Why Rabies Vaccination is Important

Rabies is a very important vaccine to keep your animal up to date on for your pets health. The disease is fatal to dogs, cats, humans, and any other warm blooded mammal on earth. There are so many pet owners who do not vaccinate their animals and as far as I am concerned, it should almost be animal cruelty if you do not.
Rabies is a neurologic disease that affects the whole body. It causes hypersalivation (too much saliva), foaming at the mouth, rage, inability to drink or eat, and eventually death. Rabies sometimes does not show signs for about 10-14 days. It is spread by a contaminated animal biting another animal. If your pet is current on the vaccine, you have no need to worry. If your pet is not, then you risk exposing yourself, your children, or any other human.
Some pet owners say they don't vaccinate because their pet is indoors only. While that pet is at a decreased risk, it is not 100% protected. Bats carry rabies and they certainly can and do fly into houses. Also, some cats and dogs have a knack for taking advantage of an open door with no one standing guard. Any wild animal with Rabies will not be afraid. They will be out in the daylight and will come right up to your pet or you. At that point, they attack.
Another issue many people do not think about is the laws concerning rabies vaccination and what you must do if your pet bites someone. In the USA, any dog or cat owned by someone must be current on the rabies vaccine. There are 1 year and 3 year rabies vaccines. Some states now have a law that says any dog or cat overdue for a rabies vaccine by even 24 hours can only get a one year vaccine. You must then get your pet to the vet before that expires to get the 3 year vaccine. Only a licensed veterinarian can give a rabies vaccine. If any breeder or other source tells you they gave a rabies vaccine, they are not being truthful.
Each state is different in how they deal with a pet who is not up to date on rabies and it bit someone. It sometimes involves a quarantine either at home or at a veterinary hospital. A quarantine would mean that your dog can have no human or other animal contact for a certain amount of time as determined by your state laws. There is usually a pricey fine that goes along with not having your pet current on rabies. A rabies vaccine is about $20-$50 usually. Another law some states adhere to is that the animal who bit must be euthanized and decapitated. The head of the animal is then sent in for rabies testing. There is no simple blood test for rabies, the only test is called an IFA (immunoflourescent assay). The animal's brain is injected with dye and a special light is used to determine if that animal has rabies.
Instead of worrying about wild life coming into your house or yard, paying a heavy fine, or having to euthanize your pet, you can simply keep your pet vaccinated for rabies. It's the law, it's the right thing to do to protect your pet, and it gives you peace of mind as a pet owner.

Brushing Your Pet's Teeth

Pets have teeth just like we do! Most pet owners do not brush their pet's teeth. That can be such an important step for your pets health to keep them happy and healthy for years to come.
First, make sure you have a pet toothbrush and toothpaste. Human brushes don't work as well and human toothpaste can be toxic. Pets don't really know they have to spit it out! Besides, pet toothpaste comes in a variety of flavors your pet will find more tasty than mint or cinnamon.
Start off slow. Just put some toothpaste on the brush and let your pet lick it off. Do not attempt to actually brush yet. Do this for about a week. Then, try to brush just the front teeth. Don't go for the whole mouth yet. Then, after another week or so of that, try to brush the front teeth and a few of the side teeth. Slowly continue in that fashion until you can brush your pet's teeth with no problem! An added bonus: no more yucky doggie breath!

Heartworm Disease

Heartworm disease is a real threat to dogs and cats. It is a parasite that is spread by mosquitoes. An infected mosquito bites your dog or cat and then deposits the larvae (or babies) into your pet’s bloodstream. The larvae mature and grow into adults that live in the heart. As you can imagine, that can cause numerous health problems!

Signs or symptoms of heartworm disease include shortness of breath, exercise intolerance, and/or lethargy. There are sometimes not any signs at all! Your pet can just collapse one day and they may not have seemed ill. Heartworm disease is fatal if it is left untreated.

The best way to help stop your pet from suffering that horrible fate is to have a heartworm test done once per year at your veterinarian. Then you put your pet on any one of the numerous heartworm preventatives out there. You give your pet the prevention once per month and then if a mosquito carrying heartworms bites your pet, the larvae are killed and your pet does not develop heartworm disease!

Treatment for heartworms, if your pet becomes infected, is costly and can be stressful for your pet. It is two injections of an adulticide on either side of your pet’s spine about 24 hours apart. Then your pet has to remain very quiet and calm for about a week. The treatment can be around $500 to $1,000 dollars. To prevent it costs about $40 per year for the test and about $8 per month for the pill. Not too hard of a decision in my book! Keep reading my blogs for more veterinary information!