Ask the Veterinarian!

[R a p t o r L o v e]

This is a wonderful idea for a thread and extremely useful!

I have three guinea pigs (female, adults) who haven't been getting along very well recently. We tried putting them in the same cage, realizing they would fight for some time to claim dominance, but they wouldn't stop. We ended up separating them but now they are all injured with open wounds from each other. One of females keeps on scratching her own scabs off and she keeps on opening her own wounds again. Any advice? Thank you!

[divawhodemands]

burning_eyes

[R a p t o r L o v e]

Nizzyh

I have a dog who is 18 years old, she has passed its age, and usually she sneezes, and has trouble seeing, I feed her, and wonder what I should give food, because this type of diet has caused bad reactions. exclaim
I also have a guinea pig, not a hamster and I saw on a site that lettuce is not a good food to be eaten by it. xana this is true or false? thanks!

I'm pretty sure if you post the same thing OVER and OVER like you're doing it's considered spamming...

[WebOne]

Gizmo562

ok this might be a little out of your knowledge because I know not alot of vets treat this animal but I have a hedgehog and ever since I got him he is ALWAYS sleeping. I mean sometimes I'll hear him on his wheel or see him eating but he is usually curled up inside his log asleep. Do you know if this is normal behavor? Also would reccomend cag liners or wood chips?
Thanks

Hey,
I saw this post and I have had friends that had HedgeHogs and they do tend to sleep about as much as hamsters - however it could be that the critter is bored and keeping him in a larger then needed cage with various tys can help - also change the toys out so he gets different toys every week or so - maybe turn the cage so a diferent side is against the wall - get a poster frame with a plexy-glass front and put a wilderness background on the wall behind his cage.

Anything, that he seems to be seen playing with or curling up with while sleeping, leave in the cage as he probably likes those toys a lot.

**Just as a warning be careful what you place in a pets cage - even toys madeespecially for your type of pet can be hazardous - check to be sure that it doesnt have small parts just like you would before you place a toy in an infants crib (the exception that animals cant ussually pull things appart and they also are less likely to eat items <with the exception here of dogs which eat everything> wink

**Always consider what your specific pet is allowed to eat aqourding to type, species and breed, if in doubt see your local vetrinarian for your pet**
There are many things you can add to a pets cage just out of the blue just for fun (dont use these too often so they dont get bored with them) - like 1-4 x a year you can:
- drop in a toilet paper or paper towel roll -
- try dangling a veggie from the top of the cage (something edibale for your type of pet of course)
- boil and let cool down overnight, a weird shape rock that is about the same size as your pet and place it in a empty space of your pets cage (place this right after you clean the cage out)-

ideas requiring supervised play:
((especially for knawing, chewing or animals that abuse their toys exsessively))
- a medicine pill bottle (the brown plastic type) (boil water and let it cool for like 2 min and then soak the open bottle and lid til all the lables all fall off and the **glue must be completely gone) you can then place it in the cage like a roll around barrel or tie a nice sized knot in a string, place knot in bottle and close the lid to dangle it from cage top
- let him explore somewhere new - build a fenced/boxed in area (purchase a pin at the pet store is safest) and place him in there to explore
if out doors <<make sure the plants in the area are safe for your pet to eat or at least to taste>> one of the most fun places for animals (especially for rodent types) to explore are berry plants or the vegtable Garden << keep in mind this can be temporarily damaging to the garden and some pets like to feast on the bugs there>>
this can be done indoors too - do you have a potted stawberry plant or just clip a nice healthy Blackberry vine that is full of beries and lay it along the bottom edge of the pin << do not place plants in cages with pets and you must supervise your pet so they wont eat the plant leaves or other not edibale parts>>

I hope these ideas help - Im not intending to impose - just sharing my knowledge smile

[Mewsuke]

Perception.Is.Futile

Warning: I am neither a vet nor a vet tech nor dog trainer.

This worked with a friend's dog however. He stopped eating after they moved, and would only munch on people food. They went to various people to get him to eat dog food again, but the advice always stayed the same/or wasn't helpful. The advice was: stop feeding the dog people food. You're filling her belly. Once she's hungry, she'll eat her own food again.

Obviously, if she doesn't eat anything in a few days, this could be a problem, but you NEED to avoid feeding dogs and cats people food as much as possible. Its not meant for them and doesn't have all the nutrition they need in it.

Yeah, that one I do know. It's just so very difficult with her, because her food is wet. I can't leave it out and watch on the amount, it'll get crusty. I guess I can try not feeding her for a whole day and giving her a scoop of the food at night to see if she eats then. Still, I'm hoping there's something I can do more for her. I think she's depressed and her Rescue Remedy isn't helping.
Still, thank you.

[WebOne]

Nizzyh

I have a dog who is 18 years old, she has passed its age, and usually she sneezes, and has trouble seeing, I feed her, and wonder what I should give food, because this type of diet has caused bad reactions. exclaim
I also have a guinea pig, not a hamster and I saw on a site that lettuce is not a good food to be eaten by it. xana this is true or false? thanks!

3nodding

Raptor is right - you are spamming - be patient a responce will get to you as soon as possible - please delete your posts beyond the first one

You should take your dog to the vet, pets that have passed their life expectancy can have various helth issues, some of which can be controled by diet. Your pet should get an examination to detrmine these issues specific to her and have the examining vet recommend the best food for her. I Love all animals as my own pet, I would very much encourage you to have her seen so that she can be with you for as long and as comfortably as possible.

as for your guinea, a guinea diet of guinea food is best with an Alfalfa basket on the side (make water available 24/7 for any pet) as for lettuce - it is a nice treat device, but it isnt a food suplement (guinea pigs can not live on lettuce alone - so to speak)

as for lettuce being a food they shouldnt eat at all - I fed mine lettuce 1-2 times a week for years and never had issues - I personally havent ever heard of any issues with Ice berg lettuce -what is the Web address where you saw this - Im now curious, if it had a special issue or a specific type of letuce to be concidered in it. When in doubt always ask your local vet as they will know which plants in your area are bad to feed your type of pet.

I have seen dogs eat chocolate with no ill effects - but chocolate is poisonois to dogs and can kill them if enough is eaten.
Mushrooms - even the ones we eat ourselves - should never be fed to any pet except under directions of a vet or breeder of a specific type of animal that eats such things.

[Nyx the Beautiful]

HI smile i love this thread smile this question is out of curiosity, not urgency. I had a fish tht died recently, (his name was pudge biggrin ) and out of no where, he was on his side, at the bottom of the tank, bent over (he kinda looked like he was a rainbow... like one of his sides had a muscle cramp. I dont know how to explain it) and he was twitching, trying to swim to the top of the tank, but after a few times, he would just sink back down. It lasted for about maybe two or three days, then he eventually died, and i was just wondering if you knew wat happened to him lol. i dont want my other fish to have the same fate, so any info would help.

Also, the tank was clean, and i am pretty sure i wasnt over feeding the fish ... although, he was a fish i won at the fair

[kiid deviil 666]

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. This is extended discussion, not chatterbox!

[WebOne]

Please Keep in Mind -- Xana44 runs this thread and unless the post is made by her - then you can not be sure if it was made by a vetrinarian or not.

I personally have had many different animals that I have cared for and I have a store full of vetrinary knowledge that I have collected through the years due to this.

I am a vet but not a Licensed vetrinarian hehehe - I know that sounds oxymoronic but it is true.
Im a vetrin of the AirForce and I have vetrinarian friends which I know sounds somewhat amuzing too hehehe
So I can ussually ask questions freely, when I need to.

I am hoping that Xana will not mind me responding to some of these as I am sure that people on here may need faster response then Xana can provide and sometimes Xana may need more info then you have already given, so a question that I ask may be one that she would need to ask anyway.

I will however skip over ones that I do not have a response to, If I skipped your question then it is either - I do not know or I couldnt get a hold of my vetrinarian friends to ask smile
I simply felt it was important to post this information, so that you are informed about this new person who just happenens to be Me, how special biggrin

[Tokei Ro-h-zu]

I would like to know how many years in college does it take to become a vet?