Ask Dr. Paola: Monday April 7, 2025

The station Ask Dr. Paola: Monday April 7, 2025 by Dr. Paola Cuevas MVZ (Vet) appeared archetypal connected Dogster. Copying implicit full articles infringes connected copyright laws. You whitethorn not beryllium alert of it, but each of these articles were assigned, contracted and paid for, truthful they aren't considered nationalist domain. However, we admit that you similar the nonfiction and would emotion it if you continued sharing conscionable the archetypal paragraph of an article, past linking retired to the remainder of the portion connected Dogster.com.

Welcome to our “Ask Dr. Paola” series, wherever each Monday we bring adept proposal consecutive from Dr. Paola Cuevas (MVZ) to assistance our readers amended recognize their dog’s wellness and well-being.

Whether you’re a caller favored genitor oregon a seasoned canine lover, Dr. Paola is present to supply answers to your astir pressing questions. From nutrition tips and preventive attraction to troubleshooting communal behavioral issues, Dr. Paola is acceptable to connection insights that volition support your furry person blessed and healthy. Stay tuned for adept guidance connected a scope of topics that substance astir to you and your dog, truthful you tin marque informed decisions and supply the champion imaginable attraction for your canine companion. ‎Have‎ a ‎question? Send it successful here!

Help! My Dog has Degenerative Myelopathy

“Dear Dr. Paola,

Dallas was diagnosed with Degenerative myelopathy astir a twelvemonth ago. He is truly starting to conflict with his backmost legs, and helium is falling a lot. What tin I bash to assistance him?” – Barbara

Hi Barbara,

Thank you for reaching retired and for caring truthful profoundly for Dallas. Degenerative myelopathy (DM) is specified a heartbreaking information to witness, arsenic it dilatory chips distant astatine a dog’s mobility portion they stay mentally agleam and engaged. It’s incredibly hard watching a beloved person trapped successful a assemblage that’s nary longer cooperating. The bully quality is that determination are ways you tin enactment Dallas’s prime of beingness and assistance him stay comfy and progressive for arsenic agelong arsenic possible.

At this stage, erstwhile weakness and falls go much frequent, assistive devices tin marque a important difference. A well-fitted rear enactment harness allows you to assistance Dallas locomotion with much stableness particularly erstwhile going extracurricular for toileting oregon navigating slippery floors. Some dogs besides payment from utilizing a wheelchair oregon cart, which helps instrumentality the value disconnected their hind extremity and allows them to proceed exploring their satellite with a spot of independence. You tin springiness immoderate of these DIY wheelchair projects a try.

Inside the house, yoga mats oregon rubber runners tin make harmless paths that minimize slipping. Physical therapy oregon hydrotherapy tin assistance support musculus tone, enactment circulation, and dilatory down further decline, astir similar physiotherapy for humans with spinal issues.

Although there’s nary cure for DM, the extremity present is to sphere comfortableness and dignity. You mightiness besides see moving with a veterinarian who offers integrative care, including acupuncture oregon laser therapy, arsenic immoderate dogs find these therapies adjuvant successful maintaining spot and comfort. If you’re ever uncertain astir however to champion enactment Dallas time to day, a tele-triage consultation tin assistance usher decisions without requiring a travel to the clinic, particularly if mobility is limited. You’re intelligibly doing everything you tin to marque his days brighter, and that emotion and your enactment and beingness mean much to him than anything. Thank you for being a loving favored parent!

Sincerely,
Dr. Paola

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Help! My Dogs’ Food Has Been Recalled!

“Hi Dr. Paola,

I’ve been buying Carna4 canine nutrient for a portion for my dogs Emmy and Tazie from a Seller successful PA and precocious disconnected Amazon. No 1 notified america that the products were recalled. That is not right, we person been feeding our dogs this canine nutrient on with their home-cooked meal.

What are the wellness dangers we present request to beryllium alert of? Whose work is it to notify buyers erstwhile dangers beryllium successful immoderate “healthy” foods made for humans and our beloved fur babies? Should I propulsion retired our latest container of Duck, Liver, Eggs, and Sprouted Seeds? We unrecorded successful a purchaser beware world; I didn’t spot this coming! “ – Donna

Hi Donna,

I wholly recognize your vexation and interest erstwhile we take a commercially disposable canine food, we expect transparency and safety, particularly erstwhile it comes to our dogs’ well-being. Emmy and Tazie are fortunate to person idiosyncratic truthful proactive and tuned into their care.

To my knowledge, Carna4 has ne'er had a recall, and nary person been reported by the FDA. That said, if you heard this from a reliable source, it’s important to find precisely wherefore the merchandise was pulled. Some recalls are precautionary, specified arsenic insignificant prime concerns, portion others are based connected confirmed risks owed to imaginable contamination (like Salmonella oregon mold) and with confirmed cases. The second ones necessitate contiguous action, similar pulling them disconnected the shelves.

In general, recalls are issued done coordination with the FDA, and manufacturers are expected to notify retailers, distributors, and, ideally, the public. Unfortunately, not each online retailers oregon third-party sellers are diligent successful passing that accusation along, which tin permission favored parents successful the dark. When a callback is announced, peculiarly if there’s immoderate hazard of illness, it’s safest to halt feeding the affected merchandise instantly and show your pets for immoderate antithetic signs specified arsenic vomiting, diarrhea, lethargy, oregon appetite changes. Even if Emmy and Tazie look fine, it’s a bully thought to notify your veterinarian and support the packaging oregon batch fig useful successful lawsuit follow-up investigating is needed.

As for responsibility, some the shaper and the seller stock the ethical work to notify consumers, but the world is, particularly successful an online marketplace, that follow-through is often inconsistent. In cases similar this, it’s ever safest to err connected the broadside of caution and discontinue the nutrient until you’ve verified that the batch is not included successful the recall. I promote you to study immoderate concerns straight to the FDA’s favored nutrient ailment portal—they bash instrumentality user reports seriously, and your dependable helps advocator not conscionable for your dogs but for others too. By the way, did you cognize that Dogster sends authoritative callback alerts to your email? You tin motion up, and you volition get an email whenever a dog’s nutrient has a callback issued. I anticipation this helps!

Dr. Paola

Help! My Dog Obsessively Licks His Paws!

“Hi Dr. Paola,

My canine Morty obsessively licks his paws and me, particularly my hands, arms, legs, and feet. He seems upset erstwhile I archer him to stop. Is this anxiety? Should I marque him halt oregon conscionable fto him bash it? “ – Heather

Hi Heather,
Thank you for sharing this astir Morty. It sounds similar he’s a precise affectionate soul, but I recognize however the changeless licking tin rise questions and adjacent go overwhelming astatine times. When dogs repeatedly lick their paws oregon their humans, it’s often much than conscionable grooming oregon affection, it tin beryllium a motion of an underlying affectional oregon carnal need.

Licking tin service arsenic a self-soothing behavior, akin to however immoderate radical wound their nails erstwhile anxious. If Morty seems distressed erstwhile you interrupt him, anxiety could surely beryllium playing a role. Separation-related stress, boredom, oregon adjacent a past of reinforcement (where the licking whitethorn person erstwhile been rewarded with attraction tin each contribute. However, it’s besides important to regularisation retired carnal causes. Paw licking, successful particular, whitethorn stem from allergies, irritation, oregon discomfort. Dogs with biology allergies often amusement signs done their tegument and paws, and successful immoderate cases, it becomes a cycle: itch leads to licking, which leads to much irritation. If his paws look red, swollen, oregon stained from saliva, it’s worthy having your veterinarian analyse him.

Rather than scolding him, which tin make disorder oregon adhd to stress, effort redirecting his vigor successful ways that conscionable his affectional and carnal needs; for example, springiness him a puzzle toy, a frozen lick mat, oregon prosecute him successful calm grooming sessions that usage affirmative reinforcement. You’re close to intermission and wonderment whether to let the behaviour oregon not, and the champion way guardant is usually 1 of compassionate redirection. If anxiousness is suspected but not extreme, a consultation done a tele-triage service tin assistance usher you connected simple, supportive interventions earlier moving connected to a afloat behavioral consult. You’re already doing close by Morty by observing and asking the close questions; sometimes our dogs pass successful licks what they can’t accidental successful words. Good luck!

Dr. Paola

The station Ask Dr. Paola: Monday April 7, 2025 by Dr. Paola Cuevas MVZ (Vet) appeared archetypal connected Dogster. Copying implicit full articles infringes connected copyright laws. You whitethorn not beryllium alert of it, but each of these articles were assigned, contracted and paid for, truthful they aren't considered nationalist domain. However, we admit that you similar the nonfiction and would emotion it if you continued sharing conscionable the archetypal paragraph of an article, past linking retired to the remainder of the portion connected Dogster.com.