Is Your Pet Suffering from Depression? Do You Know?

People aren't the only ones that get depressed. Pets can suffer from depression too. Depression in pets can be caused by a variety of factors such as grief over the death of a human member of the household or another pet. It can also be the result of a move or other break from regular routine. If you work long hours and your pet is left alone for long periods of time, he can become depressed. There are usually several signs that may indicate your pet is suffering from depression.

 Many times a pet will get depressed if someone new comes around and they feel replaced, whether it's another pet or a person. So be sure to include your pet in activities with the new person or pet in your life. Don't leave them out. You can also help your pet get use to the new person or pet by allowing them time to get to know each other without you around. Be sure to continue your regular activities with your pet that you engaged in before the new person or pet arrived. Take walks and play at the same time and for the same length of time. If there will be a new baby in the house, get your pet use to the sounds and smells of a new baby as best you can.

Some signs of depression in pets may be:

• Eating and drinking less often - A depressed pet will begin eating less and sometimes stop eating entirely.

• Chewing and destroying things - When pets are depressed, they take up destructive behavior as a cry for help.

• Going to the bathroom inside the house or outside of the litter box. This doesn’t just indicate bad behavior in mad or angry pets - bathroom “accidents” may not be accidents at all - your pet may be too sad to get up.

• Loss of interest in Activities - Lethargy and lack of interest are telltale signs of depression in humans and animals alike.

• Dog is wagging its tail less - Happy dogs wag their tails.

• Hiding - When your pet starts making a home out of the dark corners and spaces in your house (closets, under your bed), and takes up residence in an area they don’t usually frequent, this could be a sign that they’re depressed.

• Not wanting to be left alone - Like their human counterparts, when feeling particularly sad, some pets do not want to be left alone. Separation anxiety is signaled by excessive crying and whining when you attempt to leave the house. This is often accompanied by #2, chewing or destroying things.

• Too little or too much grooming - Cats have a tendency to under-groom when they are depressed, but once in a while, you’ll get a pet that does quite the opposite. Watch out for skin irritation and shedding.

• Increased vocalization - If your pet is crying, whining, or barking more than usual it’s possible there is something wrong and they are trying to communicate with you the only way they know how.

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Did You Know that there are Homeless Horses?

When most people think of homeless animals, they think of dogs and cats. Did you know that there are homeless horses?

There are no unwanted horses in the United States, simply homeless horses. "Unwanted Horse" is a pro slaughter term.

No one has a litter of horses show up on their door step, no one is walking down the street and finds a basket full of baby horses!

All domestic horse breeding, save the exception of an unlatched gate, is controlled by human intervention. A homeless horse has simply outgrown the reason for which he or she has been bred and is now homeless, not unwanted.

As a domestic species in America, the horse tends to have an ownership history that closely resembles that of a used car. An estimate I’ve heard is that the average horse will pass through 7 to 10 homes in their lifetime. The implications of this sad fact are compounded many fold when you come to understand the nature and needs of a horse, a beautiful, highly intelligent herd animal who thrives on companionship, leadership, routine and a predictably safe environment.

The Humane Society of the United States, says, A typical horse has a life-span of more than 20 years and will have several owners over the course of his life. While most will find owners who love and cherish them, some will fall victim to abuse, neglect, or even death at a slaughter plant. We’re working to make sure that doesn’t happen.




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Rescue Dogs - One Blind and One Deaf Are Best Friends

A good friend won't mind if you can't see or hear. In the photo below are two disabled dogs, one blind, one deaf taking a nap together.

The larger dog, Tank is blind, and the smaller dog, Mozart, is deaf.

Both were recently adopted. Both were rescue dogs. The new owner was a little concerned about how they would get along.

Fortunately, everything turned out just fine.

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Notorious Gangster in Romanian Kept Lions and Bears in His Mansion

Bucharest, Romania - A notorious gangster known as Nutzu the Pawnbroker has been indicted for heading a gang charged with attempted murder, kidnapping, blackmail and illegally possessing weapons, but the public seems to be more interested in his pets: four lions and two bears.

Press reports, not confirmed by authorities have claimed that Ion Balint - his real name - use the lions to intimidate rivals and victims.

When he rode away from prison on a black stallion in 2010, Balint played up that fearsome image.

"You said I fed men to the lions?" Balint can be heard saying on a tape heard by The Associated Press. "Why don't you come over and I'll give you some lions!"

Authorities won't speculate about why Balint kept lions and bears, as well as thoroughbred horses and canaries, at his high-walled and heavily guarded estate in the poorest part of Bucharest.

"Many untruths are being reported," Balint's son-in-law Marius Vlad told The Associated Press on Wednesday, referring to other rumors of a torture chamber.

Bystanders and relatives who gathered near the gates of the estate described Balint, 48, as a good neighbor and an animal lover, and said they weren't bothered by roaring lions.

"We can hear them every day but only when they're hungry or the female is in heat," said Gabriela Ionescu, 36, robed in a dressing gown and clutching her toddler daughter's hand. "They don't disturb us at all."

Authorities allege that Balint and his brother Vasile headed a criminal network which controlled much of the underworld activity in Bucharest, a city of 2 million. Some 400 police and detectives were involved in the investigation which led to the arrest last week of 67 suspects, including the Balint brothers.

In 2009, Balint was convicted of human trafficking, violence and pimping, and sentenced to 13 years in prison. That was reduced to six years but Balint was free after a year.

On Wednesday, the four lions and two bears were sedated, put in cages and removed Wednesday by environmental authorities and the Vier Pfoten animal welfare charity. The animals, which generally appeared in good condition, will be temporarily housed in a zoo and may be eventually relocated in South Africa, animal welfare officers said.

Mircea Pupaza, commissioner of the National Environment Guard, told The Associated Press that Balint had no documentation or health records for the animals, which he's kept illegally for 10 years. He could face a year in prison and a hefty fine for illegally keeping wild animals.

"The lions are a status symbol for him," said Livia Cimpoeru, a Vier Pfoten spokeswoman. She declined to speculate whether they had a more sinister purpose.

Lions sit in a cage on the estate of Ion Balint in Bucharest. The animal welfare charity Vier Pfoten removed four lions and two bears that were illegally kept on the estate

A bear chews on the bars of a cage at the estate of Ion Balint. He was convicted in 2009 for human trafficking, violence and pimping and sentenced to 13 years in prison. The sentence was later reduced to six years, but Balint was freed after serving one year.

A sedated lioness is removed from the estate of Ion Balint. He had no documentation for the animals, which police say he's kept illegally for 10 years.

                                                                                A bear reaches out from a cage.

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Zeus, a Great Dane has Been Named World's Tallest Dog by Guinness World Records 2013

Guinness World Records has replaced Giant George, the handsome Great Dane who grew from runt to 43 inches, with a new “world’s largest dog”: the 44-inch Great Dane, Zeus.

A 44" Great Dane has been named the world’s tallest dog by Guinness World Records.

Aptly named Zeus weighs 155 pounds and reaches an astonishing height of 7' 4" standing on his hind legs.

In April, 2012, I posted a story about Giant George, a Great Dane that held the title as the Guinness World Record Holder for Tallest Dog Ever for 2012.

Owner Denise Doorlag from Michigan says the three-year-old is so big little children often thinks he is a horse.

She said her family was honored by their pet’s place in the Guinness Book of World Records.

‘We are just a regular family from Michigan, so to be able to say that we own the world’s tallest dog is very exciting, and the kids are just so excited.’

First published in 1955, The Guinness Book of World Records has sold more than 120 million copies to date in over 100 countries.

Standing normally, he’s about the height of an average donkey. He eats 12 cups of food each day.

Big dog: Great Dane Zeus measures 44in from paw to withers and owner Denise, right, says young children often mistake him for a horse

                          No bowl: Zeus serves himself some water from the tap at the Doorlag family home in Michigan

                               Standing tall: On his hind legs Zeus, pictured with owner Kevin Doorlag, measures 7' 4"




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Ailing Pets Receiving Treatment in Hyperbaric Chamber

Gainesville, FL - Hyperbaric chambers have been used for decades to treat divers with the bends, burn victims and people with traumatic injuries, but in the U.S. they're increasingly being used on ailing pets.

Doctors at the University of Florida's College of Veterinary Medicine have recently used an oxygen chamber on dogs, cats, ferrets, rabbits and one monkey.

Veterinarian and professor Justin Shmalberg said the capsule has been used to treat animals that have been bitten by rattlesnakes, hit by cars and those with infected wounds, among other things.

"Any place we have swelling of tissue, we oftentimes are thinking about the hyperbaric chamber as something we could do to decrease that," he said.

Shmalberg said the chamber's high-pressure atmosphere of pure oxygen appears to help reduce swelling and aid healing time. He added that the school will begin clinical trials this summer to determine how - or even if - the hyperbaric chamber really is effective in speeding recoveries and healing animals.

There is little research on hyperbaric treatments and pets, although veterinarians who use the chambers note that most of the research for human hyperbaric treatments comes from trials done on rabbits and rats.

"We want to make sure there's really good science behind it," said Dr. Diane Levitan, who owns Peace Love Pets Veterinary Care in New York State. "It's not a panacea. There are specific reasons why this is helpful."

Levitan has a hyperbaric chamber in her practice and is writing an article for a veterinary journal on the treatment. Like Shmalberg, she has seen an improved rate of healing for certain conditions such as herniated discs, abscesses and even post-radiation swelling.

In humans, insurance companies will pay for hyperbaric treatment for several conditions, including carbon monoxide poisoning, crush injuries and bone marrow infections, among other things. Some insurance companies won't pay for hyperbaric treatment for wounds or ulcers, saying that it's an "unproven" therapy -- but some people swear by the treatment and seek out private clinics.

It's the same with pet owners; veterinarians with oxygen chambers say that people with sick pets often will often research the treatment and request it after becoming familiar with it through human medicine.

"It is a very new modality for treatment in veterinary medicine," said Dr. Andrew Turkell of Calusa Veterinary Center in Florida.

The devices used by UF, Levitan and Turkell are about the size of a loveseat and are manufactured by a company named Hyperbaric Veterinary Medicine. Turkell was the first doctor to sign a contract with Hyperbaric Veterinary Medicine, and estimates that he's used the chamber 750-800 times in the past year and a half.

"I find that it's really very effective for any kind of trauma," he said, adding that he's seen improvements in pets that have been hit by cars that have been subsequently treated in the chamber.

Wayne McCullough, the company's CEO, said that most veterinary offices can't afford to buy the capsules outright -- chambers for humans cost between $50,000 and $150,000 each -- so the company gives the clinics the chambers and then receives a cut on each treatment done by the veterinarian. At the UF clinic, treatment costs about $125 per session.

McCullough said that his employees deliver and train veterinarians on how to use the capsule. Working with 100 percent oxygen can be dangerous, which is why pets going inside the chamber are patted down with water before the treatment so their fur doesn't conduct static electricity and cause a fire.

In 2012, the high-oxygen chamber of a Florida equine sports medicine center exploded and caused part of a building to collapse, killed a worker and the horse inside the chamber.
The machine that exploded wasn't one of McCullough's chambers; it was a larger contraption made for horses. The horse inside the chamber apparently struck the side of the machine with its foot, which caused the spark and fire. It underscored the potential danger of the capsules.

Dr. Dorie Amour, the director of Emory University's wound care clinic, suggested that hyperbaric therapy in pets be a last-resort treatment. It "has to be a therapy used when there is no alternative. Or a therapy used for a very serious problem for which there hasn't been a solution."

Pet owners such as Mike Ray, the owner of Maggie, an 11-year-old dachshund with a gaping wound and recurring infection in her back paw, say they're willing to give it a try -- and spend the extra money to do so at the University of Florida animal hospital.
Maggie has been through a handful of hyperbaric treatments, and Dr. Schmalberg and Ray say they've noticed a difference after two sessions in the capsule. New fur is growing where raw flesh was once exposed.

"Whatever it takes, we're going do and we'll find a way to get it done," Ray said as he and his wife waited for Maggie to finish her oxygen therapy. "Because we need to get her healed."

Jan. 25, 2013: A dachshund named Maggie awaits treatment in the hyperbaric chamber at the University of Florida's College of Veterinary Medicine, in Gainesville, Fla. (AP)

Jan. 25, 2013: A dachshund named Maggie is treated in a hyperbaric chamber for an infection and paw wound at the University of Florida's College of Veterinary Medicine, in Gainesville, Fla. (AP)

Jan. 25, 2013: Dr. Justin Shmalberg, a veterinarian and professor at the University of Florida's College of Veterinary Medicine, said that hyperbaric oxygen chambers are being used to treat inflammation, wounds and other conditions in pets, in Gainesville, Fla. (AP)

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Did You Know that Gum Disease is the Most Common Disease Occurring in Pet Dogs and Cats?

The Veterinary Oral Health Council (VOHC), says that periodontal disease (gum disease) is the most common disease occurring in pet dogs and cats.

Cause

The cause of gum disease is the same in cats and dogs as it is in people.

Gum disease is an infection resulting from build-up of soft dental plaque on the surfaces of the teeth around the gums. The bacteria in dental plaque irritate the gum tissue if plaque is allowed to accumulate, which often leads to infection in the bone surrounding the teeth.

Hard dental tartar (calculus) consists of calcium salts from saliva deposited on plaque. Tartar starts to form within a few days on a tooth surface that is not kept clean, and provides a rough surface that enhances further plaque accumulation. Once it has begun to grow in thickness, tartar is difficult to remove without dental instruments.

Effects

Bad breath is the most common effect noted by owners. However, this is often only the tip of the iceberg.

The gums become irritated, leading to bleeding and oral pain, and your cat or dog may lose its appetite or drop food from its mouth while eating.

The roots may become so severely affected that some teeth become loose and fall out.

Bacteria surrounding the roots gain access to the blood stream ("bacteremia"). Studies have shown that dogs with severe periodontal disease have more severe microscopic damage in their kidneys, heart muscle and liver than do dogs with less severe periodontal disease.

Management

The key to management of gum disease (for humans or pets!) is prevention. As long as the surfaces of the teeth are cleaned frequently, the gums will stay healthy.

Excellent oral health is maintained by daily oral hygiene. The gold standard is brushing. Daily chewing activities can also be effective in maintaining oral health.

Daily use of products that have been awarded the VOHC Seal will help to keep your pet’s teeth clean and the gum tissues and bone around the roots healthy.

VOHC recommends periodic veterinary examination of the mouth and teeth of your dog or cat. Many pets, particularly middle-aged and older cats and dogs, require periodic professional scaling in addition to on-going plaque control.





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Food Stamps for Pets - A New York City-Based Organization has Instituted its Own Food Stamp Program for Pets

A New York City-based organization has instituted its own food stamp program, but this one is for pets – actually it's for needy pet owners who could use some help getting food and other supplies for their animal companions.

Currently, nearly 47 million eligible Americans receive government assistance through the food stamps program, now called Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, but the money can't be used to purchase pet food.

Now, eligible pet owners may get some relief through the Pet Food Stamps organization which has partnered with the pet service retailer Pet Food Direct and is seeking non-profit status.

The food would be paid for through private donations and grants, according to the Pet Food Stamps website. Once applicants have been verified and approved by program officials, their pet food requests would then be placed with www.PetFoodDirect.com, which would process the order based on the amount the applicant has been approved for and mail the food to the provided address.

"In these rough economic times, many pet owners are forced to abandon their beloved pet to the ASPCA, North Shore Animal League, or other animal shelters due to the inability to pay for their basic food supply and care," the organization states on its website, noting that SNAP only applies to food purchase for humans.

"There are over 50 million Americans who currently receive food stamps, many with dogs or cats, who simply cannot afford to feed their animals, and these cherished companions are dropped off at animal shelters where they will most likely be put to sleep . . . As more families struggle with difficult choices like paying the rent or buying food, some have to choose between keeping their pet and putting food on the table," said the statement.

The program was started two weeks ago by Marc Okon and has already received more than 12,000 requests, reported ABC affiliate KRQE-TV13.

According to Okon, if you are a pet owner who qualifies for federal assistance you most likely qualify for the Pet Food Stamp program as well.

"The love of a pet, the therapeutic ability of a pet and things like that are impossible to measure," said. "It gives us a special feeling of pride to be able to help people like that and we're happy to do it."

What do you think about this program?

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