Animal wellness
FEBRUARY/MARCH 2012
Animalwellness For a long, healthy life!
Take it to
heart
How to tell if your dog has cardiac problems
Ready, set
Smile
Find out what actually happens during a veterinary dental cleaning
animal Wellness Magazine
Animal
ambassadors
5
myths about
Anesthesia
Emmanuelle Vaugier
apps for animals
An actress with a passion for helping animals
feline WELLNESS Hip, cool and healthy!
Patient and powerful Meet the BOXER!
LET’S TALK
TITERS
These antibody tests are a viable alternative to annual booster shots
Home health checklist Goathouse
REFUGEE
A place for needy cats to call home
IS SHE FEELING
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Foggy
10 ways to cope with feline dementia
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Contents February / March 2012
features 18 Take it to heart
Cardiac disease can afflict dogs of all breeds and sizes. Find out what the signs are, and how these conditions can be diagnosed and treated using an integrative approach.
22 Ayurveda for dogs
This ancient holistic healing system was developed in India and can be applied to companion animals as well as humans.
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26 Animal ambassadors
Many hotels and resorts accept four-legged guests, but what if your companion isn’t a good traveler? Fill the void left by his absence by checking into accommodations with their own friendly resident critters.
28 The latest on H1N1
The flu virus that swept the world in 2009, afflicting animals as well as humans, has the potential to combine with other bugs to form hybrids. Help protect your companion by protecting yourself.
32 Apps for animals
Mobile applications are going to the dogs! Check out the growing number of products designed especially for pooch people.
34 Mouth matters
Dental problems affect most dogs. A wholesome meaty diet along with energetic balancing are two effective ways to help treat and prevent periodontal disease.
40 Ready, set, smile! What actually happens during a veterinary dental cleaning? Knowing what the procedure involves can help relieve any anxiety you might feel for your dog.
43 A quest for comfort
How improving her arthritic cat’s quality of life inspired this businesswoman to give up her banking career and start a pet bed company.
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animal wellness
46 Snow safety
Winter offers lots of opportunities for outdoor fun and exercise. Just remember to keep your dog’s well being (and your own) in mind, especially if you live in or are traveling to avalanche country.
50 Attack plaque!
76 My furry Valentine
Show your canine companion you care with these heartfelt gift ideas.
80 A catalyst for change
There are several main areas to consider when caring for the 48 adult teeth in your dog’s mouth – good nutrition and natural remedies, regular brushing and veterinary cleaning.
For nearly 30 years, this organization has been rescuing dogs, cats and other critters from dire straits, while going the extra mile to end animal abuse and neglect.
64 Let’s talk titers
83 He walks his talk
66 Is she feeling foggy?
86 Emmanuelle Vaugier – a passion for helping
Want to avoid over-vaccinating your cat? These antibody tests are a viable alternative to annual booster shots.
Feline dementia is a very real issue in most senior cats. Here are 10 ways to help you and your kitty cope.
68 A place to call home
Nestled amid 16 acres in North Carolina, this refuge for needy cats is an idyllic sanctuary.
70 Home health check list
Cats are good at hiding pain or illness. Keeping an eye on your kitty’s well being can alert you to potential problems so you can get him to the vet before they become serious.
Not too many busy entrepreneurs go out of their way to add philanthropic work to their already lengthy to-do lists. Here’s one who does.
Improving the lives of animals in need is high on the list of priorities for this ambitious Canadian-born actress.
90 5 myths about anesthesia
If you feel nervous about having your dog “put under” for veterinary procedures, you’re not alone. While there are risks involved, anesthesia is safer than you might think.
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38 What’s your breed?
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57 Warm & fuzzy
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61 Cat chat 84 Communication
Departments
94 Passages
8 Editorial
96 Book reviews
12 Mail bag
103 Tail end
44 Product picks 53 Animal Wellness resource guide
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73 Feline Wellness marketplace 74 The scoop 98 Animal Wellness marketplace
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104 Classifieds 105 Events calendar
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The latest on
H1N1
The flu virus that swept the world in 2009, afflicting animals as well as humans, has the potential to combine with other bugs to form hybrids. Help protect your companion by protecting yourself.
by Patrick Mahaney, VMD, CVA
I
t’s flu season, and most people are doing what they can to avoid catching this year’s viruses. As most of us remember, swine flu was the big bug of 2009 – not just for humans, but for companion animals as well. Currently named North American Influenza, it’s scientifically known as Porcine Influenza A Virus subtype H1N1. Most of us know it simply as H1N1.
entitled Swine Flu – Could H1N1 Infect Your Canine? To my surprise, the veterinary virologists I consulted expressed a lack of concern about possible transmission of H1N1 to animals. At the time, no positive cases of H1N1 had been confirmed in companion animals, but considering the close personal space people share with their dogs and cats, I concluded that a human-to-animal zoonosis seemed inevitable.
H1N1 was first isolated from swine in 1930 and had been previously detected in birds and humans. As swine serve as hosts for multiple subtypes of influenza virus, they’re a veritable melting pot of infectious respiratory diseases. It’s because the epithelial cells lining their respiratory tracts have receptors for both avian (bird) and mammalian (person, swine, dog, cat) influenza viruses. The 2009 H1N1 strain originated in Canadian pigs; people were infected through direct contact with ocular (eye) or respiratory secretions from swine.
According to the American Veterinary Medical Association, the first confirmed cases of H1N1 infection in companion animals in the US occurred in one cat and two ferrets near the end of 2009. The cat and one of the ferrets recovered. Shortly after that, several dogs tested positive and reportedly survived the infection. The presence of H1N1 in these animals was verified via Idexx Laboratories’ Canine and Feline Upper Respiratory Disease (URD) RealPCR Panel, which evaluates ocular and oral secretions for a variety of bacterial and viral organisms.
A look at zoonoses I have a keen interest in diseases that pass between animals and people. These are known as zoonotic diseases, or zoonoses. Prevalent public health concerns are for animal-tohuman zoonoses, such as rabies, tapeworm and toxoplasmosis, rather than diseases that move from humans to animals.
A greater number of dogs, cats and other companion animals may have become sick or even died of H1N1 infection than have been reported. I speculate that thousands of animals were likely never tested for the H1N1 virus, due to lack of awareness of the test or the cost prohibitive nature of laboratory testing.
In 2009, feeling that someone needed to explore H1N1’s potential to transfer from people to animals, I wrote an article
There are no reports of H1N1 spreading from one companion animal to another (e.g. dog to dog). Also, no
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The hybrid has generated concern that additional 2009 H1N1 multi-species viral combinations may emerge in the future.
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humans were reported to have been infected by their dogs or cats. However, I feel this could happen if the necessary biological and environmental situations are met.
Symptoms and treatment A variety of illnesses can cause clinical signs of respiratory disease in animals. Some are infectious (viral, bacterial, fungal, etc.) and others non-infectious (allergies, irritants, etc.). Signs include coughing, sneezing, wheezing, gasping for air, nasal and ocular discharge, light pink to purple gums, and lethargy. Respiratory tract afflictions can also cause decreased appetite, vomiting and diarrhea. It would be realistic to suspect H1N1 infection if the animal was exposed to a human with flu-like symptoms, regardless of the person’s official diagnosis of H1N1. Appropriate treatment for H1N1 can be administered based on test results and suspicion of disease. In veterinary clinical practice, however, respiratory infections are commonly treated with antibiotics and supportive care (fluids, etc.) without achieving an official diagnosis. H1N1 is shed for only a short time post infection, so false negatives can occur even when an animal is sick.
What the future may hold In August 2010, the World Health Organization declared the H1N1 pandemic officially over. It’s still a life threatening epidemic in certain countries, such as India, and it continued to infect companion animals and wildlife in the US into early 2011. Although the number of American H1N1 infections is no longer on the rise, we may face a potentially more virulent form of this virus in the future. In June 2010, researchers at the University of Hong Kong and Shantou University Medical College discovered a hybrid virus containing genetic material from 2009 H1N1 and other avian and swine viruses. This hybrid virus was found among pig herds in China. Until this discovery, H1N1 was not proven to re-assort with viruses from other species besides animal wellness
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