Care of Dog Paws
Problems with Dogs Paws
If your dog or cat is limping or favoring one foot, you need to take a look and see if you can find out what the cause is. Even though your pets paws are very tough, they can still get cut, scrapes and burns. According to M. Lynne Kesel, D.V.M., assistant professor of elective surgery in the Department of Clinical Sciences at Colorado State University College of Veterinary Medicine and Biomedical Sciences in Fort Collins “Between the pads it is very sensitive and cuts can be extremely painful. Here are some suggestions from The Doctors Book of Home Remedies by the editors of Prevention for Pets:
Do an inspection – Get down on the floor and gently raise the paw that may be injured. Look for redness, swelling, bleeding or other sign of irritation. Press gently on the pads, around the claws and between the toes. If your pet winces or cries, move in for a closer look. Be prepared to back off if your pet seems agitated. Even the sweetest pets may nip you if they are in pain.
Check for burrs – To remove a burr, grab it firmly with a pair of tweezers and gently wiggle it free. If it is tangled in the hairs, however, you may need to clip it out with scissors. You can apply a little vegetable oil to help loosen a stubborn burr.
Trim hair around toes – Long-haired pets can develop hair mats between the foot pads, which can chafe and cause irritation. It is a good idea to keep the hair trimmed back.
Clean muddy paws - Like hair mats, mud that accumulates between the toes can cause pain and irritation. After your pet has returned from a muddy romp, wash their feet thoroughly with soap and water to remove the grit.
Keep paws dry – Paws can become irritated from too much moisture. So after washing your pet’s feet or after they come in from a wet day – dry feet thoroughly with a soft towel.
Take care of burned paws properly – Pet’s paws may get burned from standing on a hot surface. Any burn should be thoroughly cleaned with soap and warm water to prevent infection. As always, dry paws with a soft towel. Then apply an over-the-counter antibiotic ointment. Cover it loosely witha gauze bandage to keep it clean. To keep gauze in place, cover it with a light cotton sock.
Watch for dryness - Like people, pets occasionally suffer from dry, cracked, callused skin of the bottom of their feet. Try applying a moisturizer (whatever you use on your skin should be fine) or use Vitamin E oil. Put the oil on at mealtime, your pet will eat first, so the oil will have some time to soak in.
Don’t over moisturize – Don’t use lotion for more than a few days in a row or your pet’s paws will become too soft and be vulnerable to injuries.
Clean off salt in winter – In winter, salt spread on sidewalks to melt snow can irritate your pet’s paws and lead to cracking. Remove the salt from your pet’s paws with soap and water immediately after winter walks. Dry the paw well, the apply a small amount of moisturizer with lanolin.
Clean up oil or household chemicals on your pet’s paws – There are a number of common household chemicals, like motor oil, antifreeze and corrosive cleaners, that can be extremely hard on your pet’s paws – and toxic should they lick them off. Washing you pet’s feet with dishwashing detergent works well. Applying olive oil can help. Apply the detergent or oil to a damp washcloth and scrub the paw until it’s clean.
Removing gum – If you pet has chewing gum stuck to their paw, you can use dishwashing detergent to help dissolve it. Or you can use gum removers, available at hardware or drugstores. If gum is really stuck in their hair, you may need to cut it out. Take a small pair of scissors and cut at the base of the hairs below the gum.
Skip the cute boots - While pet stores and specialty catalogs promote the virtues of rubber boots for dogs, they really don’t need them say the Prevention Vets.
Dog Gas – Natural Remedies
Excessive Flatulence in Pets
Though intestinal gas is a natural part of digestion, it is still unpleasant. Some animals produce more gas than others. Dogs have more a problem than cats but then often dogs are much larger than cats thus making it a more difficult problem to ignore.
Here some natural ways to help rid your pet of gas. These suggestions come from The Doctors Book of Home Remedies for Dogs and Cats by the editors of Prevention for Pets.
Walk your dog – Exercise helps move gas out of the intestine, and if your pet happens to relieve himself on his walk, even more gas will be released.
Soybean content in food – Soybeans comprise up to 25% of some pet foods. Some pets may find soy hard to digest. Changing to a food with less soy or no soy could make a big difference. Wenaewe Adult Dry Dog Food contains no corn, soybean, wheat, meat by-products, food by-products, dairy, artificial flavors, chemical preservatives, artificial colorants, GMOs, fillers, or ashes. Wenaewe also makes an equally nutritious cat food.
Switch brands slowly -Vets say it takes awhile for the colon to adjust to a new diet. They recommend switching over a period of three days, substituting one third of the new food for one-third of the old each day.
Keep trash can tightly covered – If your dog gets in the trash frequently, it can really affect their digestive system and increase their gas output.
Feed your pet the right amount of food – Overeating can overload the gut, so things end up fermenting that normally wouldn’t as a result your pet will have more gas.
No dairy - Most adult dogs and cats can digest only tiny amounts of milk. If your flatulent pet is getting milk, take it away for a few days and see if things improve.
Try Yogurt - Many yogurts contain digestion-friendly bacteria that can help decrease flatulence. Vets recommend giving 1/4 teaspoon of plain yogurt to cats and small dogs, 1 teaspoon to do 15 to 20 pounds and 1 tablespoon for large dogs. Most pets like the taste, so you won’t need to hide it in their food. Even pets that can’t handle lactose can usually enjoy yogurt without any problems.
Try activated charcoal – It’s messy, but it can absorb the smell pretty well. For small pets add 1/8 to 1/4 teaspoon to their food daily. For larger pets, 1/2 teaspoon is about right. Be aware activated charcoal can absorb nutrients as well as gas from the digestive tract. Don’t use it for more than a few days at a time.
Try a natural anti-gas product – Many vets recommend giving pets digestive enzymes on a regular basis because pets are subject to the sames kinds of environmental factors that cause humans to experience digestive problems.PetAlive Digestive Support is an excellent digestive system tonic and contains three carefully chosen herbs in therapeutic dosage to soothe and support the stomach lining, esophagus, and entire digestive tract. I like Native Remedies Pet Alive products because they are all natural and are thoroughly tested. If you more information on the product click on the banner at the top or bottom of the post.
Reduce mealtime competition - When pets are fed together, one pet may eat too quickly to prevent the other pet from get their food. Just like humans, pets take in too much air when they eat too fast and this causes gas. Feeding your pets separately will allow them to eat more slowly.
Make your pet eat more slowly – I thought this was a really clever idea. You put a large object – like a ball- in your pet’s bowl. Your dog or cat has to nose around and work harder to get the food so they will forced to slow down.
Raise the food dish – If your dog does not have to bend their neck so far down they will swallow less air. You can place the food bowl securely on a box or you can buy a stand that holds food and water at mouth level. The stands are really nice. My mother-in-law’s Doberman used to have a stand that a neighbor made for him. The dog’s look so much more comfortable eating from a dish at their level.
[tag]cat health,cat health problems,dog gas,dog health,dog health problems,excessive flatulence,flatulence in dogs[/tag]
All Natural Pet Allergy Treatments
Pet Allergies
Did you know dogs and cats can get hay fever? Just like you and I many pets are sensitive to airborne annoyances – pollen, mold, mildew,dust feathers and wool. While we many get red eyes, runny noses and sneeze a lot, pets are more likely to feel itchy. To soothe their skin and help keep allergies under control, here’s what some experts writing in The Doctor’s Book of Home Remedies by the editors of Prevention for Pets suggest:
Calm it with cool water – Give your pet a cool-water soak. Bathes your pet for five to ten minutes. Make sure the water is cool – warm water aggravates the itch.
Ease it with oatmeal – To make soaks more soothing, vets sometimes recommend adding colloidal oatmeal (like Aveeno) to the bathwater. It gives the water a smooth, silky feel that will calm irritated skin. You can buy this oatmeal at the grocery store where they sell over the counter medicine.
Subdue it with supplements – Try giving your pet a fatty acid supplement. The supplements come in capsules and are available from vets and some pet stores. Ask your vet about dosage. If you can’t get your pet to swallow the capsule, squeeze the oil into your pet’s food. They taste fishy and cats really like them.
Keep your pet indoors – In spring and summer, pollen fills the air-and your pet’s coat and airways. To prevent pollen from bothering you pet, keep them indoors during peak pollen time – usually early morning and evenings. Your local paper will usually give a daily report of pollen count.
Consider indoor environment – I know many people allergy sufferers who have benefited greatly by getting rid of curtains, carpets and thick upholstery. These are magnets for attracting and holding dust and pollen particles. It stands to reason it would work the same for your pet.
Clean and clean – Daily Cleaning won’t eliminate allergy-causing particles but it will keep them at a manageable level. Vets recommend vacuuming and dusting often and also change furnace or air-conditioner filters monthly. Wash pet’s bedding at least once a week, vets say. This will help reduce the buildup of dust mites-microscopic organisms that thrive on skin flakes and are a common cause of allergies in people and pets.
Check your brand of litter – Many litter box products contain chemical scents to attract your cat but many dogs and cats may be sensitive- both to the smell of the litter and to its dust.
Foot soak - Dogs with allergies occasionally suffer from itchy feet and soaking them in Epsom salts can be helpful. Fill a tub with just enough cool water to cover your dogs paws. Dissolve several cups of Epsom salts crystals in the water. Stand your dog in the tub for five to ten minutes, then gently dry their feet. Don’t let your dog dog drink the water since Epsom salts can act as a laxative.
Again you may consider a preventative strategy for your dog or cat’s skin. If you can keep their skin in good condition, your pet may not feel as much of an urge to itch and scratch. I know with my dog once that itch/scratch cycle started it was hard to break.
Native Remedies offers a product called PetAlive Skin & Coat Tonic. I like Native Remedies because their products are all natural and their products are created using a Full Spectrum Approachâ„¢ (FSA), a set of standards and processes that combine the best quality, laboratory tested, raw ingredients, Good Manufacturing Practices and a Full Spectrum manufacturing method guarantees products of the highest quality, safety and effectiveness, and they back them with a One Year Unconditional Money Back Guarantee.
Native Remedies’ products are not tested on animals and individual ingredients are well-researched and are natural, safe and effective.
Skin & Coat Tonic contains a combination of specially selected herbs, nutrients and biochemic tissue salts known for their tonic and supportive function on the skin and coat. Regular use of Skin & Coat Tonic has been shown to relieve itchy skin in pets. The product comes in the form of a capsule.
While conventional medicine works by often treating just the symptoms, natural medicine strives to create holistic balance. Unlike pharmaceutical drugs, the natural ingredients in native remedies products support overall health and functioning.
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