First Aid

Hives, wheals, and welts are a moderate reaction to stings. Just like their human counterparts, dogs who have been stung can break out in unsightly hives. These are usually very itchy and uncomfortable. The first sign often noticed is the dog rubbing along furniture or scratching at the face and eyes. The hives may manifest as bright red streaks or lumps all over the body or be confined to a single place.

The truth is, we do not have a perfect solution for cranial cruciate ligament tears in dogs. Research is constantly evolving and we are still in search of the perfect fix. In humans, a synthetic or biologic ligament is placed where the damaged ligament used to sit. This was tried in dogs, but the outcomes were never good. The replacement ligaments were just not well tolerated. Consequently, something different had to be done.

The esophagus is a muscular, distensible organ that carries food from the mouth to the stomach. Megaesophagus is a common disorder in dogs that describes slow motility with resultant dilation of the esophagus. As a result of hypomotility, food will pool in the esophagus and stretch it. The stretching leads to damage to the nerves. This worsens hypomotility - a vicious cycle.

Your dog's paw pads act much like the soles of sneakers, protecting your dog's foot and cushioning each step. Paw pads are tough, but they can still be cut by sharp objects or worn off if your dog runs hard on rough terrain. What should you do when your dog cuts or tears a pad?

Your dog just had surgery, stepped on broken glass, caught her tail in a door, has a puncture wound, got bit or scratched, tangled with barbed wire, or has an abrasion that came from who knows where. You want the wound to heal quickly without bleeding, pain, or infection. The following strategies help achieve that result.

The clinical signs of distemper in dogs occur in stages and in three main body systems: the upper respiratory tract, the gastrointestinal tract, and the central nervous system. Initially, a dog may show signs consistent with upper respiratory disease: coughing, sneezing, high fever, lethargy, and nasal and eye discharge.

Calendula Officinalis (also known as the Marigold plant, but usually called calendula) and hypericum (also known as Saint John's Wort), are very safe, yet incredibly effective at cleaning the site of an injury and encouraging the body to heal. Homeopathic and herbal preparations of calendula and hypericum have proved invaluable in modern-day holistic dog care. In fact, it's difficult to find an herbal wound preparation that does not contain some form of one or both of these potent plants.

While some essential oils can benefit dogs, others are extremely dangerous - especially when used in their concentrated form. Tea tree oil demands extra caution around dogs, cats and small children. Although exposure to any essential oil is generally most concentrated when it directly contacts skin, tea tree oil diffusers and liquid potpourri present specific health concerns to dogs. These items release essential oils like tea tree continually into the air, risking exposure by inhalation.

Dogs get hiccups. Who knew, right? It turns out that this is a fairly common occurrence, especially in puppies. But what causes dog hiccups, and are there ever cases in which they actually indicate a medical problem?

Although neem oil is considered safe for topical applications on most dogs, ingesting neem oil can result in excessive drooling or vomiting. If using neem oil as a pest control measure or a topical treatment it is important to prevent your dog from licking or swallowing it.

because Otto wasn't growling or trying to get away. He would benefit from some counter-conditioning.üThis dog loves being petted – but panics when being even gently restrained. He would benefit from some counter-conditioning, so he forms the same sort of positive association he has with being petted as he does with being held or restrained.üThis dog is uncomfortable with being touched on the head. The handler is feeding her a treat that she likes, but you can tell the dog's backward-leaning posture and tightly tucked tail that the proximity of the petting hand and the handler's body has the dog obviously over her threshold for comfort.üThat's better! When the handler leans back a bit, and feeds the treat with her hand near, but not on the dog's head, the dog relaxes a bit. Her tail is still tucked, though, telling us she is near her threshold.

Just like a good skunking doesnt stop most dogs from going after those black-and-white critters again the next time (darn it!), there are many dogs who seem goaded into more intense bee-chasing behavior after an unfortunate encounter of the stinging kind. Conversely, there are also dogs who become literally phobic about all small, flying creatures after a stinging incident. Then there are those who develop an obsessive-compulsive behavior known as fly-snapping.