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Help Your Pets Grow Old Gracefully with Aging Pet Care

Just because your dog or cat is getting older and starting to slow down does not mean that they should also lose their playful spirit, experience a diminished quality of life, become sick, or suffer from chronic pain.

Help Your Pets Grow Old Gracefully with Aging Pet Care

Just because your dog or cat is getting older and starting to slow down does not mean that they should also lose their playful spirit, experience a diminished quality of life, become sick, or suffer from chronic pain. Throughout a pet’s entire life, healthcare and dietary needs change. Just like puppies, kittens, and adult pets, senior dogs and cats thrive with veterinary care, lifestyle adjustments, and nutrition customized to meet their changing needs.
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Specialized Care for Aging Pets

More Frequent Checkups and Health Screenings

Senior pets are at risk of developing age-related diseases. Plus, chronic conditions like arthritis, diabetes, kidney disease, and cancer can progress rapidly. We can most successfully, easily, and affordably treat and manage age-related diseases with early diagnosis and prompt treatment. Senior pets should have biannual veterinary checkups for preventative care, physical examination, and diagnostic health screening.

Dietary Adjustments

Aging pets benefit greatly from diets designed to meet their unique nutritional needs. Switch senior pets to an appropriate pet food formulation and consider adding nutritional supplements to help your pet maintain a healthy coat, weight, and joints.

Grooming

Regular grooming will keep your pet’s coat and skin healthy and their nails remain trimmed to encourage healthy posture. In addition, grooming is a great way to ensure the early detection and diagnosis of new lumps, bumps, or unusual growths as they develop.

Dental Care

Without proper dental care, dogs and cats are at risk of tooth decay, infections, mouth pain, and periodontal disease (and all its risks like organ damage and death). Due to the need for general anesthesia, some senior pets are not candidates for professional dental cleanings. However, you can still promote dental health at home with dental-friendly treats, chew toys, and regular brushing.

Accessibility

Like aging people, older pets often experience mobility limitations. Try to accommodate your aging pet by making adjustments around your home. Consider elevating your pet’s food and water bowls, providing stairs up to the bed or sofa, and placing non-slip rugs over any slippery flooring.

Aging Pet Care in Wisconsin

From puppy and kittenhood through their golden years, our veterinarians at Animal Wellness Center’s five Wisconsin locations can help you navigate your pet’s ever-changing wellness needs. We’ll help you determine when your pet should be considered a senior pet (at around seven years of age) and guide you through their ongoing care. From providing thorough health screenings and continuing preventative treatments to managing chronic pain and systemic medical conditions, we’ll be with you and we’ll be there for your pet every step of the way.

How to Choose a Healthy Diet for Your Pet

When selecting a food for your pet, it’s very important to select a high-quality brand with high-quality ingredients and consider their individual needs.

How to Choose a Healthy Diet for Your Pet

Nutrition is the foundation of health, but selecting the right food for your pet can be tough. There hundreds of pet food brands and endless varieties to choose from. Plus, each bag of kibble, packet of treats, or can of wet food has its own marketing, making health and quality claims. With all the flashy packaging and choices, how can you tell which pet foods are actually the healthiest?
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Consider Your Pet's Individual Needs and Choose a High-Quality Pet Food

The first consideration to make when choosing your pet’s food is to select a high-quality brand with high-quality ingredients. Check the product’s nutrition label and look for whole, quality ingredients, like chicken. The FDA requires that pet foods be labeled honestly and list all ingredients.
When selecting a food for your pet, it’s also important to consider their individual needs. Of course, you should choose food that’s formulated for your pet’s species. It’s also important to consider the age of your pet and, depending on their life stage, select a food that’s been formulated for puppies, adults, or senior dogs.
If your pet has dental disease, joint problems, or weight concerns, there are also pet food formulations that contain ingredients designed to help with these health problems.
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Ignore the Grain-Free Diet Hype

While cats are true carnivores, dogs are actually omnivores, and they need a well-rounded diet that includes certain nutrients from plant-based foods. Along with the rise of humans adopting grain-free and gluten-free diets, pet food manufacturers began marketing grain-free pet food options. There’s no evidence, however, that grain-free options are actually healthier for dogs, and there’s even some evidence that these types of diets might even be harmful to dogs.
Since 2014, the FDA began receiving increased reports of dogs developing dilated cardiomyopathy (DCM). (DCM is a canine heart disease that reduces the heart’s ability to pump blood and can be fatal.) Of these dogs, the FDA found that 91% were on grain-free diets, and 93% were eating foods that replaced grains with lentils, peas, and other legumes.
The development of DCM might be related to a taurine deficiency in dogs eating a grain-free diet with legumes, but the exact reason why these types of diets/ingredients seem to be associated with an increased risk of DCM is not yet fully understood.
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Schedule a Nutrition Consultation to Set Up a Safe, Personalized Nutrition Plan for Your Pet Today

If you’re uncertain about the type of pet food to choose for your cat or dog, we welcome you to schedule a nutrition consultation with a veterinarian at Animal Wellness Center. We can recommend a prescription pet food for a pet with allergies or other dietary medical concerns. We’re also available to help you pick a high-quality brand and formulation that’s available at any pet supply store.

Does Your New Pet Need Puppy Training Classes?

As the owner of a new puppy, it’s your responsibility to set your pet up for success – around temptations, distractions, people, and other dogs – with proper training.

Does Your New Pet Need Puppy Training Classes?

Playful, energetic, and impulsive, puppies are a joy to be around. Left to their own devices, however, puppies will soon grow into overly exuberant adult dogs. Large, medium, or small-breed, an untrained dog can be a nuisance and a danger. As the owner of a new puppy, it’s your responsibility to set your pet up for success – around temptations, distractions, people, and other dogs – with proper training.

Why Puppy Training Classes Are Essential

Owners Need Training, Too!

In addition to introducing behavior expectations to dogs, obedience lessons teach humans to become dog handlers. You’ll learn how to walk your dog, command your dog, reward positive behaviors, and correct mistakes.

Develop Your Bond

Receiving undivided attention, puppies develop especially strong bonds with their owners during training classes.

Socialize Your Pup

Puppies have a small window for socialization (learning how to behave with other dogs and people). Obedience classes allow you to safely expose your puppy to a variety of people and other dogs.

Personalized Tips and Immediate Feedback

In lessons, you’ll receive personalized advice (based on your dog’s breed and unique temperament) and immediate feedback on your progress.

Choosing a Puppy Obedience Course

When it comes to dog training, there are plenty of options that run the gambit from researching and watching YouTube videos at home to registering for group classes or working one-on-one with a canine behavior specialist. What’s the best option for you?
Before deciding, think about what you want to get out of the class. For example, a group class will help to socialize your puppy with other dogs and people, but you’ll receive more direct training in private classes. You should also look for a class that focuses on the specific lessons you want your dog to learn: leash training, socialization, and commands.
Look for an educated and experienced trainer who uses positive reinforcement, offers classes in a clean and safe environment, and who comes recommended by your veterinarian.

Register for Puppy Obedience Training Classes in Watertown

Our canine behavior specialists at Animal Wellness Center, also known as Gentle Healer Pet Clinic, are excited to introduce puppy training classes available at our newest location in Watertown, WI. While it’s never too late to start teaching an old dog new tricks, it is much easier to train a puppy who has yet to pick up any bad habits. If you’ve recently adopted a dog, we encourage you to start working with your new pet right away.
To schedule obedience training classes for your new dog, we welcome you to contact Animal Wellness Center in Watertown. We’ll help you and your puppy learn to work together to walk on a leash, discourage jumping up on people, to understand basic commands, and more.

What You Need to Know about Novel Coronavirus (COVID-19) and Your Pets

With its 15 Days to Slow the Spread guidelines, the White House has implored all United States citizens to take precautions and follow recommendations to stop the spread of Novel Coronavirus (COVID-19) in our country. As our Wisconsin communities practice social distancing and as potentially exposed individuals go into self-quarantine, pet owners everywhere are wondering how/whether COVID-19 can affect dogs and cats (other than leading to unprecedented levels of daytime belly scratches, snuggles, and purring).

What You Need to Know about Novel Coronavirus (COVID-19) and Your Pets

With its 15 Days to Slow the Spread guidelines, the White House has implored all United States citizens to take precautions and follow recommendations to stop the spread of Novel Coronavirus (COVID-19) in our country. As our Wisconsin communities practice social distancing and as potentially exposed individuals go into self-quarantine, pet owners everywhere are wondering how/whether COVID-19 can affect dogs and cats (other than leading to unprecedented levels of daytime belly scratches, snuggles, and purring).

What We Currently Understand about Pets and COVID-19 So Far

At this point, we really don’t know much about if or how Coronavirus can affect cats and dogs. Two dogs that were exposed to the virus in China are in quarantine and have been tested. While signs of the virus were found in the nasal swab of one dog, no sign of the virus was detected in the other.

Can Cats and Dogs Transmit or Contract Novel Coronavirus?

So far, there’s no definitive evidence showing that dogs or cats can either contract or transmit COVID-19, but much more research is needed to actually answer these questions.

How to Protect Your Pets from COVID-19

Until we know more, the AVMA recommends taking precautions with your pets. Restrict their interaction with animals and people from other households — just like you’re limiting your own interactions. You should also have a plan in place for protecting your pet should you fall ill yourself. Make arrangements with a friend or family member who can care for your pets in the event you contract COVID-19. Animals and humans can transmit and contract certain viruses to each other, so you should always use proper hygiene with your pets. Always wash your hands before and after playtime.

Canine Coronavirus (CCoV) and Feline Coronavirus (FCoV) Are Not the Same as Novel Coronavirus (COVID-19)

Dogs and cats have their own species-specific Coronaviruses that affect only them. These viruses are not the same as COVID-19, and they cannot be transmitted to humans.

Should You Reschedule Your Pet's Appointment? Safety Concerns During the Novel Coronavirus Pandemic

At each Animal Wellness Center location, our staff is taking extra precautions to protect our clients and our staff during these uncertain times. We’ve ramped up sanitization efforts in all the high-traffic, high-touch locations within our clinics. That being said, the federal government has recommended that people stay home as much as possible, and deciding whether you should venture out is a decision to make while considering yourself, your family, and your pets. We welcome our clients to reschedule their pets’ appointments or to contact us for more information about visiting one of the Animal Wellness Center locations at this time.

Why All Those “Chonky” Pets Aren’t Very Cute

Why All Those "Chonky" Pets Actually Aren't Very Cute

The United States has more chubby pets than anywhere else in the world. The internet is flooded with affectionately captioned images of “chonky” cats and dogs, which seem to glorify a very real health problem. With over 50% of pet dogs and cats overweight, obesity isn’t cute; it’s sad. Obesity is the leading health threat for pets, and many Americans don’t know what an unhealthy, overweight pet actually looks like.

What Health Risks Do Obese Pets Face?

Like overweight people, pets packing extra pounds also face additional health risks. Obesity can lower a pet’s life expectancy by more than two years. Overweight pets are more likely to suffer from arthritis, diabetes, respiratory disease, kidney disease, cancer, and cardiovascular problems. Obesity also increases your pet’s risk of injury to bones, joints, and muscle tissues.
By maintaining a pet at a healthy weight with proper diet and plenty of exercise, you’ll give your cat or dog the best chance at living a long, healthy, and happy life.

How to Tell if a Cat or Dog Is Overweight

While there are weight range guidelines for various breeds of cats and dogs, healthy weight is more than just a number on the scale. It’s more about assessing whether your pet’s body composition is healthy, which can be done by examining the pet’s overall body shape.
This chart from the AVMA is very helpful, when assessing the physique of a cat or dog. At a healthy weight, a cat’s or dog’s tummy should tuck in, narrowing as it extends toward the animal’s hind legs. From above, you should be able to see your pet’s waist grow narrow near its hips. Overweight dogs and cats have a tummy that droops and balloons outward without much narrowing toward its hips. Overweight pets might also have rolls of fat above their neck and shoulders. If you can see a pet’s ribs, then the cat or dog is likely underweight.

How to Help Your Pet Lose Weight

There’s no one-size-fits-all solution for helping a pet lose weight. Weight loss will look different for every pet, depending on their age, medical condition, species, breed, and lifestyle, but most weight loss plans include a combination of diet and exercise. The following tips will help you and your pet on your journey to a healthy weight:
  • Remember that your whole family needs to commit. That means communicating about feeding schedules and portions and being honest about treats.
  • Remember that there are other ways to give a pet praise besides giving them treats.
  • Human food should always be off-limits to pets.
  • Use a special dish to slow your pet's eating and only feed low-calorie, highly nutritious foods.
  • Set realistic goals and track your pet's progress with our veterinarian.
  • Keep weight loss fun by exercising with your pet.
Most importantly, if you’re concerned about your pet’s weight, diet, or activity level, our Wisconsin veterinarians at Animal Wellness Center’s five locations are always here to help.

Start an Oral Hygiene Routine with Your Pet for National Pet Dental Health Month

Start an Oral Hygiene Routine with Your Pet for National Pet Dental Health Month

Each February, we like to spread awareness about the importance of caring for pets’ teeth to celebrate National Pet Dental Health Month, along with cats, dogs, the American Veterinary Medical Association, and other veterinarians across the country.

So, Why Is It Important to Care for Your Pet's Teeth?

A pet’s comfort and health can suffer big-time, if their teeth are neglected. Pets can break teeth and suffer from cavities and abscesses just like people. The primary health concern with a pet’s mouth is periodontal (gum) disease.
Periodontal disease is a gum infection that occurs when plaque and tartar build up on the teeth along the gum line. This buildup creates dark, damp pockets between the gums and the teeth, where harmful bacteria thrive. If not properly prevented or treated, periodontal disease can lead to serious health problems that spread throughout the body. Periodontal disease will begin with uncomfortable oral symptoms like tender, swollen gums, but can eventually turn into a blood infection, which harms vital organs throughout the body.
Left untreated, periodontal disease can become so serious that it leads to organ failure and death.

How to Care for Your Pet's Oral Health

In dental care, prevention is always the best form of medicine. To prevent periodontal disease, humans are supposed to brush and floss twice a day and see a dentist at least once a year. We understand that this type of rigorous oral care regimen might not be feasible for pets, but it’s still important to make dental care a regular part of your pet’s healthcare routine.

Caring for Your Pet's Teeth at Home

The most important dental care actions you can take are the ones that happen on a regular basis in your home. We recommend brushing your pet’s teeth at least once a week with a specially formulated pet toothpaste and specially designed pet toothbrush.
You can also provide your pet with dental-friendly treats, chew toys, and kibble which are all designed to help break up plaque and tartar on your pet’s teeth.

Seeking Professional Pet Dental Care with our Veterinarian

During your pet’s regular wellness appointment, our veterinarians always inspect the pet’s teeth. If needed, we might recommend a professional teeth cleaning. Pet dental cleanings are performed with a pet under general anesthesia to ensure they remain calm and safe.

Schedule a Dental Check-Up

If you notice any signs of potential dental problems in your pet (red or swollen gums, reluctance to eat or drink, or bad breath), we recommend scheduling a checkup right away. We welcome you to contact any of Animal Wellness Center’s five convenient Wisconsin locations.

5 Ways to Prepare Pets for the Cold Wisconsin Weather

5 Ways to Prepare Pets for the Cold Wisconsin Weather

You might think your pet’s coat is a natural cure-all for winter weather. Fur will provide your pet with some warmth, but it can’t keep your pet completely warm and safe when the temperature (or windchill) drops below freezing. With Wisconsin’s harsh winter weather upon us, remember these tips to keep your cats and dogs safe.

1. Stay Inside

If it’s too cold outside for you, then it’s too cold outside for your pets. The safest plan is to keep your pet indoors. If your pets are used to being outside, keep them busy with toys, attention, and other enriching indoor activities.

2. Provide Adequate Shelter

Staying inside is best, but some pets (especially feral cats) won’t come inside. If this is the case with your pet, it’s essential that you provide shelter. A pet house should be secure, blocked from wind, and insulated. Provide warm bedding, using old coats, blankets, or even straw, and check the bedding every day to make sure it’s dry. If you provide electric heat to the pet house, be sure you use a heating pad or mechanism that’s designed specially for pets to prevent burns.

3. Put On (Supervised) Layers

If it’s cold outside, but you still want to bundle up and take your pet for a walk, then outdoor winter pet gear is the perfect way to keep your furry friend warm while getting some exercise. Winter coats and booties are a great way to protect their bodies from the cold and their paws from icy and salty sidewalks. Dressed pets should always be supervised to prevent strangulation or suffocation.

4. Towel Dry and Wipe Paws

When your pets come inside, towel dry their fur and wash their paws. This will keep them warm, prevent their skin from becoming irritated, and also prevent them from licking potentially poisonous salts and ice melt off of their paws.

5. Fill the Bowl

Outdoor pets should have heated water dishes, so pets always have a source of water that’s not already frozen. In cold weather, your pet’s metabolism will burn more calories than normal while keeping his or her body temperature stable. If your pets spend a significant amount of time outdoors in the cold, it won’t hurt to feed them a little extra to make sure they stay warm and maintain a healthy layer of insulation on their bodies.

 

For more information about keeping your pets safe during the winter, we welcome you to contact any Animal Wellness Center today!

Spring is near!

As we enter into the months of February and March, there are a lot of things that we as pet owners, veterinarians, and animal lovers in-general should start to consider. Whether we want to talk about pet dental health (since February is National Pet Dental Health month!), or Valentines Day and the risks of chocolate toxicity to our 4-legged-friends, there is so much to consider. With V…

Spring is near!

As we enter into the months of February and March, there are a lot of things that we as pet owners, veterinarians, and animal lovers in-general should start to consider. Whether we want to talk about pet dental health (since February is National Pet Dental Health month!), or Valentines Day and the risks of chocolate toxicity to our 4-legged-friends, there is so much to consider. With Valentine’s Day smack-dab in the “heart” of February (sorry…pun intended), and spring right around the corner, I want to focus on matters of the heart. Specifically, I want to discuss Heartworms!

 

 

Heartworms are a serious blood parasite of dogs and cats, and one that I treat multiple pets for every year. Once a pet contracts the disease, the worms will develop and mature and set up shop in the heart. This is a universally fatal disease if left untreated. While cats can contract the disease, dogs are the natural host. If infected and left untreated, Heartworms can multiply and cause injury to many vital components of the cardiovascular system, including the heart, the lungs, and the arteries! That means that the heart can’t pump the blood, the lungs can’t infuse the blood with oxygen, and the arteries can’t move the blood to where it needs to be. Because this is such a serious disease, we at Animal Wellness Center (as well as the American Heartworm Society) recommend testing the blood once yearly to screen for heartworms!

 

 

As I mentioned, while cats are not the normal host, they can still become infected. Unfortunately this often goes undiagnosed since routine heartworm screening is not often done in cats. While the number of worms is often lower than the number in dogs, they can still cause significant damage. The most commonly diagnosed “heartworm” disease in cats is a condition known as “Heartworm Associated Respiratory Disease (HARD).” If your cat has chronic respiratory disease, it may be worth asking your veterinarian about testing him or her for heartworm disease!

 

 

The good news is that this universally fatal disease is very easily preventable! There are a wide variety of products available on the market that can very easily prevent heartworm disease in dogs and cats. Bonus! They also help prevent intestinal parasites! It is especially important to give preventatives year round. Mosquitoes, while commonly dormant in cold weather, can become active very quickly and easily with only a day or two of temperatures at or above 50 degrees fahrenheit! Living in Wisconsin, it’s not unreasonable to believe that Jack Frost might take a day or two off every now and again, leaving us with some unseasonably warm days throughout the winter months.

 

 

As we move towards spring (and hopefully warmer weather), please consider talking to your veterinarian about what the best preventative options are for your pets. While it can be easily prevented and treated in dogs, unfortunately the medications used to treat the disease cannot be used in cats. Additionally, while it may not seem like a common issue, I encourage you to visit the website below from the Companion Animal Parasite Council which shows prevalence maps (heat maps) of common areas of infection. While wisconsin is not at the top of the list, we still treat numerous cases each year!

 

A final, parting thought: You can pay for approximately 10 (or more) years worth of heartworm preventative for a medium sized dog for the cost of just ONE round of treatment for an active infection. It’s true what they say, “an ounce of prevention [truly] is worth a pound of cure!”

https://www.capcvet.org/maps/#2017/all/heartworm-canine/dog/united-states/
-Dr Dan

Pet Poison Prevention Awareness Month

March is Pet Poison Prevention Awareness Month One of the joys of having a pet is watching their continuous curiosity in the world around us. However, sometimes that curiosity gets them into trouble. Knowing what potential hazards are in and around your house is the first step in keeping them safe. Hopefully you are never faced with a medical emergency involving your pet…..

Pet Poison Prevention Awareness Month

March is Pet Poison Prevention Awareness Month

 

One of the joys of having a pet is watching their continuous curiosity in the world around us. However, sometimes that curiosity gets them into trouble. Knowing what potential hazards are in and around your house is the first step in keeping them safe. Hopefully you are never faced with a medical emergency involving your pet ingesting a potentially poisonous product. However, being prepared and knowing what actions need to be taken in that moment could mean the difference between life and death for your furry friend.

 

Our pets could show symptoms of poisoning quickly after ingestion, but many can take hours to days to set in before they show a problem. It is extremely vital that you contact us and/or Poison Control immediately if you discover your pet has ingested something potentially toxic. The sooner you act, the better the chance we have to decontaminate and provide treatments to counteract the poison from causing both immediate and long term issues. Act fast!! Don’t wait for symptoms to develop or spend time searching on the internet for answers. Call us so we can determine if what they ate is toxic and put a plan in place to get them help immediately. If it is a weekend, night, or holiday then please call one of the local 24 hours emergency facilities or contact ASPCA Pet Poison Hotline at (888) 426-4435.

 

Please take proper precautions to keep these products out of your pet’s reach at all times:

 

Human Medications – This is by far the most common toxicities we see. Many medications that are safe for us can be very toxic to our pets. This includes medications such as Acetaminophen (Tylenol), NSAIDs (Advil, Aleve, Motrin), and common vitamins. Please, do not give your pet any human medications without consulting with a veterinarian first! You may think you are helping them, but could ultimately be causing them more harm.

 

Human Foods – again, many foods we eat can be quite harmful to our pets. This is not an all-inclusive list, but toxic foods include chocolate, xylitol (artificial sweetener), raisins/grapes, macadamia nuts, garlic, onions, yeast-based dough, table salt, and fatty table food. A very small amount of some of these foods can cause major medical issues.

 

Plants – ASPCA Poison Control has an extensive list of plants that could be potentially poisonous to pets. Some common plants to avoid keeping in the house include lilies, holly, poinsettias, tulips, cyclamen, and many more. Here is a link to a list of plants that are and aren’t toxic to our cat and dog family memebers: https://www.aspca.org/pet-care/animal-poison-control/dogs-plant-list

 

Essential Oils and Liquid Potpourri – these products can damage your pet’s organ systems if ingested, but can also be very irritating to the skin and airway if applied directly to your pet’s skin or if they breath in the fumes.

 

Yard/Garage Products – Fertilizers, mouse/rat poisons, cocoa mulch, snail bait, mushrooms, plants, cleaning products, antifreeze, and insecticides are just a few products that can be extremely toxic to your pets. Please keep these materials out of your pet’s reach and monitor their outdoor activities closely at all times! The outdoors should be fun place for your pet to spend time, but can be a very hazardous space if not pet proofed adequately.

 

If you suspect your pet has ingested something of questionable safety, please do not hesitate to call us or Poison Control. We are here to help!!! When calling to seek medical advice please have the packaging or label readily available so we can evaluate the active ingredients. This will save valuable time.

 

Have a happy and safe start to your spring!

Dr. Hillery