Pets

Can you tell me the signs that a dog might be depressed?

Recognizing Signs of Dog Depression: Insights from an Emergency Vet

You tell me this signs that a dog might be depressed. I will do my very best. So one of the most common signs that I see as an emergency veterinarian, is they will become a little less excited about the things that they normally love. So if they normally love to chase the ball, go on walks. Eat you all the sudden, see a decrease in wanting to do those activities or a decrease in eating overall. A lot of owners will mention that they're just withdrawn, maybe they find places to hide and they're not as engaged in general. So that's it's probably some of the most common signs that jumped out to me. And that owners report when their dogs are just sad about something, I'll often see it. If maybe a caretaker has passed away or a housemate that was another dog has passed away and there's been a shift or a change and a dog, maybe need some time to adjust. So hopefully you can give him some TLC. Hopefully, your dog doesn't go through this at all but those are the most common things that I will have people report and that I will hear when it. Dog is what we would consider depressed.

Common signs of a depressed dog include decreased interest in activities they normally love, withdrawal, hiding and overall decrease in engagement.

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The signs that a dog might be depressed can include a decrease in excitement for activities they usually enjoy, such as playing fetch or going for walks. They may also show a decrease in overall appetite. Owners often notice that their dog becomes withdrawn, seeking out hiding places and displaying a lack of engagement. These are common signs reported by owners when their dogs are feeling sad or down. Situations such as the loss of a caretaker or a housemate can trigger these emotions in dogs, requiring them to adjust and potentially needing some extra care and attention. It's important to provide your dog with love and support during these times. Hopefully, your dog doesn't experience depression, but if they do, these are the signs to look out for.

Why does my dog continue to get ear infections?

Unraveling the Mystery: Why Does My Dog Keep Getting Ear Infections?

Why does my dog continue to ear infections? That's a great question. So one of the most common reasons that people don't think about is that dogs will show allergies as Skin issues, or ear infections, so, will commonly see dogs that have underlying allergies and usually to Something in the environment, grass pollen, even fleas and they will manifest as an ear infection. Where a lot of times people will have respiratory issues. Dogs will have skin issues and so that's one reason for chronic ear infections. Ins, the other is it hasn't been treated properly. We often might see bacteria yeast or just inflammation in the ear. So, if a cytology or sample hasn't been taken, you might not be treating your pet with the right medication to kill what's actually in the ear cleaning is another really important component of battling, an ear infection. If your dog has a really deep ear canal and stuff is building up in there then, even if you're putting medicine in, it's not penetrating fully. So we usually recommend a really good work up by your veterinarian. Marion just determine what type of infection it is. Is there an underlying cause that could be going on? Are you cleaning sufficiently and then rechecking at the end of a new treatment to make sure that the treatment has been effective and the infection is fully clear, but if they're having chronic issues and especially they live here, in the South definitely have them checked out for allergies. That is the most common reason that I see the dogs have recurrent ear infections, hope it helps.

Dogs can get chronic ear infections due to allergies or not getting the proper treatment. It is important to have a vet work up to determine what type of infection it is and if there is an underlying cause that could be going on. Cleaning their ears thoroughly is also important for battling an ear infection.

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Why does my dog continue to get ear infections? One common reason is underlying allergies that manifest as skin issues or ear infections. Dogs can be allergic to things in their environment like grass pollen or even fleas. While humans may experience respiratory issues, dogs often show allergies through skin problems and ear infections.

Another reason for chronic ear infections is improper treatment. If the infection hasn't been properly diagnosed or the right medication hasn't been used, the infection may persist. Cleaning the ears is also crucial in combating ear infections. If the dog has a deep ear canal and debris builds up, medication may not fully penetrate.

It's important to have a thorough examination by a veterinarian to determine the type of infection and any underlying causes. Adequate cleaning and follow-up checks are necessary to ensure the treatment is effective and the infection is fully cleared.

If your dog experiences chronic ear issues, especially if you live in the South, it's advisable to have them checked for allergies. Allergies are often the most common reason for recurrent ear infections in dogs.

Why does my pet need heart worm prevention all year?

Year-round heartworm prevention: Protecting pets from mosquito-borne diseases

Why does my pet need heartworm prevention all year long? Well, the short answer is because mosquitoes around all year long, especially here in Texas. For I live in the south, we see mosquitoes, which transmit heartworm disease, to our pets all year. Now the best way to prevent them is that monthly pill or the injection, they can get at last six months to a year and it will kill them. Once you're infected right away and the worms will not have time to develop into adult worms in the heart. And cause major damage. Now, the other thing is, a lot of people don't think about heartworm prevention. Also has parasite prevention in it. And so for different types of worms, it will help prevent if your pet is outside and they are getting into things, it will help keep their intestines from having worms. So definitely recommend, heartworm, prevention year-round, you do not want your dog to get heartworms and mosquitoes are out there, so we want to protect them. Hope that helps.

Pet need heartworm prevention all year long because mosquitoes are around all year long and can transmit heartworm disease. Monthly pills or injections can kill the worms before they develop into adult worms in the heart, and also help prevent other types of worms if your pet is outside.

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Why does my pet need year-round heartworm prevention? Well, the simple answer is that mosquitoes, which transmit heartworm disease, are present all year, especially in regions like Texas. In the southern areas, mosquitoes can infect our pets with heartworm disease throughout the year.

The best way to prevent heartworms is by administering a monthly pill or injection that can last for six months to a year. This treatment kills the heartworm larvae before they have a chance to develop into adult worms in the heart, preventing major damage.

It's important to note that heartworm prevention also includes protection against other parasites. If your pet spends time outdoors and may come into contact with various sources, the prevention medication helps safeguard their intestines from worm infestations.

To ensure the well-being of your pet, it is highly recommended to provide year-round heartworm prevention. Mosquitoes are always present, and protecting your pet from heartworm disease is crucial.

How often should I give my dog heart worm medicine? 

Year-round Heartworm Prevention: Monthly or Injection?

How often should give my dog heartworm medication? This is a great question and you need to give it year-round. Now, there are oral heartworm pills that you usually give monthly. There's also a heartworm preventative injection that you can give used to be six months. They now have a year-long injection and so there's different ways to treat your pet and prevent heartworms from occurring. But you definitely want to give it yearly mosquitoes occur year round especially in my area in Texas and we see dogs that get heartworms because people will stop Op the prevention because it's too cold for mosquitoes and unfortunately the mosquitoes don't like to listen to that. And so give it your round whether its monthly or the injection, that's every 6 months, or 12 months, and keep your pet safe from heartworms, please.

It's important to give your dog heartworm medication year-round, whether it be in the form of a monthly oral medication or a 6-month or 12-month injection. This will help protect your pet from any potential heartworm infections.

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How often should you give your dog heartworm medication? It's important to give it year-round. There are oral heartworm pills that are typically given monthly, as well as a heartworm preventative injection that used to be given every six months but now has a year-long option. Different methods are available to treat and prevent heartworms in pets.

Regardless of the method you choose, it's crucial to administer the medication yearly. Mosquitoes, which transmit heartworms, can be present year-round, even in colder climates. It's a common misconception that heartworm prevention can be stopped during colder months when mosquitoes are less active. However, mosquitoes don't adhere to seasonal changes, so it's best to give the medication consistently to keep your pet safe from heartworms.

Whether you opt for monthly pills or the 6-month or 12-month injection, make sure to prioritize your pet's heartworm prevention year-round.

My dog weighs 40lbs, how much and and how often should I feed her?

Feeding Your Dog: How Much & How Often? Expert Advice Revealed!

My dog weighs 40 pounds. How much and how often should I feed her? So this is a really common question. I'll get when I am at my general practicing hospital and it is interesting because I often have to tell owners, it depends. So, a lot of foods that are manufactured will have recommendations and feeding guides based off of weight. That's a great place to start. But obviously if your dog is more active or has a higher metabolism and may require a little more food if they're overweight then usually we want to maybe. Look at that. Recommendation but feed for the weight that we're aiming for going forward. And so if you have a food that you can see that it's been scientifically proven to kind of need this amount based on weight, you can go off of that. Now there is a really long energy requirement formula that you could ask your vet about if you really want to know the calories and maybe you're making your dog's own food. But again, it depends. So check with your vet. If you have some specific questions,

A lot of manufactured dog foods will have feeding recommendations based off of weight. This is a great place to start, but if your dog is more active or has a higher metabolism, you may need to adjust the amount of food accordingly. If you have specific questions, check with your vet.

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My dog weighs 40 pounds, and you're wondering how much and how often to feed her. This is a common question, and the answer depends on various factors. Many manufactured dog foods provide feeding recommendations based on weight, which is a good starting point. However, if your dog is more active or has a higher metabolism, they may require more food. If your dog is overweight, it's important to feed for the weight you're aiming for in the future.

If you have a food that has scientifically proven guidelines based on weight, you can follow those. There is also a more complex energy requirement formula that your vet can provide if you want to calculate the exact calorie needs, especially if you're making your dog's food from scratch.

Ultimately, it's best to consult with your vet for specific guidance tailored to your dog's individual needs. They can provide personalized recommendations based on factors such as activity level, metabolism, and overall health.

What is your opinion on the current state of the veterinary profession and what changes do you think are necessary?

Veterinary profession in need of change: More support, better pay, improved access to care

What is your opinion on the current state of the veterinary profession? And what changes do you think are necessary as a profession and a business? We are needed more than ever. There's a ton of pets and people are seeing their vets veterinarians are in high demand support staff, members are in high demand, which means that people are getting paid more than they were in the past, which is great. But it also causes some issues in general. We need to pay people more so that they can have a better standard of living and a income versus debt. Ratio that is improved. But that means that we have to figure out how to still have access to care for our clients and not charge too much. To be able to pay our team more. So essentially there's a lot of things that really conflict with each other right now in our profession, where we want to make one thing better, but that means we need to make some drastic changes on the other side. On top of that that are is way more awareness about mental health, seeing you set boundaries and have just a better work-life balance overall even though we know there's no balance to be had, so we Are talking about these things a lot more, which is great, but we need to have more action. And overall, we need to recognize that some of this starts from within our profession. And is not just due to our clients, making things harder on as we have, a lot of changes we need to make to, I think covid gave us a chance to reset it, showed how needed we are as a profession but we need to be willing to think differently, do differently, do better and move in a more positive direction as a whole

We need to pay staff more, focus on mental health and wellness, and be willing to think outside the box in order to benefit everyone in the veterinary profession.

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In my opinion, the current state of the veterinary profession is one where we are needed more than ever. There is a high demand for veterinarians and support staff, resulting in increased pay, which is positive. However, this also presents challenges. We need to ensure that our team members have a better standard of living and an improved income-to-debt ratio. At the same time, we must find a balance between providing affordable care for our clients and being able to pay our team adequately.

Another important aspect is the growing awareness of mental health and the need for better work-life balance. While it's great that we are discussing these issues more openly, we need to take action and implement changes to support the well-being of veterinary professionals.

It's crucial to recognize that some of the challenges we face originate within our profession and are not solely due to external factors. We need to be willing to think differently, make necessary changes, and move in a more positive direction as a whole. The COVID-19 pandemic has given us an opportunity to reset and highlighted the importance of our profession. Now, we need to embrace this chance for improvement and strive for positive change.

Neither AnyQuestion nor its Experts provide medical advice, diagnosis or treatment or otherwise provide professional healthcare services.

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Dr. Tannetje Crocker answers your Pets questions. See all the advice Dr. Tannetje Crocker has and get answers to your own Pets questions.

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Dr. Tannetje Crocker is a 2009 graduate of Texas A&M College of Veterinary Medicine. She practiced equine ambulatory medicine for three years before transitioning to small animal medicine. She currently practices in Grapevine, TX and is passionate about mentoring young veterinarians. Growing up, she was passionate about horses and competed on the Texas A&M Equestrian Team. During her first year of vet school she met and married her husband Shane Crocker. They have two children and enjoy riding horses and exploring the world together.