THREE GREAT TIPS TO KEEP YOUR PETS HEALTHY AND HAPPY THIS SPRING
Hello friends and fellow pet lovers!
ONE :
START YOUR DOGS AND CATS ON A FLEA AND TICK PREVENTIVE
Keep your pets parasite free this spring - fleas cause significant
allergies which shows up as itching, chewing and biting in both dogs and
cats. Ticks are sources of dangerous diseases like Rocky Mountain Spotted
Fever and Lyme Disease - diseases that can infect humans as well as their pets.
Some of our favorite flea products are Advantage and Frontline. Advantage
is very effective in killing fleas on dogs and cats. Frontline is also for
use on dogs and cats - it kills both fleas and ticks.
If you need stronger tick control, the Preventic collar is the best product
available for dogs. Not only does the collar kill the ticks, it also
provides a barrier preventive to keep the ticks off your pet; remember that
topical spot ons kill parasites, but do not prevent them from getting on
the pet.
TWO:
PROTECT YOUR DOG AGAINST HEARTWORMS:
Heartworm disease is a serious condition that is spread to our pets by
mosquitos. The mosquito injects tiny worms into your pet as it is
feeding. After a few months hundreds of these worms grow in your pets
heart and lungs, reaching lengths up to a foot long!
Signs of heartworm disease include signs associated with right heart
failure; coughing, sluggishness, labored breeding, and ascites
(accumulation of fluid in the abdomen) may occur in the disease in its
advanced stages.
Proheart is the latest product available for the fight against deadly
heartworm disease. This is a very convenient and effective way to protect
your pet against heartworms - one injection is given every 6 months instead
of a monthly tablet. The price of the injection is comparable to a package
of heartworm pills and no exam is necessary as long as your pet has been
seen by a doctor within the past 12 months.
If an animal tests positive for heartworm disease, treatment is available,
but at a cost which is normally 10 - 20 times as much as annual prevention
would be.
As with most diseases which affect the animal kingdom, an ounce of
prevention usually beats a pound of cure. Mosquito season is upon us.
Please be a friend to your pet and make sure that he or she is protected
this year!
THREE:
BEWARE OF LAWN FERTILIZER AND WEED KILLER TOXICITY
Now that the middle Tennessee flood is over (for now), many people are
beginning to put down weed control products and fertilizers on their
lawns. These products may be harmful if your pet ingests them by licking
their paws or by eating freshly treated grass.
Make sure to keep your pets off freshly treated lawns until the products
have a chance to soak deep down into the soil (after a good hard rain for
example). It is generally a good idea to wait least 1-2 days after the
application of any product before your pet comes in contact with the
grass. Alternately, if you don't get a good rain after application of the
product, you can soak the lawn down well with a garden hose. The grass
needs to be completely dry before your pet walks on it.
And lastly.....
LAFAYETTE, Calif. -
Barnabas R. Miller, a registered Republican, has been called for jury duty
in Contra Costa County this month. But there are a couple of problems -
Barnabas is only 9 years old, and he's a poodle. His owner, Donald Miller,
wanted to point out holes in the voter registration system by sending in
the form for Barnabas by mail. "If I can register my dog, then anybody
can register," Miller said last week. "You're supposed to be a citizen.
He doesn't even have a driver's license !"
