• Carnation pink
• Smell sweet (or of not much, anyway)
• Clean

Signs of possible problems (like foreign objects in the canal or ears infections) include:

• Bright red skin inside the ears
• Bad smells
• Brown material or yellow discharge
• Head shaking , scratching at ears, cocking of the head

Take the test today. If you are concerned, contact your local veterinarian. Ear problems must be treated promptly and properly.

The virus in cats is transmitted by fighting and biting. Outdoor cats are therefore exposed to infection. Current recommendations for cat owners are:

• Vaccination is the best way to prevent the disease in at-risk cats.
• Limit exposure of indoor cats to oudoor cats.
• Keep outdoor cats indoors at night.
• Use caution when introducing a new cat. Have the cat tested for FIV antigens by the vet
• Isolate aggressive cats from other cats
• Desex all your cats - this reduces roaming and fighting behaviours

There is no treatment or cure for an FIV infected cat. Positive cats may be healthy for years before developing the illness. Ask your vet about vaccination now. It is a disease in which in cats is now preventable. The Lost Dogs´ Home Veterinary Clinic offers a discounted FIV program for $160, saving clients over $120.

Remember, things that annoy you will also annoy your pet so remember that they may also need insect repellent, suncare and some respite from the heat.

Flies
Flies love biting dogs’ ears, especially if your dog is a German Shepherd where the tips of the ears are vulnerable. In floppy eared dogs, the area at the back of the ear where it folds down is usually a favourite feeding ground for flies.

There are some excellent over-the-counter preparations available from the veterinary clinic which repel flies. Do not use human preparations.

Heat
Heat can be a real killer.

• Do not leave your dog in the car on hot days
• Restrict your dog’s exercise to prevent over heating

Dogs most likely to suffer from heat stress are those with pre-existing breathing problems as well as short nosed breeds (eg bulldogs, pugs, Pekingese, boxers) as they are unable to cool down effectively by panting.
Your dog should always have access to shade and plenty of water and on days of extreme heat you can wet the head and back of your dog to help with cooling.

Sunburn
Sunburn can be a real problem in some pets and, just like with people, long term exposure often leads to skin cancer.

Animals who are particularly at risk are cats with white ears and pink noses as well as dogs with pink bellies who enjoying sunbaking on their backs.
If you have a cat with a pink nose and/or white ears, you have several options. Firstly make them an indoor cat (this also prevents misadventure such as being run over by a car, fighting and prevents possibility of contracting illnesses such as feline AIDS) or keep them indoors during the middle of the day over spring and summer. Alternatively the sensitive skin area can be treated to make it more sun proof – eg with sunscreen or tattoo.

Breeds such as Bull terriers love sunbaking. Some owners make their pooch wear a UV suit to block the sun. Alternatively sunscreen can be used on the belly. If you are concerned about your dog’s face, peaked caps can be used to help block the sun.

Fleas
Warm weather always means an increase in the number of fleas.

If your dog or cat is allergic to fleas, one or two fleas is enough to keep your pooch scratching. Usually the animal will chew and scratch at its skin near the tail and along the back. The skin in the area may look red and there may be scabs and hair loss.

Your vet can give you advice on what agents to use to control fleas. Many are once a month preparations which are very effective, easy to administer and don’t involve bathing the animal. Products include adulticides, which kill adult fleas, and growth regulators, which prevent flea eggs from developing into adult fleas.

Regardless of which product you use, it is essential that all your cats and dogs are treated at the same time.

Dogs bark for many reasons. These include excitement, anxiety, attention seeking, pain, guarding territory and boredom to name a few. With so many causes there is not a single “one size fits all” remedy for excessive or inappropriate barking. Most excessive barkers are motivated to vocalise for a number of reasons, so a holistic approach is generally needed to address the problem successfully.

Some points that might be useful to get you started are outlined below:

First Night Blues
If your dog starts to vocalise on its first night at home with you, there is a strategy that can be used to make sure that your dog doesn’t receive attention from you for inappropriate barking. Making a novel, short noise such as a rolled up newspaper slapped against the wall or a high pitched whistle, will often stop the barking temporarily. This noise is NOT meant to frighten the dog, just attract its attention momentarily. It is essential that your pet doesn’t know this sound has been made by you; so be certain not to yell. Continue to make the short, sharp noise the MOMENT your pet BEGINS vocalising. If you persist with this over five or ten minutes the barking will often cease. When your pet has been silent for a time you should check on her if you feel she is cold, hungry, may need to toilet etc. While this technique is effective for many dogs if they are barking for your attention, it may not lead to an improvement if other factors are motivating the bark.

Busy = Quiet
Ensure your dog has adequate mental and physical activity each day. This can include appropriate games, toys and training opportunities. This results in a calmer, more contented dog who is less likely to be reactive to minor stimuli. A leaf falling from a tree is hardly worth barking at if Fido has his attention taken up with a favourite chew toy or is tired after playing fetch.

A Suitable Environment
Some minor changes in the environment your dog inhabits can reduce barking significantly. For instance, closing the curtains and offering a tasty raw bone to chew on when the children are passing on their way home from school will help your dog to remain quiet at this time. Providing a source of extra warmth in your dog’s kennel on chilly days will encourage him to remain snuggled up quietly.

Barking Scared
Dogs that bark because they are frightened or anxious will often need an individual treatment plan. Fears and anxieties tend to deteriorate over time if left untreated, along with the barking that sometimes occurs concurrently. Dogs who bark or howl through thunderstorms can often be helped by the use of CD’s to help them learn to cope more effectively. Severe cases of anxiety may require appropriate medication to ensure the dog doesn’t panic. Seek professional advice as soon as possible, if you have any concerns that your dog’s barking might be anxiety related.

Rewarding Silence
Don’t take quiet, calm behaviour for granted. Offer your dog food treats and verbal praise when he’s sitting around doing nothing. This might sound like easy street for your dog but it helps him to learn that attention and good things come for being quiet, so why bother barking!

The cause of the barking needs to be correctly diagnosed in order to change the behaviour for the better. Your vet can help you with an approach for your dog.

The anal sacs are glands located on either side of the anus at the 8:00 and 4:00 positions. They are positioned within the muscle of the anal sphincter. They connect to the outer skin of the anus by means of small canals or ducts. Anal sacs produce and store a smelly dark brown fluid. Anal sacs are a kind of scent gland. The anal sacs can be emptied if the dog is very frightened or sometimes during normal defaecation. If the sacs are rarely emptied, the fluid builds up, solidifies, and becomes an ideal environment in which bacteria can grow.

What can go wrong with anal sacs?

1. Impaction: When the fluid becomes thick and solidified, it is hard for the gland to empty normally. This is called impaction.

2. Infection: When bacteria grow in this material producing a yellow or bloody pus.

3. Abcessation: If an infection builds up, it can involve surrounding tissues, causing heat, pain and swelling. The pus can burst through the skin, causing a bloody pus discharge and a visible sore

4. Cancer : Anal sac tumours can occur in dogs and are often malignant.

What are the signs of anal sac disease?

Signs your dog is not happy with their anal sacs are:

1. Scooting or dragging the anal area.

2. Excessive licking around the tail.

3. Pain around the tail or anus.

4. Swelling or redness at the side of the anus.

5. Bloody or yellow discharge from sores near the anus.

6. Difficulty or pain when passing stools.

Treatment:

For Impaction, the vet will gently squeeze out (express)the contents of the anal sac. For infection, the sacs must be expressed and antibiotics administered to kill the bacteria. If there is an abcess, this will need surgical draining by your veterinary surgeon and antibiotics administered.

Occasionally lumps near the anus can be tumours or hernias. The vet may collect a needle biopsy or a surgical biopsy to diagnose the type of tumour. The treatment and prognosis (long term outlook) will depend on the type of tumour.

Surgical treatment for recurrent disease:

It is not uncommon for dogs to have recurrent anal sac disease. Some breeds of dogs, such as Poodles, commonly have this problem. If a dog has several episodes of anal sac disease, the anal sacs can be removed surgically. Because these sacs are virtually unused, there is no loss to the dog. It is the only way to permanently cure the problem.

Are there any complications of the surgery?

Surgery requires general anaesthesia which always carries some degree of risk, whether the patient is a dog or a person. However, modern anaesthetics make this risk very minimal for dogs that are otherwise healthy.

Some dogs will experience lack of good bowel control. They may drop faecal balls as they walk. This occurs because the nerves that control the anus are very near the anal sacs and may be damaged during surgery. However, this is almost always a temporary problem that will usually resolve in a few weeks.

After thunderstorms, The Lost Dogs´ Home in North Melbourne admits many stray dogs that have simply run away from home in an attempt to ‘get away’ from the storms.
Dogs stressed by thunderstorms typically show abnormal behaviours such as being timid, anxious, disobedient, barking, restlessness, destructiveness, running and other fear behaviours.

To minimize the stress to you and your dog here are some tips:

• Confine your dog, preferably indoors and block out extra visual stimuli such as lightning
• Do not reinforce fearful or anxious behaviour by patting or rewarding your dog
• For cases of extreme anxiousness consult your vet for advice regarding medication and behaviour modification training

1. All cancers are not the same.
a. Some tumours are classed as malignant, some as benign.
i. Malignant tumours are fast growing and have a high risk of spreading. Some malignant tumours can spread by metastasis (moving through the bloodstream or the lymphatic system to distant parts of the body) where some will spread by infiltration or local growth.
ii. Benign tumours grow slowly and do not metastasise. They can occasionally cause trouble if they grow too big.

2. You often cannot tell whether a tumour is benign or malignant by looking at it. Collecting a biopsy or sample of a tumour can tell us much more about it.

3. Some tumours are easily treated by early surgical excision. Early detection and treatment is and important factor in successful treatment, so don’t put off your visit. All patients for surgery receive high levels of pain control to ensure they recover happily.

4. Some tumours are curable with chemotherapy. Chemotherapy in pets is used as a stand alone therapy or as an aid following surgery. Chemotherapy in dogs and cats is usually tolerated without many of the unpleasant side effects seen in people such as hair loss and loss of appetite.

If you are concerned about a lump or bump on your pet, make an appointment with your vet as soon as possible. It is essential for a successful outcome.

Unfortunately this problem is very common in certain areas and in certain breeds. So what can be done to help prevent this problem?
1. Check your pets ears daily
2. Check your pets paws daily.
3. Have your dog clipped if you are in an area with lots of grass seeds - this will make grass seeds easier to see and also help prevent grass seeds adhering.
4. Have any constant licking, head shaking or pawing at ears investigated by your veterinary surgeon as soon as possible.
5. Remove any grass seeds trapped in the hair coat.

Make sure you:

• Worm your pet regularly (at least every 3 months for adults and fortnightly for young pets. Ask your vet for a suitable worming regime for your pet)
• Dogs in hydatid tapeworm areas need treatment every 6 weeks
• Clean sleeping areas regularly
• Control carriers such as fleas and rodents
• Do not feed offal
• Wash hands

There is now a wide choice of worming products in various forms such as tablets, pastes, liquids, and spot-on products that will control intestinal worms and also combination products that will also control fleas and heart worm. Ask your vet for the product most suited to your pet.