Dear Dr. Fox: My daughter e-mailed you recently, asking whether you had any suggestions to help rid my dog of frequent epileptic seizures. His vet has him on phenobarbital and sodium bromide daily and a high-fat diet – four tablespoons olive oil, two tablespoons butter and one egg each day. He was still having one seizure a day for three or four days in a row. You suggested putting him on gluten-free food. So I started that right away, and he hasn’t had a seizure since Jan. 9. You e-mailed my daughter to see how he was doing, so that’s why I’m sending this note. Thank you so much for the advice. I just hope it continues to work for him. It has been great having him seizure-free for this long. – L.McC., Silver Spring, Md.Dear S.M.G.: Your wonderful dog has been trained to go potty indoors, and that can be a hard-to-break fixation. Begin by taking a soiled pad outdoors for her to sniff. Take a soiled piece in a plastic bag on your walks, and put the soiled material on the ground for her to investigate. This may trigger her urination/marking response or defecation. When and if she goes outdoors, give her plenty of praise.
Dear Dr. Fox: My granddaughter has two pet cats that she has had for about a year, but they were mature cats when she got them. She is now pregnant, and I’ve heard old wives’ tales about cats and babies, and none of them are good. Please publish this so everyone can know the truth. – C.B., St. Louis, Mo.Dogs can develop “sore” vocal cords with persistent barking, usually associated with an infection like kennel cough. As dogs get older, their vocal cords (as with many humans) become more “croaky” and have limited range. You can often tell when a dog is stone-deaf – the tone of the bark rarely changes.Dogs bark for many reasons and have a variety of barks for different situations and events. Your situation calls for immediate action by the police and animal-welfare/protection agencies if you think the dog is being neglected and may be barking to be let indoors or if the barking truly disturbs your peace.
Dear Dr. Fox: My granddaughter has two pet cats that she has had for about a year, but they were mature cats when she got them. She is now pregnant, and I’ve heard old wives’ tales about cats and babies, and none of them are good. Please publish this so everyone can know the truth. – C.B., St. Louis, Mo.Dogs can develop “sore” vocal cords with persistent barking, usually associated with an infection like kennel cough. As dogs get older, their vocal cords (as with many humans) become more “croaky” and have limited range. You can often tell when a dog is stone-deaf – the tone of the bark rarely changes.Dogs bark for many reasons and have a variety of barks for different situations and events. Your situation calls for immediate action by the police and animal-welfare/protection agencies if you think the dog is being neglected and may be barking to be let indoors or if the barking truly disturbs your peace.
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