heart disease

Just like humans, as cats age they can develop many diseases that affect their heart, kidneys and other organs. In older cats, the most common diseases are are cancer, renal or kidney disease, diabetes, hyperthyroidism (disease of the thyroid gland), dental disease and heart disease. Cats age seven times faster than humans and examinations done by your veterinarian twice a year will help detect diseases earlier while they can still be treated. Diagnostic tests such as blood work, ECG, ultrasound and blood pressure monitoring can help detect problems sooner.

A common heart disease that affects cats is hypertrophic cardipmyopathy (HCM). HCM is found in cats more often than dogs. HCM is an acquired heart disease that causes the muscular walls of the ventricles to thicken. As the heart walls get thicker, heart function decreases. As the walls of the heart thicken, they aslo stiffen and loose the ability to contract efficiently. The narrow heart chamber holds a smaller volume of blood, so less blood is pumped out of the heart with each beat of the heart., This results in the amount of blood that once filled the heart is less than it should be and the heart muscle can’t contract as well to move the blood out of the heart into the body. The diseased heart has to pump harder and faster than normal to keep the blood flowing throughout the body. The resulting pressure begins to back up the blood into the lungs resulting in edema leading to congestive heart failure.

Sometimes, the faulty heart will develop changes in the conduction system that tells the heart when to contract. Irregular heart beats may develop in the diseased heart resulting in sudden death, similar to young athletes that die during practice.

Cardiomyopathy can also cause feline aortic thromboembolism or FATE. Blood clots can form on the valves of the heart and they sometimes break off the valve and lodge in the aorta leading to the legs. The dislodged blood clot causes blockage of the blood flow to the legs resulting in severe pain and paralysis. The blood clot is sometimes referred to as a saddle thrombus. About 40% of the cats recover from a saddle thrombus with intensive therapy and may regain use of their legs over time. However, these cats can still risk develop another episode and will continue to suffer from the primary heart condition.

Cats are very good as masking underlying physical problems and early screening is key to helping these cats live a full life. Your fat and lazy cat may actually be hiding a heart condition. Of course not all fat and lazy cats a have heart disease, but the only way to tell is with health exams by your veterinarian. Laboratory tests, such as, EKG, blood pressure monitoring and ultrasound can help the veterinarian diagnose heart disease. Ultrasound is the only way to truly detect the thickened walls of the heart and is now used to screen our young human athletes as well.

Medications can help cats with their heart function, reduce the edema in their lungs and may help reduce the blood clot formations. The prognosis for a cat that has already developed the congestive heart failure is guarded, and even with medication, survival rates are 12-18 months after diagnosis and sudden death can occur at any time.

At your cat’s next health check, speak with your veterinarian about developing a wellness plan for yor cat. By diagnosing disease conditions earlier, small changes in diet and adding medication can help your cat live longer.

You can find more on Cat Health Care at LuvUrCat.com

No Comments » Posted by SportsDude / Cats

training your dog

There has to be someone special in order to fill the job a dog trainer must do. Training your dog is an important part of developing a life-long bond with your beloved pet. You may never be a dog trainer for money but just giving your dog the basic dog commands is more than many people find themselves able to do. You can look back with a sense of satisfaction that your pet is a good example for others.

In order to be a dog trainer for your pet, you have to know some dog training tips. The first is having the proper knowledge on the dog breeding. Certain dogs are more laid back than others. Some dogs exhibit more aggression. As a dog trainer for your puppy, you must know its breeding. Once you have this knowledge ingrained then you will know what areas of difficulty you can expect as well as areas that will be easier.

Basic dog training starts off with teaching the pet how not to use the bathroom in your house. Dog books may recommend something called crate training to help with this aspect. Basically it begins with laying puppy pee pads out and into a crate designed to house your dog. There will be some rough times when the carpet gets more of the pee than the pad or crate does but as a dog trainer you must come to expect this. Eventually the dog will lean to use the bathroom correctly.

Crate training can also be used as a way to secure the dog at night when the rest of the family is asleep. You probably do not want to wake up and find your best shoes chewed up because Fido became irritated at you because you were not there for him or her when they wanted to play. Dogs are very smart. If you irritate them or abandon them, they will retaliate and the recipient is often a favored pair of shoes that become chew toys.

It is probably safe to assume that you have a set of shoes you wear often. It probably would not go over very well to come home and find them chewed up or defecated in. Dogs have a curious way to express their irritation. If you utilize crate training as a weapon in a dog trainer capacity, you can leave your pet safely ensconced within the cage when you are gone.

Animals can sense our emotions. They know when we are happy, sad or feeling frustrated. They experience the same things. There will be times when you will feel like giving up but it does get better. There are plenty of dog forums available to help you be a good dog trainer for your pet. The hard stuff will pass and soon you will be able to get a handle on everything.

No Comments » Posted by SportsDude / Dogs

What is a hermit crab? Well, hermit crabs are unusual pets for unusual people, maybe like you. Seriously, according to Wikipedia, these crabs are decapod crustaceans of the superfamily Paguroidea. Actually, they are not that closely related to crabs. Sort of, in human terms, in-laws or far kins but they walk funny, too, sideways. They are commonly seen in the intertidal zone, for example, in tide pools. These crabs have the habit of abandoning their own shell overtime and will find a larger shell. This is why they are called “hermit crabs” and can you imagine that a lot of people have considered hermit crabs as pets. What’s more, because of this new found love in these animals, there are even sites out there that offer some Hermit Crab care and other valuable information vital for owning a crustacean. It is also important to note that some of these crabs can live among humans for 20 years or so. If you’re searching for a pet and you like to have a marine life in your living room, an aquarium, for example, why not try to have some hermit crabs on it?

For those who want to have a refreshing scenery inside his living room, an aquarium is one of the strongly recommended item that you can put on top of your TV set or in just one corner of your living room. You can complete your collection of marine life by having your own Hermit Crab pet. They can also provide some “cleaning” services for other occupants of your tank. You know crustaceans are, don’t you? They are also considered as “janitors” of the sea and they eat all kinds of small animals and bacteria on the ocean floor which makes the whole area clean and free from parasites. Who knows, with a Hermit Crabs pet, you might have the cleanest tank among your friends and you don’t even need to invest on cleaners for your aquarium. So, how you doing?

No Comments » Posted by SportsDude / Exotic