Spring Break, Peripateticism, Pining and Pets

   It’s Spring Break, and we finally accomplish our bucket list
goal of traveling to Europe albeit as chaperones for a school trip.
Peripateticism takes on a new meaning as we embark on a whirlwind trip to
experience three cities in 2 countries in 5 days using subways, trains and
buses. On day one, we hopscotch from Dallas to Atlanta to Paris on an overnight
flight. As we are about to embark on the last leg of our journey, my nose and
throat warn me of an emerging head cold—can’t cancel now and antibiotics out of
my reach. On day two, a quick stop at the hotel to drop our bags and brush our
teeth before we rocketed out of the gate, fighting a daylight savings time
switch coupled with sleepless night on the plane hangover, to walk 10 miles,
see the sights and fall into bed after a 17 hour day. Yes, someone wore a
pedometer. And yes, breakneck speed not only encouraged but expected—leading to
an unfortunate fall on a crosswalk of a busy cobbled street. After I hit the
street with a thud and my sunglasses joined me moments after, I lay sprawled on
the street stunned by the turn of events like a running back felled by a dirty
tackle. Luckily, my knee absorbed the brunt of the energy and the pear shaped
hematoma reminded me that fleet feet don’t master cobbled streets. The
remaining days involved walking, climbing stairs, sightseeing and sprinting
after subway trains. According to another chaperone, we averaged 8 miles a day
with a smattering of sleep, as in never enough, in order to stay on track with the
tight schedule. Now, I wouldn’t consider this trip a flaming failure as we
met some wonderful people, saw the Eiffel Tower, The Louvre, Versailles, the
Champs Elysee and the Arc de Triomphe and the Mona Lisa, the Uffizi, the Museo
Galileo and the Pont Vecchio. Lunch breaks and the occasional shopping trip
were blissful.

Believe it or not, in the quiet moments, I thought of my animal
family at home, not my cushy couch or my favorite tv shows or my must have
foods. Pining for and planning to see my beloved pets proved to be my balm, my
panacea as I traipsed along the narrow uneven European streets dodging
pedestrians, cyclists and smokers. Two goofy dogs, two cuddly cats and four happy
horses awaited us back home. Yes, Paris is chic and Florence unforgettable, but
I realized I treasure my pets and the moments with them more than any trip
taken. The welcome home cha cha of a Great Pyrenees which ends cheek to cheek
followed by a wet sloppy kiss, the squinting cloudy eyes and wagging tail of an
aging Border Collie who approaches for a much needed embrace, the caress and
purr of my cats who jointly decide that catnip can’t compare as they curl in my
lap to nap, the pricked ears of my horses as they gallop to great me with a
whinny of approval—all special, golden and life-affirming moments. Yes, wonder
lust and peripateticism run through my veins as real as blood, but the best
journeys the best adventures will always be time spent with my family both human
and animal. Home is home only because my family shares it with me.

With a focus on furry friends, I asked veterinarian, Dr.
Sharon Phillips, to answer a couple of questions about keeping our pets healthy
and happy.

Thanks for joining us, Dr. Phillips to answer a few
questions.

Is it
important to keep a dog on heartworm preventative in the winter? If so,
why?  Is that recommendation based on
geography?

Heartworms are transmitted through mosquitoes.  While in some areas of the U.S., heartworm
preventative can be discontinued in the winter months, here is Texas, the
climate is such that we have mosquitoes present even during the winter
months.  All it takes is a 68 degree day
to hatch mosquitoes and that places your pet at risk for heartworm
disease.  That is why heartworm
preventative is recommended all year long in Texas.

What are
the over the counter painkillers (ie, aspirin, ibuprofen, etc.) that you should
never give your dog or cat? Why?

It is always a good plan to call you veterinarian before
giving any over the counter medication to make sure that medication is safe for
your pet and the proper dose for their size.
No aspirin, ibuprofen, naproxen or Tylenol should ever be given to
cats.  They do not metabolize these
medications like humans do and can have severe reactions to these drugs.  Aspirin can occasionally be given to dogs
under a veterinarian’s recommendation but ibuprofen, Tylenol, and naproxen are
not recommended.

For dogs
with thick coat like Pyrenees, why should they not be shaved for summer? I’ve
been told that the hair doesn’t grow back after repeated grooming on this
scale. If that’s true, why would that be the case?

This is always a controversial topic.  Those dogs with long hair and thick
undercoats, shaving them for the summer can alleviate some problems with
overheating.  Those dogs with long but no
undercoat or  thick
hair may not need shaving.  If the dog is
outdoors a great deal, the hair can be groomed but it is not recommended to
shave them so short as to where the dog may get sunburned.  To be honest, I have a pyrenese mix and I
clip his hair during the summer leaving at least 1 inch of hair to prevent
sunburn.  Repeated grooming should not
interfere with hair regrowth.

What’s the
most common medical myth about dogs? About cats?

I think one common myth is that cats are like small dogs,
medically speaking.  Cats have very
different dietary needs and metabolize medications very differently.  These species cannot be treated the same in
the veterinary medical aspect.

Based on
your many years of practice, what message do you want to convey to all pet
owners?

Please remember that pet ownership requires more than just
food and water.  Pets need medical
attention, vaccinations, and preventative care.
When thinking about acquiring a new pet, make sure that you can take on
the full financial aspect of pet ownership.
People tend to forget these pets need ongoing preventative care,
grooming, and other costs such as obedience training, etc.  Vaccinations are so important.  Vaccinations can prevent serious illness and
should be given according to the vet’s recommendation.  A $5 parvo vaccine can prevent a $1000 parvo
treatment bill.

Why is it
so important to clean a dog’s teeth?

Other than the fact that your dog has bad breath, dental
tartar can cause serious health problems.
Tartar is laid on teeth by bacteria; so the more tartar, the more
bacteria.  Thus, it can potentially cause
systemic bacterial disease.  Patients
with heart disease, diabetes, or immune mediated disease can be at special risk
for secondary bacterial infections.  Add
to that, dental tartar can cause gingivitis leading to tooth loss and gum
disease.  Abscesses can form when the
root of a tooth becomes infected.  This
usually leads to the tooth needing to be pulled.  As weird as it sounds, severe dental tartar
can also cause a diabetic animal to become insulin resistant leading to
difficulty controlling blood sugar.

What do see
as the biggest mistake that pet owners make?

I think one thing that comes to mind is obedience training,
especially in small dogs.  Toy breeds are
so cute and it is hard to bring yourself to correct them but not training these
dogs can lead to behavioral problems later on in life.  What is sometimes “cute” when dogs are
puppies, it may not be so cute when they are older.  This goes for bigger breeds as well.  Training a dog of ANY size to walk politely
on a leash is so important.  You don’t
want a small dog pulling constantly on the leash (can lead to throat problems)
or a big dog dragging you through the park.

What about
summer temperatures? Conversely, some people think their short haired or shaved
pooch has more survival leverage in a hot car. What is the ceiling outdoor
temperature for dogs and cats inside   a
car in the summertime?

No dog has survival leverage in a hot car.  Never leave your dog in the car when
temperatures rise.  There is not a
specific temperature because it depends on if is sunny or cloudy, windy or
still , etc.  If it is too hot for you to
sit in the care without the A/C for any length of time, it is too hot for your
pet.  Better safer to leave the dog at
home than to have it overheat in the car.
If a dog is provided adequate shade and plenty of fresh water, most dogs
can tolerate heat well.  This does not
apply to some breeds however.  Breeds
with short noses (bulldogs, Pekinese, shih tzu, pugs, Boston terriers, etc)
cannot tolerate heat.  A lot of heat
dissipation occurs through the nasal passages and these breeds don’t have those
abilities.  Additionally, dogs with heart
disease, lung disease, or are geriatric; these pets do not tolerate heat well
at all and should be kept indoors whenever possible.

Thanks again, Dr, Phillips.To schedule an appointment with Dr. Phillips, the following information will be helpful-

Tyler Veterinary Clinic
4505 Old Bullard Road
Tyler, Texas 75703
903-581-2070