Vet Q&A-SmallAnimal

Yorkies are only suppose to have one coat but my dog seems to have an undercoat. She’s purebred. Its not a big deal but i’m just kind of confused.

That can be normal for some Yorkies and other terriers like my cairn terrier. They often have a coarser haired outer layer and a softer undercoat. Dogs that are clipped down completely can lose the coarse outer layer. I’m sure this is just a variation and that you have a purebred Yorkie. She may have more undercoat also if you live in a colder area. Thanks for using Boop by Petco to help you care for Esther.

My feline (female Calico Breed) is shedding hair only when we do her grooming. Her hair on the coat have become bigger. Is it normal when a cats coat is big their hair come on the brush while grooming.

Some cats do not readily shed their hair and need regular combing to remove the dead hair. This is important, as dead hair causes mats, causes hairballs and also itches terribly. I suggest you comb her every day. She will thank you ! On the other hand, if your cat does not readily shed, you do not have a big problem with lots of cat hair flying about in your house.

I want to know if my pitbull puppies are purebred or not.

It is impossible to determine whether they are purebred at this age as puppies pretty much all look the same at this age. You should be able to tell by the time they are around 4 months old. There is also a possibility to do a DNA test to check whether they are purebred. This may have to be arranged through your veterinarian.

Hi, my nayla is in her first heat right now. We want her to get pregnant this heat we also have a male shih Tzu he is two years of age and nayla is 7 months. I wanted to know the risk? And could she die? The reason I want her to get pregnant is because we had another female shih Tzu and we wanted her pregnant but our male shih Tzu and her never wanted to do it and then sadly she passed away. And now I want nayla and max to breed before they get to attach! What are the consequences?

Breeding any dog before a year old is not recommended since she is not fully grown or strong enough to support a pregnancy. This can lead to growth issues and/or a difficult whelping (birth) for the mother. Responsible breeders wait until a hitch is about two years old before breeding. By the time she is ready to breed, he will still be interested in her.

I have adopted a indian breed kitten 2 months old.. She is fine healthy and active.. I give her boiled mutton boiled kidney and boiled chicken to eat..yesterday i gave her a boiled egg And some whiskas gravy food.. But she never eats whiskas dry food what should I do.. I noticed her doing loose motions yesterday evening

It's definitely good to get her to eat the Whiskas food, because this has necessary nutrients for a kitten that she may not get from the other food. However, the other food has good nutrients and is appropriate for a cat. They also likely taste better than the Whiskas, so that's likely why she is not eating the Whiskas. Getting a cat to eat a food that they don't want is difficult, but there are a few things that you can do to get her to eat. Below is a link to a good article that explains why this happens and how to help get her to eat her food. https://www.petcoach.co/article/my-pet-is-a-finicky-eater/ I hope that helps and all is well with Mini.

My dog is an Italian Greyhound. His breed is known to be sensitive to specific types of medications. I am trying to find the safest topical flea/tick treatment for him. I used to use Advantage, but found out it doesn't guard against ticks. Do you have any recommendation for my dog? Is Frontline Plus safe for his breed?

Hello. We have used Frontline Plus & Frontline Gold on many of Italian Greyhounds & have never seen any problems. They do not seem to be any more sensitive to these products than any other breed. Thanks for using Boop by Petco.

At what age are American Staffordshire terrier considered an adult? I've heard that any dog with an adult weight of 50 lbs is a large breed and should be on puppy food. Should I feed him puppy food until two years? Also what is the recommended calcium level for them? Because I know my lab puppy needs a low calcium diet for his bone growth and was wondering if it was the same for all large breeds. I currently feed Otis Victor hi pro and it has 1.72 calcium and 30% protein.

Most larger breed dogs physically mature between 12 and 16 months of age. It will take up to 2 years for him to mature mentally and socially. Giant breeds take even longer, smaller breeds mature sooner. It is generally recommended to transition to an adult diet at around 1 year of age since a majority of dogs will be at or very near adult size by this age. Feeding a puppy diet beyond may predispose a dog to obesity and orthopedic issues. The calcium level in the current diet is fine for Otis. As he nears adulthood, it can be decreased to 1.5%. As long as he is getting a balanced diet, he should be fine. Studies have shown that a low calcium diet have no effect on the incidence of hip dysplasia and other orthopedic abnormalities in growing dogs. A balanced diet and one with an appropriate calcium:phosphorous ratio is much more important and beneficial. You can read more here: http://www.peteducation.com/article.cfm?c=2+1659&aid=652

My dog is a mix Maltese and shitzu breed. 13 years old. She recently developed a large red lump on her abdomen (under her nipple) area. It was only a red lump at first but after a day it was filled with fluids. What is it? What should I do? And how much would the treatment be around? Thank you.

It looks like she could have an infection and/or a mass so she should be examined by a vet for treatment. She might need an antibiotic or it may need to be removed. The cost really depends on the vet and the exact treatment plan. If she just needs an antibiotic to treat an infection then it shouldn't cost more than $100 for the examination and antibiotic.

Fish has white fluffy stuff on gills and eyes as well as what looks like fin rot. We’ve lost almost all the fish in our aquarium… we thought ick initially and have dosed Melafix but it doesn’t seem to be working. They won’t eat, they’re either laying on the ground or floating at the top of the tank gasping ): we have a large tank with several peaceful species and now we’re down to just a handful of fish left. We are devastated.

Hi and thanks for your request. this ''fluffy'' material on the skin fish is likely a oomycetes (a fungus basically) called Saprolegnia. This is a secondary proliferation due to a primary infection which could be due to a variety of causes unfortunately. From the pic white spot disease (ich) dies not seem to be present. Given the high mortality incidence it is absolutely necessary to check water parameters and make sure they are normal and take the moribund fish (and the dead ones) to your local veterinarian for (euthanasia if needed and) necroscopic examination. Your local veterinarian will be able to tell what is going on or possibly prescribe some treatment (likely antibiotics or disinfectants).