Pet Care Information

The most common skin problems we see locally, in our cats and dogs are:

• Fleas
• Bacterial or fungal infections
• Allergies and itches
• Skin cancers or lumps and bumps

Some Common Skin Health Concerns

Skin diseases, itches, coat condition.

What are they?

A pet’s skin may be affected by hundreds if not thousands of different diseases, some may affect only the skin or sometimes they mainly affect other parts of the body, with the skin being secondarily involved. Unfortunately, the skin only has a limited number of ways it can respond to being damaged; hair loss, rashes, sores, skin colour changes, change in the type of skin oil, itchy; are some of the symptoms that may be displayed. Usually we get a few symptoms together which may be sufficient to give some idea what type of disease may be involved; but in a lot of cases some testing may be involved in narrowing down the list of possibilities.

Itches and rashes

Rashes and itches are among the most common things owners will notice happening with their pet’s skin. Everybody can feel a little bit uncomfortable in hot weather and pets with mild skin problems may become itchy when they otherwise wouldn’t scratch. A trip to the groomers can also cause your pet to become itchy, the skin will be slightly rubbed by things like clippers or combs and this may be sufficient to make the skin irritated.

Parasites (fleas, mites, lice)

Never under estimate the ability of fleas to make a pet become itchy, in some pets may it only take a few of these little pests to make them miserable. The flea bite itself can be an irritation, if your pet is unfortunate enough to also have an allergy to the flea saliva then things can become very uncomfortable.

Even if you only see one flea on your pet, it is well worth while using a good quality Flea product to remove the fleas before they have the chance to set up residence in your home. Fleas are very hardy; their breeding cycle contains a number of stages which can’t be killed by commonly available chemical treatments, once they establish an infestation in a home they can take a very long time to eliminate.

Mites and lice are not as common as they once were, most of the newer generation flea and tick treatments can very effectively control mite infestations that were difficult to treat not that long ago, if an infection with these parasites is suspected one of these products will quickly clear it up.

Allergies

Are a common cause of itchy pets. An allergy is caused by an unusual reaction of the immune system with a commonly found item in the pets environment; it may either be floating in the air (pollens, spores), be something that contacts the skin (plants, wool) or something eaten (beef, wheat). It takes time and repeated exposure to an item for an allergy to develop and it is less common in pets under a year of age. A very itchy pet with a warm red flushed skin and no other symptoms may be showing signs of an allergy. Sometimes the allergy may only affect specific areas of the skin, only the feet or the ears may be red and itchy.

Allergies tend to be life long in pets and will flair up and settle down, depending on whether or not it has been exposed to what is causing the reaction, there are a number of drugs and treatments which can be used to control but not cure an allergy. In many cases medication will need to be used periodically over the pets life to keep it comfortable.

Hair loss

Some pets, like the Sphinx breed of cat, are naturally hairless. But the majority of pets should have a nice coat of hair; if they unexpectedly go bald it is a sign that something is not right with the pet's hair coat.

Like a lot of health issues, the problem may be with the skin itself or be part of a larger problem occurring elsewhere in the body. One of the first things to consider with hair loss is the pattern and potential cause; (where is the hair being lost from and is it falling out by itself or is the pet chewing or scratching it out) then look for other associated skin changes like sores, or damage and if the pet generally shows signs that may suggest the hair loss is associated with a hormonal or other disease.

Hair loss can be a complicated problem in some cases and may require some form of testing to get to the root of the problem.

Sores

Small sores can be due to trauma, infection or neoplasia. Any sore which is not being self damaged by the pet and doesn't heal within two to four weeks should be considered unusual and be examined by your Vet, the skin can usually heal most small sores quickly anything that persists may need a some professional advise.

Ear Problems

Most owners discover their pet has an ear problem when they see their pet shaking it's head a lot or holding the ear down on the sore side, closer examination finds a very red inner ear or a bad odour. Some pet owners think the ears may be painful, because the pet makes a groaning sound when their ears are rubbed; the groaning sound may indicate the ear is a little itch and the dog enjoys having them rubbed, a truly painful ear will make the pet wince, pull away from contact or make a yelping vocalisation.

Pets can develop one off or recurrent troubles with their ears, problems may range from itchy ears, to smelly and sometimes quite painful ears; if there is a recurrent ear problem it usually means there is something else making the ear prone to infection, that will need to be corrected to keep the infections from happening again.

A healthy ear has a small amount of wax (sebum, which helps water proof the ear canal) and some bacteria and yeast cells which are kept in balance by the normal defensive mechanisms of the ear.

Moisture/ wet ears

Hot humid weather, washing the ears when pets are bathed, or swimming all increase the moisture content in the ear which can help the bacteria and yeast penetrate the wall of the ear canal and help them reproduce more quickly. If your pet is prone to developing ear infections or irritations, it would be a good idea to make sure you keep their ears as dry as possible. Any closed in area of skin or ear is more likely to develop problems if it stays wet for too long.

Allergies

Simplistically an allergy which affects the skin or ears; is an abnormal response of the immune system that makes the pet feel very itchy and may make part of the skin appear more red, due to an increased amount of blood being sent to the area. There may also be an increased chance of infection due to self-trauma and changes in the skin as a response to the allergy.

An allergy can go on for a very long time or may be off and on again; if your pet develops repeated red itchy ears without infection, there may be something causing an allergic reaction.

Allergies may make the ears itchy to the point where the pet damages the ear by scratching and shaking, the allergy may also decrease the effectiveness of the ears defences.

Infections

An infection may occur when something happens that upsets the environment in the ear.

The infection itself may appear as a increased redness, increased amount of wax or even a canal coated with purulent discharge and a very sore ear.

Most ear infections respond well to medical treatment, but a small number will have significant physical changes which prevent the medication from working effectively. These will have infections that do not go away or only respond for a short time before the symptoms re-occur. Unfortunately, the only effective treatment for these extreme cases may be surgical correction of the ear structure. 

Eye problems

Eye problems are easily seen by an owner commonly a pet’s eye may appear red, swollen, closed, weepy or have a purulent discharge.

In general-

- If there is a large amount of yellow discharge from the eye, there may be bacterial infection

- If the whites (conjunctiva) of the eye appear reddened, there may be inflammation

- If the eye is kept closed, there may be pain

All eye problems should be considered as potentially serious and be examined by a vet, many things if treated early may not develop into more damaging conditions. There are many conditions which can cause the loss of an eye, so referral to an eye specialist will be recommended.

Vomiting / diarrhoea

Vomiting and diarrhoea are symptoms that may occur when something is going wrong in the body; they are a symptom that happens when your pet is sick and not a disease themselves; there are a large number of diseases that can cause either vomiting or diarrhoea or both at the same time. 

Almost all pets will occasionally have soft motions for a day or two, any change in diet or minor irritation can cause this change in the consistence of the stool material. Diarrhoea is a more significant change, with soft or watery motions, usually an increased frequency and sometimes discomfort, small amounts of blood or mucus may also be present in the stool. 

Diarrhoea can be associated with problems in the gastrointestinal tract itself or be caused by any number of diseases affecting other organs in the body as well as the bowel.

Most cases of acute (sudden onset, short term) diarrhoea can be treated symptomatically, without needing to find the exact cause of the diarrhoea, sometimes resting the bowel by not feeding the pet for 24 hours will help settle the problem down. Oral medication may be used to clear up protozoa infections, to speed up recovery or provide some relief from discomfort, depending on the pets needs. Along with many other causes of diarrhoea some common ones would include, 

- viral infections

- food ingredients, food toxins, or other non-food material the pet has eaten

- internal parasites or other bowel infections

Chronic diarrhoea (Long term, more than three weeks), can be a more difficult problem to clear up and usually requires a full work-up to find out what is causing the problem. A lot of cases will require, food trials, drug trials or more or less extensive testing to find and eliminate the cause.       

Vomiting is the forceful ejection of food from the stomach and is usually associated with nausea, a pet will be appear to be ill along with the vomiting. Regurgitation also involves food being thrown up from the stomach but there is no nausea; with regurgitation a pet may try to eat what has been thrown up because it isn't feeling ill.  

Many illnesses and conditions may result in vomiting and can be due to problems in the upper part of the gut, stomach, small intestine or other body organs or systems.

-Some forms of vomiting may even be a normal part of a dog or cats life, many will bring on vomiting by eating grass, or a greedy puppy may overeat  or suffer motion sickness.

-Occasionally vomiting can be due to eating the wrong thing, indigestible food items , food poisoning, irritants, poisons; can all result in vomiting with a variable degree of seriousness.  Then there are physical changes that can happen in the bowel itself, cancerous growths causing obstructions, torsion of the bowel, or intussusceptions, most of these are very serious and can be fatal if not treated.

-Infections with virus, parasites or bacteria.

- Diseases of many other organs such as the kidneys, liver and pancreas will also make pets generally ill and result in vomiting.

 

When treating vomiting or diarrhoea, the initial step is to determine if the symptoms are a sign of a serious problem or a mild condition that will recover with symptomatic treatment, it is always important for the owner to monitor the pet closely at home for any signs of deterioration, if symptomatic treatment is given, as a patient which initially has mild symptoms may have a more serious hidden condition. 

Treatment of serious conditions can be costly and usually involve testing and hospitalisation.

 

Coughs

What are they?

A cough is the rapid expulsion of air from the lungs, typically in response to some form of irritation of the airways. Usually to expel liquid, mucus or foreign material from the upper airways; sometimes the material being expelled is formed deeper in the airways and produces a cough when it moves towards the upper airways.

Most coughs associated with the inhalation of material will be a short term explosive type of cough designed to remove the solids or liquids from the tract. Coughing caused by material produced by the body (usually liquid) can be longer termed or come and go over a longer period of time.

What symptoms do pets show?

As you would expect the majority of coughing in pets, is a normal response to minor irritations of the airways and not a serious disease process. A cough becomes more of a worry when it happens frequently or over a prolonged period of time. This may indicate there is something abnormal producing an ongoing supply of either fluid or mucus in the upper airways or the presence of solid material or an unusual anatomical structure.

Frequent reasons for coughing

The most frequent causes of coughing we see, associated with excessive amounts of liquid in the upper airways tend to be related to either allergies, infections (viral, bacterial) and heart conditions.

Allergies

Allergies can cause coughing by causing inflammation and excess fluid or mucus in the nasal cavity, trachea or bronchi. Fluid from the nose may drip down the back of the nose and cause a cough and fluid from the lower airways move upwards where they are expelled.

 

Infections

Many coughs of unknown cause are lumped together under the catchall name “Kennel Cough”, (tracheitis or tracheobronchitis). These coughs may be produced by either a virus or bacteria and as they are infectious, more than one dog may develop symptoms around the same time. These infections are quite contagious and can be spread from dog to dog by contact with droplets in the air or on objects like water bowls or people’s hands. It can spread more easily in places where large numbers of dogs are in close proximity like dog kennels or dog parks. So, although it can spread more easily in kennels it can be caught almost anywhere dogs come into contact with each other. As this is the most common transmissible disease we see in dogs, we recommend annual vaccination even if your dog isn’t going to visit the kennels during the year.

Heart conditions

Put simply, the heart is the pump that pushes blood around the body using the arteries and veins, to deliver oxygen and food to the tissues of the body and carry away the waste products. A lot of things may go wrong with the system during a pet’s life, but the body has many wonderful ways it can repair or compensate for any small failures that may occur. Unfortunately, at some point the heart will not be able to do its job properly and will start to fail, at this time the pet will begin to show symptoms. Early signs may be tiredness or a loss of interest in exercising, these are very general signs and may also occur in an aging pet without heart problems.

A cough will usually develop when the heart has enlarged and can no longer regulate the blood pressure in the lungs, when there is a higher than normal blood pressure in the lungs fluid can move from the blood vessels into the small air spaces in the lungs and from there to the larger airways where it can result in a cough.

In small dogs the heart problem usually begins as faulty heart valve (left mitral valve) and has an associated heart murmur which can be heard with a stethoscope more rarely a thrill (vibration) can be felt on the chest wall over the heart. In most pets a heart murmur may be present for many years before symptoms suddenly become noticeable, with distress and laboured breathing due to a build-up of fluid in the lungs.

Cavalier King Charles Spaniels are one breed which may develop problems sooner and more seriously than other small breeds.    

How are they treated?

 We can’t stop the heart problem from getting worse and we can’t repair the existing damage; there are good drugs available which will help the heart work more efficiently and remove fluid from the lungs. So, while we can’t cure the disease we can make pets more comfortable and give them a longer more active life. 

 

Old age, some common associated changes

While old age isn’t a disease, there are a few minor problems that may arise in older pets who are otherwise quite healthy. Wear and tear can affect joints leading to arthritis, muscles can weaken, balance might not be what it used to be. Hearing and sight may weaken, and mental function and house training may suffer.

How can you help your aging pet?

Arthritis

Very few older pets will be free of arthritis in old age, some may show obvious signs of discomfort and appear stiff or find it difficult to rise after resting for a while. Others will have arthritis but show no obvious outward signs. If you suspect your old pet has arthritis there are a few common medications you can use to help them be more comfortable, book an appointment to discuss treatment options. In very extreme discomfort some pain relief medication may be prescribed, these are not ideal treatments for long term usage.  

Loss of Weight

Can be a regular occurrence in old cats, a significant weight loss due to a loss in muscle protein rather than fat with normal appetite and food intake may be more common in some cats.

There is a group of diseases in old cats which can cause weight loss despite a good appetite, thyroid, Diabetes Meletus, kidney problems. Blood profiles are the easiest way to tell if your cat has one of these problems. More conditions like heart problems, cancer, liver problems may require more extensive testing including ultrasounds, biopsies and histopathology.

Deafness, Blindness

Pretty much all pets will develop some loss of hearing or vision as they age. Profoundly deaf pets do require extra care and may benefit from being confined to the house or yard, if taken for walks kept on a leash. We have heard numerous sad stories of deaf pets being run over by their owner’s car on their driveway either because the pet was asleep and didn’t hear the car or wasn’t quite aware of where the car was.

Even totally blind pets can have a relatively normal life with a little help from their carer. Around the home a pet can remember where all the furniture and walls are, using their other senses they can navigate about with little difficulty. A new environment or moving furniture can present more of a challenge, but most pets will adapt. There is more of a problem, if a pet becomes senile as well as blind; this type of pet represents a heavy challenge for most people, as they require a great deal of time and commitment to nurse adequately. 

 

List of flea, tick and worm products

ADVANTAGE:

• Used from 1 day of birth.
• Cats & Dogs Fleas Only. Apply once a month.

REVOLUTION:

• Used from 6 Weeks of age.
• Cats - Treats Fleas, Heartworm & Intestinal Worms. Does NOT treat Tapeworm. Apply Once a Month.
• Dogs - Treats Fleas & Heartworm. Does NOT treat Intestinal Worms. Apply Once a Month.

ADVOCATE:

• Used from 8 Weeks of age.
• Cats - Fleas, Heartworm & Intestinal Worms. Does NOT do Tapeworm. Once a month.
• Dogs - Fleas, Heartworm & Intestinal worms. Once a Month.

COMFORTIS PLUS:

• Used from 8 Weeks of age. Dogs ONLY.
• Treats Fleas, Heartworm & Intestinal Worms. Use once a Month.

COMFORTIS:

• Used From 14 Weeks of age.
• Treats Dogs & Cats.
• Fleas Only. Apply once a Month.

ACTIVYL:

• Used From 8 Weeks of age.
• Treats Dogs & Cats.
• Fleas only. Apply once a Month

NEXGARD:

• From 8 weeks of Age.
• Treats Dogs ONLY.
• Treats Fleas & Ticks. Use Monthly.

BRAVECTO:

• From 8 Weeks and Over. Do not use on dogs under 2kg.
• Dogs ONLY.
• Treats Fleas for 3 months & Paralysis Ticks for 4 months.

FRONTLINE:

• From 8 Weeks.
• Cats- Treats Fleas only. Apply once a month.
• Dogs- Treats Fleas & Ticks. Apply once a month.

KILTIX COLLAR:

• Used from 12 weeks of age.
• Dogs ONLY.
• Treats Paralysis Ticks for 6 weeks. Treats Brown bush ticks & fleas for 5 months.

PREVENTIC COLLAR:

• Used from 12 weeks of age.
• Dogs ONLY.
• Treats Paralysis Ticks for 2 months.