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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 dog who will occasionally stick his nose where he shouldn't! With Halloween right around the corner, I was hoping to get a little information on dogs and chocolate. I have heard it can be toxic to dogs.
Thanks, Jodi
A: Dear Jodi,
Thanks for the question. You are correct. Chocolate, specifically the ingredient theobromine, can be toxic to dogs.
• Milk chocolate contains 44 mg of theobromine per oz.
• Semisweet chocolate contains 150 mg/oz.
• Baker's chocolate contains 390 mg/oz.
If you use 100 mg/kg as a toxic dose for dogs:
• 1 oz. per 1 pound of body weight for milk chocolate
• 1 oz. per 3 pounds of body weight for semisweet chocolate
• 1 oz. per 9 pounds of body weight for baker's chocolate
Usually, to see the most severe clinical signs related to chocolate toxicity, a very large amount of chocolate needs to be consumed. To give some perspective, a Hershey's (milk chocolate) Bar is 1.55 oz. So a 10-pound dog would have to eat 6 1/2 bars for it to be fatal, if untreated. A 60-pound Labrador would have to eat 40 bars! So, a few M&M's from your child's candy sac probably wouldn't be an issue.
Clinical signs include vomiting and diarrhea within 12-24 hours progressing to hyper excitability, nervousness, increased heart rate, increased urination, muscle tremors, seizures and death in 36 hours. If you suspect a chocolate dietary indiscretion, the best thing is to contact your veterinarian as soon as possible to induce vomiting and administer supportive care as needed.
Happy Halloween! Dr. Mascola
Fish experts!
Art Bell and Scott Henderson are not businessmen. They are aquatic (and reptile) hobbyists like you. They have a combined experience of over 30 years as hobbyists and 15 years working in various pet stores in the area. Send any aquatic questions to Art and Scott.
Q: Dear Art & Scott,
I was wondering if you have any advice or tips that I could use about a sick fish. I’ve had a Porcupine Puffer for a couple of months now and for a few days he’s been acting very sluggish, and breathing heavily. Also my puffer has lost his appetite. If there’s anything I can do to help him, or any other information you want to know, please let me know.
Thank you...Brett
A: Dear Brett,
The first thing you would want to do is bring a water sample (about 1-2 cups) down to your local fish store. Most will test for free, including us. Typically with the symptoms that you are describing there is something wrong with the water. There is either ammonia, nitrites, high nitrates, the PH could be off, the alkalinity, etc. All of these are important to keep a close eye on at the very fist signs of stress. You should probably perform a 25% water change, but without testing the water its hard to say for sure. To help keep him calm, keep the light off, hold off on feeding (if he’s not eating, feeding will only foul the water further) and try to get a sample to a store as soon as possible. I hope that we could be of some help
Art and Scott, Aquaterrium
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 older cat – she’s 18, maybe 19 – sucks her tail. She’s only started in the last month or so. She seems to be half asleep when she does it. She’s not biting it, just sucking. She’s also been acting a bit more needy. Do you think this is a problem?
John
A: Dear John,
At her age, your kitty may see this as a source of comfort, like sucking her thumb. As long as she is not mutilating herself and the tail is not getting really irritated then it is nothing to worry about. I would just let her be. Combined with the neediness, she might be experiencing a bit of feline cognitive dysfunction (Kitty Alzheimer’s). If she hasn’t had a check-up in a while, it would be a good idea to take her to the vet’s for a look-see, including blood work and urinalysis. Given her age, you must be taking good care of her!
Sally
Response to “cat proofing,” Sept. Issue No. 9..
Dear Sally,
I am a believer in "cat proofing" your home. First of all, no upholstered furniture, especially fabric that is nubby. No rattan or bamboo. I have found luck with futon furniture, director’s chairs and also slate or rod-iron/metal coffee tables and end tables. I never had a problem with scratching on my dining table, or my China Closet, which is wood, probably because it is stained and smooth. I hope I was helpful!
Karen M. Ertel
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.
Q: Dear Reptile Man,
I bought a horn toad a few months ago. I had it on my bed one day, and my dog jumped up and almost landed on it. I am sure that they didn’t touch at all but after I noticed what looked like blood near the Toad’s eye and on the bed. Could my dog have somehow hurt it?
Kevin
A: Hi Kevin,
What you have isn't actually a toad, its a small lizard from the western United States. This type of lizard has developed the ability to squirt blood out of its eye as a form of defense. It is a trick usually pulled off while in another animals mouth because the result is usually the lizard being dropped from the awful taste. The sudden appearance of your dog probably spooked that reflex. There doesn't always have to be contact.
Horned lizards come from a hot part of the country, so you should only have him out of his hot cage for short periods of time, with the dog locked out of the room.
Another important thing to know is that their natural diet in the wild is mostly ants. The ants contain different nutritional components than the crickets and meal worms that are usually available. Most of the horned lizards that are available are wild caught. If they are willing eat the crickets, then they will usually last for a little while, but they often do not thrive. You might want to check the back of reptile magazines to see if anyone has come up with a supplement for them. Good luck with it.
Ron
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 Bunny Expert,
My rabbit has a foul smelling odor all of a sudden and somebody told me to check his scent glands. What are they talking about?
Brenda and Snowflake
A: Dear Brenda,
They are talking about genital scent glands found near the genitals on both sides of that area. They are like an extra skin area. If you find them, you will usually see dark crust-like stuff in them that are easily cleaned out with a wet q-tip. It does have an odor. These should be checked and cleaned every couple of months and is easy to do yourself. This should solve the problem. But if something still seems abnormal then a vet check is always a good idea. I like to compare cleaning a rabbit's scent glands to cleaning out a human belly button.
Susan
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