The Bunny Expert!

Susan adopted her first house rabbit 5 years ago and soon after got highly involved in rabbit rescue. She has volunteered at a local rabbit rescue group and a local animal shelter working with rabbits. She has since co-founded 3 Bunnies Rabbit Rescue Inc. Susan can surely answer all of your rabbit questions!

Q: Dear Susan,
I’m writing about my rabbit’s ears. Inside her left, and starting on her right ear, they are very dry and flaky. She scratches and shakes her head as if there’s something in it she wants to get out. She is a year old. I don’t know what to do about her ears. Please help.
Jenna
A: Hi Jenna,

Your rabbit needs to see a rabbit/exotic vet. That is a vet that knows a lot about rabbits and other small animals, rather then just cats and dogs. It could be mites or something else that can be cleared up with medicine from the vet. Please take your rabbit to a bunny experienced vet as soon as possible before they get worse.

Susan

Dog Training!

Lynn Whittaker, Dog Trainer and owner of Bow Wow University has been training dogs for several years, has extensive rescue experience, is a pet sitter certified in Pet First Aid and specializes in aggression management. She is also an Aroma-therapist and a Reiki II practitioner. She has attended professional dog training school and later became the director of the facility she attended. She is currently studying canine athleticism and nutrition. Please feel free to direct your questions to Lynn!

Q: Dear Lynn,
I recently obtained a dog through a rescue, she is young. The shelter stated that they thought she was around 6 months but they weren't sure. I love her dearly, but she has an annoying habit of eating her own poop. I have taken her to the vet and she is free of worms and the vet thinks it is behavioral. I don't really understand what the vet meant by that. Can you explain this for me?
Thank you, Elaine and Sudy (the poop eater)
A: Dear Elaine,
Thank you for writing me!
Corpophagia, or stool eating, is a common occurrence in puppies and dogs. There are many ideas as to why they do it, but there is no specific scientific data that I know of as to the ultimate reason. Puppies are often inquisitive and if unsupervised may investigate, play with, or even eat their own stools. Corpophagia may also begin some guardian like tendencies (the dog wants to own the rights to his or her stools), and if done repeatedly the behavior becomes reinforced. When a mother has a litter of pups, she will often eat the waste of her puppies in an attempt to keep the den clean. Puppies may see this and copy their mothers, as copying behaviors are quite common in puppies. They will often copy each other behaviorally, and this can even continue into older "puppyhood". Hopefully you are not sticking the puppy's nose in the waste after she has done this as this can also encourage eating the stools.  You should never correct her after the fact. In order to properly train her, you must catch her in the act, so to speak, and get her away from the waste immediately.
I would recommend that she be leashed on all walks outside (hopefully you are doing that already) and when she eliminates praise her lavishly and pick up her waste immediately to avoid such temptations. Early intervention will help reduce the possibility for long term stool eating and the more you are consistent with this, the less opportunity she will have to consume the waste and eventually the behavior will extinguish on its own. 
I wish you the best of luck!
Regards, Lynn

Guinea Pig Expert!

Whitney Potsus has owned guinea pigs for nearly a decade. She is Vice President of The Critter Connection, Inc., a Durham-based non-profit dedicated to the rescue and rehabilitation of abandoned and neglected guinea pigs. You can find the rescue on the Web at www.ctguineapigrescue.org. Please direct all your Guinea Pig questions to Whitney.

Q: Hi Whitney!
During warm months I pick grass, clover, and dandelion greens from my pesticide-free lawn and wash and dry them before giving them to my guinea pigs. Some people put their guinea pigs outside on their lawn under a cage wire top and allow the pigs to help themselves. I tried this a few times with my pigs but they just cowered fearfully. Did I give up too easily, thereby depriving my pigs of learning about the outside world? Can guinea pigs catch mites or insect-borne diseases from hanging out on the lawn?
Thanks! Ellen in Colchester
A: Dear Ellen,
I’d say that if you gave them several chances and they never got past the fear, there’s no point pushing them past their comfort zone; it sounds like what you are doing (bringing the outdoors in to them), is all the exposure they want. Some guinea pigs take immediately to being outdoors for short periods of time as long as their owners are right nearby. Some never take to the outdoors. My thought has been that being outdoors sets off a primal (survival) instinct in them, because there’s a cadre of new things hitting all five of their senses. It’s likely overwhelming and is bound to make them feel profoundly unsafe.
To your other question, guinea pigs have as much chance of picking up something from the grass as a dog or cat does. All manner of animal traffic — domestic and wildlife — passes through our yards. While the majority of cats and dogs have some sort of protection (e.g., collars, treatments) against fleas, mites, lice (which is species-specific), and ticks, wild animals do not. As with any domestic indoor animal, the more time guinea pigs spend outdoors, the more risk they’re exposed to for picking up something.
Hope this helps! Whitney

Reptile Man!

Ron Wulff, the Reptile Man, has worked for one of the big retail pet stores for 6 years as a reptile and aquatic specialist. He rescues reptiles and runs www.nopaws.com, dedicating his time to educate people on exotic pets. Direct your exotic pet questions to Reptile Man.

In the past few weeks, I have received several e-mails about reptiles that have seemed to slow down on eating and normal activity.  Except for an actual health problem, the most common cause for this is temperature related.
This time of year in Connecticut, your house gets cooler.  The nighttime temperature can drop into the lower 60's.  Many times a reptile’s set up might be ok when combined with summer heat, but when the cooler weather gets here the tank gets cooler and the animal feels the difference.  While some reptiles do experience a cool down for breeding, it is more controlled.  If it isn't part of a breeding project, the cage should be set up in a way that the animal doesn't experience the drop in temperature.
My water turtles never have winter, because the temperature of the water I control with a heater.  For snakes and lizards you can use a 100-watt red light bulb or ceramic heat lamp to keep the cage warm all night without making the room bright.  You should double check all of your heating pads to make sure they are all plugged in and working.  Move the thermometer to different parts of the cage, including the floor of the cage, so you can check the temperature range where the animal actually spends most of its time.
This would also be a good time to double check on your animal’s actual needs. 80 degrees sounds warm to us, but a Ball Python needs it warmer and a Bearded Dragon needs it even hotter.
Another thing to keep in mind during the winter is that when you take your animal out of it's cage you will be dropping its temperature up to 30 degrees.  I still see people walking around with their snakes and lizards during fall weather.  As hard as it might be to believe, reptiles are not a big fan of the fall foliage.  Keep them warm.
Ron

Ask The Cat Lady!

Sally Bahner is a member of the International Association of Animal Behavior Consultants and has a private feline consulting practice. She is the "Dear Sally" on Tracie Hotchner’s Cat Chat Radio (www.catchatradio.com), found on Sirius, the Martha Stewart Living channel. She is a longtime editor and writer on everything feline.

Q: Dear Sally,
My cat, Emily, has been licking herself to the point where she has no fur on part of her belly. I feed her a good quality diet and she does not seem to have fleas. She gets along okay with our other cat though they do hiss at each other occasionally.
What could be going on?
Janet
A: Dear Janet,
I see three possibilities here. One is a possible flea allergy. Although you may not see fleas on her, it only takes one to create a reaction in cats that are sensitive to them. Another is food sensitivity. Grains or the meat source in the food you’re feeding may be triggering an allergic reaction. That can be determined by feeding a single new protein source for six weeks, preferably something the cat has not been exposed to. The last possibility is stress. Cats often over-groom in response to stressful situations. Keep an eye on the two cats to determine whether there’s more negative interaction than you think.
As you can see, there’s some detective work involved. Your first step should be a check-up with your veterinarian.
Sally

Ask the Vet!

Lauren Mascola is the veterinarian at Petcare Veterinary Services in West Hartford. She studied at UConn for undergraduate and Tufts for Veterinary Medicine. She has over 10 years experience and 2 dogs and 3 cats of her own. She is excited to answer your questions!

Q: Dear Dr. Mascola,
I have a 14-year-old cat who has recently been howling at night.  It started out only once in a while, but now she does it every night.  I can't figure out any reason why she does it and nothing has really changed in the house.  What might be going on?
Thanks, Laurie
A: Dear Laurie,
Thanks for the question.  This can be a frustrating problem with cats, because it not only worries their owners, it sleep deprives them, too!  Unfortunately, most of the time, there is no apparent reason cats begin howling at night.  That said, here are a few ideas. 
An un-neutered cat may howl as part of the mating process, even if their partner is outside and 1 block away.  Cats may also just be communicating with outdoor cats which they can sense (likely smell), that we do not even know are there.  Finally, a very common condition in older cats, called hyperthyroidism, can sometimes cause them to be awake and vocalize at times they used to sleep.
I would recommend a visit to your vet for a checkup and have some senior labwork done which includes a thyroid profile.  Hopefully you will get some answers and then some sleep!
Good Luck, Dr. Mascola

Equine Expert!

Mary Jo Zanolli is an instructor at Connecticut Equestrian Center in Coventry. She has over 12 years experience teaching beginner and intermediate riders, and over 20 years experience riding horses. Send all of your horse related questions to Mary Jo!

Q: Dear Mary Jo,
 My daughter wants to start riding lessons. I am wondering if there is any riding equipment I will need to purchase initially for her to begin the lessons.
Thanks,Becky
A: Dear Becky,
The two most important things to have for beginning riding lessons are hard soled shoes with a heel and a riding helmet. Shoes with a heel are necessary so the rider’s foot does not slide through the stirrup.
A helmet should be one made specifically for horseback riding, which meets ASTM/SEI standards. The most basic difference between a riding helmet and a bicycle helmet is that a riding helmet is made to protect the head from a fall involving height.  A helmet made for bicycling, rock climbing, or skiing, is made to withstand a fall onto a hard surface and may not provide adequate protection from a fall off of a horse.
If your daughter enjoys riding and wants to continue with lessons after several months, it is a good idea to invest in a pair of riding pants. The leather seat and knee patches on the riding pants offer a bit more grip than regular pants or jeans.
Mary Jo