Fish Q&A: Real Answers from Vet Experts

I forgot to mention I compared the values of each fish oil and both were very similar per 1/4 tsp. so why would RX recommend double? RX vitamins had 750 mg of fish oil, 135 mg of EPA and 90 mg of DHA. Nordic naturals had 1,000 mg of fish oil, 150 mg of EPA and 90 mg of DHA.

To be honest, I'm not sure why Rx recommend double if the values are very similar. It could be that they are suggesting a higher daily amount for your dog than Nordic naturals. There is a dosage range, which can go from 1,000 mg fish oil containing 300 mg of EPA/DHA combined for 30 pounds of body weight to a dose maximum of 1,000 mg fish oil per 10 pounds of body weight. I hope this makes sense and helps!

Is it acceptable to administer Cerenia and Buprenorphine within the same day in a 17 year old cat with kidney deficiency? She also shows signs of vestibular disease and the Cerenia really helps her. Use of the Buprenorphine is quite rare, but we use it as needed for pain. ie...sometimes she moans and groans after eating canned food like fish flavored Weruva--thus, the Buprenorphine.

Poor girl! Yes you can safely give Cerenia and Buprenorphine on the same day and even at he same time, if needed. If she has kidney disease then subcutaneous fluids will also help with that. I know th Cerenia helps with her vestibular disease because it mostly is helping with her nausea. However Cerenia is only safe to give for 5 consecutive days. After that time frame I would suggest asking your vet for motion sickness medication (Dimenhydramine) that can be given long term, if needed. I hope your kitty feels better soon!

My shih tzu has hair loss on his tail. I took him to the vet and they said that it looks like a flea allergy. They gave me Temaril P two weeks ago, but I haven't notice a change. And he still lossing his hair from the tail, nowhere else. Just his tail. The first time that I notice his alopecia was 3weeks ago. What should I do? What should I expect from his medication? Can I use medicated shampoo or Oil Fish to growth it back? Thank you.

You should have noticed an improvement from the Temaril P within a few days of use. I am not sure how old your pet is, but you have to consider other causes of alopecia now, which includes demodexx mite infestation, ringworm (if the skin is also red and has a crusty ring around it, or even an endocrine disorder (Cushing's disease causes a rat tail appearance). I would revisit the vet and get a skin scrape to look for mites, fungal culture (if indicated), and if those come up negative then bloodwork to look for endocrine disorders. Fish oils are not effective at treating alopecia in pets. They are only good for treating inflammation of the skin. Nor will they cause hair re-growth. We need to find out the underlying cause and treat that directly.

My vet said I should give fish oil that also has omega 6 in it. I've just been giving straight fish oil. Are omega 3s plus omega 6s better than just omega 3s? Why? Thanks!

If you are feeding a quality diet, it is likely your pet is receiving sufficient quantities of Omega 6s. Omega 3s break down quicker when exposed to light and air, so it is difficult to maintain therapeutic levels in commercial foods. The two best Omega 3s for dogs are DHA and EPA. Fish oil may contain high levels of both however, it may also contain more toxins. Oil from fish livers may also contain dangerous amounts of vitamins A and D.

My spayed old dog licks her privates and it smells like fish or a skunky smell it makes her breath smell that way as well it stinks her pillow our couch . Its doesnt seem to come from her butt. Its gross

The smell is likely coming from the anal glands even though you don't seem to think it is coming from her anal region. The anal gland fluid has that fishy/skunky odor. The other option is that she has a bladder infection (UTI) and if left untreated can turn into a very serious issue. The final possibility is that her diet or any supplements she is taking is causing the odor. Regardless, she needs a vet exam to get this figured out. I don't think it's an emergency but try to take her in soon.

My fish all have ICH and we have only had them for about a week. Our tank is at 70º and it is a 10 gallon fishtank with a albino catfish, a koi fish, and one classic gold fish. The gold fish is the only one HEAVILY infected! What do we do?!?! P.S we do have one live plant in the tank as well.

Ich can only be killed in its free swimming stage. After it feeds off the fish, it drops into the substrate where it forms cysts and multiplies. Then the new ich parasites swim out of the gravel and find new fish hosts and start the cycle all over again. That is why it is important after all white spots have disappeared to continue treatment, you should continue treating for an additional 2 weeks after all symptoms are gone. After the spots disappear off the fish, I would vacuum the gravel to suck up any cysts. If you increase the temperature the life cycle of the ich becomes faster. All new fish should be placed in a quarantine tank for at least 2-3 weeks to make sure they are eating, free of disease, and are able to recuperate in a stress-free environment.

Hi, I'm putting water to his dry food water to make it mositure because that's he would only eats and he likes it. But in the second day, he ate less of dry food. Oliver is active and looks like very healthy. I feed him wet food twice every morning and left out his dry food to noon from night. His dry cat food is fish flavor. The brand I've been feeding to him is all fish flavors. Is that okay, is fish flavors makes my cat eat less of dry food or should I feed him a variety flavors per bag dry??

I think fish flavored food is just fine. I would just offer him dry food with no water on it and leave this out all day for him to nibble on it. Then I would also offer him a small amount of canned food (a spoonful) once or twice a day. If he continues to refuse to eat, then I would have your vet look at him. Your vet will be able to do a fecal, bloodwork and even X-rays if needed. Your vet will be able to get him started on the proper meds to help him feel better and help increase his appetite. I hope this helps.

One of my goldfish appears to have his tail turning transparent. It was not like that last week. I have only had him and two other fish in the tank for all of one week. The water is a cloudy gray, but I was told that is normal. Is this caused by stress, diet, parasites, or something else?

Thank you for the picture - I am unable to tell if the tail is just turning transparent, or if portions of it are missing. If it is truly just a color change, and there are no other problems with C.G. or the other fish, it may just be that he is going to become a different color. If the tail has missing portions, that is more likely to be caused by an infectious problem (such as bacteria, fungi, parasites). I would recommend evaluating your water quality parameters, as you eluded to in your question. Then I would monitor the tail, and if there are portions missing, I would recommend having him evaluated by a veterinarian. They can take samples of the area, as well as from the skin and gills to evaluate for parasites and other organisms.

Hello, I'm currently using a joint supplement and fish oil daily. Do you think it would beneficial to add in something called bio cardio (for heart health) as well as a canine probiotic supplement? How much would these additional supplements help? Please explain. She is on royal canin weight care diet. Thank you! my dog is a cavalier King Charles spaniel.

Royal Canin diets are all formulated with pre-biotics which help support a health gut bacteria. You could add in an additional probiotic but you may not see a huge amount of benefits BUT it will not hurt anything. Purina makes a very nice probiotic called FortiFlora and that would be the one I recommend. The Bio-Cardio may be beneficial but to the best of my knowledge, no testing has been done to know for sure if this is effective or not. Royal Canin does make a diet specific for Cavaliers that has additives for heart heath. They also make a diet for pets with heart disease or even just heart murmurs. They have done some studies indicating that these diets do impact heart health. Your fatty acid supplement does help to maintain heart health through its natural anti-inflammatory properties. I would recommend to look into the other diets and discuss with your vet if these may be good option for Chloe. I hope this helps and thank you for using Boop by Petco.

Fish Vet Q&A

I forgot to mention I compared the values of each fish oil and both were very similar per 1/4 tsp. so why would RX recommend double? RX vitamins had 750 mg of fish oil, 135 mg of EPA and 90 mg of DHA. Nordic naturals had 1,000 mg of fish oil, 150 mg of EPA and 90 mg of DHA.

My vet said I should give fish oil that also has omega 6 in it. I've just been giving straight fish oil. Are omega 3s plus omega 6s better than just omega 3s? Why? Thanks!

My spayed old dog licks her privates and it smells like fish or a skunky smell it makes her breath smell that way as well it stinks her pillow our couch . Its doesnt seem to come from her butt. Its gross

My fish all have ICH and we have only had them for about a week. Our tank is at 70º and it is a 10 gallon fishtank with a albino catfish, a koi fish, and one classic gold fish. The gold fish is the only one HEAVILY infected! What do we do?!?! P.S we do have one live plant in the tank as well.

One of my goldfish appears to have his tail turning transparent. It was not like that last week. I have only had him and two other fish in the tank for all of one week. The water is a cloudy gray, but I was told that is normal. Is this caused by stress, diet, parasites, or something else?