Animal Corner - Routine health care for dogs - 27 May
Preventive health on a daily basis - the basics
- Important to act preventatively, keeping your pet
well and in optimum condition
-
Nutrition is very important - always choose
a good quality diet
-
Exercise - daily and appropriate for the
animals breed, age and state of health
-
Grooming - helps clean and condition the
coat, remove old hair and scurf, massage the muscles and
lymphatics. Also acts to maintain circulation, is important for
mental and emotional health as well.
-
Attention and entertainment - important for
emotional and mental health (love and mental stimulation)
Teeth
It's important to make sure the teeth and gums are cleaned daily,
either by brushing or by regular chewing of rough food or bones. If
not, bacteria and plaque will build up and gum disease and tooth
decay will result. This can cause major problems in the body and
organs as bacteria is released into the blood stream effectively
poisoning the system.
Options are:
- Daily brushing with a tooth brush and special
toothpaste (poultry or beef flavoured available!)
- Chewing raw meaty bones ( beef leg bones or brisket bones
are great)
- MUST be raw (never cooked, as they tend to splinter and
cause internal problems)
- Special dental care biscuits that clean the teeth as they
crunch them are also an option
- Important to reduce plaque build-up and promote gum
health
Claws
- Only trim if needed i.e. nails are becoming long
and are touching the ground when standing in a relaxed manner. (The
normal position is just off the ground, parallel to the ground
surface)
- Use correct tool, trim below the quick, parallel to the
ground
- Walking on roads or rough surfaces will help keep the claws
at a normal length
Ears
- Leave alone if all normal ! (i.e. no smell or discharges or
shaking of the head)
- May need to pluck excess hair from inside the canals to
improve drainage
- If swimming a lot, or prone to ear infections, get your vet
to show you the correct way to clean the ear canals
- Use a special ear cleaner, get to bottom of the canal with a
clean cotton ball
Grooming
- Long haired dogs need daily brushing to remove dead
fur and hair to prevent matting
- Use combs or brushes appropriate for your pets type of
coat
- Can combine with massage to help bond with and relax your
pet
- Only wash the coat if is smelly or there is a skin condition
(using a medicated shampoo).
- It's not necessary to wash every week unless they live in a
very polluted environment. (Wash pollutants off the coat to reduce
absorption into the body). This is a good reason to only use eco
friendly cleaners as many household cleaners are toxic and are
directly absorbed into our pets (and our) bodies.
Flea control
- Treat the environment as well as all animals in the
house
- Use a product recommended by your veterinarian and
follow instructions closely
Worming
- Every 3 months in adult dogs
- Use a combined tapeworm and roundworm tablet
Giving pills and medicines
- For pills - squeeze lips over the top teeth and
they will open their mouths and the pill can be popped at the back
of the tongue
- Liquids can be squeezed into the lip cavity on the outside
of the teeth and slowly swallowed
- Bribery is often the best method! Wrap the pill in a
piece of cheese or pate and see if they will take it. Sometimes
just feeding a piece of the bribery food with out the pill then
give the piece with the pill in it works well.
