|
Subscribe to the newsletter
 |
|
Looking for a good book for new puppy owners?
|
Puppy Start Right, Foundation Training for the Companion Dog By: Kenneth Martin DVM, Debbie Martin BS, RVT, CPDT-KA, KPA CTP This 194 page, photo filled book is easy to read and understand. Written by a veterinarian and a certified dog trainer, it is scientifically accurate and up to date. It outlines developmental stages, puppy training, learning theory and basic obedience training for the older dog as well. It is spiral bound which allows the reader to set it down and leave it open to any desired page while working with their dog or puppy. It is available through www.veterinarybehavior.com. 
Perfect Puppy in 7 Days By Dr. Sophia Yin Dr. Yin has written a readable, entertaining book which is accurate, complete, up to date and effective. This book outlines her week-long babysitting and training gig for her father's Australian Cattle Dog puppy. It explains how puppies develop physically and behaviorally. It is also a full training manual for puppies. It is filled with color photographs of every step of the training as well as clear, concise instructions on how to make it happen. It is available at www.amazon.com. Download this in handout form for clients. Click here>>
|
|
Have you been to our website?
The Veterinarians page is filled with downloadable handouts and questionnaires for your practice as well as previous newsletters.
The Resources page is updated regularly with articles, videos and podcasts for pet owners on everything from puppy training to cat aggression.
Website
Veterinarians
Resources Lectures |
|
| FAQs | Q: I have a 12 year old, F/S German Shepherd Dog patient who has begun barking when the owners go to sleep upstairs.
She has severe osteoarthritis and is under treatment with oral antiinflammatories, pain relievers and supplements. In addition, she is in early stage renal insufficiency. Recently, she became unable to climb the stairs to the bedroom where the owners sleep. That is when the barking started. Right now, the owners are sleeping downstairs with her.
She has no signs of cognitive dysfunction. When the owners come downstairs to sleep with her, she stops barking and sleeps through the night. The dog is not anxious in any other way.
A: This dog has simple attention seeking behavior. Because she is elderly and cognitively inflexible, it will be more difficult (although not impossible) to extinguish this behavior by simply ignoring it as you would in a younger dog. In addition, what owner wants to ignore their elderly, infirmed dog while it barks downstairs?
The easiest solution would be to bring the dog upstairs since that is what the owners and the dog both want. This can be accomplished by putting carpet runners or grip strips on the stairs, helping the dog up the stairs with a sling or using booties.
If the owners cannot do this, supplements or medications can help the dog to sleep through the night. Because this patient is on multiple medications and has compromised kidney function, a supplement would be a good first choice. Melatonin can be administered 45 minutes prior to bedtime at a dosage of 3 mg for a large breed dog.
If Melatonin is not effective, a benzodiazepine such as clonazepam or diazepam can be combined with melatonin or alone to help the dog sleep through the night. |
|
Upcoming Behavior CE
|
Society of Veterinary Behavior Technicians
Las Vegas, NV September 17, 2011
www.svbt.org
Iams Behavior Symposium
Cinncinati, OH
October 1, 2011
www.vetmedce.osu.edu
|
|
Appointments
| |
561-795-9398
Appointments are available from Martin to Dade counties. All appointments are scheduled through our central office.
|
|
|
Would you like to schedule a Lunch and Learn at your hospital?
Lunch and learn lectures are complimentary. Almost any behavior topic can be covered. Call 561-795-9398 to schedule.
|
|
|
|
| Volume: 4, No: 3 | Quarter 3, 2011 |
|
Medication Interaction Alert!!
| Merial's new flea and tick product, Certifect contains amitraz. Amitraz is a monoamine reuptake inhibitor (MAOi) and should not be used with other medications which inhibit the reuptake of serotonin or dopamine. Using multiple medications which inhibit the reuptake of dopamine or serotonin increases the risk of serotonin syndrome, a life threatening emergency.
Commonly used veterinary medications which affect the reuptake of serotonin and or dopamine include: tramadol, trazodone, Reconcile, Anipryl and Clomicalm. This list is not complete. Read the drug monograph of the medication to be prescribed to check interactions.
|
What can you say in 20 minutes?TM
Elderly cat urinating outside of the litterbox.
| |
History:
Sammy, a 15 year old, DSH, M/N cat who has been urinating on the dining room carpet for 3 months. He continues to use the litterboxes for urination and defecation. There are no other cats in the house. The owner has always had 2 litterboxes. The location, litter, and style of the boxes has not changed. There have been no changes to the schedule or the environment. You diagnosed Sammy with renal insufficiency about 2 months ago. The owner is administering subcutaneous fluids and has changed his diet to the recommended kidney diet. His kidney disease appears stable at this time. The inappropriate elimination persists and the owner is getting frustrated. What are the differential diagnoses?
Differential diagnoses:
Litterbox aversion
Substrate preference
Location preference
Sammy may have developed a litterbox aversion because increased volumes of urine caused the litterbox to have an increased likelihood of being dirty at any given visit to the box. While the owner had not changed how frequently she cleaned the litterbox, the cat had changed the number of times that he visited the box and soiled it with urine.
Sammy could have developed a substrate preference. When the box was considered by the cat to be too dirty for elimination, he urinated in a spot which was convenient and to his liking--the carpet. When the owner found the soiled areas on the carpet, she inevitably cleaned it immediately (in contrast to the litterbox) increasing its desirability as an elimination area. Substrate preferences can also be developed in this case because the cat has increased urgency due to increased volume and can't make it to the litterboxes quickly enough due to their location. Learning occurs very quickly in this situation because it is inherently rewarding to urinate when the bladder is full. The likelihood of using that preference for elimination is increased.
Sammy could have a location preference. If he associates the litterboxes with any type of discomfort, he could have developed an aversion to them even after the discomfort has passed. This sometimes happens in cats after declaw or a painful urinary tract infection. Once the negative conditioning has occurred regarding the box, the cat may develop a preference for another location--the dining room. In cases where the cat has developed a substrate preference, the location will be irrelevant, but the substrate will be consistent. When the cat has developed a location preference, the cat will limit his urinations to one location, but will use multiple substrates.
In this case, Sammy is using one substrate in one location, however he continues to use the litterbox even though it is in a different location and has a different substrate. You determine that he has a litterbox aversion and a substrate preference only when the litterbox is soiled. Meaning that he will choose the litterbox when it is clean, however once it is soiled, he will choose the dining room carpet exclusively as his second choice.
Treatment plan:
You recommend that the owner add another litterbox to the house in the location where the cat is urinating and increase the amount of times that she scoops her boxes from once to twice daily. In addition, you recommend that the owner put an additional litterbox in the same location as the 2 original boxes, but that she place a towel in that box instead of litter.
Outcome:
Over the course of the next month, a pattern develops. Sammy uses the litterboxes with litter in them with as much if not more frequency than the towel box. The inappropriate elimination resolved as soon as the other boxes were added and the owner increased the cleaning frequency. After a month, you recommend that the owner remove the box with the towel in it. If Sammy's behavior is stable for a week, she can start to move the box in the dining room which has litter in it about 1 foot per day until it is in a more acceptable place.
|
|
Selected abstracts from the 2011 ACVB/AVSAB scientific meeting
| |
Harmonese Chewable tablets reduces noise induced fear and anxiety in a laboratory Canine Thunderstorm simulation.
DePorter, Landsberg, et al.
Double blinded, placebo controlled study. Harmonese tablets showed a significant reduction in inactivity duration in affected dogs during thunderstorms.
Scented vs Unscented
Neilsen.
Prospective study. There were no significant differences between cat preference for scented vs unscented litter.
Owner attachment and problem behaviors related to relinquishment and training techniques.
Kwan
Relinquished dogs were significantly older and larger, and were more likely to be pit bull type dogs. There was no effect of obedience training on relinquishment. Owners using punishment based collars were more likely to be dissatisfied with their dog's leash walking behaviors. Sixty-five percent of owners reported at least one behavioral reason for relinquishment while 48% reported that a behavioral problem was a strong reason for relinquishment.
Incidence of Parvovirus in puppies attending puppies socialization classes.
Stepita, Bain, et al.
Prospective study. Puppies attending puppy socialization classes prior to 16 weeks showed no greater risk of being diagnosed with parvovirus than puppies who didn't attend class.
Age and cognitive function in the domestic cat.
Landsberg, Milgram, et al.
There were significant differences in cognitive ability in cats depending on age (older cats doing more poorly on cognitive tests) suggesting age related decline in cognitive function.
Medium Chain Triglyceride Supplementation in elderly dogs.
Pan, Larsen, et al.
Older dogs fed the diet with added medium chain triglycerides performed significantly better on spatial memory, discrimation, memory, concept learning, and attention tests implying that this supplement can increase cognition in older dogs.
Effect of apoaequorin on cognitive function in aged canines.
Landsberg, Milgram, et al
Dogs given low dose apoaequorin scored significantly higher in discrimination learning tasks when compared to dogs who didn't receive the supplement.
Survey to asses health related quality of life (HRQOL) in small animal cancer patients treated with chemotherapy.
Iliopoulou, Kitchell, et al.
There was a statistically significant correlation between owner assessment and attending clinician assessment of QOL for all 3 visits. Statistically significant, predictors of QOL (owner rated) were playfulness, happiness and the illness of the dog.
|
|
|
Do you have an FAQ or case for the next newsletter?
Click here to email your question.
|
|
|
|
