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Our first choice for normal adult dogs is the Tartar Control Diet by the Hills Company, simply called T/D. There is no dog food that is more nutritionally sound and there is no dog food that can help keep their teeth and gums as healthy as T/D. Unfortunately, T/D is not an appropriate growth diet for puppies. For small and medium breed puppies, any nationally advertised puppy food should be nutritionally complete. Large Breed and Giant Breed Puppies have very special needs however. These are the breeds most prone to developmental orthopedic disorders. The Science Diet Large Breed Growth Diet is our recommended diet for these pets. This diet cannot prevent all orthopedic disorders but it does more than any other diet to minimize the risk. As a general rule, dry foods are cheaper than canned foods and promote better oral health. Many dogs have health conditions that require special dietary management. Each of these pets needs to be evaluated individually to best match their diet with their needs. Let us know if you have any questions regarding your dog’s diet.
The sad truth is that more dogs are put to sleep because of behavioral problems than are put to sleep because of disease and injury. Good behavior can help make your pet safer and more enjoyable but it will take some effort on your part. The more you invest of your time and effort, the greater will be your reward. For puppies, your priority should be to help socialize them to as many different people and experiences as possible. As a start, we strongly urge you to stop by our office on a weekly basis for what we call Happy Visits. It only takes a few minutes to stop in with your new family member so that we can give them a few tasty treats and a hug. We have been very successful at developing dog patients that are positively thrilled to visit our practice using this approach. It is hard to have a positive image of their visits if every visit is associated with an unpleasant injection, test, or surgical procedure. Periodic Happy Visits also help positively acclimate them to car travel. If they are happier about their visits it will make the experience infinitely more enjoyable for you and your new friend, and it will make our job much easier and more enjoyable for us too. After they have completed their puppy vaccination series we would strongly recommend you plan on attending one of the many area obedience classes. This helps socialize them to many different dogs and people and it lays a foundation upon which future training can be built. All family members should participate if possible, especially children. Ask at the front desk for our current list of obedience/training opportunities in the area. As they learn basic commands like "sit" and "down", your dog should be asked to perform a task before they are fed or given treats. This helps to promote a dominant position of authority over the dog. Remember, your dog thinks like a dog and you think like a person. You can help your dog be a better pet by learning how to think like a dog. We doubt your dog will ever learn how to think like a person. Crate training generally prevents destructive problems but we need to know right away if you are experiencing difficulties. Separation anxieties are not uncommon and are, generally, quite treatable. Dominant aggression is also a common problem for dog owners. Many dogs think that they are leader of the pack and we need to know right away if your pet is one of them. Some behavioral problems are tougher than others. Behavioral Management has become one of the many areas of our profession that has benefited greatly from the development of Board Certified Specialists. We will advise you when we think a problem has become serious enough to warrant the involvement of a Veterinary Behavioral Specialist. Please take advantage of our excellent puppy training reference books and videos in our Lending Library.
Grooming needs vary breed to breed and dog to dog. In general, most dogs do not need routine bathing. If your pet starts to smell a bit odd or if they tromp about in the mud, a good bath makes sense. Many dogs can go months without a bath while others need bathing every few weeks. As you increase the frequency of bathing, you increase the importance of which shampoo is selected. This is particularly true during the Winter months. Many shampoos will dry the coat excessively, particularly flea shampoos. We can help advise you in this regard. Although our hospital does not have the space to allow us to provide full service grooming, we do have a marvelous Hydrosurge Bathing Unit that is perfectly suited to the therapeutic needs of any pet. Clipping and heavy duty comb outs are currently being handled by the area's many grooming parlors.
When house soiling does occur it is important that we address the cleanup in a thorough and appropriate manner. First remove any residual fluid by blotting with a towel. Heavy contamination may require a water extraction cleaning before application. Follow with a thorough cleaning utilizing our preferred enzyme based agent, Anti-Icky Poo. This is the product recommended by the Behavioral Specialists at the Cornell University Veterinary College. We believe that this is the most effective way to eliminate urine and stool odors. |
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