flea preventatives out there for awhile, but this is the first one that works against ticks as well. It is made by Merial, the makers of Frontline, and it has had extremely good reviews. It is slightly more expensive than Frontline, but it’s a terrific option for dogs who swim a lot, are bathed a lot, or have owners who dislike the oily patch that topical preventatives leave.

As with many oral medications, the most frequent side effect is vomiting, but otherwise this product seems to work very well. A number of staff members have tried it and liked it (I love it for my smooth-coated dogs– no mess!) and we are excited to see how it performs this flea season.

As always with tick prevention, checking your pet over after being out and avoiding high-risk tick areas is advised no matter what kind of preventative you are using (and even if you are having your dog vaccinated against Lyme disease because ticks do carry other nasties), but in the area that we live in, ticks are going to be lurking and for many people and their pets, unavoidable.

Nexgard is not available for cats. It is a dog-only product.

If either of these products sounds like something that you might be interested in for your own pet, or if you have any questions about what the right flea and tick preventative for your pets is, please do not hesitate to give us a call at 717-665-2338. We would be happy to help you figure out the best option for your pet.

 

The Scoop on Poop: Or, why we ask you to bring a stool sample.

Poop is gross. Make no mistake– we get that. But examining a stool sample for parasites on an annual basis is a great way to make sure that both your pet and your family stay as healthy as possible. Intestinal parasites can not only make pets sick, but they are easily spread from one pet to another, within the family or, if your dog goes places like the dog park, to dogs outside the family.

What is even more distressing is that some intestinal worms are also transmissable to humans. This is a bigger concern in families where there are children who might play outside a lot and maybe not always remember to wash their hands. It is also a concern in families that include people with compromised immune systems. It is such an easy risk to mitigate simply by bringing a stool sample along to your pet’s annual visit.

Stink bugs are fun to play with. And crunchy.

But, you ask, what if my pet is an indoor pet? Clearly, animals who are kept primarily outdoors are at a higher risk of contracting intestinal parasites because their exposure is higher. Cats especially are frequent hunters, and their prey can carry and pass along parasites. But even indoor pets are at risk. Does your dog not ever leave the house even to relieve himself? There are many cats who truly do not ever leave the house. While their risk of infection is significantly lower, it is not zero. Rodents can get into your house and pass along parasites. Certain bugs are guilty as well– cockroaches, some types of flies, and even stink bugs (and who doesn’t get stink bugs?) It is also entirely possible for any person coming into the house to bring the shed eggs in on their shoes. Indoor pets do not live in a vacuum; parasites are everywhere.

What about dogs who are on monthly Heartworm Preventative? Both Sentinel and Heartgard work as monthly dewormers for intestinal parasites, but they are labeled to “control” (but not necessarily eliminate) the worm population and keep the pet from becoming sick from them. This monthly deworming is one of the reasons why we encourage people to give Heartworm preventative even through the winter months when mosquitos are dormant and the risk of contracting heartworms is very low. Unfortunately, no Heartworm preventative is going to offer complete protection against all intestinal parasites, and they completely miss coccidia, a common single-celled organism that can cause terrible diarrhea.

So what are the most common intestinal parasites?

Roundworms are especially common, especially in puppies and kittens. They are frequently passed from mother to babies, whether before they are born or while they are nursing. The tricky thing about roundworms is that when they infect a dog, some of the larva will migrate into the body’s tissue and lie dormant. They then can be reactivated by the hormones produced during pregnancy, so even if the mother of the litter had a clear stool sample checked before pregnancy, she can still transmit worms to her pups. Roundworms are most dangerous in very young animals who simply do not have the strength and immune system to fight them. In healthy adult pets, infections are generally not serious.

But. Roundworms can be transmitted to people. Young children may become infected by ingesting dirt contaminated with animal feces. Sandboxes are frequent favorite bathrooms for stray and outdoor cats, and children may be exposed there. Hand-washing is extremely important. Adults who work outside, in the garden for example, are also at risk of being exposed, as well as people cleaning litterboxes. Bottom line? Wash your hands!

Hookworms are another frequent offender. Hookworms can be a bit uglier than their roundworm companions. They are transmitted either by ingestion of the eggs, or by larva penetrating the feet and migrating through the body. Hook worms do more damage than roundworms, as they tear out tiny pieces of the intestinal wall for nourishment, resulting in blood loss in the pet. Dark stools, bloody diarrhea, and weight loss are the most common signs of a hookworm infestation.

And like the roundworm, hookworms can infect people. They can penetrate the bare skin of humans in the same way that they can our pets. The best prevention is a clean yard, shoes, and regular stool checks to make sure your pet is not contaminating his environment.

Whipworms seem to be becoming more common in this area recently, or at least we have been finding more of them on stool checks. The most common symptoms are poor condition, weight loss, and in severe infections, chronic bloody diarrhea. Whipworms can be very difficult to get rid of in the environment. Under favorable conditions, eggs can remain infective for up to five years in the environment. Keeping a clean yard and checking stool samples regularly are the best way to prevent environmental contamination.

A stool sample test in progress.

Tapeworms are a little bit different. In order to acquire tape worms, your pet needs to ingest a flea, whether through grooming or hunting. Tape worms do not show up very well on stool samples– the easiest way to diagnose them is through the observation of worm segments on your pet or one of his common sleepng areas. Tape segments look like grains of white rice. If you see these, you should give us a call. Tape worms require the intermediary host of the flea. They cannot be passed pet to pet or pet to human. They are, however, a warning sign of flea infestation, so that is something you also want to stay on top of.

And last but not least is coccidia, which is not a worm, but a single-celled organism called a protozoa. Again, this is most commonly spread from ingestion of the parasite. The most common sign is, once again, diarrhea.

All of these different parasites require different types of dewormers. While there are deworming medications for pets available in some pet stores and in feed stores, they often are not very effective, and are usually only effective against one type of parasite. This isn’t helpful if that’s not what your pet has. We at White Oaks Veterinary Hospital recommend annual stool samples so that we can properly diagnose and treat any parasites that your pet has picked up. And any time your pet is being seen for diarrhea, you should definitely bring a stool sample along, as parasites are a frequent cause of intestinal issues.

We wamt to do our best to keep your pets and your family as healthy as possible, and regular stool checks are a very useful tool that we can use. Please try to remember to bring one to your pet’s next visit!

 

How to make your home more cat-friendly.

Kitties love soft beds, companionship, and sunbeams.

Cats. How we love them. Until we don’t. Until they’re peeing on our carpets and ripping up our furniture. Then they can be the most frustrating, heart-breaking nightmares.

Fortunately there is a lot that we as cat-owners can do to help give our cats more interesting and fulfilling lives, to promote healthier levels of exercise and mental stimulation, and to design our homes in a way that will help them to be more relaxed in general. All of these things can go a long way toward preventing behavior problems before they even happen.

Cats can be very independent critters, which makes it a little easier than with a dog to put out food, water, and a litter box and kind of forget about them. But cats are intelligent, interactive animals– which is why we like them and invite them into our homes. And if we do not meet their needs for hunting, for hiding, for scratching, and for play, they may get stressed and start to exhibit the kind of behaviors that we do not want in our homes. Stress and boredom may also contribute to overeating which can easily result in obesity, a condition which is known to contribute to a variety of health problems.

So how do we make a home more cat-friendly?

1. Appropriate Litterboxes and maintenance.

The general rule of thumb is at least one more litterbox in your house than there are cats. Two cats? Three boxes. Litterboxes should be in multiple peaceful locations (and on multiple floors if you have a multi-level house), and ideally be of different designs and possibly with different litter, depending on what your cats prefer. Cats can be very picky about textures, so it is best to not change litter types on them suddenly. And remember– your cat is the one who gets the choose the litter. If he’s showing you signs that he doesn’t like it (such as doing his business right next to the box), listen to him.

Cats also prefer a clean bathroom. Don’t we all? Litterboxes are best scooped at least once a day, and completely emptied, cleaned, and refilled as needed (this will depend on what type of litter you use– if you use scoopable litter you will be able to go for a lot longer than you would with plain clay litter).

2. Cat trees and scratching posts.

Two kitties enjoying their kitty tree.

 Cat trees and other cat furniture are great options for providing cats with places to perch and survey the world, sleep, climb, and scratch. In the wild, cats rely on being able to get up high and survey the territory, especially when they are scared. Cats also tend to like to sleep in high places as it allows them to feel a bit more protected. If you do not want your cat snoozing on top of your refrigerator, then providing him with an inviting and more appropriate option is a helpful way to go.

Cat furniture is not particularly cheap, but if you invest in a well-made piece, it will last for a good long time. Multi-levels offer multiple cats assorted places to roost, and posts covered with varied surfaces allow cats to have their choice of inviting scratching surfaces. Sprinkling catnip or spraying the surfaces with a catnip spray can help make a new cat tree or scratching area more appealing.

Cats need to scratch. This is an intrinsic part of being a cat. They scratch to stretch their muscles, they scratch to sharpen their claws and shed old cuticle, and they scratch to scent mark. Even cats who are declawed will retain the need to scratch. There is a wide assortment of scratching toys available for purchase- ones that lay flat on the floor, ones that are verticle, ones made of cardboard, ones covered in sisal or carpet, even ones made of natural wood. What will work best for your cat will depend on your individual cat. Does he like to scratch the carpets? Then perhaps a scratch pad that lays flat on the floor will be most inviting? Does he go more for the sides of the couch or the back of the recliner? Try something verticle! Because of the scent-marking aspect of scratching, we need to remember that this is a social and territorial demonstration as well. Scratching posts should be placed in high cat-traffic areas, and it is best to have multiple scratching options in homes with multiple cats.

Window access.

A chair with a view.

Cats love to be able to see outside. It’s natural television for them. It keeps their minds occupied and allows them to engage in their natural hunting instinct. If you do not have windowsills appropriate for your cats to sit on, consider rearranging furniture to provide a comfortable spot, or mounting a shelf or purpose-made window perch available at many petstores. The root of many behavior problems in cats is boredom, and giving your cats a way to engage with their surroundings will help alleviate some of that. Also consider things that will make their view even more entertaining– consider adding a birdfeeder in sight of your cat’s favorite window or planting flowers that will attract butterflies.

Playtime!

There are so many different kinds of toys available for cats, so think outside the box with this one and try an assortment of options to see which ones your cats like best. Everything from paperbags and the plastic rings off milkjugs to automated laser pointers for your cat to chase– each cat will have his own preferences. Some cats like stuffed catnip mice to bat around. Others love to chase laser pointers. Peacock feathers or kitty wand toys with feathers and sparkly plastic on one end and a long thin handle on the other are where the fun is at for others.

I’ve got you now birdie!

Remember that cats are very much hunters by nature, so toys that can be made to wiggle, move, and bounce are most likely to catch their attention.

Once you’ve figured out what your cat likes to play with, remember to not leave that toy available at all times– that will cause the toy to become boring. Either bring it out for designated playtimes, or have a variety of toys that are rotated every few days to keep them fresh and fun.

Not only will playing with your cat enrich his life and encourage exercise needed to prevent him from packing on the pounds, it will also increase the bond between you and your cat. Plus, cats are hilarious when they play!

If your kitty is very food motivated and eats dry food, another way to provide entertainment and stimulation is by feeding him his meals in a food-dispensing toy. These can be tricky to find made specifically for cats, but there are usually a wide assortment available in the dog toy aisle. Requiring your kitty to roll, wobble, or otherwise interact with a toy will make mealtime more engaging as well as encourage exercise.

For more tips on how to create a healthier and more engaging home for your cats, be sure not to miss Ohio State University’s Indoor Cat Initiative website. It is full of information about the nature of cats and why they do the things they do, as well as information on how to deal with conflict between cats, how to teach a cat to like his carrier, and a wide assortment of other topics.

Enjoy! And don’t forget to play with your cat!

 

What vaccines does your dog need?

Vaccines are a popular and somewhat controversial topic on the internet right now, especially with the flare up of the potentially deadly parvovirus in Lancaster County. I think a lot of us take them for granted, but vaccinations are not a “one-size-fits-all” topic. At White Oaks, we try very hard to tailor our vaccine protocol to each individual pet to protect them from the diseases that they are at risk of being exposed to, but not overvaccinate them with things they don’t need.

There are two vaccines that we recommend for all normal, healthy dogs.

The first is the Rabies vaccine. This is the big one, because it is not only an animal health issue, but also a human health concern. We don’t hear a lot about rabies anymore in the United States, but it is still out there. The CDC provides some pretty interesting maps of reported rabies cases, and their cats and dogs map shows an awful lot of cat dots in our area. Most affected animals are wild ones, but it is not unheard of for those sick wild animals to come in contact with our pets. If our pets are not protected, that’s a huge risk to everyone in the household. Rabies vaccines are required by law for every dog 12 weeks and over, and there is a potential for a hefty fine if you do not comply. We recommend that dogs be vaccinated at 12 weeks of age, then again one year later. After that, as long as the vaccine is given on time, we vaccinate every three years against rabies.

The second vaccine that we recommend is the DHLPP vaccine, which is a combination vaccine which provides protection against five different diseases: Distemper, Hepatitis, Leptospirosis, Parainfluenza, and Parvovirus. Distemper is a nasty virus that affects the nervous system. Fortunately, we don’t see much of this disease anymore because the majority of dogs are vaccinated for it. Hepatitis is a disease that affects the liver, Leptospirosis is a bacterium that can cause liver and kidney failure and which can be passed from pets to humans, Parainfluzenza is an upper respiratory virus that causes coughing and sneezing, and Parvovirus is a highly contagious virus that causes vomiting and diarrhea and can easily be fatal in puppies.

We recommend that puppies be vaccinated every 3-4 weeks starting at six weeks of age and until they are 16 weeks old, again a year later, and then at two years. Like the rabies vaccine, the DHLPP vaccine then becomes an every three years vaccine as long as it is given on time.

Then there are the optional “lifestyle” vaccines.

These are the vaccines that we only recommend if the individual pet’s lifestyle suggests that they are at risk.

Lyme disease is increasingly prevalent in our area, especially in the Mt. Gretna and Cornwall areas. Any dogs who live in areas where they are frequently picking up ticks, or who visit tick-heavy areas for hiking, hunting, or play should be vaccinated against Lyme disease. We always recommend a topical flea and tick product as a first line of defense because there are other tick nasties out there (Anaplasmosis is one we see from time to time), but the Lyme vaccine is important back up against a potentially debilitating and occasionally fatal disease. This vaccine is initially given as a two-part series administered 2-3 weeks apart, and then after that it becomes an annual vaccine for some dogs, and a twice-yearly vaccine for dogs who are at very high risk. We prefer to give annual boosters in the spring so that they are providing maximum protection during the warm months when ticks are most active.

Kennel Cough, also known as Bordetella is recommended for any dog who is in an environment with a lot of other dogs. These are dogs who go to boarding kennels or groomers, who visit dog parks or doggy daycare, and who are attending any kind of puppy or obedience classes. Dogs who show or trial in any sport also risk exposure to kennel cough and should be vaccinated. All of the more popular boarding kennels in our area do require this vaccine annually for any dogs staying there, and the vaccine should be given several weeks before the dog’s scheduled stay. This vaccine is given anually for most dogs, and every six months for dogs at an even higher risk.

Canine Influenza is another vaccine required by some boarding kennels in the area. It is a newly emerging disease, so most dogs in the population have zero immunity to it- their immune systems have never seen it before. This puts all dogs at risk of contracting it. Like kennel cough, Canine Influenza causes coughing and sneezing, but in rare cases, this disease can develop into pneumonia and potentially even be fatal. Lancaster County did see a flare up of this disease that included several deaths during the summer of 2012, but it seems to have disappeared again. We did not have any confirmed cases at our hospital. This vaccine is potentially recommended for the same crowd of social butterflies that we recommend receive the Kennel Cough vaccine- those who are boarding, grooming, visiting dog parks, or simply going places where they are around a lot of other dogs. The Canine Influenza vaccine is initially two vaccines given 2-4 weeks apart, and then is given annually.

A Facebook reader asked about the Rattlesnake Vaccine. That one is not common in this area, although I know it is used some in the Southwest where rattlesnakes are much more likely to, say, be chillin’ in your backyard. We do certainly have venomous snakes in this area (I nearly had a nervous breakdown once while hiking with my dog when I looked down and realized he was standing less than six inches from a big fat Timber Rattlesnake), though they are uncommon. The best protection for our dogs is for us to be aware that snakes are out there and to keep dogs leashed while hiking and out of areas where snakes may be lying hidden. Any dog bitten by a venomous snake will require immediate medical attention, vaccinated or not.

That covers all of our canine vaccines. As always, if you have any questions about your individual pet’s needs and risks, give us a call. We can certainly talk to you about what vaccines are necessary and which are maybe not so pressing. We just want to do everything we can to keep your pet safe and healthy and to give all of our clients the information that they need to make the best decisions for their own pets’ well-being.