Friday, December 16, 2011
Take simple precautions to keep your pet safe during holiday celebrations.
With all the hustle and bustle, it is easy to forget that some of the festivity surrounding the holidays can pose potential dangers for our dogs and cats. Here is a quick list to help you keep your pets safe, and avoid spending precious time in an emergency room. The Christmas Tree • Make sure it is securely seated and not easily toppled over by curious dogs and cats • Place your fragile ornaments high on the tree above the reach of playful pets. Broken glass and swallowed ornaments can cause serious injury • Keep the tree water covered and inaccessible. Decorations • Shiny, moving things can be irresistible to pets and people, alike. Pets and young children often like to put these treasures in their mouths. Keep these temptations …
38.790974
-77.274683
Village Veterinary Clinic
9544 Burke Lake Rd, Burke, VA
/articles/help-your-pet-avoid-potential-holiday-season-dangers
259744
/locations/6023555
38.77763
-77.266079
Burke Veterinary Clinic
6401 Shiplett Blvd, Burke, VA
/articles/help-your-pet-avoid-potential-holiday-season-dangers
259788
/locations/6023556
38.798644
-77.320304
Parkway Veterinary Clinic
5743 Burke Centre Pkwy, Burke, VA
/articles/help-your-pet-avoid-potential-holiday-season-dangers
259819
/locations/6023557
38.78033
-77.27692
Burke Animal Clinic Ltd
6307 Lee Chapel Rd, Burke, VA
/articles/help-your-pet-avoid-potential-holiday-season-dangers
259820
/locations/6023558
Thursday, December 8, 2011
Know when and how to provide extra protection for your pet in cold weather.
With colder weather and snow just around the corner, many of you may be pulling your dog’s winter jackets out of storage. Others may be horrified a person would even think of degrading a dog by putting clothes on him. There is room for discussion. Natural Adapters Most dogs and cats have natural coats that adapt to weather changes. Many of you have experienced the avalanche of hair that can be shed during the change of seasons. “Getting a winter coat” in the fall and “shedding the winter coat” in the spring are major events in some households. A dog’s winter coat traps warm air from body heat between the skin and the outer hair surface. This insulating layer provides warmth by conserving body heat and protecting from outer …
38.790974
-77.274683
Village Veterinary Clinic
9544 Burke Lake Rd, Burke, VA
/articles/cold-weather-and-pets
259744
/locations/5971294
38.798644
-77.320304
Parkway Veterinary Clinic
5743 Burke Centre Pkwy, Burke, VA
/articles/cold-weather-and-pets
259819
/locations/5971295
38.77763
-77.266079
Burke Veterinary Clinic
6401 Shiplett Blvd, Burke, VA
/articles/cold-weather-and-pets
259788
/locations/5971296
38.78033
-77.27692
Burke Animal Clinic Ltd
6307 Lee Chapel Rd, Burke, VA
/articles/cold-weather-and-pets
259820
/locations/5971297
38.794783
-77.272754
Burke Pet Nutrition Center
9546 Burke Rd, Burke, VA
/articles/cold-weather-and-pets
259572
/locations/5971298
38.775185
-77.263029
PETCO
9230 Old Keene Mill Rd, Burke, VA
/articles/cold-weather-and-pets
259738
/locations/5971299
Wednesday, November 30, 2011
Dental health promotes a long and healthy life for your pet.
Teeth and gums (gingiva) are the gateway to the bloodstream. The blood nourishes all the organs in our bodies. If bacteria from dental plaque and tartar enters the blood stream through inflamed gums, it can create infection in the valves of the heart, the complex machinery inside the kidneys, and countless other areas of the body. We aren’t always able to get a close look at the teeth of our dogs and cats. Even in the smallest of dogs and cats, there is a surprising armament of teeth hidden behind the lips. Underneath the gingiva are tooth roots that are often longer than that part of the tooth that you can see. Many of the teeth have two and three roots each. And the teeth on the top, the maxillary teeth, and the teeth on the …
38.790974
-77.274683
Village Veterinary Clinic
9544 Burke Lake Rd, Burke, VA
/articles/a-healthy-smile-for-your-pet
259744
/locations/5902148
38.798644
-77.320304
Parkway Veterinary Clinic
5743 Burke Centre Pkwy, Burke, VA
/articles/a-healthy-smile-for-your-pet
259819
/locations/5902149
38.77763
-77.266079
Burke Veterinary Clinic
6401 Shiplett Blvd, Burke, VA
/articles/a-healthy-smile-for-your-pet
259788
/locations/5902150
38.78033
-77.27692
Burke Animal Clinic Ltd
6307 Lee Chapel Rd, Burke, VA
/articles/a-healthy-smile-for-your-pet
259820
/locations/5902151
38.775185
-77.263029
PETCO
9230 Old Keene Mill Rd, Burke, VA
/articles/a-healthy-smile-for-your-pet
259738
/locations/5902152
38.794783
-77.272754
Burke Pet Nutrition Center
9546 Burke Rd, Burke, VA
/articles/a-healthy-smile-for-your-pet
259572
/locations/5902153
Thursday, November 17, 2011
Feeding our pets can seem more complicated than feeding the humans in our families. Dr. Lemke offers these guidelines.
The options for feeding our dogs and cats can seem overwhelming. Nutrition advice comes from all corners. While there are no easy answers, there are important considerations. GUIDELINES • Cats are obligate carnivores, which means their diets must contain meat. • Dogs are carnivores with an ability to adapt to grains and vegetables, and are therefore considered by many to be omnivores. Meat, however, is considered to be the major nutrient for the canine body. • The quality of a food is only as good as the quality of the ingredients For example, if the protein in a food cannot be broken down and effectively absorbed and utilized by the body, then it simply goes in one end and out the other. It doesn’t matter how high a …
38.775185
-77.263029
PETCO
9230 Old Keene Mill Rd, Burke, VA
/articles/choosing-what-to-feed-your-dog-or-cat
259738
/locations/5829635
38.798851
-77.29983
Target
10301 New Guinea Rd, Fairfax, VA
/articles/choosing-what-to-feed-your-dog-or-cat
2006774
/locations/5829636
38.79
-77.298929
Walmart
6000 Burke Commons Rd, Burke, VA
/articles/choosing-what-to-feed-your-dog-or-cat
260131
/locations/5829637
38.78033
-77.27692
Burke Animal Clinic Ltd
6307 Lee Chapel Rd, Burke, VA
/articles/choosing-what-to-feed-your-dog-or-cat
259820
/locations/5829638
38.790974
-77.274683
Village Veterinary Clinic
9544 Burke Lake Rd, Burke, VA
/articles/choosing-what-to-feed-your-dog-or-cat
259744
/locations/5829639
38.798644
-77.320304
Parkway Veterinary Clinic
5743 Burke Centre Pkwy, Burke, VA
/articles/choosing-what-to-feed-your-dog-or-cat
259819
/locations/5829640
38.77763
-77.266079
Burke Veterinary Clinic
6401 Shiplett Blvd, Burke, VA
/articles/choosing-what-to-feed-your-dog-or-cat
259788
/locations/5829641
38.794783
-77.272754
Burke Pet Nutrition Center
9546 Burke Rd, Burke, VA
/articles/choosing-what-to-feed-your-dog-or-cat
259572
/locations/5829642
Wednesday, November 2, 2011
Special care for aging pets can identify health issues in the early stages.
Today our dogs and cats are healthier and live longer than ever before. Often living active and happy lives well into their teens, our pets will begin to experience signs of aging just as we humans do. Many of our area animal clinics offer wellness programs for seniors. This usually means that the routine exams are more thorough and perhaps more frequent, in an effort to identify health issues in the early stages when they are more easily managed. Dental health is important at any age, but the aging pet is more vulnerable to cumulative oral problems that cause pain, infection, tooth loss and poor general health. Heart disease, vision and hearing loss, degenerative joint disease, loss of lung elasticity, and skin and coat abnormalities…
Tuesday, October 18, 2011
Our pet's health depends on how we feed them.
One of the major health issues facing our dogs and cats is obesity. Overweight pets are more prone to joint disease, heart disease and a host of other health conditions. As with humans, excess fat visible from the outside means there's probably fat surrounding the heart and kidneys, infiltrating the liver, and adding excess stress on joints and spine. Excess fat often means that muscles are not as strong and conditioned as they should be, because exercise is not comfortable and stamina and strength are greatly diminished. One way to tell if your pet is overweight is by gently feeling for the ribs. If you cannot feel the individual ribs without burying your fingertips in fat, then your pet is probably overweight. You also want to be …
Wednesday, October 12, 2011
Dr. Lemke, DVM, has several tips for reducing the stress of giving your pet medication.
While there are some cats and dogs that are easy to pill, let’s just assume that most are not. Their ingenuity and flexibility becomes very apparent as you prepare to get that tiny pill into the stomach of your pet. Unless the pill is a chewable taste tab, grinding it and putting it in food rarely works. The dog and cat’s sense of smell is so superior to ours that they usually know when you have “contaminated” their food; and they may avoid their food bowl after that betrayal. The food bowl is sacred, especially for the sick patient; so keep that food appealing. Their sense of time, too, is amazing! You may begin to realize that your pet seems to know exactly when you plan to do the deed -- and they are nowhere to be found. Hiding …
Wednesday, October 5, 2011
Help for when your vet asks you to accomplish the seemingly impossible.
You stand frozen in place, wondering if what you just heard is correct. Your veterinarian has just asked you to bring in a urine sample. From your cat! Is this possible? It is possible, but it may take some effort and patience on your part. In 30 years, I have had two clients who swore they just followed their cat to the litter box and placed the urine cup underneath him, as he politely and efficiently gave the requested sample. Don’t count on this method; you will be disappointed. If you have been asked to collect a urine sample from your pet, this means that it should be a “clean catch,” versus a sterile collection which would need to be obtained in the doctor’s office. Find a clean, dry container. For cats, I have three …
Wednesday, September 28, 2011
Day after day, lack of mental and physical stimulation will dull your pet.
It's so easy for all of us to put exercise off until tomorrow. With our busy lives, there’s never enough time. Without physical exertion and mental exercise we stagnate. We become couch potatoes. We lose interest in the world around us. We’re too tired at the end of the day, and we have too much to do in the mornings. Sound familiar? Now let’s look at it from the dogs' point-of-view. Your pet is totally dependent on you for everything. You are the one who provides food, entertainment, housing, and everything in your pet’s world. You are in total control of how much your pet is allowed to even move. If you don’t provide the learning experience, they don’t learn. If you don’t put the opportunity for play in their day, they have a…
Wednesday, September 21, 2011
Hairballs are gross, but normal. Here are tips for reducing them.
Dear Dr J: "I have two cats. One is always having hairballs (ruining my carpet!) and the other never has hairballs. Why is this?" Baffled in Burke Dear Baffled: Welcome to another interesting characteristic of the cat. While other species also are afflicted with “hairballs,” the cat seems to have a special knack for creating them, ridding themselves of them, and leaving them in public places. Whether you visually come upon them unexpectedly, or you step on one barefoot in the dark, it is undoubtedly unpleasant and usually provokes an oath of some sort. A hairball, also known as a “furball” or “trichobezoar”, is a mass of ingested hair that forms in the stomach. Food, water, stomach fluid and other things such as grass that your cat …
Mike Rogers
5:45 pm on Monday, December 3, 2012
People really are clueless as to what goes on in the pet industry. The majority of commercial dog food brands are using meat byproducts which can include animals that are diseased, dying, disabled, or already dead before processing. By product can also include any part of the animal like feathers, beaks, guts, eyeballs... whatever! Plus, "Meat Byproduct" or "Meat Meal" can include any mammal... … more ›