NaturVet Pet Health - For the Health of Your Pet

We may think a lot about our dogs’ teeth and how important they are to health and happiness. But what about those rosy pink gums that help keep those vital pearly whites in place?

A dog’s gums are not just there for show, they actually serve as a unique window into the health and condition of a dog at any given time and can be even more important as an indicator for disease than the teeth themselves.

A head shake here, a little hind foot scratch there. But at its peak, a dog ear infection is pretty awful, as many pup parents out there can testify to. Red, swollen, painful ears that smell terrible and have nasty white, yellow, or brown gunk.

Is your dog starting to look a little wild around the house these days? Although it is hard to get to a professional groomer these days, not all hope is lost for your dog! Professional pet groomers have various tips on how to go about at-home grooming that will make your life much easier, such as:

- The best way to maintain your dog’s beautiful fur

- How to trim a dog’s nails safely and hassle-free

- Teeth brushing techniques for your dog

Read these tips and tricks and make your dog look as beautiful as ever!

It’s that time of year again, when the dead of winter has passed. As spring arrives, we’re seeing leaves on the trees and flowers blooming.

Unfortunately, we also tend to see many allergies bloom in dogs as well at this time of year. And some of these only worsen as spring moves into summer.

Allergies in dogs can be very frustrating, from nasal congestion and sneezing to watery, runny eyes, to chronic recurrent skin itchiness and irritation. Even acute allergic reactions to bites, stings, or medications are concerns for our pups.

In this article, we’re going to discuss some of the most common types of allergies dogs face and some ways we have of addressing them.

Supplementing fish oil is very popular, both for people and pets. But what’s the basis for these recommendations? What exactly is fish oil, where does it come from, and what benefits are there to giving fish oil to your dog?

In this article, we’re going to cover everything you need to know about fish oil for dogs, including what it is, where it comes from, and what health benefits it can provide for your pup.

Teeth. Those pearly whites.

We may not think about them as often as we need to. And we need them to be healthy more than we realize.

Chris Vanderhoof, DVM, MPH

Here’s a common scenario.

You’re playing with your new puppy and he jumps up in your lap, as excited as can be. You’re petting him, his tail is wagging, everything is idyllic.

Then, he chomps down. You pull your hand away and say “No”, but those fingers are just too fascinating. Now, you can’t keep him away. Whenever you try to pet him or do anything, he’s trying to pretend your hand is a chew toy.

Chris Vanderhoof, DVM, MPH

Spaying and neutering are terms that have become pretty commonplace in our society. Spaying and neutering pets has been advocated by shelters and rescue groups for years.

But in practice, I find that many pet parents know much less about what spaying and neutering entails than I might have thought. There are actually a lot of factors to consider when it comes time to spay or neuter, not the least of which is at what age to do it.

In this article, we’re going to discuss what spaying and neutering actually are and why they’re different, why spaying and neutering are recommended, and finally, when it’s the best time to spay or neuter your dog.

Americans spend a great deal of money on supplements for their pets. Hundreds of millions of dollars every year in fact.

But why? What makes these products so necessary?

We can probably sum up this need with just a couple of simple statements.

1. We love our pets
2. We want to help them with something “safe” that can’t “hurt” them
3. We need them to live forever (and we’ll use any preventative option to that end!)

There’s a little tongue in cheek humor here, but really, if you think about it, these statements are pretty true. Over the decades, our pets have become less like “pets” and more like family members. Wouldn’t you do just about anything to help keep your family member healthy for as long as possible?

Hip Dysplasia is a term many pup parents dread, especially those with large or giant breed dogs. But though the words create a lot of anxiety, not everyone knows what the term means and what to look for.

In this article, we’re going to briefly go over the mechanics of the hip joint, why hip dysplasia causes issues for our pups and how arthritis factors in for your dog. Arthritis symptoms that result from hip dysplasia can be insidious, so we’ll focus on how to keep an eye out for them and review how your veterinarian will go about arriving at a diagnosis. Lastly, we’ll chat about some of the treatment and prevention options out there.