Ask the Veterinarian!

[Almost August]

I'm here to tattle on my puppy's behavior. redface

My family has a 11 month old Labador Retriever/ German Sheppard mix that is the sweetest thing, when we don't have anybody over. When we do have company over, even for a few minutes, he goes on high alert and barks, all of the fur on his back standing up. If you sit there long enough with him, you can sneak a stroke down his back.

It's my job (I made it...) to walk him, and it gets old having to tell people that they can't pet him because he cowers and growls. We've taken him to the vet, who suggested obidence training, but my family struggles with money, meaning we can't pay for someone to help us and he has a fear of cars too.

Is there anything we can do at home, to stop him from going crazy? The only problems we have is that he has finally stood up to our 12 year old llasha apso after nine months of being barked at and will growl at him if he tries to jump onto the couch. Boston (the lab mix) and Rusty, our Brittany, get along great- they're playmates. And he hasn't been fixed. I have a feeling that might be some of it and that he was abused from probably the time he was days old, to fourteen weeks, when we got him.

.:Edit:.

After a second of thinking, you said that you were a small animal vet... There's nothing small about Boston... he was 65 pounds in June, so I'm guessing he's about 85 now. I'm five foot four and his head comes up to my waist when he's sitting down. When he puts his paws on my shoulder, he's about eye to eye with me. In April, when we got our Brittany, who's full grown, they were about the same size.

[divawhodemands]

=

[Shoezies]

Hello! First of all, I want to say that I think it's awesome that you're a vet! I'm going to college for that same thing right now! But I'm only in a community college so no real learning about the subject has taken place.
Anyway, on to my ordeal with my kitty. His name is Cat and he's about 2 or 3 years old. Ever since we got him he's always been a very clean kitty, I mean that he licks ALL the time as well as chewing on himself. Lately, I've been noticing some scabs all along his spine and some on his sides. I'm just wondering what I should do about this and his licking? Do you think it's something really serious? We're thinking about trying to give him a bath for fleas, but I'm afraid to with him having open cuts and scabs....Any help would be greatly appreciated.

[DexterMurk]

Yay a helpful thread

[daltonmalton]

dramallama dramallama dramallama dramallama mrgreen biggrin smile redface crying stare xd 3nodding blaugh gonk scream stressed sweatdrop heart xp whee wink sad surprised eek confused cool mad razz cry evil twisted rolleyes exclaim question idea arrow neutral mrgreen ninja 4laugh rofl pirate talk2hand burning_eyes cheese_whine dramallama wahmbulance emo

Xana44

Hi! My name is Xana and I am a small animal (pet) veterinarian who putters around on Gaia.

I have been answering questions on the Ask the Vet Tech thread and in the Furry Critters Guild.

But I thought I would start my own thread and see how it goes.

Unfortunately, since I cannot see or touch your pet, I cannot make a diagnosis or prescribe medications. But often there are things that can be done at home to help your pet. And I can advise you on what to ask your local vet about. I can also advise you if it is a problem that needs to see a vet.

PLEASE DON'T BE SILLY! IF YOUR PET IS INJURED OR ILL, SEE YOUR LOCAL VET NOW!

I will be checking this thread daily for any new posts or questions.

Any gifts will be gratefully accepted and appreciated, but by no means required.

Please do not spam this thread. You will be ignored!

[daltonmalton]

daltonmalton

dramallama dramallama dramallama dramallama mrgreen biggrin smile redface crying stare xd 3nodding blaugh gonk scream stressed sweatdrop heart xp whee wink sad surprised eek confused cool mad razz cry evil twisted rolleyes exclaim question idea arrow neutral mrgreen ninja 4laugh rofl pirate talk2hand burning_eyes cheese_whine dramallama wahmbulance emo

Xana44

Hi! My name is Xana and I am a small animal (pet) veterinarian who putters around on Gaia.

I have been answering questions on the Ask the Vet Tech thread and in the Furry Critters Guild.

But I thought I would start my own thread and see how it goes.

Unfortunately, since I cannot see or touch your pet, I cannot make a diagnosis or prescribe medications. But often there are things that can be done at home to help your pet. And I can advise you on what to ask your local vet about. I can also advise you if it is a problem that needs to see a vet.

PLEASE DON'T BE SILLY! IF YOUR PET IS INJURED OR ILL, SEE YOUR LOCAL VET NOW!

I will be checking this thread daily for any new posts or questions.

Any gifts will be gratefully accepted and appreciated, but by no means required.

Please do not spam this thread. You will be ignored!

my dog has a rash and its really bad wat should i do

[Piercing Promenade]

Total Value: 1,272,453 Gold
[Item Information]

Item List:
Elemental Wings
Adriana Doll
Gogh Reed
Golden Sparkles
Heavenly Drapes


PLEASE HELP!!!

[tricemeister]

underweargnome

Yay =3 we needed a new one of these threads, and not simply that last one

hi how do you get a pet heart

[alwayzloved97]

Ghttp://www.gaiaonline.com/forum/compose/entry/new/49864251/ GIAIA RULZ IT ******** OF THE ******** CHANE I CAN GO ON ON AND ******** ON ******** I SAY ******** TO MUCH LOLZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZ cool cool eek eek eek eek

[alwayzloved97]

GAIA RULZZZZ eek

[alwayzloved97]

THIZ PLACE IS OFF THE CHANE eek eek eek cool lol mad stare

[Ichor of Ink]

Hi, Xana! I really love what you're doing with this thread, Gaia needs more stuff like this. whee

I do have a little question for you, though...
I have a sweet, older beagle/pointer mix, 35 pounds, who is about 16. We got him from the pound, so we're not quite sure. He's incredibly fit and healthy for being so old. He was a model dog all of his life, but now his sleeping habits are a bit odd. He is awake for most of the night, and he licks himself or makes odd noises or whines, so my parents decided that he couldn't sleep in their room. I tried keeping him in mine, but he whines there as well. We even tried keeping him in the living room, which worked for a couple of nights, but then he started YOWLING and set off the security alarm. We've tried everything we could think of (new beds, putting the water bowl near him, letting him outside, telling him "no", etc.) to no avail. We're thinking of taking him to the vet to see if there's some underlying problem. What do you think? Sorry for the long explanation!

[MadameHeart]

Canine Vampire

Hi, Xana! I really love what you're doing with this thread, Gaia needs more stuff like this. whee

I do have a little question for you, though...
I have a sweet, older beagle/pointer mix, 35 pounds, who is about 16. We got him from the pound, so we're not quite sure. He's incredibly fit and healthy for being so old. He was a model dog all of his life, but now his sleeping habits are a bit odd. He is awake for most of the night, and he licks himself or makes odd noises or whines, so my parents decided that he couldn't sleep in their room. I tried keeping him in mine, but he whines there as well. We even tried keeping him in the living room, which worked for a couple of nights, but then he started YOWLING and set off the security alarm. We've tried everything we could think of (new beds, putting the water bowl near him, letting him outside, telling him "no", etc.) to no avail. We're thinking of taking him to the vet to see if there's some underlying problem. What do you think? Sorry for the long explanation!

This is happening to my Australian Shepherd mix as well. She's about 12 and is definitely getting worn down... I'm afraid it could very well be just old age... What do you, the vet, think?

[Little_Lady_Lavender]

Flameing Latex

Little_Lady_Lavender

xd I Love This Thread!!! I was really considering becoming a vet. I interned for one for a full year, was in the Veterinary Science program in my high school for all four years, and love animals... But I get way too attached and emotional... (and I really suck at math and chemistry... but SHHH!!! rofl )

[Snippity Snip]

I am quite sorry for such a long post, but I really can't go outside to clean his cage until winter stressed and I hate seeing him in the tiny cage he's in now, but I'm not sure if it's safe for him to live his life in the garage...
Someone please help me??? crying heart crying

As a old bunny owner i have a few sugestion you could try 1 find a way to bring the cage up off teh ground to prevent water from bothering it of the bunny 2 if the cage is close to the house why not just set of a small 4 post car port thingy up and hang a maskito net over it so that way he can be in the big cage and you and him are kept away from the nasty bugs. bunnys can be kept inside ac and uv light dont bug them but fresh air and sulight are good 4 them mine was a apparmnet bunny and he got along fine before i gave him away to my sister inlaw lol hope this helps i persanly injoy trying to think of neet ways to help bunny owners

well it is off the ground... the cage is built on legs... and i doubt i'll be able to rig something up to keep the bugs out, because we have very naughty stray cats in my neighborhood that tear things up at night... thanks very much for the advice though!! im just not coordinated or handy enough to make it happen lol

Xana44

Sounds like your poor bunny has some problems! I am allergic to mosquitoes as well, growing up in Florida was heck. I got skin infections every year from the mosquito bites. So I know what you are going thru. Try getting a spray or product designed for ponds that kills the mosquito larvae that live in the standing water. Can you get mosquito netting for the outdoor cage? Having him in the garage is better than nothing, although the second hand smoke is not good for him, if it is well ventilated and cool he should be ok.

He needs to be getting plenty of water and more hay than it sounds like he is getting. I would get a bowl that bolts to the side of the cage.

Consider having him live inside. Most rabbits can be litter trained and are great pets with a few bunny-proofing modification.

Check out the House Rabbit Association. They may also have some other suggestions that might help you.

well the garage always has a fan on inside it and the electric door has slats in it to let air in and out, and im feeding him about 3 times a day by taking him out and holding the bowl for him. when the mosquitoes die down im going to go outside and clean out his old girlfriend's cage (we gave her away) really well and then bring that one into the garage... meanwhile, any suggestions as to what should i use to get her scent out of the cage so he doesn't freak out??

Thanks for all the great advice biggrin

[Altered Lover]

I was wondering if anyone knew what flea-killing products actually work well on cats.

See, I've tried many different brands and several different collars, and nothing seems to help. I've also bug-bombed the basement that they sleep in, hoping that'd help, still nothing.

I feel really bad whenever I look at my kitties, because they're tearing themselves up...