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201 results for “canine UTI”
Is It Normal for Cats to Swallow Kibble Without Chewing?
Cats that gulp down kibble without chewing are usually behaving perfectly normally, and it generally does not harm their digestion. This fast-eating habit is inherited from wild ancestors who swallowed prey whole to avoid losing it to rivals, while a cat's sharp, offset molars are built for tearing rather than grinding food the way human teeth do. Most modern kibble is formulated to be easily digestible, so whole swallowing is rarely a problem. However, a sudden shift to non-chewing, signs of mouth pain while eating, or undigested kibble appearing in the stool or vomit can signal dental disease or poor digestion. Choosing appropriately sized kibble, using a slow-feeder bowl, and offering chewy treats such as freeze-dried meat can encourage healthier eating. Keep an eye on your cat's habits and consult a vet if anything changes.
How to Tell Whether Your Dog Has a Cold or Distemper
A dog's ordinary cold and canine distemper can look alike at first, but they are very different problems. A simple cold brings runny nose, sneezing, fever, and cough from a viral or bacterial respiratory infection and is usually easy to treat. Distemper, by contrast, is a highly contagious and stubborn disease whose early sign is often a cold-like state; warning signs include diarrhea, bloody stool, vomiting, thick pus-like discharge from the eyes and nose, lethargy, and shivering. Distemper is far more dangerous, especially in puppies, and belongs in the hands of a veterinarian. The best defense against distemper is routine vaccination and avoiding unvaccinated groups during outbreak seasons.
What Is Kennel Cough in Dogs
Kennel cough, or infectious tracheobronchitis, is a highly contagious respiratory infection spread by many pathogens at once. It hits dogs of any age but is hardest on puppies, and it flares in cold, crowded, damp conditions. The classic sign is a harsh, dry, honking cough, and while most cases clear on their own, knowing when to treat matters.
What Every Owner Should Know About Pet Vaccines
A vaccine is a weakened or inactivated pathogen that teaches the immune system to recognize and fight the real thing, so a later encounter is met with ready-made defenses. The 'two-, four-, six-in-one' labels describe how many diseases one shot prevents, not how many doses. Core dog combos cover distemper and parvovirus, with added parainfluenza, adenovirus and leptospira; rabies is given separately. Puppies start around 4-6 weeks with a series spaced 3-4 weeks apart. Vaccinate only when healthy, keep one brand, avoid baths during the series, and watch for rare allergic signs.
Bad Breath, Tartar, and Lost Appetite: Feline Periodontal Disease
By age three, roughly 70 percent of cats have periodontal disease, and the first sign owners notice is bad breath. Left alone, bacteria-laden tartar inflames gums, weakens immunity, and can force extraction. This guide covers what periodontal disease is, its signs, vet checks, and how to build a brushing routine that protects your cat's teeth.
The Dangers of a Dog Holding Its Urine
Many owners know holding urine is harmful but aren't sure what counts as 'holding it.' Veterinary medicine offers two views: one links urination frequency to breed, sex, size, and health; the other says it depends entirely on the individual—diet, activity, water, and age. Either way, puppies urinate more than adults. Cesar Millan notes a healthy dog makes 10–20 ml of urine per kg of body weight daily and an adult needs to urinate at least 3–5 times outdoors daily; puppies need more. Trained dogs learn to hold, but don't assume that's fine—frequent holders are more prone to UTIs and urinary disease. Long holding lets stored urine contact the tract, causing infection and even stones; one study links a urinary carcinogen contacting tract cells for long periods to higher risk of some urinary cancers. No proven upper limit, but experts advise not exceeding 8 hours. Resulting diseases include UTIs (common in females), bladder stones (can block the urethra—emergency), aggressive bladder cancer, kidney failure, incontinence (spayed females), and prostate disease (males; blood in urine).
Why Does My Dog Urinate in the House?
When a normally clean adult dog urinates indoors while you are out, scolding and punishment aren't the only responses to consider—why is your adult dog doing this? Puppies peeing inside is just the cost of dog ownership, so we focus on adults. Occasional accidents are normal ('nature calls'), but frequent, repeated indoor urination deserves attention, because it brings urine odor and possibly other problems. Medical causes: urinary disease (often a UTI causing random urination, usually treatable with medication); incontinence (dribbling or peeing while sleeping points to incontinence, treatable early with medication; large-area urination suggests something worse—see a vet); senior dogs (canine cognitive dysfunction makes them forget where they are, causing accidents). If your dog is healthy and not old, the cause is behavioral: intact males may mark after sexual maturity—normal—but a dog that never peed inside suddenly doing so may be stressed by household changes (a new member, a departure, new smelly or noisy objects). To change it: don't yell—catching the act in the moment matters, not the old puddle; remove or relocate the trigger; and clean thoroughly with an enzymatic cleaner that fully removes the odor so the dog doesn't remark the spot.
Why Is a Puppy Vomiting and Refusing to Eat?
When a young puppy vomits and turns away from its food, the cause usually falls into one of four buckets: stress from a new home or unsuitable food, uncontrolled feeding habits, internal parasites, or an infectious disease such as distemper. Puppies are especially vulnerable because their immune and digestive systems are still developing, so a single episode should not be ignored. Identifying which factor is behind the symptoms lets you act quickly—whether that means calming the pup, fixing the feeding routine, deworming, or getting to a vet before a treatable problem becomes serious.
Safe Dog CoQ10: What the Research and Labels Tell You
CoQ10 appears in veterinary cardiac plans for mitral valve disease, dilated cardiomyopathy, and senior heart decline, and the research behind it is real — not a fad. A 2021 study found dogs with mitral valve disease in heart failure had significantly less heart-muscle CoQ10 than healthy dogs, and a 2022 randomized trial showed supplementation improved oxidative-stress and contraction markers with no adverse effects. The catch is that the benefit only appears when the product is safe, dog-appropriate, and correctly dosed. This guide explains how to read the label and the form.
Dog CoQ10 and the Mislabeling Trap: How to Pick a Real One
CoQ10 powers heart contraction, clears free radicals, and slows cardiac aging, so it is a staple for senior dogs and breeds prone to valve disease and enlargement. But without enough actual CoQ10 in the dose, you pay and gain nothing. This guide explains why dose is the bottom line, how brands obscure content, why human CoQ10 is dangerous for dogs, and the three checks that separate a real product from a placebo.