Serious flea and tick controlQ: We have a yellow lab that seems to be a tick magnet and a slightly smaller german shepard aust. cattle dog that is less so. they spend a sizable amount of time out doors in a 1 acre area and the lab has multiple ticks removed daily. what would you reccommend. A: Myt favorite product is preventic collar which works great for 3 months as long as not submerged in water which inactivates it. other good choice is frontline plus from 1800petmeds Shop for: tick, preventic collar, 1800petmeds, frontline
Heartworm prescriptionsQ: My vet refuses to give me a prescription for heartworm medicine, unless i put my dog through blood tests for heart worms. she has been on heart worm medicine all of her life, and is very healthy. my personal feeling is that he wants me to only buy the heart worm medicine from him, so he makes it difficult for me. A: If your veterinarian has never asked you to give your dog a heartworm test ih the past and has sold you the product, your feelings are probably very genuine.
Unusual furQ: My dog has recently grown a odd white fur on his left side and it has a black ring around it. i was wondering what it was because my friend said it might be scabies. A: I doubt it is scabies which causes intense itching in dogs. likely some sort of innocent hair follicle change, but you should take to vet to examine
Found an engorged tick on the dogQ: I found an engorged tick on my dog and removed it, then dabbed it with peroxide to try to kill what was left. how should i treat the area? and what should i watch for with the dog? A: I would not worry about one tick. sometimes they have some residual scar tissue from the bite. put some neosporin or hydrocortisone on it
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Ear infectionsQ: Can you give oral antibotics for ear infection for a dog instead of ear drops. i have a dog that i can't put ear drops in. she was hit by a car several years ago and broke both legs and spent alot of time with treatment. since then unable to give any type of treatment. can 't even get a muzzle on her A: Sometimes oral meds can work a bit. most of time most effective however whihc often will reduce pain/inflammation to allow you to place ear drops in would be low dose cortisone as well in addition to antibiotics orally which dont penetrate ears enough as do topicals directly applied.
BiospotQ: I've recently heard of severe spasmodic reactions and even deaths in cats who had been given biospot topical treatments. both my vet's office and the head of a local rescue told me of these problems. they think that using biospot on large dogs seems to be safe, but highly recommended that i avoid using it on my cats altogether. have you heard of more such problems with biospot? where can i find this kind of information? i appreciate whatever help you can provide. A: Unfortunately, these types of reactions can occur with the use of any topical flea and tick product. i usually rfecommend frontline plus because of my experience and the lack of adverse reactions.
Shop for: biospot, tick, frontline
Ear infection and fur lossQ: My 13 year old dog always has ear infections, hair loss and flakes where there is the hair. the hair comes away easily. the ears produce a dark and smelly discharge that is slimey. he gets it in both ears, but the right one is the worst. i clean his ears and put antibiotic drops, but he keeps getting infections. the vet removed one of his testicles, because he had a tumor and that was causing the ear infections. the joint to his front paw is swollen, lost hair and is purplish with some discharge. the vet states that it could be flebitis and i was giving him antibiotics, it still is a little swollen with hair loss. he also had vestibular disease a couple months back. could the ear infections be caused by a skin allergy or are the ear infections causing him to be unstable (vestibular disease)(i know it has something to do with the brain) or is it a thyroid problem causing ear infections a the skin disorder? thank you. A: Ear problems are most commonly due to inhalent and/or food allergies but also possibly low thyroid which you should check. unless address underyling causes, then recurs. also in such a long standing case might want to culture ears to see what is growing in them and consider x rays of inner/middle ear which has tob e done under sedation as sometimes surgical drainage and flushing is needed. might need surgical specialist here
Bumps on my dogs stomach and back legs?Q: My dog just recently got what looks like a rash on his stomach. he's been licking and scratching at it. i can't afford to take him to a vet. he's is 6 months old german shepherd/ lab mix. what do you recommend i do for treatment? A: I would use antibacterial shampoo every few days such as oxydex or chlorihexiderm shampoo from 1800petmeds. you could try topical gentacin topical spray as well in addition to oral benadryl at dose of 1/2 to 1 mg per pound orally twice daily. if persists, you will have to see vet for stronger meds and antibiotics, etc
Shop for: 1800petmeds
