Vet Q&A-Dog

Hello, my dog just got into a fight with a possum. Now she has a small open wound on her leg. She is up to date with all her shots.

I would recommend cleaning the wound with antibacterial soap and warm water tonight, then having your dog examined by a vet tomorrow to be safe - even if the wound is not actively bleeding, bite wounds from other animals have a high risk of becoming infected so she may need antibiotics to help prevent this. Your vet can also advise you of any rabies quarantine laws that may apply in your state - possums rarely carry rabies and if your dog is current on her vaccines she should be well-protected, but in some states an in-home observation period may be required to make sure there are no problems.

We are crate training our lab. She scrapes her nose on the lock the whole time she is in the crate. Her nose is very raw. How can we stop her?

We commonly see this problem with pets that are boarded and have anxiety. You can to calm her by placing an Adaptil or DAPP collar on her. You can also try a thunder shirt placed on her while she is crated. The only other way to prevent scraping of the nose while in the crate is to get stronger anti-anxiety medications through your veterinarian or to place an e-collar (cone) on her to try and prevent her from being able to reach the crate with her nose. Apply some neosporin onto her nose to help it heal.

Should I give my 8 week old puppy a 7 way shot or 9 way

There are a whole lot of different vaccines available out there in the world. The one to which you are referring is the Distemper Combination vaccine. In my book, as long as the vaccine is offering protection for the distemper virus, parvovirus, adenovirus, and para-influenza, all the rest are bonuses. But, just make sure that whatever vaccine is being given offers protection for those. If not, I would choose something different. I would also make sure that if you are administering vaccines yourself rather than going to a vet, that you use a very reputable place to purchase them. If the shots were not be refrigerated or were in an inappropriate environment, they may be ineffective. Hope this helps!

My dog has a lot of bumps on her head. They almost look like mosquito bites and they're getting bigger and she's getting more. It started about 10 minutes ago. I don't know what it is or what to do.

If these just arose out of nowhere I would be concerned they are hives and she is having an allergic reaction. Since they are on her face, I would consider this an emergency, so it would be recommended to take her in to the emergency clinic right away, where they can give her a shot of benadryl and a steroid shot to stop the reaction. In severe cases of allergic reactions the face can continue to swell and the swelling can extend to the airway, becoming life threatening, and we don't want that to happen!

My dog drank cranberry grape juice out of a cup about 10 minutes ago. What should we do.

A bit of cranberry grape juice is not likely to cause harm to your dog, unless she drank a whole cup of it. Even if Cam did get a decent amount, not all dogs react to grapes and raisins the same - some don't react at all. We really don't know a whole lot about grape and raisin toxicity except that it can be very dangerous to some dogs. Symptoms to watch for are lethargy, vomiting, diarrhea, and any urinary symptoms, like decreased output of urine. Usually the first symptom is vomiting - if Cam does vomit, bring her to the vet immediately for treatment. I doubt that this will happen, especially since she ingested a mixed juice (which are usually mostly sugar anyway), but it certainly doesn't hurt to be on alert. Good luck, and I hope Cam stays well!

My dog gave birth to one puppy few hours ago..I am unsure if there is more..but she kept on digging still..and occassional panting..she gave birth after we did some walk for about 30mins..the pup is alive and healthy..was there an instances that she might still give birth after few more hours or next day if the stuff she does means more.?

Occasionally, there can be 2-4 hours between puppies. If she is actively straining for an hour or more without producing a pup then she should be examined by your veterinarian right away. An exam and abdominal x-rays would be recommended in this situation anyway to confirm the presence or absence of additional pups inside Dhorina.

Can Capstar or Advantus be used on a dog that already on a topical like Frontline Plus.

Either can be combined and given at any time with Frontline. They do make better, longer acting flea control pills such as Nexgard or Simparica that you give monthly or Bravecto that is given every 3 months

My dog has a distended abdomen that is firm but not hard. She has retched a few times today. Otherwise no symptoms of GDV. Normal behavior, no signs of pain, no pacing, no drooling, normal heart rate and breathing, normal gums, normal belly sounds, normal urination and bowel movements, normal appetite and thirst, sleeping in all positions, no pain with palpation. Should I be heading to the vet? Or can I just get her some gas-x and keep an eye on it?

As long as she is acting ok you could monitor her for additional signs. If she starts retching, seems uncomfortable, starts drooling, is painful, or the distension persists then she should be examined by a vet. Your vet can take an X-ray to evaluate her abdomen and determine the exact cause of her problem.

My dog just ate a paper staple! We called one vet and they said he will pass but it will be blood in his still and may be painful. I wanted to hear a second opinion from you guys?

Hi and thanks for using Boop by Petco! Sorry to hear that Jax ate a staple. I have to agree that I think it will pass in time but one never knows with foreign bodies in each individual patient. I would monitor Jax very closely over the next 2-4 days for nausea, vomiting, and/or diarrhea. If these signs appear and persist I would advise seeing your vet immediately for possible x-rays. You may see no signs at all and that would be the best scenario for this case. One thing I would advise is feeding 1 teaspoon of canned pumpkin twice daily with his regular food. Not pumpkin pie filling, just canned pumpkin. It's loaded with fiber and will keep the gut happy and things moving during the next few days, hopefully helping the staple along and out of the system. Good luck with Jax. Not sure if you will check the bowel movements but that staple might be really hard to find. I hope it passes soon and with no complications.