Christina Kellogg, DVM

Biography

I have had a life-long love of animals and over the years have worked with animals in multiple capacities. I graduated from Colorado State University's veterinary program in 2013. Since graduating, I have worked both in emergency and general practice. I currently practice medicine in a hospital that cares for dogs, cats, and exotic pets (rodents, rabbits, snakes, lizards, birds, etc. but not fish). I enjoy being able to keep animals healthy and getting them healthy again when they are sick. But, most of all, I enjoy nurturing the bond between people and their pets. My current animal family includes an energetic German Shepherd named Ella, an old kitty named Annie, four leopard geckos and two Iguanas. I like that PetCoach allows pet caregivers to ask real veterinarians questions in between their regular visits to the vet or if they are unsure if they should schedule a visit to the vet. I look forward to helping you keep your pets safe and healthy.

Questions Answered by Christina Kellogg, DVM

Hi,i am gonna start giving dry food to my puppy ,(she was drinking milk up to now).which one is a better dry food for her a baby grain free dry food or a normal baby dry food?!

Hello. Grain allergies are very uncommon in dogs so a grain free diet should not be needed with your pup at this time. I would just recommend getting her on a high-quality small breed puppy food. Some of my favorite food brands for dogs are Science Diet, Royal Canin and Purina Proplan. I like these brands as they do extensive research and testing on their diets to make sure that they keep animals healthy throughout their lives. A puppy this age also should be fed three times daily until she was about six months of age or so. Best of luck as I know the amount of pet foods available currently can be overwhelming.

Hi, my 7 month old indoor kitten has had diarrhea for a week now, and it doesn't seem to be getting any better. He started getting diarrhea after I switched his food, so I switched it back to the old food that he tolerated. I tried to feed him rice with chicken broth and that definitely didn't go over well with him. What should I do?

Sorry to hear that Ollie is having an upset tummy. It is very common for animals to develop diarrhea after an abrupt diet change. You can try feeding a bland diet consisting of boiled chicken and boiled rice for 24-48 hours to see if this helps improve the stool. If there is no improvement seen in that time or he won't eat this, the best thing to do would be to have Ollie evaluated by a veterinarian as medications may be needed to treat his diarrhea. They can also prescribe a canned premade bland diet that Ollie may enjoy more. If there is improvement on the bland diet, then you can continue the bland diet for a few days and then start mixing in Ollie's regular diet (whichever one you chose). The most important part about changing a cats diet is to make sure that you do it very gradually. This means that you should mix in the new diet with the bland diet over about 1-2 weeks by gradually increasing amount of new diet and decreasing the amount of the bland diet. Hope this helps and Ollie feels better soon!

Sudden onset of forcefull sneezing with warm nose.Wettness decressed .

There are many causes of sneezing in dogs. some potential causes are inhalation of a foreign body (grass seed, dust, etc), allergies, a nasal or upper respiratory infection or a nasal tumor to name a few. If Moehawk is otherwise acting normal, you could try Benadryl in case this is related to allergies. If he is lethargic, develops nasal discharge or the sneezing continues, I would recommend having him seen by a veterinarian. His vet could help determine the exact cause of the sneezing and how to best treat Moehawk. Hope he feels better soon!

Hi i want to ask my puppy is 2month old she's turning 3 this coming 15. What would be her first vaccine??

Puppies should be vaccinated at 8, 12, and 16 weeks of age. They also should be dewormed every two weeks until they are 16 weeks old. With each set of vaccines, every puppy should get a DAPP vaccine. This is the vaccine that protects puppies against distemper and parvo. There are several other vaccines that your vet might recommend depending on what diseases are present in you area. And at 16 weeks, your puppy should get vaccinated for rabies. Hope this helps! Have fun with your puppy!

Young male cat, 1 inch in diameter mass with red splotchy pigment at site of chip implant. Has "popped" before when grabbed by the nape. This is the second time in which it has grown and continues to grow in size. Not completely solid, Has slight give when pressed. No appetite loss nor depression. Does not seem to itch nor hurt.

What you are describing almost sounds like an abscess. An abscess is a localized pus-filled pocket of infection and inflammation. I have never seen a reaction or infection caused by a microchip but that does not mean it can't happen. I would recommend having Jasper examined by his veterinarian to determine what is causing the swelling. His vet might have to remove the swelling/mass and have it tested/analyzed to see what exactly it is. This testing would help make sure that it is not cancerous lump. If it is determined to be from the microchip, I would have your vet contact the microchip manufacturer and let them know as that shouldn't happen with microchips. Best of luck to you and Jasper.