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Library
The
Trouble With Ears
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One of the more frustrating parts of canine anatomy
is the ear. While most dogs go a lifetime without issues, for
those who have owned a dog with ear problems you understand too
well the frustrating problem they present. With the curved shape
to the ear canal and with gravity working against it, too often
the ears can be a constant source of discomfort for the dog and
constant source of frustration for the dog owner. Too often we
want a quick fix, but unfortunately with ear problem dogs it
becomes an issue of management rather than a cure.
Read More. |
The
Changing of the Guard
| Was it really going
to end like this? That thought kept going over and over in my mind
as the fourth-year University of Missouri veterinary student led
my Chessie down the slippery hospital corridor for her MRI. My
nervous dog struggled to keep her unsteady back legs under
her—legs that previously had powered her through icy water and
cattail sloughs, legs that had launched her into the air on many a
dramatic retrieve…legs that were now reduced to unsteady limbs
prone to failure without notice. Read More. |
Training
Your Dog for the Treadmill
| During the
dead of winter and the heat of summer it can be a difficult task to
get your dog adequate exercise. For a number of years I would
recommend to clients with obese dogs, or dogs with orthopedic
problems, to utilize a treadmill when they were unable to walk their
dogs outside. This was often met with an incredulous response and
many people thought I was joking. Over and over I heard the same
response, “you can’t train a dog to use a treadmill.”
Read More. |
Summer
Conditioning
| Although temperatures have been near the
century mark in recent weeks, the end of summer is at least reachable,
and many of us have started turning our thoughts to fall. With some
states having dove and goose seasons opening up on the first of
September, it leaves us just over a month to get our dogs in shape.
Read More. |
Trim
the Fat: Keeping Your Dog's Weight Under Control
| One of the most
stressing issues we deal with in veterinary medicine is the
alarming number of obese animals. This issue has really been
driven home in the last few years, as each year I see clients
bringing in normal dogs because their friends and neighbors think
“the dog is too skinny,” when in fact the dog in question was at
an ideal body weight. We have become so ingrained with seeing
obese pets that the healthy dogs are now seen as abnormal.
Read More. |
Introducing...Bottle
Lake's Prairie Belle
| Those that
know me will probably attest that occasionally I make decisions
based on an overwhelming desire in my heart, and with total
disregard to logic thought processes that should be going on in my
brain. Adding a puppy to an already two-dog household would be one
of those decisions. Read More. |
Maggie's
Battle with Cancer
| Sometimes life
throws you a curveball when you’re sitting waiting for a
change-up. To say that I’ve been having trouble “reading pitches”
lately would be an understatement. Read
More. |
Puppies:
Food Selection as an Investment...Not a Receipt Total
| So far we’ve gone
over selecting a pup and what to do immediately upon getting your
pup home. In this article we will discuss what I feel is one of
the most important aspects of your dog’s health: the food you will
feed your pup. Read More. |
Allergies
and Your Dog
| When you or I think
of allergies in ourselves we think of things like hay-fever,
asthma, sinus problems, etc. The same irritants that cause
allergies in us can cause them in our pets. The difference is dogs
get itchy and irritable skin instead of respiratory problems.
Read More. |
Puppies:
What To Do When You Get Your Bundle Home
| In the last article
we talked about the steps to take in preparing to get a new puppy;
in this article, we will look at what to do once you get the
little bundle home. Read More. |
Puppies:
Choosing Your New Companion
| People often think
of spring as the time for new beginnings, and for those of us with
a love for the outdoors, it also signals the time to start a new
puppy. It’s difficult for just about anyone to say no to an
energetic, furry bundle…add in puppy breath, and the cards are
stacked against making a rational decision.
Read More. |
Preventing
and Treating Field Emergencies
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I often tell people that the reason I became a
veterinarian was to be able to afford my own hunting dogs. the
number one point I stress to people is that if you run a dog in
the field long enough, you will deal with injuries. These can
range from cuts and broken limbs to gunshot wounds and penetrating
injuries to the eye (another Setter story). It is during these
times that your degree of preparation and level-headedness can
determine whether your favorite hunting partner will be back to
hunt with you another day.
Read More. |
The
Importance of Nutrition in the Pregnant Female
| Too often in veterinary practice we hear
the comment, “My dog is doing fine on his current food,” as
justification for feeding a lower-quality pet food. While this may
indeed be the case for many pets, there are two groups of dogs that
require an extremely high level of nutritional support: working dogs and
breeding females. These two groups cannot settle for a food that is ok;
they require the best nutrition in order to stay in optimum condition.
The stresses and demands placed on these dogs go well beyond those of
your typical family pet, and, as a result, the nutritional needs of
these dogs are also very advanced.
Read More. |
The
Arthritic Dog
| Every
sporting dog owner holds in the back of his or her mind the fear
of a promising dog’s career getting cut short by arthritis.
Although dog owners might not all understand completely what
arthritis is, they all know that when it comes to our hunting dogs
it is not a good thing.
Read More. |
Overheating
and Hypoglycemia
| Overheating, or
heat stroke, is a common problem in hunting dogs, and as we found
out during South Dakota’s pheasant opener last year, a deadly
problem as well. However, as with many health emergencies, heat
stroke can be prevented by taking a few simple precautions.
Read More. |
Releasing Your Dog
from a Trap
| Downloadable PDF
file with information and instructions about how to release your
dog from several common traps, including long spring traps, coil
spring traps, snares and conibear traps. We would like to thank P.
Burns at
http://www.terrierman.com for sharing this information with
us. (260 K) Download. |
Skunk Spray
Remedies
| Downloadable PDF
file that shares some of the most successful remedies for skunk
spray, including a home-brewed recipe that can be kept in the
truck in case of emergencies. After hunting with some versatile
dog owners, this has become an invaluable addition to my kit. (196
K) Download. |
Gundog First Aid Kit
| Downloadable PDF
file with a comprehensive listing of all supplies needed to create
a handy first aid kit that will help you deal with injuries in the
field. (61 K) Download. |
Conditioning Important for Gundog Athletes
Too
| Gundogs are athletes in the truest sense of the
word. Yet, too often we think of them as an unfailing hunting
partner that’s always there to perform at the top of their game – no
questions asked. When hunting season rolls around we expect many of
these athletes to go from couch potato to Ironman competitor without
blinking an eye. These dogs are athletes, and, as such, they have
unique energy demands, physical characteristics and, too often,
injuries. Read
More. |
First Aid Kit Valuable Tool in the Field
| Traumatic
injuries are the most common maladies to occur to hunting dogs. A
good first aid kit is a necessity in order to properly care for
these wounds, and to prevent further pain and injury.
Read
More. |
Gundog Exams Important After Every Hunt
| Nearly every
Monday or Tuesday of hunting season we see dogs that had been out
the previous weekend. Most have fairly straightforward cuts,
scrapes and bruises that with adequate field and home care would
be just fine. Injuries that may have been “simple” on Saturday
afternoon now have had time to become dirty and infected by Monday
morning. Read
More. |
Proper Diet Encourages Overall Gundog
Health
| Nutrition is
an often-overlooked area of overall gundog health. As athletes in
the truest sense of the word, though, nutrition should be an area
of top concern for gundog owners. You can find a pup out of the
best bloodlines in the country and send him out to one of the top
trainers in the world, but if the dog is not fed a diet designed
for top performance, that pup won’t run at a top level.
Read
More. |
Hip Dysplasia
| Say the words “hip
dysplasia” and most hunting dog owners have a vague idea of this
arthritis causing disease. We all know of an old campaigner that
just can’t go anymore because of “arthritis” or the young dog
whose career was cut short by too much pain. Say the same two
words to a breeder and you likely will get a defensive answer
about not having it in their lines and that their dogs are
guaranteed, but what does that mean? It is my hope that after
reading this article you will have a better understanding of this
complicated disease. Read More. |
The Itchy Dog
| One of the more
frustrating cases we see in veterinary medicine is the case of an
itchy dog—those dogs that are constantly battling skin infections,
ear infections, or are just plain miserably itchy. There are a
number of things that can make a dog itchy, from bugs to behavior,
but this article is going to address dogs with allergies—those
dogs that seem incredibly itchy all the time or every year seem to
get the same skin and ear infections.
Read More. |
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