Pet Health

Keeping your dog healthy helps to keep you and your family healthy. We highlight what you should consider before getting a new dog, how to provide a comfortable home for your new dog, and how to maintain your dogs health long term.

A cat can live for twenty years or more but the average is probably closer to fifteen years. Signs of advancing years are decreased activity, gray hair, hearing loss, decaying teeth, lethargic movements, clouded eyes, bad breath, a craving for warmth, inactivity, and a demand for more attention.

Cats can get heartworms after being bitten by an infected mosquito, although they are not as susceptible to infection as dogs.  A cat is not a natural host of heartworms because the worms do not thrive as well inside a cat's body.  Both indoor and outdoor cats are at risk for heartworm disease.

Heartworm disease is not contagious, meaning that a dog cannot catch the disease from being near an infected dog.  Heartworm disease is only spread through the bite of a mosquito. When the infected mosquito bites another dog, the mosquito spreads the infective larvae to the dog through the bite wound.  In the newly infected dog, it takes about 6 to 7 months for the infective larvae to mature into adult heartworms.

There is no evidence to suggest that pets are significant contributors to COVID-19 transmission. The risk of a pet transmitting the virus to their caregiver is considered very low. However you should make plans for your pets in case you get COVID-19 and can no longer take care of them. This is especially important if you are not vaccinated against COVID-19.

Since neutering requires surgery, it is emotionally traumatic. Handled properly, your cat will recover quickly. Let us first dispel the myths surrounding the neutering of cats. Cats do not get fat and lazy after being neutered. They get that way because of overeating and lack of exercise. Cats do not become more satisfactory pets after they have had sexual intercourse, had their first heat, or given birth to a litter of kittens.

Do you have questions about the drugs your veterinarian prescribes for your pet? Do you have questions about how and where to report a problem with an animal drug or pet food? If you're traveling with your pet—do you know where to get travel requirement information?

Zoonotic diseases are diseases that can be spread from animals to people. Good personal hygiene and a few easy preventive steps between caring for different dogs before eating and, at the end of the day, can help protect you from unexpected gifts from pets.

Pets share our space and breathe in a large amount of the 7,000 chemicals found in cigarette smoke. This smoke can also cover the fur and feathers of pets, which they can eat when they groom themselves. Secondhand Smoke comes from a variety of tobacco products like cigarettes, electronic cigarettes (e-cigs), cigars or pipes.

Rabies is a fatal but preventable viral disease. It can spread to people and pets if they are bitten or scratched by a rabid animal. In the United States, rabies is mostly found in wild animals like bats, raccoons, skunks, and foxes. However, in many other countries dogs still carry rabies, and most rabies deaths in people around the world are caused by dog bites.