It can be heartbreaking to watch your dog walk around with a limp. Dogs can have pulled muscles just like humans. The muscles most often injured are those in a dog’s front or hind legs and the most common symptom is a limp. How can you soothe your dog’s pain? Can you prevent them from pulling a muscle in the future? Here’s what you need to know. What Are Pulled Muscles?...
Dogs we usually understand, mostly because they are so easy to understand. They have expressive faces and body language that we can read pretty accurately. Cats, on the other hand, are known for their emotional vagueness and standoffishness. But there is a growing belief that cats are as expressive as dogs. It’s just that we misunderstand or don’t see what they’re trying to communicate. When it comes to cats, those meows and tail waves mean … well, a lot of things....
A cat throwing up yellow-colored liquid may be an indication of numerous illnesses from indigestion to kidney disease, or may simply mean that your feline needs to be fed smaller meals more often. Yellow-colored, liquid vomit is usually a combination of bile and stomach acids. When a cat has an empty stomach, the digestive acids have nothing to dilute them, and can irritate the lining of the stomach, causing the cat to vomit bile....
It’s a common belief that a healthy cat has a cold, wet nose. Many people believe that a warm or dry nose in cats is a sign of a problem. If your cat’s nose is dry or warm, does this mean there is something wrong? The short answer is no. It’s not possible to use your cat’s nose to determine his overall health. It can be normal for a cat’s nose to be wet or dry or warm or cold....
When planning your Halloween costumes, consider including your feline friends. Some cats tolerate dressing up better than others, so don’t force your animal into wearing something that makes them uncomfortable. They might only be content wearing a costume for a short amount of time, so have a camera ready to capture the moment. Here are 15 Halloween costume ideas for cats. Pizza Cat Did you hear that sound? It was the internet exploding because someone combined the internet’s two favorite topics: cats and pizza....
The sleeping habits of horses are quite different than humans. Most human sleep is usually a long, single stretch—about eight hours in a 24-hour day. Horses doze for various periods during the day and have short bouts of deep sleep lying down in the middle of the night. Horse’s sleeping patterns change depending on their age. Foals lie down for frequent naps and spend about half of their day sleeping until they are about three months old....
You may have heard of or seen Adaptil for dogs at your vet’s office or online—touting the promise of calm in a collar and thought, “What are these, and do they really work?” The short answer is that, yes, they can help in a variety of situations—but they may not be enough for every dog. Stress and anxiety can arise from multiple reasons in dogs; meeting new people, thunderstorms, being left alone, or even just being adopted and going into a new home can be a stressful situation for our pup pals....
History Temperament Speech and Vocalizations Colors and Markings Care Health Problems Diet and Nutrition Exercise Where to Adopt or Buy Further Research Known for their beauty, intelligence, and excellent talking abilities, Alexandrine parakeets have been popular as pets for centuries. Named for Alexander the Great, who is said to have had many of these birds, it was an exotic pet owned by nobility and the elite. This medium-sized parrot is the largest of the Asiatic parakeets....
Characteristics Breed History Training and Care Health Problems Diet and Nutrition Where to Adopt or Buy English Springer Spaniel Overview Further Research Frequently Asked Questions The English springer spaniel is a sturdy and handsome medium-sized sporting dog breed from England with a medium-length coat in a variety of colors. Known for its big and expressive saucer eyes, long floppy ears, and feathered features, this spaniel is loving and eager to please....
Gabapentin is a prescription medication that also goes by the brand name Neurontin. Initially used for people, it is also used in veterinary medicine to treat seizures and chronic pain in cats and dogs. If your pet has been prescribed gabapentin, it’s important that you understand how it’s used and any potential side effects. Use in Dogs and Cats Gabapentin is used in both dogs and cats. There are two primary reasons why your vet may prescribe it....
Once you find the right type of wet food, you need to figure out how much to feed your cat. General guidelines are available for how much wet food to feed cats of any shape and size. For example, a 5-pound cat with a lean body type needs about 170 calories per day, and a 10-pound cat with a lean body type needs about 280 calories per day. While the specifics vary from brand to brand and between different types of canned food, as a very rough guideline, a 3-ounce can of cat food has around 70 to 100 calories, so the average adult cat would need to eat two or three cans of food per day....
Many people wonder what workload an older horse can maintain. Can it be ridden the way it always has been, should you give it a less-rigorous workload, or should an older horse be ridden at all? Chances are unless your horse is very frail and elderly, your horse will benefit from light work regularly. Exercise With Your Senior Horse Regular light exercise will help your horse maintain its health. Your horse might not be as agile, nor as supple, as in its younger days, so keep this in mind....
Gas Bubble Disease presents as bubbles trapped within a fish’s eye, fins or skin. It does not include any swim bladder or buoyancy disorders. This disease occurs due to the water becoming supersaturated with dissolved gas, and often causes the water to contain very small bubbles, known as microbubbles, that slowly form larger, more visible bubbles. The dissolved gas is absorbed by the fish and forms bubbles in its tissues. There are several ways microbubbles may occur in your aquarium....
What Are Leg Injuries in Horses? Symptoms Causes Diagnosing Treatment Prognosis Prevention As the saying goes, “no foot, no horse.” Most horses have jobs that require athleticism. Additionally, a horse with a severe lameness on one leg cannot survive for very long without causing irreparable damage to at least one of the other limbs. Knowing what causes leg injuries in horses, how to identify lameness, and when to call your veterinarian are keys to saving your horse’s athletic career and potentially its life....
Animal adoption saves lives. It is estimated that 36 percent of dogs and 43 percent of cats are adopted from an animal shelter or rescue, according to the American Pet Products Association. These lucky pets get a new lease on life, but what about their smaller counterparts? Most people think of pet stores when they decide to add a ferret, chinchilla, guinea pig, rabbit, hamster, gerbil, mouse, or rat to their family....
Cats may be the unofficial mascots of the interwebs, but everyone’s best doggie friends are starting to stake their claim in internet fame, too. After Jiffpom became an internet sensation (and probably one of your very first pup “likes”), pooches all over the globe also began to launch their own personal Instagrams (. . . er, their humans did because of that whole lack of an opposable thumb!). We’re embracing our internet pet obsession because we can’t get enough of their adorable, hilarious, and weird internet antics....
Cat language goes beyond the vocalizations that typically include hisses, growls, chattering, and meows. Nonverbal language such as tail talk offers many advantages over vocalizations. For example, sounds give away a cat’s location while posturing can’t be overheard. To many owners’ surprise, feline communication is done in large part through a cat’s ears, providing tons of useful information regarding a cat’s mood or next course of action. Various Types of Nonverbal Language in Cats The silent semaphore language of cats is done via facial expressions and body positions and movements....
When you think of Latin American New World dog breeds, probably the one dog that instantly springs to mind is the diminutive Chihuahua from Mexico. The list of dogs from this part of the world is as comprehensive as Latin America is vast. Latin America’s lands include Central America, South America, and islands in the Caribbean and Gulf of Mexico. These areas encompass many types of biomes: deserts, tropical islands, mountains, and more....
Saltwater and freshwater aquarium sump pumps are a great innovation and a terrifically useful piece of aquarium system equipment. However, they do have one a drawback and it’s something you may not have thought about until it’s too late. Since the sump pump is powered via the electricity in your house, if there is a power outage, the sump pump will stop working. What Happens When the Power Goes Out Once the sump pump stops pumping and the tank water level has dropped to the overflow level, the tanks will continue to drain into the sump pump via the pump outlet in the tank....
No one likes to think about parasites, but they are extremely common in dogs. In particular, intestinal parasites, which are commonly referred to as worms, are found in many puppies and adult dogs, and these parasites can be very problematic. Thankfully there are simple treatments to get rid of these pesky parasites and to help keep your dog healthy. Intestinal Parasites in Dogs There are many different types of intestinal parasites that are found in dogs....
