Nauset Kennels

The holiday season is here and while we need to keep our pets safe all year, the winter holidays pose some interesting issues. If anything, we can all use a reminder!

1. Restrain yourself from “treating” your pet to holiday goodies. Instead, show your dog how much you love him by taking him on an extra long walk. Give your cat some extra attention and loving instead of human food treats. Not only is human food too rich for our pets, but so many of us go overboard with our own treats at the holidays, it is easy to lose track of just how many treats your pet is getting.

2. Mistletoe, holly, Christmas cactus, and Christmas trees can be poisonous to pets. When you look at the list of poisonous plants you might think it is a bit overwhelming, since so many of our favorite plants are on it! However, Christmas greens and the others I have listed above, while common at the holidays, are easy to control. Either don’t bring them into the house altogether, or carefully select a location where your pet can’t access it. For a detailed list of poisonous plants, complete with pictures, follow this link and under “Featured Highlights,” click on the “Have a Poison Free Holiday,” which will take you to the Poison Control Center page for the ASPCA. (Due to linking policies, I can’t provide the direct link to the pages I am referencing - sorry!).

3. Remember that some wrapped packages contain food. Sounds simple, but Kirsten and I will never forget one Christmas where, unbeknownst to us, quite a few of our package contained chocolate and other wonderful goodies. No, we truly didn’t know. (While I would like to think I can smell chocolate a mile away, I am not that skilled). We came home to two very full, very naughty, and very lucky dogs, who had spent the evening gleefully unwrapping our food presents and devouring them!

You could go to a lot of trouble trying to sniff out the food presents. You could put a baby gate around the tree to keep the presents out of reach. We’ve found that the easiest thing to do is to just crate the dogs when you leave. And to those of you who have those goody-two-shoe dogs that would never even think of grabbing a present or doing any counter-surfing, I am truly jealous! Luckily, Pecan and Scout are too short to surf, but if they could, they would! I’m sure they will be sniffing the presents under the tree!

4. Avoid the temptation to dress your dog in those adorable costumes for longer than a little while and do not leave them unattended with those costumes on. Bells, elastic materials, and pom-poms, can all easily come off and be ingested. Elastic can dig in and irritate (Do you remember any costumes throughout your life where the elastic dug in and would itch and hurt??? Think of your poor pet!).

5. Make good decisions regarding company. If your pet isn’t great with people around or if your company doesn’t love pets, try to make arrangements accommodating them. Pets can easily get stressed when new people are around or even if there are just too many people. As much as we love our pets, we crate them or bring them to the kennel when we have company. We know they are safe and not eating things they shouldn’t be and we know that they won’t be underfoot causing our guests to trip over them.

(Note: just because your guests have their own animals, does not mean they will love yours. I once sat through a very uncomfortable gathering with a lovely golden retriever who was just too much for our group that particular night. The hostess kept saying things like, “He doesn’t usually act like this.” Even though most of us have our own dogs, the dog just didn’t need to be there.)

6. Be very cautious with all candles at all times of the year. Wagging tails can easily knock over candles on low tables. Curious noses and whiskers can get burned. An inquisitive or playful animal can accidentally knock over a candle, which, if unattended, will cause a fire. I once forgot and left a candle burning in another room and only realized it when Puck, my cat, came flying into the room and I noticed that her fur had been singed. Scary to think that she could have really been hurt!

7. Be wary of placing any fragile or glass ornaments on lower limbs of your tree. Dogs and cats can easily knock them off. Our cats have always been fascinated by the tree and love batting at ornaments, often sending them flying off the tree and across the room. One of our odd dogs actually practices a dog form of tai-chi and circles the tree slowly over and over. Ornaments usually don’t survive that too well! While we’ve never actually had our entire tree tip over, we have lost ornaments and lights to our pets. The play pen or baby gate encircling the tree is actually a really good idea now that I think about it!

8. Avoid giving puppies for Christmas. Who really wants to house-train a dog in the winter? Who wants to try starting a walking program with your dog in the winter? Puppies need exercise. It’s hard enough getting my own exercise in the winter, much less making sure my dogs are fully exercised. Think long and hard about the timing of your puppy. And even though we don’t like to think this way, most Christmas presents lose their luster after the holiday decorations come down. Unless you bought a puppy for yourself under the guise of a present for the kids, you will be the main caretaker. It may take a few weeks, but you will be either feeding and walking the dog or constantly harping on your children to do so. How much nagging do you want to do?

9. At all times of the year, know what to do in case of an emergency and know some basic health signs to look for. Have the poison control number on hand: 800-213-6680. Go to their website to learn more: http://www.petpoisonhelpline.com/

I realize that this is not a comprehensive list so I encourage you to send me your thoughts. What have I missed? What are some of your holiday stories? Have you actually used the baby gate or had to call the poison control center for your pet?

In the meantime, have a wonderful holiday season. And instead of splurging on presents for your pet, I urge you to consider a donation of pet supplies to your local food pantry. You know how important your pet is to you. Help others feed theirs. This has been a tough year for many people and I’m sure their pets have helped them cope. Happy Holidays!

So you think you’re a responsible dog owner? Take this quick quiz to find out.

1. Is your dog up to date on all yearly vaccines?

2. Do you administer heartworm preventative?

3. Do you regularly brush your dog’s (or cat) teeth?

4. Is your dog within healthy weight guidelines?

5. Does your dog know basic training commands?

6. Is your dog wearing a collar with

current owner information?

7. Is your dog microchipped?

If you answered yes to all of the above, then kudos to you! You are responsible to your pet’s needs.

Many of us would probably answer yes to some of the questions above, fully knowing that we should be answering yes to all of them. Quite honestly, our dogs teeth haven’t been brushed since, well, since ever! We absolutely know that we should be doing this, but we don’t. And I can’t even really tell you why we don’t!

We are working hard coordinating a day that will help us all be better dog owners, even those of you already ahead of the game. On September 26 from 12-4 we are hosting the AKC Responsible Dog Ownership Day. Seminars, pet first-aid and CPR, raffles, and other fun things are planned to promote responsible dog ownership.

I have to admit that I originally said no to hosting this event. It was the last week in August and we were in the end of summer scramble with kids out of camp, but not in school. The kennel was still rocking and rolling and we were trying to put together a float for the Windmill Weekend parade. I didn’t feel confident that we could pull everyone together so quickly. However, Joanne correctly adjusted my opinion saying, “How can we not host this day?”

You see, we are also the “pound” for the wandering dogs in our area. And, by the very nature of our business, we see responsible and irresponsible dog ownership daily in many ways (including the fact that I don’t brush our dogs’ teeth!!). Some examples that really prompted us to host this event:

This summer, one of our local animal control officers brought in a dog that had been left in a hot car. The owner, angry and feeling affronted, could not understand why his dog was removed from his car. Another town continues to bring in the nicest set of dogs on a regular basis, who routinely wander from home and get picked up by the animal control officer. While we love having them visit, it is scary thinking that they might be hit by a car or something like that. And many of our dogs who board with us are a bit pudgy and like us, will suffer in the long-term from the extra weight.

Needless to say, I could go on and on with our reasons for hosting this event. I hope you can all join us, responsible pet owner or not :)

Saturday, September 26, 2009 from 12-4 at Nauset Kennels, 2685 Nauset Road in Eastham. Call to pre-register for the Pet First-Aid/CPR class (offered from 11-3, for $45). Bring your dogs responsibly - on leash!! See you there!

In June, I had a long conversation with a customer about the kennel and our surprising lack of fleas. She was trying to figure out where the fleas on her dog came from, and of course, the kennel is the most obvious choice. During our conversation, I could tell that she didn’t believe me. Who would? At the time, I really was telling her the truth.

However, it’s now August and our some of our four-legged customers are infested! The fleas are back on Cape with a vengeance. Before you go running the other way screaming, “I’m never going back there!” sit tight for a moment and keep reading.

For quite a long time, we were all given a reprieve from the fleas. In fact, we even stopped carrying flea products (no one was buying them) and the numbers of flea baths dropped significantly. Bedbugs are back, so why not fleas? And have you ever seen so many flies? Not being a scientist, I can’t tell you why they have all reappeared in such numbers. Common sense and knowledge of fleas suggests that the humidity (remember how it rained all of June?) and the warm weather have worked together to produce the flea population we have now.

The reprieve is over and we need to start being vigilant again.

While the old method of flea-bombing and using lots of chemicals worked, they filled our houses, our bodies and our pets full of those same chemicals. Most basic flea collars can also be included in that old-fashioned category (Note: there are flea collars specifically prescribed by vets that are generally considered safe for pets and people). We even stopped chemical dips because we felt that the chemicals were just too scary for both the bather and the pet.

Remember that all outdoor places can harbor fleas, including the beach, the park, the dog park, your own yard. And yes, fleas can even be found at a kennel, day care facility, or vet office. Check your dog regularly for fleas or flea dirt, even if he is on flea preventative medication. If you bathe your dog at home, let the shampoo soak for five-ten minutes. Sometimes this will cause the fleas to come to the surface and you can see them at that point. Run a flea comb through his fur looking for flea dirt. Rinse the comb in a mixture of detergent and oil to kill the fleas. After a long soak, rinse the dog well, again checking the water for flea dirt, often a different consistency than regular dirt, almost tiny granules and will turn the water a rust color. Dry the dog using a white or light colored towel if you still aren’t sure about the flea dirt.

So what do you do if you find fleas or flea dirt? First of all, assume that all pets in your house have fleas. Fleas are superb are reproducing and at evading our attempts to kill them because of their life cycle. Even though you can’t find any live fleas at a certain time, this doesn’t mean that the eggs and the larvae aren’t waiting to hatch, anywhere from two weeks to a few months. If your dog is on a flea preventative, wait 24-48 hours after his bath and reapply the product. Investigate possible places of infestation and treat those areas. Wash dog bedding frequently in hot water. Vacuum regularly, making sure to throw away the vacuum bag in a sealed bag. It is best not to let the vacuum bag sit - the fleas will find their way back to a host for their blood meal. Continue to treat and prevent adult fleas from laying eggs. Remember to include any carpeted, cloth areas pets hang out, including your car and kids’ car seats.

The website, The Dollar Stretcher, provides some great tips for flea prevention that are chemical free and are more old-fashioned than the chemicals we used to use. Read about using borax and diatomaceous earth as a carpet powder and outdoor preventative at http://www.stretcher.com/stories/01/010305a.cfm.

Another site, http://pet-diseases.suite101.com/article.cfm/flea_prevention_and_flea_control_for_pets, offers a veterinarian perspective. Also written by the same vet as the previous link, this article provides a concise, quick read on flea control mistakes that we all make: http://www.examiner.com/x-7468-Pet-Health-Examiner~y2009m8d24-Pet-health-101-Most-common-flea-control-mistakes. Finally, to present a balance of information, the University of Kentucky offers some tips that do involve pesticides: http://www.ca.uky.edu/entomology/entfacts/ef628.asp.

And if you really want to make it easy on yourself, call Pure Heat, a locally run pest control company that uses heat instead of chemicals: http://www.capebusiness.net/article/1559.141?PHPSESSID=2757028ed20f4275772273b4760ad8cb. Tell them we sent you - http://pureheat.com.

Don’t let the fleas get you down. Talk to your vet, your local kennel or day care, or your pet store and be ready to do battle. Your pets will appreciate your efforts.

It was brought to my attention that I did not mention heat in my blog about the beach. I was asked to put a small paragraph about heat. But heat has so many implications for dogs that I thought, “Heat needs its own entry!”

So let’s start with heat and the beach. A hot day at the beach feels great for you, but remember your dog is wearing a fur coat and doesn’t sweat. While a dog’s coat does help insulate them from warm and cold weather, 70 and 80 degree temperatures are more than most dogs can stand. Dogs cool themselves by panting, so if you notice your dog panting heavily at the beach chances are he’s too hot. This then relates back to the beach blog posted below - hot dogs are thirsty dogs and will drink salt water if it’s the only thing available. So keep lots of water on hand and keep a sharp eye out for signs that your dog has had enough heat for the day.

Remember too that the breed of a dog may greatly affect how they handle heat. I have a pug and he overheats quickly and freezes just as fast. Basically he’d be happy at a steady 65 degrees year round. (But then wouldn’t we all!)

The temperature isn’t the only heat threat at the beach. Don’t forget how hot the sand gets. Your dog doesn’t get to wear flip flops and his feet are just as prone to being burned walking through the hot sand as yours are. And his feet aren’t the only thing at risk of getting burnt. Pink-skinned dogs are at greater risk of sunburn. Use a children’s sunblock on sensitive areas such as ears, noses and bellies. Some companies even make sun block especially for dogs.

Ok, so moving on to the car. It cannot be said loud enough or clear enough that a dog does not belong left in a car in the summer no matter how short a period of time. I feel very strongly about this subject as someone I know lost a dog that I loved very much (even though he was not mine) to heat stroke from being left in a car. A car reaches temperatures well over 100 degrees in a matter of minutes. Having the windows cracked open for them is just not enough. Even with the windows all the way down the car still gets hot and dogs are subject to heat stroke. A death from heat stroke is a horrible and painful way to die. Save car rides for cool days.

With that said I have listed some warning signs of heat stroke below. If you suspect your dog has heat stroke seek immediate medical attention as your vet can help lower his temperature with fluids and compresses.

Signs of Heat Stroke:
Rapid panting
Bright red tongue
Red (bright) or pale gums
Thick, sticky saliva
Depression
Weakness
Dizziness
Vomiting - sometimes with blood
Diarrhea
Shock

Go to http://www.healthypets.com/heatstroke.html for more details about heat stroke in dogs.

Keep it cool!

Jo

The last few days have been true Cape Cod summer days - humid and hot! Great days for the beach. Two of our day care families came in today talking about the consequences their dogs suffered after a trip to the beach - a horrible night of vomiting and diarrhea from drinking ocean water. It reminded me that the beach, while a fun place for dogs, does have a few hazards. Here are my top 3 things to keep in mind when bringing your dog to the beach:

1. Drinking salt water. Salt water dehydrates the body and can tax the internal organs. Within 24 hours vomiting and/or diarrhea can often occur. Bring your own source of fresh water and a portable bowl. Offer clean water to your pup often.

2. Foreign objects. Dogs go beach combing too, only they eat what they find or roll in it. Keep a diligent eye on what your dog is snuffling through. Seaweed and sponges can cause upset tummies. Shells, driftwood and other debris can lodge in their intestinal tract causing blockages. As for rolling, dead things on the beach can carry disease and parasites.

3. Sharp objects. Shells, old fish hooks, and broken glass are all hazards for dogs’ pads. Make sure to check paws over when you leave the beach. Don’t forget to look in between the pads.

The beach is a fun place for your dog to run, play and swim. Keeping him or her safe makes for fun for all!

Happy Beaching!

Jo