It is fine to use the human brand of prozac.. generic is cheap… Don’t be talked into using the new “vet version” that cost tons more.. a 20 mg. prozac (Rx from your vet) can be scored into 4.. find a dose for your pet.. listen for a podcast on this soon… speak to the vet and GOOGLE..

re-print from LA Times

Fido’s little helper

By Carla Hall, Times Staff Writer
January 10, 2007

Photo Gallery

Animal meds

WHAT could be wrong with Shadow? The green-eyed, long-haired cat had adapted well to his Santa Monica home. There was a carpeted cat tree in the living room for his climbing pleasure. He appeared to have reached an understanding about sharing the house with the other resident feline.

Then one day his owners saw wet spots around the house: Shadow was urine-spraying. The door was a favorite target. So was the side of the sofa. And a corner wall of the living room.

Not to be confused with eschewing the litter pan, spraying is a ritual of territorial marking that cats sometimes do whether they are spayed or neutered — as Shadow is — or not.

Shadow’s keepers, Fernanda Gray and Elliot Goldberg, were distressed. Pet ownership, they believe, is a trust not to be betrayed. “I don’t throw animals away,” said Gray, who with her husband now owns three cats.

But Shadow’s spraying had tested the couple’s resolve. They had to replace draperies, carpeting and the sofa. Their veterinarian was running out of ideas to discourage Shadow’s habit.

Then Gray saw a small newspaper ad in 2001: “Spraying Cats Needed for Study.” Shadow was accepted into a double-blind study of an undisclosed medication’s effect on the behavior.

Fourteen days later, the spraying abruptly stopped.

The drug was Prozac. Five years later, Shadow is still taking the medication — half a 10-milligram tablet once a day — in its generic form, fluoxetine, a $16 supply of which lasts about four months.

“He’s still active, he’s still his hyperactive self,” Gray said. “But it just takes that anxiety away.”

THEY are the new “Prozac Nation”: cats, dogs, birds, horses and an assortment of zoo animals whose behavior has been changed, whose anxieties and fears have been quelled and whose owners’ furniture has been spared by the use of antidepressants. Over the last decade, Prozac, Buspar, Amitriptyline, Clomicalm — clomipromine that is marketed expressly for dogs — and other drugs have been used to treat inappropriate, destructive and self-injuring behavior in animals.

It’s not a big nation yet. But “over the past five years, use has gone up quite a bit,” said veterinarian Richard Martin of the Brentwood Pet Clinic in West Los Angeles. Half a decade ago, no more than 1% of his patients were on antidepressants. Now, Martin estimates that 5% of the 8,000 cats and dogs seen at the clinic are taking drugs for their behavior.

The use of antidepressants is another example of the growing sophistication of medical care available to animals and willingly financed by owners who see pets as cherished companions. For these owners, drug therapy is not just another indulgence like Louis Vuitton carriers and day spas for the pampered pet. In their eyes, medication is urgent. Indeed, the new Prozac Nation is not populated with the worried well of the animal kingdom; it’s filled with animals behaving so badly they’re in danger of being cast off to a shelter and, possibly, a death sentence.

“If you have a cat that sprays constantly, that’s not a cat you’re likely to keep,” said Elyse Kent, the veterinarian who owns the Westside Hospital for Cats. “We were compelled to try these behavioral modification drugs.”

Kent has been treating cats with psychoactive drugs, mostly for spraying or aggression, for 12 years. After a UC Davis study published in 2001 showed that fluoxetine reduced feline spraying — and following the success of Kent’s patient, Shadow, in a Prozac trial — Prozac became a frequent choice at her clinic.

“I’d say twice a week, someone comes in to get a prescription for Prozac or fluoxetine or clomipromine,” said Kent, who nonetheless estimates that at any one time only 1% of her practice’s 3,000 patients are taking a psychoactive drug. (“Six weeks to three months is the average” length of treatment, she said.)

Veterinarians who prescribe psychoactive drugs insist they are not Dr. Feelgoods for the animal set. They do medical work-ups on animals, they say, to rule out physical causes for destructive or neurotic actions and prefer to use behavior modification instead of — or, at least, along with — drug therapy. Sometimes they have to deflate the expectations of owners eager to place their pets on antidepressants.

“I tell people if I had a magic pill, I would give it to them,” said veterinary behaviorist Karen Sueda, who works at the VCA West Los Angeles Animal Hospital. “In most cases when we give medication, it is not going to be a quick fix.”

Said Curtis Eng, chief veterinarian of the Los Angeles Zoo: “My feeling is they are a useful tool — one of many — to decrease stress and anxiety on an animal. If you can relieve the stressors through a behavior management program, I would much rather do that. But sometimes you need a little extra help to get them over that hump.”

When the zoo was coaxing a male orangutan, Minyak, back to respiratory health and enough energy for mating, veterinarians consulted with a psychiatrist and put the primate on the antidepressant Remeron.

“He was put on it for depression,” said Eng, who noted a beneficial side effect: Miknyak hadn’t been eating well and the drug increased his appetite. The orangutan bred successfully, fathering a healthy baby in 2005, and he is being weaned off the antidepressant.

THE drugs administered to animals fall mainly into two classes of antidepressants commonly prescribed to humans: selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs) and tricyclics.

Both groups control the levels in the brain of serotonin, a neurotransmitter that is believed to affect mood, depression and anxiety. The tricyclics also work on other neurotransmitters, including norepinephrine, which is thought to affect attention and impulsiveness.

In most cases, the drugs are being administered off-label, meaning they have not been put through the trials required for FDA approval for use in specific animals. (The Food and Drug Administration regulates drugs for both animals and humans.)

Clomicalm, a tricyclic manufactured by Novartis, is the only antidepressant approved by the FDA for dogs as a treatment for separation anxiety.

Veterinarian Scott Huggins, manager of technical marketing for Novartis, maker of Clomicalm, said that dogs are not intended to stay on it for life. “We don’t have specific studies on long-term use,” said Huggins, adding, “I do know it happens.”

In general, vets prefer to taper their patients’ use of the drugs. “We try to use these medications short-term,” said Kent. “Because they are not without side-effects.”

Antidepressants are believed to work on animals’ brain chemistry the same way they do on humans’. The difference is that veterinarians will not say they are treating clinical depression; many don’t believe an animal can be clinically depressed.

“A lot of the outward manifestations — decrease in appetite, trouble sleeping, not taking joy in activities — are there in dogs and cats,” Sueda said. “But you can’t ask a dog or cat, ‘Are you despondent?’ “

But veterinarians will say that animals experience anxiety. Dogs with separation anxiety can bark endlessly, destroy household furniture, gnaw through fences or even fling themselves out of windows after owners leave. Birds have compulsively plucked themselves to partial baldness. Troubled cats maul their owners, hide for hours or refuse to use their litter boxes.

Bob Stewart, now the sole owner of a cat since his companion, Anne Marie Schmitt, died of cancer, recalls how his otherwise mellow feline would turn into a leopard-like creature. At one point, when Serendipity clawed Schmitt’s arm badly enough to send her to the hospital, Stewart says they considered drastic action. “If we could not have gotten her controlled, as much as we loved the cat, we probably would have had to find a way to get her adopted or send her to one of these shelters,” said Stewart, a retired game show producer who created the original “The Price is Right” and “Password.”

The owners refused to have the cat declawed. Instead, for the last several years, a daily dose of “triple fish-flavored” fluoxetine has, for the most part, quashed Serendipity’s desire to practice her hunting skills on humans.

“I thought it made sense,” said Stewart, sitting in his apartment with Serendipity resting nearby. “They feel pain as we feel pain. They feel happiness as we feel happiness. I didn’t question the idea that a drug could change the persona of an animal.”

As with humans, choosing the right drug and dosage for an animal is a process of trial-and-error. “A lot of behavior treatment is an art,” Sueda said.

No one knows that better than Amy Weber, who adopted Sam, a spayed female dog, 10 years ago. The Labrador/beagle mix appears sweet-natured and calm as she lies in the living room of the rambling Beechwood Canyon home Weber shares with her partner, Wendy Schwartz, and five pets. The couple’s other dog, Scout, busily scouts for affection. A hulking orange cat, Stripper, saunters by, pausing to swat Sam. The action elicits a gasp from the humans but only a quizzical look from Sam.

For several years, Sam was anything but calm when her owners left the house. She scratched doors, chewed through washing machine hoses and gnawed the wood trim on windows, sometimes cutting her mouth. If she was left outside, she either dug her way out of the yard or ripped through wire fences, scratching her head in the process.

Weber tried Clomicalm, tranquilizers, homeopathic remedies and Cesar Millan, the “Dog Whisperer.” But Sam’s separation anxiety defied all drugs and therapy for a time.

Although Weber, who edits movie trailers, put together a nearly full-time schedule of sitters and walkers for Sam, that didn’t stop the dog from going into a frenzy if Weber and Schwartz went out for the evening.

Then Weber hired Sueda, who put Sam on a regimen of Amitriptyline during the day and recommended Xanax at night if the couple wanted to go out. And she started the dog and her owners on a behavior training program.

(There are only 42 board-certified veterinary behaviorists in the world, according to Melissa Bain, chief of behavior service at the teaching hospital at the UC Davis School of Veterinary Medicine. Technically, Sueda is not one of them — she hasn’t taken her boards yet — but she is, practically speaking, L.A.’s veterinary behaviorist.)

“I never look at medication as a cure-all — just like with people,” said the veterinarian, who delves into the history of each animal’s situation.

Appointments with Sueda aren’t cheap. A package of two lengthy visits — the first is two hours — follow-up phone calls and e-mails is $550, not counting what Sueda charges if she travels to the owner’s house.

Brand-name Prozac can cost more than $100 a month, but most vets now prescribe fluoxetine, a monthly regimen of which can cost pet owners a few dollars a month to about $20, depending on the dosage.

Bain is wary of medications. “Drugs don’t work that easily,” she said. “And they don’t work without behavior modification.”

Much of what animals do, Bain said, is normal, just unacceptable — a result of owners incorporating their pets into close urban quarters. “Breeds of animals have not changed that much in 20 or 30 years, but human society has,” she said.

“What have we done to our animals? In the last 30 years, we’ve kept them inside, we’ve made multiple-cat households. A border collie, 20 years ago, was living on a ranch in Colorado, and now he’s living in downtown San Francisco. So he can’t do his typical behavior.”

Moustafa Seoud, a veterinarian for 17 years, sees drugs like Clomicalm or Prozac as “an easy way out.” Seoud, who practices at the Laurel Pet Hospital in West Hollywood, relies on massage, acupuncture and homeopathic treatments. “Homeopathic flower essence works well for cats with different problems — stress and anxiety and kidney problems.”

He dispenses different types of remedies for different problems: “Camomile is calming; Ignatia for grieving; Nux Vomica for nervousness.” One of Seoud’s clients said that one time, as he prescribed a homeopathic remedy for her withdrawn cat, he popped some of it into his own mouth and declared: “You can take it too.”

Conventional drugs seem to be working for Sam, the dog with the bad case of separation anxiety. Weber tells Sueda that Sam has been fine when she’s left the dog alone for a few hours during the day. And Sam has stopped following Weber around the house constantly. “She’s just calmer,” Weber said.

“That’s what we’re aiming for,” Sueda said. “A general, overall sense of calm.”

Borrowed from www.pethealthcare.net

Note: trying to fix this format!

Other techniques are often suggested for play biting.

Some involve harsh discipline, like slapping the puppy under the chin or forcefully holding the mouth closed.

Remember, pain can cause aggression and cause the puppy to become anxious, fearful or perhaps more excited.

These techniques also require that you grab an excited puppy; not an easy thing to do.  Some puppies may even

misinterpret the owner’s attempts at punishment as rough play, which in turn might lead to an increase in the behavior.  Physical methods are therefore not

recommended.  Owners who cannot inhibit the puppy with a yelp, could consider a shake can, electronic alarm, air horn, or ultrasonic device, as soon as the biting

becomes excessive.

The use of a head halter with a remote leash attached allows the puppy to play

and chew, but a quick pull on the leash can immediately and successfully close

the mouth and stop biting without any physical force.

By simultaneously saying “no biting”, most puppies will quickly learn the meaning of the command.  As soon as the puppy stops and calms down, the owner can allow play to resume, as long as biting does not begin again.

Remember that play biting is a component of play behavior in puppies.  Play is a form of social interaction.  Realize that your puppy is trying to play with you even

though the behavior is rough.  To ensure that you are in control, be certain that each play session is initiated by you and not the puppy, and that you can end each

session whenever you choose.

One effective strategy when the play gets too rough is to immediately end the play session and leave.  Social withdrawal can be a very powerful tool.  Leave the puppy alone long enough to calm down.

If upon your return the wild playing begins again, leave again.

Although it is tempting to pick the puppy up and take it out of the room, this interaction may be interpreted by your puppy as additional play and the biting may continue as you carry the puppy to a confinement location.

vomiting vs regurgitation

that is the question

Know the difference… Regurgitation is a favorite pass time for my cats.

Cats can have “non-specific vomiting and/or vomiting and diarrhea… Know you pet..

good article below:

Vomiting is a very common problem in dogs and cats. There are many causes of vomiting. Primary or gastric causes of vomiting are those that are due to diseases of the stomach and upper intestinal tract. Secondary or non-gastric causes of vomiting are caused by diseases of other organs that cause an accumulation  of  toxic substances in the blood. These toxic substances stimulate the vomiting center in the brain causing the animal to vomit.

A problem that can be confused with vomiting is regurgitation. Vomiting is the ejection of contents of the stomach and upper intestine; regurgitation is the ejection of contents of the esophagus. The esophagus is a narrow, muscular tube that food passes through on its way to the stomach. In health, food moves quickly through the esophagus to the stomach. If the muscle of the esophagus loses tone, the esophagus dilates, a condition called megaesophagus. A dilated esophagus does not effectively move food to the stomach and the animal will regurgitate food usually shortly after eating. The food may also be inhaled into the airways causing pneumonia and cough.

When you present your pet to the veterinarian because he or she is vomiting, the veterinarian will ask questions in attempt to differentiate between vomiting and regurgitation and to try to determine if your pet is vomiting due to gastric or non gastric disease. Vomiting is an active process. The pet is apprehensive and heaves and retches to vomit. If food is present in vomit, it is partially digested and a yellow fluid, bile may be present. Regurgitation is fairly passive. The animal  lowers its head and food is expelled without effort.  The food brought up by regurgitation is usually undigested, may have a tubular shape, and is often covered with a slimy mucus. The pet will often try to eat the regurgitated material. You may bring a fresh sample of “vomit” for the veterinarian  to examine. The pH of vomit containing food is acid, the pH of regurgitated materials is higher. Your ability to answer questions about your pet’s activity, habits and environment will help the veterinarian decide which causes of vomiting are most likely in your pet. A history of any drugs your pet is receiving is important. Over-the-counter pain medications such as aspirin and ibuprofen can cause severe stomach ulcers in dogs depending upon the dose and duration of treatment.  The veterinarian may ask you to describe the appearance of the vomit, as well as describe how your pet looks when it vomits and the relation ship of vomiting to eating. If the vomit contains blood it may be fresh, red blood or look like coffee grounds if the blood is digested. Blood is most often seen with stomach ulcers, stomach cancer or uremia (a collection of signs including vomiting seen in pets with kidney failure). Stomach ulcers can be caused by drugs or the presence of a mast cell cancer in the skin. Mast cell cancers release histamine that leads to stomach ulcers. Regurgitation often, but not always, happens right after eating and the pet will try to eat the regurgitated food.  Vomiting occurs a variable time after eating or may occur in a pet who is off food. Animals with a twisted stomach, gastric dilation-torsion, may make frequent attempts to vomit without producing anything. Pets with a hacking cough may retch and sometime vomit at the end of an episode of forceful coughing.  An accurate description in this case would lead to an investigation of the causes of coughing, rather than vomiting.

If your pet vomits just occasionally and has a specific series of actions associated with vomiting, you may consider video taping an episode of vomiting to help describe the episodes to the veterinarian.

The physical examination of the vomiting pet can also provide information to narrow the list of possible causes.  The presence of fever, abdominal pain, jaundice, anemia or abnormal masses in the abdomen will help the veterinarian make a more specific diagnosis. The mouth should be carefully examined as some foreign objects such as string can wind around the base of the tongue with the rest of the object extending into the stomach or small intestine. A nodule may be palpated in the neck of cats with hyperthyroidism.

The list of non-gastric causes of vomiting is long.

Pancreatitis in the dog causes vomiting that is sudden in onset and often severe. The dog may have a painful belly. Pets with pancreatitis often have a  history of eating garbage or fatty table scraps. Tumors of the pancreas can cause similar signs to pancreatitis. Pancreatitis occurs in the cat but the signs are subtle and non specific and often don’t  include vomiting

Kidney failure is a common cause of vomiting in dogs and cats. The kidneys can be acutely (suddenly) damaged by poisons such as antifreeze or by severe dehydration.   Waste products that the kidneys normally get rid of, rise to high levels in just a few days. The kidneys can also gradually lose their ability to remove waste products from the body as the pet ages. Early signs of kidney failure include drinking and urinating large amounts called polyuria and polydipsia or PU-PD. PU-PD may be present for months to years before the kidney failure is severe enough to lead to waste product accumulation and vomiting. Vomiting in chronic kidney failure may began as occasional episodes and progress to severe, frequent vomiting. The pet with chronic kidney failure will often lose body condition and may have pale gums due to anemia.

Non-spayed, middle aged female pets can develop a uterine infection called pyometra. Pyometra occurs within 2 months after a heat cycle and often results in discharge of pus from the vagina. The pet may frequently lick the vagina so discharge may not be seen. Dogs develop pyometra more often than cats. Other signs may include PU-PD and depression.

Liver failure causes vomiting as well as other signs depending on the type of liver disease. Other signs of liver disease may include seizures, jaundice (a yellow discoloration of the areas of skin not covered by fur), PU-PD and fluid accumulation in the belly or legs. Bladder obstruction or rupture will cause a sudden onset of vomiting. The urethra that leads from the bladder to the outside can get plugged by stones or tumors. The animal  will strain and pass just a free drops of urine or none at all. They will also have a painful belly. Bladder obstruction if not corrected, is fatal in just a few days. The bladder can be ruptured by blunt trauma such as being hit by a car or kicked.

A form of diabetes called ketoacidosis will cause vomiting along with depression and PU-PD.

Addison’s disease is a deficiency of hormones from the adrenal gland and causes vomiting, diarrhea and weakness. Addison’s disease occurs most commonly in young to middle aged dogs, most of which are female. Addison’s is rare in the cat.  The signs of Addison’s disease may be intermittent or may be very severe and constant.

Diseases of the inner ear can cause vomiting accompanied by incoordination, circling and tilting of the head to the side. Motion during car rides stimulates the inner ear and can cause vomiting.

A sudden onset of vomiting in young, poorly vaccinated pets may be caused by infectious agents including canine distemper, canine parvovirus and feline panleukopenia virus.

There are many toxins including lead, insecticides, antifreeze and other chemicals that can cause vomiting.

Cats with elevated thyroid function, hyperthyroidism, may vomit in addition to other signs including, increased appetite, weight loss, hyperactivity and a poorly kept coat. Heartworm disease in cats may cause vomiting in addition to coughing, respiratory distress, weight loss and depression.

Primary causes of vomiting include acute gastritis often due to eating garbage or other types of dietary indiscretions; the ingestion of large amounts of hair during grooming; ulcers of the stomach; stomach or upper intestinal cancer; parasites; food allergies; the presence of a foreign body stuck in the stomach or upper intestine; twisting and dilation of the stomach; and intussusception which is a telescoping of one part of the intestine into another piece of intestine.

The stomach is usually empty 6 to 8 hours after eating. Vomiting of  food when the stomach should be empty suggests an obstruction of the stomach or abnormal motion of the stomach muscles that normally grind food and push the ground food out of the stomach.

Tests to differentiate primary causes of vomiting include x-rays or ultrasound of the abdomen and endoscopy. Endoscopy is the technique of passing a flexible scope into the stomach and upper intestine to examine the inside of these structures. It may be possible to remove a foreign body with endoscopy and small biopsies of the lining of the stomach and intestine can be taken for microscopic evaluation. Endoscopy requires general anesthesia.

If the pet vomits sporadically, the results of all tests may be normal. Many healthy dogs and cats vomit occasionally without identifying a cause. Sometimes the cause of vomiting is as simple as the pet eating too fast.  The treatment for vomiting depends upon the cause. Nonspecific treatment for vomiting includes fasting, and fluids to correct or prevent dehydration.  In episodes of sudden onset of vomiting,  food is withheld for 24 – 48 hours and water for 24 hours. Water should never be withheld from an animal with known or suspected kidney disease without replacing fluids intravenously or subcutaneously (under the skin). If vomiting stops, small amounts of a bland low-fat food are fed 3 to 6 times daily for a few days, with a gradual increase in the amount fed and a gradual transition to the pet’s normal diet. Water is also reintroduced in small amounts on the second day. You may start with  ice cubes and then gradually increase the amount of water over the day if vomiting does not reoccur.

If the pet is bright and alert and has had no previous health problems, episodes of acute vomiting  may be managed at home, although veterinary consultation prior to home treatment is advised.  Consultation with a veterinarian in your region may reveal a recent outbreak of an infectious disease causing vomiting or identify  a cluster of recent poisonings. With this type of knowledge you will want to have your pet evaluated rather than waiting a few days. Dogs and cats who vomit for longer than a few days or are depressed or dehydrated should be presented for veterinary evaluation.

reprint from:www.preciouspets.org

Believe it or not, this is not a housetraining problem. It has to do with some normal canine behavior patterns that you can and should deal with in a positive way.

Dogs are instinctively programmed to accept the authority of creatures (animal and human) that they consider to be superior to them. They seek the approval of their superiors and are eager to please them. Many dog owners prefer a dog who is submissive to people and eager to please, and selective breeding has produced many domestic dogs with this characteristic.

Some dogs are more submissive than others. Very submissive dogs, shy dogs that lack self-confidence and often young pups will urinate when in the presence of more dominant dogs and humans. It’s their instinctive way of telling the superior “You are my Supreme Master. Your wish is my command. Please don’t hurt me!”

Puppies usually outgrow this behavior as they mature. Dogs who are naturally shy, insecure, extremely submissive, or who have been abused may continue to exhibit submission in this way even as adults. It is generally an involuntary, subconscious reflex. The dog isn’t deliberately trying to do it. As a matter of fact, he may not even be aware that he’s doing it at the time!

Many dog owners mistakenly believe that this type of urination is a housetraining problem, and try to correct it with discipline. To their dismay and frustration, rather than improving, the dog’s problem gets worse! Because the message he’s sending is misunderstood by the owner, the dog is caught in a vicious cycle – his instincts tell him to urinate to please his superior by showing submission. But when he does, he is punished. He then tries harder to please by urinating even more. This results in more punishment, and still more urination. After a time, the dog may become so confused and insecure that he urinates at the mere sight of a human being or another dog.

If discipline won’t solve the problem, what will? Your task is to take the excitement and stress out of the periods that previously triggered submissive urination. Get cooperation from all members of the family. When you first get home, you can anticipate that the dog will get excited and urinate so you need to minimize the excitement. Instead of an enthusiastic greeting to your dog, quietly walk in the door and go about your business. Let him outside to pee as usual, but without any fanfare. If you talk to him at all, just say “Hi Rover” in a calm, casual tone of voice. Don’t make eye contact with him or pet him. After he settles down, very gently crouch down to his level presenting to him sideways (this makes you very non-threatening), then calmly and quietly praise him and tell him he’s good. Be sure to tell your family and visitors to do the same.

Do everything you can to boost your dog’s confidence. As he becomes more confident, he may feel less of a need to display extreme submissive behavior:

* Positive reinforcement obedience training does wonders for a dog’s confidence! An untrained dog is doesn’t know how to communicate with humans or how to behave, but the trained dog understands what’s expected of him, and the words you say to him. He’s confident because he has the tools with which to please his superiors.
* Socialization at training classes, dog daycare, at the park, or just going with you on errands and to visit friends can do wonders for your dog’s confidence. Have guests over who are willing to help out with this problem.
* Agility training is another wonderfully fun way to boost your dog’s confidence using physical obstacles and mental stimulation as well as new human words to understand and obey.
* Incorporate basic obedience (Sit, Stay, Fetch, Come, etc.) into your daily life and when your dog obeys, he gains confidence through your praise. Just don’t overdo the praise (this can result in a puddle!). A simple “Good boy” and gentle pat is enough.
* Minimize the occasions your dog makes you want to scold him; think about what your dog does that causes you to scold him. For example, does he get into the trash, steal your children’s toys or chew on your sneakers? By simply putting a lid on the trash can or putting it into a closet and requiring your family to pick up after themselves, these situations can be eliminated. The easier you make it for your dog to do what you want, the quicker he’ll learn and his confidence will grown. On the other hand, discipline, scolding and physical punishment will simply reduce his confidence and worsen your submissive urination problem.
* Dogs, especially shy or submissive ones, are very sensitive to body language and tone of voice. Bending over a dog is a “dominant” posture that may provoke an accident. Instead, get down to your dog’s level by crouching or kneeling, preferably at his side rather than head-on.
* These dogs are often intimidated by direct eye contact as well. Look at your dog’s face without looking directly into his eyes, and only for very short periods.
* If you are expecting guests, take your dog for a walk and get his bladder emptied ahead of time, and restrict water consumption for an hour before your guests are to arrive.
* When speaking to your dog, use a calm, confident, moderate tone of voice. Avoid very high or low extremes in pitch. Don’t “coochy-coo” or babytalk to your dog either. These tones can create excitement that results in submissive urination.

Don’t scold or punish your dog for urinating submissively. It will only make things worse. He can’t be held responsible for something he doesn’t understand or even know he’s doing. Instead, use these methods to get to the root of the matter: His basic insecurity and lack of confidence. When he’s made progress in these areas, submissive urination often disappears on its own. How long will it take? Every dog is different and it’s impossible to say for sure. With most dogs, following our directions will show a noticeable difference within a short time. Solving the problem altogether depends on your hard work, patience, consistency and willingness to stick with it.

Can We Really Save Every Healthy/Treatable Shelter Pet in America?

February 25, 2011

Nathan Winograd has a post detailing why “pet overpopulation” is a myth:

1. How many dogs and cats enter shelters annually? 8 million. (Some put it as low as 6 million, but I am going to use a “worst case” scenario.)
2. Of those how many are savable? 90 percent or just over 7 million.
3. Of those how many will be saved? 4 million.
4. How many of the savable animals are killed? 3 million.
5. How many need to find new homes? If shelters are doing their jobs comprehensively, just over 2 million (3 million on the high end). The remainder should be increased reclaims or in the case of feral cats, TNR’d.
6. Other than those who will adopt from a shelter as a matter of course (those saved above), how many people in the U.S. are looking to bring a new dog or cat into their home next year but have not decided where they will get the animal and can be influenced to adopt from a shelter? 17 million. So, 17 million people for 2-3 million dogs and cats.

The Shelter Pet Project has a Powerpoint presentation here.  The first several pages explain how we can find homes for all the healthy/treatable pets in shelters in the U.S. and include a slide on the methodology behind the numbers:

To fully understand the problem and to strategize wisely on the solution, the Ad Council and Draftfcb:

•conducted in-depth research

•ran surveys and focus groups

•met with The HSUS and Maddie’sFund at length

•…and visited shelters

HSUS has a press release on the Shelter Pet Project on their website:

According to The Humane Society of the United States and Maddie’s Fund, eight million pets enter shelters and rescue groups every year, with three million of these healthy and treatable pets euthanized due to a lack of adoption.
[...]
“By reaching a subset of the population uncertain about where they’ll obtain their next dog or cat and convincing them that an animal shelter is the best source, we can end the euthanasia of homeless dogs and cats in this country,” said Wayne Pacelle, president and CEO of the Humane Society of the United States.

Maddie’s Fund looks at the shelter numbers here:

There are around 3 million healthy or treatable dogs and cats put to death in shelters each year.

There are 14 million people who have adopted shelter pets already, and another 41 million who’ve indicated they’re considering doing so – we call those the “swing voters,” and of them, 17 million will bring a pet into their family in the next year.

We only need to convince 3 million of those 17 million to do what they are already considering doing, get their new pet from a shelter, and every treatable or healthy cat or dog in America will have found a home.

[...]

America’s approximately 4,000 animal shelters are currently adopting out more than 4 million pets per year – between 2 and 3 per shelter, per day. By simply increasing that by an additional 2 pets per shelter, per day, the 3 million healthy and treatable pets who currently lose their lives in shelters will be saved.

Does a no kill nation seem achievable to you?

I am reposting this blog. “Samantha” was adopted last night by a 13 year old girl and her family..  Hope this helps…

I love my cats because I love my home, and little by little they become its visible soul.’
~Jean Couteau

GIVE IT A FEW WEEKS.. they do come around.. keep cat in a small space like a bathroom so you will see them often and they can’t hide… of course there is always the adult cat that just takes over from day one.

good info below:
If you are adopting an adult cat, you should be aware that it will take time for him to feel secure in his new environment. Be patient as he will come around eventually and you can reap the rewards of having an adult cat, and you will have bypassed most of the training.

If you have acquired an adult cat, transport him home in a carrier, where he will be safe and secure. Do not be tempted to let him loose in the car. He will most likely be fearful and could scratch or bite you while he is trying to hide.

Once home, do not turn him loose in the house. Your primary concern in to ensure that he has a safe refuge away from people and other pets. Unlike a kitten, he will not cry for his siblings, but he will probably seek out a hiding place in his room.

Provide him with water and food dishes and a litter pan in his room. If he hides under a piece of furniture, place a cat bed or small blanket there for his comfort. He will not use a pillow or cat bed in the open until he feels secure.

Cats do not like changes. They especially dislike moving to a new house or being confronted with any new furniture in their old one. So your adult cat has a double burden to contend with because he has lost both his old home and his old furnishing.

There is no yardstick by which you can measure how long it will take for your cat to feel comfortable. Some will come around within a few days and others may take weeks or even months. Patience is the key to helping him adjust.

Avoid talking loudly and do not make sudden movements. Cats dislike noise and raised voices almost as much as they dislike a new house. Do not pick him up against his will and do not force him to come out of hiding. This will frighten him and he may not be able to trust you again.

As long as he is easting food, drinking water and using his litter pan, you have won half the battle. If he is too afraid to come to you, try sitting quietly on the floor and talking softly to him.

New York Playboy Bunnies.. now

http://afterthehutch.info

photos by Jan Reesman

Trap Neuter release feral

This is so simple.. use your shampoo! And your creme rinse.. Especially good are the ones for dry hair. Gets rid of that dandruff looking stuff.

Flea shampoo or dog shampoo?  Don’t buy into it, or buy it..

If your dog does have fleas.. use flea spray then shower ..and then use something like, Advantage or Revolution.. so worth it.. forget the off brands..  do a google search for best prices.

Have your dog shake with before he or she leaves the shower.. then keep the towel over them when they get out cause they will shake again.  Then you can get back into the shower and rince off..

Jackie Brown leaving the shower…

CLick this link.. good article