Joan - Pet Tails Magazine

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Page 4 February March 2012 ~Spay & Neuter Your Pets ~ Pet Tails earlier cancer is detected, the better the prognosis for curing the cancer. Routine home dental care, namely brushing your pets’ teeth, is equally essential for the prevention of serious dental illness. Some veterinary offices provide a service called a “Brush and Flush,” where a veterinary technician or assistant brushes your pets’ teeth and then flushes the cleansed mouth with a dental astringent. I strongly recommended that this treatment be performed weekly for pets whose owners are unable to brush their pets’ teeth at home. For those owners who are willing to give brushing at home a try, there are many over-the-counter tooth pastes for pets that may be purchased at your local pet retailer. These pet-specific formulas should be used in lieu of human dental products, where many of the human toothpastes contain harmful products which may cause our pets’ hearts to stop if ingested. Another way to maintain your pets’ teeth at home are dental chews. Many varieties of dental chews are readily available at pet retailers and given the overwhelming number on the market it is best to discuss which chew is most appropriate for your particular pet with your veterinarian prior to purchase. Many of the dental chews on the market have the potential for causing obstructions and may not be appropriate for your particular pet. Once you and your veterinarian decide upon an appropriate product, keep in mind that you should always supervise your pet while they chew on the product so ingestion of inappropriate materials or oversize fragments does not happen. Obstructions can cause serious internal injury and even result in death. Some chews are too soft, and can fall apart in chunks that can lodge within the esophagus, stomach or intestines of your pet. If you observe or suspect that your pet has ingested an inappropriate material you should contact your veterinarian as soon as possible. The sooner your pet is seen and treated by a veterinarian, the better the prognosis. Another disadvantage of dental chews is that they may cause damage to the enamel of your pets’ teeth. Some dental chews may be too hard and can cause chipping or fracturing of the enamel and dentin of the teeth. As a result the damaged teeth may need to be removed, or a root canal or crown may need to be placed, depending upon the degree of damage that has been done. A large number of regular veterinarians have the training to perform root canals, place crowns and some even apply braces. In addition to dental chews, there are also numerous other over the counter dental care products for pets, including powder and liquid additives for their food or water and topical sprays that are applied directly to the teeth. You should always check with your regular veterinarian to ensure that a particular product is safe for use on your particular pet prior to purchase and use, as some products may be detrimental to their health or merely ineffective. Your veterinarian is the best resource in helping you decide what products will be beneficial for your particular pet and will likely have the products that they recommend in stock for your convenience. A yearly cleaning is recommended for your cat or dog, just as your own dentist recommends that you have bi-yearly dental cleanings done for yourself. Veterinary dental cleanings are routinely done under sedation, in order to enable the technician the ability to perform the most thorough cleaning possible and to allow extractions to be performed as necessary. A routine pre-surgical workup should be done prior to the procedure in order to notify your veterinarian of any increase in anesthetic risks. This workup consists of a comprehensive blood panel, urinalysis and an ECG to monitor how your pets’ body may react to the anesthetics. If any abnormalities are detected, they can be addressed prior to the procedure and necessary changes in the type of anesthetics may be made. Postponement of the procedure may also be necessary and other alternatives may be discussed. Some pets may require a course of antibiotics prior to a dental cleaning, dependent upon how old or severe the dental build-up in their mouth is. This is done to prevent infection from being released into the body and causing secondary infections during the dental cleaning. On the day of your pet’s dental they will come to the clinic in the early morning and stay for the day. During the actual cleaning, your pet’s teeth are thoroughly cleaned of all the tartar build-up and calculi with an ultra-sonic scalar, polished and a fluoride treatment is applied. The procedure for your pet is nearly identical to the cleaning that you receive when you get your own teeth cleaned by a dental hygienist. There is no down time following a routine cleaning and your pet may return to their normal activities that day. Dental care for your pets is absolutely essential and keeping up with it will ensure that getting kisses from our beloved pets is a welcome experience, especially those big sloppy wet kisses from our canine kin. February is dental month and a great time to start providing routine dental care for your canine and feline companions. It is not too late to make a New Year’s resolution. Continued from page 3 for so long, it just happened. Thus, I presumed a level of neediness akin to a dog rather than to a cat. (Although we’ve never had a problem with the dogs wanting to drink out of the toilet, we do with this cat.) Therefore, because Waldo sleeps in our bed at night, I wanted to have someone stay at the house to sleep with him, to lessen the trauma I just knew he would suffer by our being gone. I gratefully received my daily text messages from Judy, with her notes and pictures of Waldo doing his normal things. I still was concerned about him, but did feel better. Once home, though, I learned Judy had needed to go hunting for Waldo in the middle of the night. He had retreated to his own bed in our closet and was sound asleep– all by himeself. I should have known better… Cindy Owner of From Wags to Whiskers, Inc.
Pet Tails It is often truly said that for many people, pets aren’t just animals they are members of the family–but would you go so far as to clone your fourfooted family member after he had passed away? Cloning is not a new subject and neither is pet cloning. However, recent stories in the news and a recent showing of the TLC network’s “I Cloned My Pet” have brought the subject to the forefront once again. Our pets provide us with years of love and enjoyment, so much so that the possibility of keeping them with us forever is a tantalizing prospect. One critic of the science has stated that “dog cloning is not as ‘cuddly’ as it seems.” Pulitzer Prizewinning investigative reporter John Woestendiek reveals the darker side of cloning our furry friends. What Stiff did for the dead and Fast Food Nation did for the burger, Woestendiek’s Dog, Inc.: The Uncanny Inside Story of Cloning Man’s Best Friend does for the stranger-than-fiction world of commercial dog cloning. Woestendiek was inspired to write this book by the story of former Wyoming beauty queen Bernann McKinney who was so distraught over the death of her pit bull Booger that she paid $50,000 for the chance to bring her beloved companion back to life. The result was 5 new “Boogers” in 2008. The author was struck by the lengths people were willing to go for their pets and intrigued by the compelling questions about the boundaries of science, commerce and ethics. As he states: “It was great material for a book–and, ultimately, I wanted to explore one big question. If cloning dogs is okay, is cloning humans okay?” This book follows a host of colorful characters who sought to replace their companion animals with a new but genetically identical generation– ”colorful” because as the author stated when questioned: “In addition to being moneyed [cloning doesn’t come cheap!], these are people who relish being in control, like things their way, and don’t like being told they can’t do something”–as well as providing in-depth investigative reporting of the scientific background and complex genetics, the Korean and American scientists and companies who are involved in this emerging industry, the allegations of scientific fraud, and much more, all written in a readable, conversational style that will appeal to a wider audience than just dog lovers or those involved in either side of the cloning issue. The author feels that domestic cloning has focused on dogs because people tend to connect more with canines–”a lot of owners come to see themselves in their dogs...and no other domestic animal is closer, emotionally, to humans.” Dogs have come indoors to be coddled ~Spay & Neuter Your Pets ~ like children. They have increasingly been outfitted with enhancements from collars, to clothing, to pacemakers and more. The author argues whether artificially lengthening dogs lives has less to do with their wellbeing than with our attachment to them. Dog, Inc. is a fascinating look at how our emotional needs are bending the reaches of science and technology. With our pet obsession climbing to new heights and our scientific abilities even more so, this book raises the question: are we crossing the boundary of controlling science in the name of love, in the name of science, in the name of merchandising, or a blend of all three? Published by Avery Books, this book was published in hardcover under this title in 2010. It was released in paperback in January of this year under the title: Dog, Inc.: How a Collection of Visionaries, Rebels, Eccentrics and Their Pets Launched the Commercial Dog Cloning Industry. And now for something COMPLETELY different! As a young child, Peter Brown found a frog in the woods and brought it home to be his pet. His mother was not happy: “Would you like it if a wild animal made YOU its pet?” To which he replied: “Absolutely!” Thus was formed the seed for a humorous and heartwarming picture book twist on the classic “first pet” story by grownup author/illustrator Peter Brown entitled Children Make Terrible Pets. When Lucy, a young bear, discovers a boy in the woods while practicing her “twirls,” she is delighted and brings him home, begging February March 2012 Page 5 her mom to let her keep him. Her mom warns: “Children make terrible pets!” Lucy prevails and names her new pet Squeaker. Through a series of hilarious and surprising scenes, young readers can join Lucy and Squeaker on their day of fun and decide for themselves whether or not children really DO make terrible pets. A great book with fun illustrations for story time or bedtime reading. Publisher: Little Brown Books for Young Readers Pub. Date: 2010 I leave you with the following thought: “I would be most content if my children grew up to be the kind of people who think decorating consists mostly of building enough bookshelves.” - Anna Quindlen. Til next time. Joan Joan is a retired chief librarian in Lynn, MA. She can be contacted at JoanR50@netzero.net
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Joan - Pet Tails Magazine

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