Heartworm - it's not just a summer threat!

Why is it so important to keep your pets on heartworm preventative year round? Check out this video to learn just what heartworm is and the importance of year round prevention!

Zoonotic Disease: The Gift that Keeps on Giving

A Zoonotic disease, is one that, by definition, “is transmissible from animals to humans under natural conditions and can also be an infection or disease that is transmissible between animals and

humans”. This is particularly important as the strength of the human-animal bond continues to grow and develop between ourselves and our companion animals.

Studies have shown that not only do people in the community lack general knowledge about the scope, importance and prevalence of zoonotic disease, but more alarmingly, a survey of physicians themselves, has found a lack adequate knowledge and awareness of zoonotic disease as well as general discomfort in addressing and communicating these public health threats and concerns to their human patients.

In contrast, accredited veterinary schools are required to provide instructional education about zoonotic disease to veterinary students as a requirement of being recognized as an accreditated school.  In particular, courses highlighting the importance of epidemiology, zoonoses, food safety, the complex interrelationship of animals and the environment and the overall contribution of veterinarians to general public health is a curriculum requirement for most, if not all, veterinary students. No such accreditation requirement exists in U.S. medical schools.

So, how does this affect you, the pet owner?

Well, considering over 50% of all US households have one or more pets, the potential risk of contracting a zoonotic disease is a clear and present concern.

What are some examples of Zoonotic Diseases? 

The list is exceedingly long, but here are some of the more well-know examples of zoonotic diseases: HIV, Ebola, Bubonic plague, Rabies, intestinal parasites (giardia, roundworms, tapeworms, etc), ringworm, salmonella, Lyme Disease, influenza, E. Coli, Dirofilariasis (heartworm disease), chlamydia, bartonella, anthrax, leprosy, tuberculosis, West Nile, Zika virus, eastern/western/venezuelan encephildes and the list goes on and on.

So what can you do to lower the risk of contracting a zoonotic disease?

1.      Ensure you are properly handling, storing and cooking all food intended for human   consumption. The importance of this has been highlighted with the recent Raw Food pet   diet trend (not to mention this is NOT a nutritionally complete nor well- balanced   approach to meeting your pet’s nutritional needs).

2.     Good personal hygiene and hand-washing practices.

3.     Ensuring all pets are on monthly, year-round flea, tick and heartworm prevention.     Protecting yourself against insect vectors is also extremely important.

4.     Prompt yard clean up/litter box maintenance practices.

5.     Maintaining your pet’s annual/semi-annual immunizations. Maintaining your immunization status is equally important.

For more information, please don’t hesitate to reach out to Companion Animal Hospital’s friendly and knowledgeable veterinary staff members. Additional reading materials, a complete list of zoonotic diseases and references for this article can also be found at www.cdc.gov.

Written By: Dr. Christine Tuma

Companion Animal Hospital Round Lake

What's the deal with worms?

What's the deal with worms?

Picking up your animals' feces is often not a pleasant task, but did you know that there could be friends hiding out within?

Roundworms 
This parasite is very common in puppies and kittens, they are infected while in the uterus as well as when they ingest milk. Adult worms look like spaghetti. Symptoms are a potbellied appearance in puppies. This parasite also has the potential to be zoonotic. Visceral larval migrans occurs in humans that accidentally ingest roundworm eggs. The larvae migrate to liver, lungs, brain, and most commonly the eyes.

Hookworms
Animals are infected by ingesting eggs or directly by worm penetrating through skin. These parasites live in the small intestine and feed on blood with teeth and cutting plates. It can be fatal due to loss of blood. Symptoms include bloody stool, pale gums, and anemia but only in cases of heavy infections. This parasite also has the potential to be zoonotic. Cutaneous larval migrans occurs in humans when larvae penetrate feet when walking barefoot typically in grass and sand. The larvae migrate producing winding tracks of inflammation and is very itchy

Whipworm
Can be hard to diagnose because worms do not shed large amount of eggs in feces. This is most common in dogs kept in small lots or on chains. The most common symptom is diarrhea with mucus and blood.

Tapeworms 
Dogs and cats get tapeworms from fleas and also if the animal hunts rodents. Sometimes the  tapeworm segments (prolgottids) can be seen around the anus and look like rice grains. 

Giardia
This is a protozoa not a worm that likes to inhabit water. Pets are infected when sniffing or eating cysts or drinking contaminated water. The most common symptom is chronic diarrhea. This is also zoonotic and causes humans to have diarrhea and terrible stomach cramps. 

Annual fecal tests are important to screen our pets to be certain that your pets are not affected by any of these parasites. Even if your pet does not go outside,parasites can be brought into the house on our feet or by other pets. Monthly heartworm prevention will protect dogs from roundworm, hookworm, whipworm, and tapeworm infections depending on the product 

Written By: Dr. Kat Baker

Hyde Park Animal Hospital & Clinic

Why do cats need dental exams?

Why Do Cats Need Dental Exams?

FORL of the canine tooth in the cat. 

            Feline Odontoclastic Resorptive Lesions (FORL’s) account for 20-75% of all dental disease in cats over 4 years old.  Odontoclasts, which originate in the bone marrow, migrate and attach to the external surface of the tooth root (portion of the tooth within the tooth socket) and resorb (i.e. destroy) the root surface.  These cells normally are responsible only for turning over the baby teeth in kittens to make way for the adult teeth.  These cells remain active in later life for reasons we don’t understand.  As time passes the root is completely destroyed, and the crown is left behind.  In the end stage of the disease, the entire tooth is eaten away by the odontoclasts.

FORL’s were once identified as “cavities”.  We now know that this is not correct.  Cavities are caused by bacteria, whereas, FORL’s are not.  In fact, the real cause of FORL’s remains elusive and remains a topic of debate.

Cats with FORL’s have the main clinical sign of “chattering” when eating.  Another sign is that cats with FORL’s will have a tendency to drop their hard food or show a preference for soft food only.  Patients with FORL’s salivate profusely indicating extreme pain.  Your veterinarian will note a missing tooth, or a portion of the tooth crown missing.  In areas where portions of the crown are missing, the gums in the area are usually observed to cover the missing area, and a red spot is noticed on the crown.  Teeth with early FORL’s cannot be detected on gross examination.  This is because the disease starts at the root beneath the gum line.  These “normal” teeth can only be diagnosed with the use of dental radiographs at the time of a dental cleaning.

FORL of a mandibular premolar in the cat.

Only cats with end stage disease can be diagnosed with FORL’s due to the fact that the crown is missing.  The remainder of cats with the disease need to have full mouth dental radiographs taken, to assess the root structure where the disease begins.  This is as important as the dental cleaning itself.

The recommended treatment for cats with this painful disease is to have the affected teeth extracted.  Extraction or crown amputation with intentional root retention, are the only currently accepted methods of therapy. The latter is a procedure where the crown of the affected tooth is removed with a bur; leaving the resorbing roots buried in the bone to continue resorbing to completion. The crown amputation procedure alleviates the clinical signs of disease because the exposed and sensitive portion of the tooth is removed. This procedure however, is limited to affected teeth that have been appropriately radiographed and have severe tooth root resorption.

Talk to your veterinarian today to schedule a dental cleaning treatment that includes full mouth dental radiographs to screen for this painful disease.

Written By: Dr. Nick Juleen

Wolf Merrick Animal Hospital

Five Tips in Feeding Your Puppy

FIVE TIPS IN FEEDING YOUR PUPPY

Feeding a puppy can be challenging with all the different foods available.  Here are five tips that are important when feeding a puppy:

Tip one:  Feed puppy food.  I realize this sounds obvious, but puppy food is designed and formulated for the specific nutrients needs of a puppy.  I will routinely have a pet mom or dad come into my office that was told to feed an adult food to their puppy to slow the growth.  This is not advisable.  A puppy formulated food is best.

Tip Two:  Check the label.  All dog food manufacturers are required to have a feeding statement on the label.  That statement should say one of two things for puppies:  “For all life stages” or “for growth and maintenance” of puppies.  If this is not on the label, do not feed this food to your puppy.

Tip Three:  Feed for your breed.  Large or giant breeds have different nutritional requirements than a small or medium breed of puppy.  Large and giant breeds have higher caloric requirement as well as a calcium to phosphorus ratio than a small to medium breed.  If you feed a large to giant breed puppy a food formulated for a small to medium breed, this can be seriously lacking in the nutritional requirements for your puppy.

Tip Four:  Feed for body condition.  All puppies go through growth phases.  They will “grow out” before they “grow up.”  What we refer to as “puppy fat.”  It is important as you take your puppy into the checkups, we will monitor the growth of your puppy.  If they are growing to quick or not quick enough, we will make recommendations on the amount or type of food for your puppy.

Tip Five:  How much to feed?  First, do not look at the manufacturer’s recommendation.  Generally, they recommend overfeeding.  A good rule of thumb:  One cup per 10 pounds per day divided into 3 portions.  So, a 10 pound puppy should be fed ¼-1/3 cup three times daily.  A 20 lb puppy should be fed ½-2/3 cup three times daily.  Keep in mind, this is a general rule.  We will look at other factors:  energy, body condition, and lifestyle that could affect the amount to feed. 

Written By: Dr. Dan Markwalder
Companion Animal Hospital Partners, LLC

Toddlers & Dogs: Tips for Harmony

Toddlers and Dogs: Tips for Harmony

Dogs and toddlers can be overly excited when interacting with each other.  This can result in pulled hair or tumbling children.  They can also be shy or afraid in uncertain interactions.  A misunderstanding can be dangerous. Both children and dogs need to be taught about appropriate behavior and both need a sanctuary place where they can retreat to be undisturbed.  Here are some tips to promote safe and happy interactions.

Safe Space for both your dog and your toddler

Your dog and your child both need a safe space where they can retreat when they’ve had enough. Your toddler should have a place to play energetically and your dog needs the choice to be there or not.  A kennel is ideal, but a dog bed works, too. Teach your children that the kennel is off-limits and not to interact with the dog when she is in there. Enforce the idea that the bed or kennel is the dog’s private space. A dog needs a comfortable, safe place where the children never go.

Encourage Positive, Supervised Interactions

Encourage predictable and positive interactions to foster good relationships. Involve your child in the things your dog likes – feeding, treats, walks and play. When these things are positive experiences for your child and your dog, they will each grow more comfortable with one another. 

Always supervise interactions between your toddler and your dog. No one thinks their dog would bite their child. Yet it happens.  Each year in the US, about 400,000 kids receive medical attention for dog bites.  Young children are at greatest risk and are frequently bitten by familiar dogs. Stories of what can quickly go wrong during unsupervised interactions are harrowing. “I have examples of 2-year-olds getting bitten in the face, and no one in the family saw it,” says Dr. Berger of the San Francisco SPCA. “I think that oftentimes parents have a false expectation of what should be tolerated from the dog’s end because we all have a story of a dog that does tolerate that. But oftentimes that can later lead to problems when the dog either gets older or if the dog has just had enough, and [the child’s behavior] pushes the dog over the threshold.” Books like Tails Are Not For Pulling, written by Elizabeth Verdick and illustrated by Marieka Heinlen, can help teach your toddler how to interact gently with the family dog.

Identify Body Language

Learn to identify body language that indicates stress. Usually there are subtle signs of distress before a growl, which is a serious sign of fear, anxiety or stress. These early signs can include looking away (averting just the eyes or turning the head or body away), yawning and tense/rigid body postures. If you can recognize these indicators, you can intervene before there is any serious trouble. Looking away is usually the first sign of concern. From the dog’s perspective, a growl is a scream for help.

Always ask permission to approach or pet unfamiliar dogs. Not all dogs are comfortable around kids, so they may not react well to being approached or touched. It’s also good to ask the dog to do something, like “sit” or “shake”, rather than simply reaching out to pet the dog, as this can provide a more predictable interaction for the dog. May I Pet Your Dog?, written by Stephanie Calmenson and illustrated by Jan Ormerod, can help teach your toddler the cardinal-rule of interacting with unfamiliar dogs: ask permission first.

Written by: Shelia Newenham, DVM
Companion Animal Hospital Mount Prospect

How to Prevent and Treat Ticks

Tick-Bourne Disease in Dogs and Cats

      With summer upon us and lot's of ticks around this year, discussing tick-bourne diseases seemed appropriate. We typically think of dogs getting ticks but cats can as well.  I am going to seperate dogs and cats in my discussion because they get different diseases but they also share some.

       The Centers for Disease Control have also noticed a spike in the Midwest Regions in the number of tick-bourne related reported illnesses this year in humans and animals.  Ticks typically need blood to survive and complete different life cycles.  They attach to the pet and on average need close to 48 hours to transmit a disease, if that tick is infected.  Not all ticks are infected but they all do need blood to survive.  Different types of ticks carry different types of infection.  I will be mentioning the diseases we see more often in the Midwest and surrounding areas. 

       This topic is also very near and dear to me because I have a dog whom suffers from Erlichia (tick-bourne disease).   He will be affected for it his whole life and it can re-appear at any time.  When I rescued him from the Caribbean, he was already positive for the disease.     
Prevention is the KEY!

TICKS  (yuck!)

The most common ticks in and near the midwest are:

• Deer tick  (aka: black legged tick) 
• Brown dog tick
• American Dog tick
• Lone Star tick

       I commonly will get a question about the right and best way to remove a tick and dispose of them.  You are going to want to get the head of the tick, which is what is buried in the skin, out.  This can be difficult ....a tick digs in using two sets of hooks. Each set looks like a hand with three hooked fingers. The hooks dig in and push into the skin. Then these “hands” bend in unison to perform approximately half-a-dozen breaststrokes that pull skin out of the way so the tick can push in a long stubby part called the hypostome.

soooooo.......

•  You can use a tweezer to remove but remember to get as close to the skin as you can so that you get as much of the tick pulled out
• If you have rubbing alcohol at home,  apply alcohol to the tick and it can act like a smothering agent and sometimes they will back out a little.  You will still need to pull on it to remove.

       ++++  rubbing alcohol will kill the tick after you remove it   +++++

• There are a lot of other theories, ideas and suggestions on removing ticks but I will not be getting in to them and you need to do what you are comfortable with.  I do recommend if you have gloves, to wear them during the tick removal

When in doubt, then bring your dog to the veterinarian for help!!!  We can remove it for you.

      

DOGS

Tick-bourne diseases in dogs include:

• Lyme disease
• Anaplasmosis
• Erlichia
• Rocky Mountain Spotted Fever

    Due to the complexity of each disease, I am not going to get in to the specifics but focus on prevention and appropriate diagnostic testing.  If you suspect or have found a tick on your pet then we recommend the 4DX test run by IDEXX laboratories or a similar test (ask your veterinarian).  I also recommend that this be a yearly test run because it includes a heartworm test also and is able to pick up tick-bourne diseases before we see any clinical signs or long lasting effects.  

    The other huge benefit from this test is that it can distinguish between exposure, vaccine and active infection.  If your pet tests positive for one of the tests, you will be guided on whether to treat or a more specific diagnostic test will be choosen.

    All of the above tick-borne diseases have similar symptoms. If left undetected and untreated they can cause more serious internal problems. Annual testing allows us to catch things sooner and treat early. The most common and effective treatment for a dog with a tick-borne disease is Doxycycline, which is an oral antibiotic. The treatment for heartworm positive dogs can vary depending on the stage of the infection.

CATS
Tick-borne diseases in cats include:

• cytauxzoonosis
• tularemia
• haemobartonellosis
• babesiosis

         Since tick-borne infections can be life threatening especially in cats, prevention is key. If your cat goes outdoors, he or she should be under your direct supervision or within a secure outdoor enclosure.  Any cat with outdoor access should be checked for ticks each evening, especially during the warmer months of the year. It’s also a good idea to apply a safe tick repellent or flea and tick collar made specifically for cats. 

        As far as diagnostic testing for cats, there isn't one test that looks for all of their tick-bourne disease issues.  In cats we typically do general blood work and then add-on the appropriate test when we have a little better idea which disease it might be.  Unfortunately, the outcome for a lot of these diseases in cats is death.   So again prevention is so key.  If you have an outdoor cat and it is sick, make sure you mention this to the doctor.

PREVENTION:

• Bravecto is an oral preventative for dogs and topical preventative for cats which prevents the major ticks that I mentioned earlier and is good for 12 weeks of protection with one dose or application.  Good for fleas and ticks.
• Parastar  is a monthly topical preventative which also kills fleas and some ticks in both dogs and cats.
• Nexgard and Simparica are oral monthly preventatives that kill some ticks and fleas but are only used and safe in dogs.
• Revolution is another topical medication used in both dogs and cats.  Unfortunately, not the best for tick coverage.
• Seresto collars are good in the dog and cat for up to 8 months and kill ticks and fleas.

There are other topical medications for cats and dogs but the efficacy is questionable. 

Megan Moser DVM

Veterinarian at Companion Animal Hospital of Skokie