Hit the road

I hope everyone enjoyed their first official weekend of the summer season. It is time for backyard cookouts, long evenings enjoying the warm weather and travel. Some of you may be planning on car trips, whether for the day or a week. Others may be traveling by plane. And at least some of you may be planning on bringing your pets with you. There are few things that you should consider before traveling with your pets.

If you are traveling by plane you will need to have your pet checked by a veterinarian before travel to obtain a health certificate. The health certificate is the airlines’ way to be sure that whatever animal they are transporting is healthy enough to travel at high altitude. You will also want to check with whichever airline you are using to be sure that you have any necessary paperwork, paid any additional fees and understand what type of carrier is required for transport.

In general we don’t recommend sedating animals for travel, especially for air travel. Most animals will experience stress and anxiety during travel. They may also become air sick and will need to vomit. If they are sedated their bodies natural responses to stress and sickness may be inhibited and they may be unable to respond appropriately. If you feel very strongly that your pet needs to be sedated please talk to your vet first. They can recommend options based on their knowledge of your pets state of health as well as something appropriate for the type of travel you are undertaking.

If your pet is prone to motion sickness talk to your veterinarian before you travel. There are several options for helping your pet with motion sickness. If you pet becomes very anxious when traveling in the car you should start with short trips, lots of praise and treats. For some more tips for making your pet comfortable in the car check out http://www.VeterinaryPartner.com/Content.plx?P=A&S=0&C=0&A=1422

Depending on where you are traveling, you may need to take some preventative steps to prevent certain types of infections. Tick control is important to prevent diseases such as Lyme and ehrlichia. Tick control is best done by applying a monthly topical product such as Frontline, Revolution or Advantix. Talk to your vet for recommendations on what product best suits your pets individual risk factors.

In most parts of the United States your animal should also be on a heartworm preventative. Heartworm is an internal parasite transmitted by mosquito bite. It lives in the heart and can be fatal. If you are traveling to heartworm endemic areas, talk to your veterinarian before travel to start your pet on a heartworm preventative. For more infomation about tick prevention and heartworm disease check out the American Heartworm Society at www.heartwormsociety.org.

As always, be sure to travel safely with your pet. Be sure they are restrained properly in your car. Never leave your pet in the car on a warm sunny day, even if the outside temperature is moderate. Take regular breaks to allow your pet to use the bathroom and make sure they get regular access to clean water. Never let your pet out of the car without a leash. In an unfamiliar place, even well trained and attentive dogs may become scared, disoriented and run away. Microchipping your dog is another good way to identify them. While microchips do not allow you to track your dog. They are a permanent form of identification that can be found by veterinary clinics, animal shelters and most animal control organizations. Registering the chip is vital to its success. If your pet is already microchipped but you aren’t sure if it is registered or with whom you can search for it on the American Animal Hospital’s microchip lookup tool at www.petmicrochiplookup.org. This will tell which company has the chip enrolled. You will then need to contact that company to be sure the registration information is accurate.

As always, have fun with your pets. It is a wonderful time of year to make some memories and have a great time.

I see sun!

Hooray, the sun is out! At least for those in Western Washington I hope you are able to get out and enjoy some of our beautiful weather. And hopefully, if you have dogs you are enjoying some of that sunshine with them. Most of our dogs do not get enough exercise (like many of their owners, I suspect). Now is a great time to start taking them for walks, throwing the ball or frisbee, or visiting your local dog park. Just be sure everyone is up-to-date with their vaccines.

There are few precautions that should be taken as the temperature heats up. Make sure you provide access to plenty of water. Dogs are only able to "sweat" through their foot pads and by panting. Most of their heat loss is accomplished via that

big happy open mouthed "grin" and heavy panting. But panting results in a large amount of moisture loss as well so your dog will need a chance to drink clean water regularly.

Don't assume that because your dog likes to lay in the sun they should be allowed to do that for as long as they like. Dogs can become overheated and

even suffer from heat stroke or heat shock when their temperature rises. And not all dogs are bright enough to move into the shade when they get hot! Short nosed (brachycephalic) breeds such as pugs and bulldogs, obese dogs, dogs with heart disease, and older animals are at increased risk for heat stroke and should havelimited time outside in hot conditions. Watch your dogcarefully for difficult breathing or very high breathing rate, vomiting, diarrhea or anything else that makes you concerned. Animals suspected of having heat stroke should see a veterinarian immediately.

Of course, never ever leave your pet (or child!) in a car unsupervised in sunny weather. And it doesn't have to be "hot" for the temperature of your car to rise dangerously high. Even if the outside temperature isn't particularly high and you crack the windows, the temperature will rise fast. On average about 3 degrees for every minute your car sits in the sun, even if the outside temperature is only 72 degrees. The majority of the temperature increase (about 80%) occurs in the first 15-30 minutes to don't think you can be fast enough either according to the Journal of the American Academy of Pediatrics. (PEDIATRICS Vol. 116 No. 1 July 1, 2005

pp. e109 -e112)

One other thing to think about with lightly colored dogs or those with lightly colored noses. Just like in people, fair skin is prone to sunburn. It is a good idea to apply sunscreen to pink noses and ear tips. To keep your dog from licking it off, immediately follow the application with a few good treats. Peanut butter works great for this since it keeps them busy for several minutes while the sunscreen soaks in.

Want some more summer safety tips? Check out the American Kennel Club website's summer safety information at http://www.akc.org/public_education/summer_safety.cfm.

Enjoy the sunshine!

Flea Season Starts Now!

Spring is here and so is flea season in the Pacific Northwest. I talk to a lot of pet owners who truly believe that their pet does not and never has had fleas. But fleas, and ticks, can be a problem in Western Washington. And it is a problem that should not be ignored.

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Fleas are tiny insects that live on our dogs and cats and suck blood for their meals. They can be difficult to identify, especially on a long haired pet. Grooming by our pets may remove low numbers of fleas before they are even seen. Do not assume that means they are not there. We must be careful not to dismiss fleas just because we don’t always see them.

Fleas can KILL!

In small or debilitated animals, fleas can cause enough blood loss to several debilitate or kill an animal. They can also transmit Feline Infectious Anemia, which is a blood parasite transmitted by flea bites. Flea bites can also transmit Cat Scratch Fever to your pet which will not cause your pet to become ill but can make you very sick if you were to have receive a bite from your pet.

Most commonly we diagnose fleas because of Flea Allergy Dermatitis. This allergy to flea bites results in a red inflamed skin that becomes secondarily infected with bacteria and yeast. Animals suffering from this condition are extremely itchy and uncomfortable. They will often loose hair, especially from the back half of their body and may develop open sores.

We also see a lot of tapeworm infestations. Tapeworms are spread through the ingestion of an infected flea. We see the results of this when cats or dogs poop out small, white sesame seed shaped worms. This preventable with good flea control.

Here is the good news. Fleas are preventable, if you stay on a regular maintenance schedule. There are multiple products available either from your veterinarian or over the counter to help with this. It is best to choose a product after discussion with your veterinarian about the risk factors for fleas, ticks and other internal parasites that may be

treated by various products.

A note about flea products. There are some over the counter flea products available at pet stores that can be toxic when used improperly. Always read the instructions. Never put a dog product on a cat. Never buy a larger dose hoping to split it into multiple doses for smaller animals. Properly used, flea medications are safe. But when improperly used flea product toxicities can lead to tremors, seizures, paralysis and death in extreme cases. If you have any questions contact your veterinarian before applying a product.

Think your indoor cat can’t have fleas? Surprise, fleas love the well controlled environment of our homes. They can live in our carpets, cracks in our hardwood floors or corners. They can be tracked in by other animals or even us before transferring to our pets or laying their eggs.

If you would like more information about fleas, flea life cycles and the products available to treat fleas visit www.veterinarypartner.com and search for fleas. There is a lot of good information on this site written and reviewed veterinary professionals.