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Question:

"I need help! My dog has rashes on his belly and white spots like a wound appearing on his skin. My mom told me last week that she fed my dog a fish. What should I do?"

Edward Peralta

 

Answer:

Itchy skin in dogs can be attributed to a multitude of causes, and allergic skin disease may perhaps be the most common in South Africa. The allergies can be picked up through contact surfaces, such as grass, inhaled allergens (for example, various pollens) or food ingredients that are eaten voluntarily. The cause of the itching skin can only be confirmed as allergy once all other causes of itching have been ruled out (e.g. flea infestations, sarcoptic mange, etc.) and a definite diagnosis has been made. Only then can specific, tailor-made treatment begin. So it's important that you take your dog to a vet who will assist you in ruling out other potential causes of an irritable and itchy skin.

The white spots visible on your dog's skin is most likely due to secondary infections with bacteria or yeasts, but an evaluation from your vet will be able to shed some more light onto that which will also determine whether anti-microbial drugs may be needed in the treatment regime. Once your dog's skin becomes irritable, scratching elicits further inflammation and stimulates more scratching. The latter becomes a vicious cycle where the more the animal scratches, the more inflammation is caused, which in turn stimulates more scratching. One of the objectives of the treatment will be to break the itch and scratch cycle as fast as possible, offering relief to your dog's skin and then allowing it to heal.

Some allergies can be identified fairly readily e.g. flea bite allergy, but the vast majority of them take a long time to evaluate and identify e.g. a food allergy diagnosis may require one or more 8-week cycles of novel diet trials. It is important to also understand that a lot of allergies in animals are never identified specifically and the treatment that follows remains symptomatic. An added dimension to allergies is the fact that they have a summative effect. That means that an animal can be allergic to more than one allergen at a time and clinical signs may only manifest when a number of the allergies present themselves and are required to push the animal over its threshold. The latter are often very unpredictable (often not seasonal) and managing them involves trying to keep the animal below the threshold, where the clinical signs are either absent or mild enough to prevent any negative effects on the animal's body and general well being.

Allergies are generally manageable enough and allow the pet and its owner to have a pretty normal and comfortable existence when they are monitored, understood and treated appropriately. Good luck Edward!

Kind regards

Dr. Mats

 

Question:

I have a female beagle, 11 months old. After she was sterilised she gained a lot of weight and I can't seem to get her to shed any. She is very active and I walk her and my other beagle every evening for about 45 minutes to an hour.

 

Currently she gets 150 g of raw meat per day because I had her on Vet's Choice Lite for about 6 weeks with no results. I am not very fond of kibble so I am feeding both my male and female meat.

 

She weighs about 15kg but is very muscular.

 

Do you have any advice for me?

 

Helenét Burger

Answer:

Dear Helenét

Sterilization predisposes animals to weight gain because the intact reproductive system utilises high levels of energy to carry out its normal physiological functions. Most animals are often kept on the exact same diet before and after sterilization, which means that there are more calories being taken in than are utilised by the body, leading to weight gain. That means we need to reduce the number of calories taken in by your Beagle as well as increase metabolism where we can in order to lose the unwanted extra weight. I would recommend we change two things as a starting point.

Healthy beagles as a breed are predisposed to epilepsy, heart disease and back problems, all of which become serious threats to the welfare of overweight Beagles.

 

Remember that the changes recommended here are merely a starting point, implying that once weight has been lost we will then need to reassess your Beagle's weight and adjust our feeding and exercise management. Good luck and stay in touch Helenét!

 

 

Question:

 

We have a Jack Russell Puppy born on 29 November 2009. At what age can we take her to a dog academy to get leash-trained, and do you have any recommendations?

Inette Fourie

 

Answer:

There are two parts to this question that I would like to address.

 

• Firstly, given the date of birth, by this stage the 3 puppy vaccines (typically done at 6, 9 and 12 weeks of age) and associated deworming treatments should have been done. The latter implies that from a disease transmission and exposure standpoint we have equipped our puppy as best as we can and we can start taking the puppy to other properties other than our own.
• Secondly, from a training standpoint I think the puppy is ready to attend the academy provided all their policies and criteria for attending have been met. I started training Donna (my Labrador) from the day I received her (8 weeks of age) – a string around her neck got her used to the concept of wearing something around her neck; then attached a leash and let her drag it around for a while; then she learned on her own that where the leash goes she goes, and walking her has been an absolute pleasure ever since!

 

Happy training Inette!

Question:

My bitch is on heat. What can we do to prevent her from falling pregnant?

 

Answer:

 

Ideally, one should sterilise non-breeding animals as soon as possible.  The risk of mammary gland cancer and uterine infections (both life-threatening conditions) is significantly higher in animals that haven’t been sterilised.  Note that most veterinarians charge a higher fee when they have to sterilise an animal on heat because it is a more complex operation (takes longer and has a higher incidence of complications) due to the effects of the hormones on the reproductive organs.

 

The female animal must still be kept away from male animals for at least 10 days after the sterilization procedure, as she will still have a smell that would attract males to her.

 

Bitches or queens on heat can be treated with drugs to postpone or suppress heat. These drugs must be prescribed  by the veterinarian who will explain the possible side-effects of these drugs.  In my personal opinion, not worth the risk!

 

Question:

Will my animals gain weight after sterilisation?

 

Answer:

 

Animals can gain weight due to the reduction in hormones, but the main reason for weight gain is a lack of exercise and the wrong food (too high in energy).  Owners should be able to manage these areas with the help of their vet.

Question:

Is there a vaccine for Kennel Cough and how often must it be given?

 

Answer:

 

There are two ways to protect your dog from Kennel Cough:

1. Intranasal vaccine (Small amount of fluid is administered into the nostril).

 

Most intranasal vaccines will give:

Complete immunity 72 hours after a single vaccination.

 

At least 1 year protection against the disease.

 

Can be given to puppies between 2 -3 weeks of age.

 

Can be given to pregnant bitches in all trimesters. (See manufacturer’s labels for recommendations and direction for use.)
                       

2. Injectable vaccine

Dogs 6 weeks of age or older can be vaccinated.

 

Healthy dogs should receive 2 doses administered 2-4 weeks apart.

 

Where exposure is likely, such as boarding, revaccination should be timed 2 – 4 weeks prior to these events. (See manufacturer’s labels for recommendations and direction for use.)

Question:

 

Do all kennels require a Kennel Cough vaccine if a dog is boarding with them?

 

Answer:

 

Situations created in a kennelling environment are ideal for the propagation of this disease and that is why most kennels require vaccination before accepting boarders.

It is highly recommended that animals are vaccinated before boarding as this disease is highly contagious and can spread very fast from one animal to the next. Potential life-threatening complications include secondary bacterial infections and pneumonia.

 

Question:

 

My Dachshund puppy (about 5 months) has a lot of bumps on her skin with hair loss, and it is starting to cover the whole body. Please can you give me any advice?

Danielle Beetge

 

 

Answer:

 

Hi Danielle

Young puppies have their immune system challenged on a daily basis, mostly because of their inquisitive behaviour (which is age appropriate). The skin is an extremely vital and active organ when we consider the body's defences against various diseases, pathogens, allergens and parasites, and probably spends most of its energy continuously nullifying threats to the puppy's body. Based on the information you have given me, I am going to make the assumption that your puppy is not scratching its skin. If my assumption is correct, the two most common conditions seen in puppies of this age and associated with hair loss are demodectic mange and ringworm (actually a fungal infection, and not a worm, as the name would suggest). The only way to diagnose either one of the latter two is to have your vet perform screen scrapings which are subsequently evaluated under a microscope. If the evaluation is negative for demodectic mange, a sample may be required for culturing to confirm the diagnosis of ringworm. An alternative method of diagnosing ringworm is the Wood's lamp test, which is easy and quick, however very non-specific and not very accurate. Ringworm also has the added concern of being a zoonosis (disease that can be transmitted from an animal to humans) and should thus be treated correctly and timeously so that pet owners do not contract the disease. Let your vet make the diagnosis for you and start treating immediately.