Best flee and tick med for my labQ: What is the best flee and tick med for my 85lb chocolate lab A: Frontline plus is the number one flea and tick product in the us. it is effective against ticks,fleas,flea eggs and flea larvae. a single treatment will control fleas for up to 3 months, and ticks for up to one month on dogs.
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Are yearly vaccinations needed?Q: I have a lab?chow mix and he is due for his rabies vaccination which i have to get at the vets. he has had these vaccinations @ 9mos. old: distemper-hepatisitis,parainfluenza,bordetella,canine parvovirus,coronavirus and rabies. what ones are really needed, i know rabies but what else? i know the vet is going to charge me a fortune. if i can i would like to do this myself. he will be 2 in nov. i also live in florida if this makes a difference. A: I feel that most viral vaccines of dogs today give years of immunity with most viral agents of concern, in particular parvo or distemper which are only ones that i concern myself with in most cases. every 6 months and even every year would be too much in my opinion and even all vet schools now recommend at most once every 3 year vaccinations with core viral vaccines in most adult pets
Fatty tumorsQ: Ihave never heard of vaccines causing fatty tumors in dogs. please tell me more and your source of info so i can research this myself. thank you. A: As i am a homeopathic vet as well as conventional vet this is from my homeopathic training. you could check out two books that may be helpful. one is called homeopathy for dogs and cats; small doses for small animals by don hamilton, dvm; other is dr. pitcairn's guide to natural health for dogs and cats by ricahrd pitcairn. did you ever wonder why warts, skin tags, lipomas, etc are so common in pets compared to people. pets are way overvaccinated every year and this has gone for 30 years.
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DiarehheaQ: I've recently adopted a pet. she has all of her shots and is spade. she was examined and determined not to have worms or heartworms. but she has very loose bowel movements quite often. i have not noticed any blood in the stool. is there anything i can give her to stop the diarehhea? i bought the pedigree digestive care dog food but she will not eat it. thank you A: If diarrhea persists, then you should have complete workup done at vet for chronic diarrhea to include stool giardia elisa test sent out by your vet to outside lab to check for this parasite as well as cbc/chem blood work to start. sometimes a trial with a medicine like flagyl as well as high fiber diet like hills w/d from your vet also worth a try
DandruffQ: Seems to come on when fall and winter comes and the home heat is turned on..he also likes to sleep on the solariums heated ceramic floor..what can i do to control the dry flaking skin? he is a long hair 12 yr. old and has had a complete thyroidectomy..has a moderate heart murmer and is on atenalol one quarter of a 25mg.tablet once a day. thankyou for your response. A: I would try treating internall with derm caps and prozyme from 1800petmeds added to each meal. also consider better all natural diet like pet guard or wellness brand foods. if your cat is cooperative shampooing with chlorihexiderm shampoo can help as well
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Heart murmur/mitral valve diseaseQ: I lost my cavalier king charles spaniel toby 3 weeks ago today. we don't know what exactly he died from, but we suspect he'd had a stroke. he was 8 years/8 months old. his half-brother skyler, also a cav., was diagnosed a week ago with mytral valve disease and a heart murmer between 3 and 4. he had an echocardiogram. our vet put him on 5 mg. enalapril and science diet h/r dry food. he will be 9 in november. my fondest wish is that skyler will be around a long time, but i am almost afraid to leave him. he is in mourning for toby, sleeps most of the day, is very reluctant to go outside to relieve himself, and i have to encourage him to eat. our vet said before the echocardiogram that he wasn't to have any exercise, so i won't even take him for a walk, and she's delaying any dental work because that requires sedation. we are planning a short vacation and we will need to board him for a few days. i guess i just want to know if we are doing everything we can. is there anything else we can do? my vets are wonderful, but a second opinion might help relieve some of my fears. cavs have a strong history of mitral valve prolapse or disease. what else can you tell me so i might relax and live a reasonably normal life and let skyler live his!? A: I would try making him as healthy as possible with all natural diets such as pet guard or california natural by natura or more ideally a home made diet as described in book dr. pitcairns guide to natural health for dogs and cats by richard pitcairn. also consider supplements for heart such as coenzyme q-10 at dose of 50 mg daily as well as vitamin e at same time at dose of 400iu daily. also consider supplement known as formula cv from company known as rx vitamins for pets centered in scarsdale, new york. this excellent supplement has supportive nutrients for heart such as hawthorne berry and trace minerals for heart
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Flea & tick control for rabbitsQ: I was told that i need a flea product for my rabbit and i was wondering which one is safe and the best for rabbits. she lives on our screened back porch in a cage and would need something that would repel mosquitoes/flies as well. also according to your flea/tick chart biospot works to do all things a person wants for flea/tick control. is this really the best for dogs and cats with a flea problem and very bad tick problem (they are outside pets)? A: It is an excellent product for this. i like the topical pyethrin based sprays for rabbits however as they are very sensitive to some of the flea/tick chemicals
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