Human Grade Dog Food: What You Should Know

Food

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November 22, 2021

human grade dog food label — The Honest Kitchen pioneered the now-burgeoning market for human-grade dog foods. It took years of battling with regulators and a lawsuit against the Ohio Department of Agriculture, who initially refused to allow the phrase "human grade" to appear on THK's labels, but the company prevailed. The court determined that the labels were not untruthful or misleading in any way.

In a world of commercial pet food industry-specific jargon that is often incomprehensible to the average dog owner, the term “human grade,” which is popping up on more and more pet food labels, would seem to be self-explanatory.

So, what is human grade dog food? In reality, while the term is in increasing use on labels and in marketing materials, “human grade dog food” has no legal definition. The regulated – legal – terms that are used to discriminate between foods that are processed, marketed, and sold for human consumption and those that are intended for consumption by pets and other non-human animals are “edible” (humans can eat) and “inedible” (animals can eat). Let’s clear these waters so you understand the difference between the legal terms and the potential for wiggle room provided by the use of the more casual phrase “human grade.” It’s important to know the difference

Still, when you see the words “human grade” on a dog food package, these words do have important meaning and should be given careful consideration – not least because, as one might expect, it turns out that these foods have something special to offer.

See Human Grade Dog Food Brands

“Edible” Defined for Dog Food

Foods that are edible are handled, processed, transported and stored under a set of regulations that are specifically designed to keep products both nutritious and safe. In contrast, inedible foods enter a separate supply stream that is demonstrably more relaxed in its requirements for preserving nutrient value and preventing microbial contamination during handling and transport.

Edible = Highly regulated; safe to consume as food; ends up in your supermarket.
Inedible = Less intensely regulated; not considered safe for humans to consume as food; ends up in pet foods.

For obvious reasons, the terms edible and inedible, while technically correct, do not sit well with most pet owners. Enter the term “human-grade.” Although the Association of American Feed Control Officials (AAFCO) does not yet have a formal definition for this phrase, they have accepted its use in the pet food industry and allow it to be included on pet food labels provided the following standards are met:

“The term “human grade” represents the product to be human edible. For a product to be human edible, all ingredients in the product must be human edible and the product must be manufactured, packed and held in accordance with federal regulations in 21 CFR 110, Current Good Manufacturing Practice in Manufacturing, Packing, or Holding Human Food.”

Is Human Grade Dog Food Better?

So the bar is set very high for including this claim on a pet food label. Still, a number of companies are meeting these standards and are producing human-grade dog foods of a variety of types, including dehydrated, freeze-dried, and fresh cooked/frozen. The underlying assumption with all foods that carry a “human-grade” claim is that because of the types of ingredients, regulatory oversight, sanitation methods, and processing that are used, the end product will be safer and of greater nutritional quality than other foods that do not carry a human-grade claim.

Dog foods that are produced with human-grade ingredients have increased in number and popularity in recent years. In addition to containing food ingredients that are classified and handled differently than typical pet food ingredients, these products are usually less highly processed when compared with extruded kibble.

To date, there are only a few studies that have examined differences between traditional (pet-grade) foods and foods produced with human-grade ingredients. Here are short summaries of two of these studies:

Digestibility Assay Study¹. A validated biological assay was used to measure macronutrient digestibilities of a set of fresh-cooked, human grade foods (Just Food For Dogs). Although dry matter digestibility values were not spectacular (possibly due to fiber content), the protein digestibility and amino acid availability values – indicators of protein quality – were very high in the human-grade foods.
Feeding Study with Dogs². In this study, two varieties of Just Food For Dogs were compared with either an extruded dry dog food or with a fresh-cooked food produced with pet-grade ingredients. The two human-grade foods performed better than the extruded dry food and than the pet-grade fresh-cooked food. Digestibility values of the human-grade products were rock stars (greater than 90%), so less total food was needed to maintain dogs’ body condition, and the human-grade foods produced lower volume of feces.

Is Human Grade Dog Food Better Than Kibble?

Recently, another producer of fresh-cooked foods added their data to the growing science on this topic. The study³ compared the performance of four varieties of foods produced with human-grade ingredients (Nom Nom Now) to a chicken-based extruded kibble. The brand of the dry kibble was not identified. Dogs were fed each food for a period of 10 days. Collected data included measures of digestibility, energy, and fecal quality. The results of eating a diet of human grade dog food vs normal, dry dog food?

Digestibility values: When fed to dogs, the extruded kibble had significantly lower digestibility values for dry matter, protein, fat, and nitrogen-free extract (NFE, an estimate of carbohydrates) compared with all four of the fresh-cooked products. The differences were dramatic. For example, dry-matter digestibility of the kibble was about 82%. Dry-matter digestibility values of all four fresh-cooked foods were 90% or higher.

Protein: Similarly, protein digestibility of the kibble was about 85%. Protein digestibility values for the four fresh foods were between 92% and 94% (rock-star values again).

Feces: Dogs fed the fresh-cooked foods had significantly lower defecation frequencies (numbers of poops per day) and lower fecal volumes than when they were fed the kibble.

Human Grade Dog Food: Takeaway Points

As with the earlier studies, these results suggest that foods made with human-grade ingredients that are produced with minimal processing perform well when fed to dogs. This is information that dog owners can use when evaluating and selecting healthful foods for their dogs.

In my opinion, we still need controlled studies that tease out and quantify the respective influences of food processing versus initial ingredient quality. However, we do have a growing body of evidence telling us that both processing and ingredient quality matter in pet foods – a lot. (Remember, science loves replication.) Moreover, these papers, published in academic, refereed journals, and either conducted or supported by actual pet food companies, provide great examples of industry transparency that is sadly often in short supply. Which brings me to my soap box…

Cited Studies

1. Oba PM, Utterback PL, Parsons CM, Swanson KS. “True nutrient and amino acid digestibility of dog foods made with human-grade ingredients using the precision-fed cecectomized rooster assay.” Journal of Animal Science 2020; 4:442-451.

2. Do S, Phungviwatniku T, de Godoy MRC, Swanson KS. “Nutrient digestibility and fecal characteristics, microbiota, and metabolites in dogs fed human-grade foods.” Journal of Animal Science 2021; 99

3. Tanprasertsuk J, Perry LM, Tate DE, Honaker RW, Shmalberg J. “Apparent total tract nutrient digestibility and metabolizable energy estimation in commercial fresh and extruded dry kibble dog foods.” Translational Animal Science, 2021; 5

Show Us the Studies on Human Grade Dog Food

The three previously described independent studies of commercially produced, fresh-cooked human-grade dog foods identified the companies and the brands that were tested. The data they reported included total digestibility values, protein/amino acid digestibility information, defecation frequency, and fecal scores (important to many dog folks), among other values.

The first study showed mixed results, while the latter two demonstrated some clear wins for human-grade foods. Moreover, although there were limitations, one study helped to tease apart the influence of ingredient quality versus that of processing. This is all good, practical, applicable information needed by dog folks and nutritionists alike.

So, here’s my beef (pun intended).

A common and highly (overly) shared assertion today regarding pet food selection centers on nutrition research and who exactly is doing that research. A frequent form that this “advice” takes is something along these lines (I’m paraphrasing):

“It is the large companies that employ nutritionists and that are conducting all of the research on pet food and nutrition. Therefore, consumers should trust those companies to produce safe and nutritious foods.”

There is a problem with this belief: It is not true.

The type of information that we need to know about the foods that we select for our dogs is not being provided by the large multi-national companies. Really, it’s not.

In contrast, in recent years, academic researchers (and to a lesser degree, small companies) have been providing us with boatloads of practical information about dog nutrition, pet foods, and pet food ingredients. The published research includes evidence regarding protein quality, the digestibility of dried-protein meals, damage due to processing, fish oils, the type of starches that are used in pet food, new processing methods such as freeze-drying and freezing, the effects of high-pressure processing (HPP) on raw foods, the potential health risks of excessive copper, mercury, and contaminating thyroid hormone in pet foods, and most recently, data regarding the use of new ingredients such as insect proteins and human-grade ingredients.

In contrast, with the exception of a single paper (published by nutritionists with Hills) that questioned current protein levels in pet foods, I have found no published studies by the large companies that address the nutritional value, digestibility, ingredient quality, or safety of their foods or their food ingredients.

For all of the marketing gimmicks, label claims, and emotional appeals that we hear from the multi-national corporations regarding the superiority of their products, where are the studies that report digestibility values, protein quality indices, and poop scores? Where are the data to support claims of nutritious and healthy foods? If we are expected to believe their marketing claims, then it is time for the companies (and their nutritionist spokespersons) to step up and show us the data.

Human Grade Dog Food Brands

The following companies manufacture and market foods for dogs that carry a label or website claim of “human grade” – a term that regulators have accepted for now as the same as the legal term, “(human) edible.” This means that all of the ingredients in the product must be human edible and the product must be “manufactured, packed and held in accordance with federal regulations in 21 CFR 110, Current Good Manufacturing Practice in Manufacturing, Packing, or Holding Human Food.” Some of these companies own and operate their own “kitchens.” Some have their products made in plants that also make human foods!

COMPANY INFORMATION	DESCRIPTION OF FOOD	COMPANY CLAIMS
CARU Vero Beach, FL (855) 330-2278 carupetfood.com	Canned food (stews), cooked in Tetra Paks. Made in the USA by a family-owned company. Eight varieties available.	“The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has reviewed detailed documentation and concluded that Caru Natural Stews for Dogs are made with 100% human-grade ingredients. The FDA further concurred that these recipes are processed and handled in accordance with FDA regulations for human food. This means that we offer the only ready-to-eat dog food that is made with 100% human-grade ingredients and is prepared in a human-food-grade facility.”
EVERMORE PET FOOD Oakland, CA and Brooklyn, NY (718) 596-6788 evermorepetfood.com	Four varieties of cooked food, steamed and then frozen in vacuum-sealed pouches, are available. Made in Evermore’s own USDA/FDA-inspected kitchen in Oakland, CA.	“Gently cooked in a USDA ‘people food’ kitchen. Evermore uses only humanely raised meats; 100% grass-fed beef and lamb; free-range, antibiotic-free turkey and chicken; and eggs from pasture-raised chickens. Formulas include many organic ingredients, no GMO ingredients, and no ingredients from China.”
JUST FOOD FOR DOGS Irvine, CA (866) 726-9509 justfoodfordogs.com	Just Food For Dogs offers six varieties of cooked diets that are sold frozen in sealed pouches and eight “Pantry Fresh” stew-like varieties that are cooked and sold in Tetra Paks. For an additional, one-time formulation fee, owners can also have the company’s veterinary nutritionists customize a diet for your dog.	“Our food is crafted by hand in our open-to-the-public kitchens that you can visit, as well as in our own kitchens in Irvine, California, and New Castle, Delaware .... Human-edible ingredients. All of our daily diets for dogs have passed AAFCO-protocol feeding trials at Cal Poly Pomona. JFFD is the first pet food company ever to conduct humane feeding trials at a major university using faculty and student dogs living happily in their own homes.”
NOM NOM NOW Oakland, CA (415) 991-0669 nomnomnow.com	Four varieties of food are cooked in vacuum-sealed pouches and then frozen and shipped direct to consumers. Made in Nom Nom Now’s own kitchen facilities in Nashville, TN, and Pittsburg, CA.	“Every meal is prepared fresh in kitchen facilities we own and operate in Nashville, Tennessee, and the San Francisco Bay Area .... We only use whole-food ingredients, processed in the USA and fit for human consumption.”
NULO Austin, TX (512) 476-6856 nulo.com	Three canned food varieties – Nulo’s “Challenger” Stews – are cooked and sold in Tetra Paks. (Note that Nulo’s canned foods that are cooked and sold in standard cans are not human-grade.)	“100% human grade. Produced in a human-food facility.”
OLLIE New York, NY (844) 886-5543 myollie.com	Answer an online questionnaire about your dog first; then pricing for the four varieties offered by Ollie becomes available. Food is packaged in “modified atmospheric packaging” that is airtight to keep the fresh-cooked food fresh; refrigerate after opening.	“Custom meal plans: We tailor your dog’s plan based on their weight, age, breed, activity level, and allergies, recommending a precise portion according to how many calories they need.... Human-grade: You could eat it with a fork. (But save it for your pup!).... Minimal processing: Whole foods, gently cooked to preserve nutrients.... We carefully source our ingredients, cook them at low temperatures in small batches at our facility in New Jersey, and hand-pack them.”
OPEN FARM Toronto, Ontario (833) 399-3403 openfarmpet.com	Open Farm offers four varieties in its “Gently Cooked” line. The food is cooked “sous vide” in its sealed pouches, then frozen and shipped. Open Farm also has six varieties of “Rustic Stews,” cooked and sold in Tetra Paks.	“Gently prepared with minimal processing and 100% human-grade ingredients.”
PET PLATE New York, NY (855) 981-6109 petplate.com	Answer an online questionnaire about your dog first; then pricing will be available for two weeks’ worth of food. Each day’s serving is packaged individually in an appropriate amount for your dog. Four varieties available.	“Our meals are made with 100% human-grade ingredients and are kettle-cooked in a USDA kitchen, following the same safety standards used to make human food.... Every meal is hot-filled to ensure safety and flash-frozen to lock in freshness.”
SPOT FARMS Kings Mountain, NC (855) 880-7768 spotfarmspet.com	Two varieties of dehydrated, grain-free, “just add water” varieties are available.	“Human grade means that our products are made using only human grade food ingredients AND that our food is made to the same standards required for human edible food. You won’t find any feed grade ingredients like chicken meal, lamb meal, or fish meal here.... We believe knowing where your dog’s food comes from is just as important as knowing what’s in it. That’s why we go right to the source, working closely with small family farmers across the USA. Our farmers raise their animals the right way, feeding them an all-vegetarian diet and never using antibiotics.”
STELLA & CHEWY'S Oak Creek, WI (888) 477-8977 stellaandchewys.com	Six stew varieties, cooked and sold in Tetra Paks, are available. (Note that S&C’s canned foods that are sold in cans or plastic tubs, and toppers sold in pouches, are not human-grade.)	“Wholesome, nutritious, and 100% human-grade recipes cooked in small batches..... The animal proteins in our recipes are always grass-fed, cage-free, wild-caught, and farm-raised and responsibly sourced from trusted partners.”
THE FARMER'S DOG New York, NY (646) 780-7957 thefarmersdog.com	Answer an online questionnaire about your dog first; then the company recommends several customized recipes of food, cooked and sealed in pouches and shipped to you fresh.	“Real Food: Human-grade meat and veggies in simple recipes, made for dogs... USDA Kitchens: Safety and quality never before available to pets.... Human-grade food in human-friendly packaging. Less processing, higher safety standards, and easy serving.... Your food is delivered to you within days of cooking. Never deep frozen. Never stored on a shelf for months.”
THE HONEST KITCHEN San Diego, CA (866) 437-9729 thehonestkitchen.com	Originally, The Honest Kitchen made dehydrated food mixes; you’d just add water before serving these complete and balanced diets to your dog. They still make 18 of these foods, including varieties that contain grain, are grain-free, and some that are limited-ingredient. Today, they also offer nine varieties of “Clusters,” a kibble-like food that is mixed, cold-pressed, and dehydrated; five varieties of “One Pot Stews,” which are stew-like canned foods cooked and sold in Tetra Paks; five varieties of “Butcher Block Pâtè,” which are loaf-style canned foods, also cooked and sold in Tetra Paks; and 13 “pour overs” and meal “toppers” – all of which are human-grade.	THK was first dog food to earn the right to label its foods as human grade, way back in 2003. “Unlike feed-grade pet food, which is a lower quality than human food, being human-grade means a whole host of extra measures to ensure the quality and safety standards for all our complete and balanced foods. Since our foods, supplements, and toppers are actually made in plants that conform to all human food standards, our quality-assurance program is designed to attest to the necessary standards that would apply if a human were to be the end consumer.... No matter how popular we become or how many products we offer, we’ll never move away from our original goal of bringing the highest quality standards of ‘people food’ to pets. It’s something we call ‘The Honest Difference.’”

Related Articles

What To Do When Your Dog Has a Seizure

Health

By

Dr. Eileen Fatcheric, DVM

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November 21, 2021

17

The first thing to do when your dog has a seizure is to ensure that both of you are safe. — If your dog starts to have a seizure in a dangerous place where he could fall hurt himself, such as this couch or at the top of a staircase, it's important to block him so that he cannot fall. credit: Nikita Burdenkov | Getty Images

If you’re dog is having a seizure, stay calm and work to keep both of you safe. Follow these guidelines to help your dog in a seizure:

Stay away from your dog’s mouth to avoid inadvertently being bitten. The natural tendency is to want to comfort your dog by hugging and/or stroking his head. But your dog is not aware during a seizure, nor is he in control of his violent jaw movements.

Remove any items near him that are breakable or that may fall on him.

Keep him away from stairs. If he is near a set of stairs, try to move below him on the stairs so you can prevent him from falling, if you are safely able to do that.

Time the seizure. First, you need to time the seizure because of the possibility of a life-threatening condition called status epilepticus, which is a seizure that doesn’t self-resolve. A good rule of thumb is that if a dog has been seizing for five minutes, you need to get to a veterinary clinic. Call the office tell the staff you are on your way (more on status epilepticus below). Second, you want to keep track of your dog’s seizures in a log or journal. This will be used to determine when the seizures are becoming more severe or more frequent.

Note: In the minutes to hours after a seizure, called the post-ictal phase, your dog may be disoriented or demented, which can be expressed as aggressive behavior, even rage. You need to be careful both during the seizure and in the aftermath.

Video the event, if you can. Capturing the seizure on video is immensely helpful to your veterinarian because it helps him or her ascertain that the event was indeed a seizure. The biggest differential for a seizure episode is a cardiac event. If a dog suffers an intermittent cardiac arrhythmia, it can result in confusion, weakness, and collapse, which can sometimes be mistaken for seizure activity. Generally speaking, cardiac collapse tends to be softer than seizure activity, more like fainting, and the dog usually recovers much more quickly.

Signs Your Dog Is Having a Seizure

Try to document what you see when your dog is having a seizure. This may help the veterinarian determine what type of seizure the dog may have experienced.

The grand mal seizure is a generalized seizure with widespread excessive, aberrant electrical activity occurring in both sides of the brain. Also known as tonic-clonic or convulsive seizure, these dog seizure symptoms include:

Suddenly falling over
Violent, jerking spasms of all four limbs
Paddling
Frothing at the mouth
Losing control of bladder and bowels
Full loss of consciousness

Jump to: Causes | Medication

what to do if your dog has a seizure — Click image to view in full size.

Life-Threatening Seizures

As noted above, if a dog is in status epilepticus for too long, he will die, much the way he would die from heat stroke. There is so much intense, violent physical activity going on that the core body temperature rises to life-threatening levels. Status epilepticus requires emergency veterinary intervention with an intravenous medication, usually a benzodiazepine like diazepam (Valium), to break the ongoing seizure.

If he is still seizing when you get to the veterinary clinic, he is in dire need of emergency help. If the seizure resolves while you are on your way and the dog remains quiet, the life-threatening status epilepticus emergency is over.

Generalized Dog Seizures

Additional generalized seizure types include:

Tonic (stiff, extended limbs that don’t move or jerk)
Clonic (hyperflexed, non-jerking limbs)
Myoclonic (jerking limbs)
Atonic (dog standing, staring, non-responsive)
Focal seizures (this occurs when the abnormal electrical activity is localized to just one spot in the brain, can look like a lot of different things)
“Fly-biting” (this is a classic one, where the dog looks like he is seeing and repeatedly snapping at flies)
“Chewing gum fit” (the jaw repeatedly clacks; a focal seizure might just be repeated twitching of an eyelid, lip, or ear. There is not necessarily loss of consciousness)

These types of seizures rarely present a big problem and usually don’t require treatment. A focal seizure, however, can segue into a generalized seizure, so be sure to keep a close watch until it passes.

Additional Care Tips for a Dog Who Experiences Seizures

Ask your veterinarian about dispensing a dose of diazepam (Valium) that you can keep on hand at home, for rectal administration in the event of a seizure. This will be dispensed to you in a syringe with a rubber tube attached. All you need to do is introduce the tip of the rubber tube about an inch into the rectum and dispense the medicine. This will often shorten and lessen the severity of the seizure.
If your dog is prone to cluster seizures while on an anti-convulsant, ask your veterinarian about keeping a supply of levetiracetam (Keppra) on hand. A few doses of this short-acting anti-convulsant can be given after a seizure to prevent a cluster.
Stimulating your dog’s vagal nerve may help lessen the duration and severity of a seizure. If you can safely do this, gently push on your dog’s eyes, with closed lids, for 10 to 60 seconds. This can be repeated every five minutes. If you recognize your dog’s pre-ictal signs, you may even be able to stave off a seizure with this maneuver.
Traditional Chinese Veterinary Medicine (TCVM) can be used adjunctively, either to improve seizure control for dogs with refractory seizures in spite of anti-convulsant medication or to help lower the dose of anti-convulsant medications. Acupuncture and Chinese herbal medicine are the mainstays of this approach, which require a trained specialist.
Consider feeding your dog Purina Pro Plan Veterinary Diet NeuroCare (NC), especially if your dog has refractory seizures in spite of anti-convulsant medication. This unique diet uses medium chain triglycerides (MCTs) as a fat source. MCTs are known to block one of the receptors in the brain responsible for seizures. Studies have shown a significant reduction in seizure activity when epileptic dogs are fed this diet.

Causes of Seizures in Dogs

Reactive seizures are caused by metabolic disorders like hypoglycemia (low blood sugar), hypocalcemia (low blood calcium), liver disease, liver shunts, and kidney disease. In these cases, the brain itself is normal, and if the metabolic disorder can be corrected, the seizures go away. Some drugs can cause seizures by lowering the seizure threshold in the brain. Discontinuing the drug resolves these reactive seizures.

Toxins can cause seizures. Culprits include dark chocolate, caffeine, xylitol (sugar-free sweetener), ethylene glycol (anti-freeze), bromethalin (rat poison), and ethanol. Removing and treating for the toxin eliminates the seizures.

Abnormalities in the brain can result in structural seizures. The may be brought on by tumors, head trauma, inflammatory diseases like granulomatous meningoencephalitis, and infectious diseases like rabies and canine distemper.

Congenital defect. This is an abnormality that develops during gestation.

Epilepsy Is the Most Common Cause

Epilepsy is defined as seizures of unknown origin, which means no structural lesions in the brain, no infections, metabolic disorders, drugs, or toxins are to blame. A diagnosis of epilepsy is typically made after every other possible cause of seizures has been ruled out.

In addition to a normal physical exam, neurological exam, and bloodwork, the age at onset of seizures may help your veterinarian diagnose epilepsy. Epilepsy usually starts between 1 and 6 years of age.

Dogs less than 1 year old are more likely to have either a congenital defect, an intoxication, or an infectious disease like canine distemper. Dogs who are more than 6 years of age when they have their first seizure are more likely to have a metabolic disorder or a structural brain lesion like a tumor.

Breed predilection toward epilepsy is another clue. Schnauzers, Collies, Bassett Hounds, Cocker Spaniels, Labrador Retrievers, and Golden Retrievers are over-represented among dogs with epilepsy.

Should You Treat for Seizures?

dog seizures — An accidental lineup of some other epilepsy-prone breeds: Schnauzers, Golden Retrievers, and Border Collies are over-represented among seizure-prone dogs.

Will your vet recommend that your dog be medicated in an effort to reduce or eliminate his seizures? It depends.

If your veterinarian agrees it was a seizure, she will conduct a physical exam and a thorough neurological exam. Baseline bloodwork should be done to rule out metabolic causes of seizures. Further diagnostics may be recommended from there and could include infectious disease testing, CT scan, or MRI.

Let’s say your dog is between 1 and 6 years of age, all testing is normal, and a diagnosis of epilepsy is made. Most veterinarians agree starting anti-convulsant drug therapy is generally not indicated after just one seizure. However, the following are exceptions to this rule:

Cluster seizures, described as more than three seizures in a 24-hour period, warrant treatment
If the seizure was particularly violent, or if it lasted a long time (5 minutes or more) treatment should be considered right away
Certain breeds are notorious for having difficult-to-control seizures (German Shepherd Dog, Border Collie, Irish Setter, Golden Retriever, Siberian Husky, Keeshond, and Saint Bernard)

For all the others, keep a seizure log where you write down the date and time it happened, now long it lasted, how severe it was, and any other information you think might be pertinent. This log will be used to determine when it might be time to start anti-convulsant therapy.

Why wouldn’t you just start your dog on anti-convulsants? After all, you don’t want him to have another seizure. But consider this: Your dog may never have another seizure! Or he may have a mild one once a year. You don’t know until you see how it plays out. And once an anti-convulsant is started, it is generally necessary for life.

If your dog is one of those epileptics who only has a rare, occasional seizure, you are taxing his body with a medication he really doesn’t need, and you are paying for it! Not to mention that well-managed epileptic dogs on anticonvulsants may still have breakthrough seizures occasionally. A seizure-free future is not guaranteed, even with long-term medication.

In my opinion, if a dog is seizing as often as twice a month, I think it’s too much for his quality of life, and for yours! I usually recommend starting an anticonvulsant in this case. However, as the person living with and loving the dog, you can and should be the ultimate decider of when enough is enough and it’s time to start.

Medications for Dog Seizures

There are several different anticonvulsants available for dogs. Zonisamide has become the most popular, as it works well with minimal side effects. Phenobarbital, potassium bromide, and levetiracetam (Keppra) are other medications your veterinarian may discuss with you.

Some dogs may require more than one medication to manage their seizures. Levetiracetam is frequently used as a second medication. It is short-acting, which means it must be dosed three times a day. This can be challenging for dog owners. The extended-release formula, Keppra XR, which is dosed twice a day is much easier.

A couple of notes on Keppra XR: You cannot split or cut the pills as this destroys the extended-release function. Also, a funny thing about it: You may see the tablet in your dog’s poop, seemingly whole and undigested. Don’t be alarmed. This is OK! The active drug is inside the non-digestible tablet, which has a hole in it. Digestive juices enter through the hole and dissolve the drug, which is then slowly released to be absorbed by the body. This is how the extended-release version works. Once the non-digestible tablet has done its job, it passes safely out with your dog’s feces.

Sometimes, a previously well-managed epileptic starts having more breakthrough seizures. Unfortunately, some dogs will develop tolerance to their anticonvulsant medication over time. In these cases, the liver continuously increases the rate at which it metabolizes the drug, making increasingly higher doses necessary. Higher doses mean more and worse side effects. This can be frustrating and challenging to manage.

Seizures in dogs are frightening and difficult to watch. Luckily, there are many tools at our disposal to help diagnose and manage this heart-breaking condition. If your dog experiences a seizure, even if it’s not life-threatening, make an appointment with your veterinarian to get a jump on deciding what’s best for your dog.

High Visibility Clothing and Gear For You and Your Dog

Lifestyle

By

Stephanie Colman

-

November 20, 2021

0

high visibility clothing and dog walking gear — If you walk at night in areas with a lot of traffic, or where cars are often being driven too fast, the more you can light yourself and your dog, the better!

As winter deepens its grip, many of us find ourselves navigating dark pre-dawn and/or post-dusk dog walks. While the increased darkness makes it tempting to skip the dog’s walk, our canine friends still need the exercise, stimulation, and training that walks provide.

But depending on where you live, walking in the early morning or after work can expose you to certain challenges and potential dangers, including wildlife and uneven footing. The biggest danger, however, is the potential for being hit by traffic on dark streets. The National Center for Health Statistics reports that in 2019 more than 7,660 people died in car vs. pedestrian accidents. Of those, 82 percent of deaths occurred in urban settings and 80 percent involved dark conditions.

Fortunately, a variety of high visibility products exist to help make both people and pets safer when walking in the dark.

HIGH VISIBILITY GEAR FOR DOGS

Attachable collar lights

One of the easiest ways to shine a little light on your early morning or nighttime dog walk is by attaching a light to your dog’s collar. There are many brands and styles to choose from in both battery-operated and rechargeable models. Most quickly attach to the D-ring of the dog’s collar or harness, feature LED bulbs for maximum brightness, and are available in a variety of colors. Many can toggle between solid and flashing illumination settings.

Light-up collars, leashes, and vests

Another bright idea to make your dog easier to see and keep yourselves safer in low-light conditions is the use of LED collars and leashes. Like collar lights, they come in a variety of colors and most have the ability to select either solid or flashing illumination patterns. It’s common to find both battery-operated and rechargeable options. If your dog’s coat obscures the glow from a light-up collar, try a light-up leash.

Reflective dog collars and leashes

For low-light walks near traffic, consider reflective products instead of or in addition to light-up styles. A car’s headlights may wash out the light produced by a light-up collar or leash. With reflective products, light sources such as headlights cause retroreflection, making the material look brightest to observers closest to the source of the light – the drivers.

High-visibility and reflective dog vests

Bright orange vests are often placed on dogs during hunting season to help prevent tragic misidentification accidents, but they can be used anytime to maximize your dog’s visibility. The best ones are bright enough to stand out in low-light situations and are made with strips of reflective material, so they reflect car headlights brightly once the sun has gone down.

Some vests, such as Ruffwear’s Lumenglow High-Vis Dog Jacket Plus, are made from water-repellent material, so they double as a protective rain layer. The jacket’s durable 600 denier polyester fabric also offers protection from cuts and scrapes, making it a great choice for off-leash adventures when safe to do so.

HIGH VISIBILITY CLOTHING FOR HUMANS

When looking to maximize safety in low-light conditions, it’s important to make ourselves as visible as we make our dogs. As the taller member of the dog-handler team, we’re in a better position to be seen by drivers, especially those in taller vehicles like trucks and SUVs. Consider adding these products to your winter walking wardrobe:

High visibility safety vest

Durable, lightweight, inexpensive, and easy to wear over a sweatshirt or jacket, safety vests offer a dramatic pop of visibility with their bright colors and reflective material. Plus, many styles come with multiple pockets, handy for stashing poop bags, treats, keys, and more.

LED runner’s and cyclist’s gear

Runners and cyclists are well-versed in making themselves visible when sharing the road with drivers, and the market is full of gear that can help you illuminate yourself from top to bottom. You can choose from high-visibility reflective beanies, light-up belts, low-profile vests, clip-on lights, wrist and ankle bands, and more.

Head Lamps and LED Beanies

A little extra light is always helpful, especially when it comes to navigating uneven terrain or picking up poop on dark streets. Relying on the flashlight app of a cell phone can quickly drain the battery. Instead, try a headlamp or LED beanie for the benefit of hands-free illumination.

HIGH VISIBILITY PRODUCT SELECTION

reflective walking gear — This photo was taken with a flash; the white highlights in each leash are reflective material. The reflective threads woven into the rope-type leash(left picture( don’t contribute much visibility. The better choice is Lupine Pet’s 6′ Reflective Dog Leash (right), which contains much more reflective material. $20 from LupinePet.

Not all high visibility gear is equally useful. When choosing light-up dog gear (collars, harnesses, and/or leashes), look for these attributes:

Extended battery life. Explore manufacturer claims and see how they compare to consumer experience as reported in product reviews.
Standard cables for rechargeable products. Standard micro-USB or similar cables are far more useful than products that require a proprietary cable. With universal cables, you can use any of the cables most of us already have around the house.
As much illumination as possible. When comparing products, count the lights and/or estimate the distance between them. In the case of attachable (pendant) collar lights, check to determine whether the protective casing affects the product’s illumination.

When buying reflective gear, look for these features:

Maximum amount of reflective material. A reflective dog collar or leash with a wide strip or multiple strips of reflective material will provide better retroreflection than a product with a tastefully thin strip of reflective piping or reflective threads woven throughout a leash.
Reflective material on both sides of a leash. Look for leashes with reflective material on both sides, as leashes can easily turn and twist and you want to maintain maximum visibility no matter how the leash is oriented.
High-Quality reflective material. As the saying goes, “You get what you pay for.” Many of our favorite reflective products feature top-quality 3M Scotchlite reflective materials.

PROS AND CONS OF VARIOUS NIGHT-VISIBILITY PRODUCTS

PRODUCT TYPE	EXAMPLES WE LIKE	BENEFITS	DRAWBACKS
LIGHT-UP PRODUCTS
Attachable Lights	Nite Ize Spotlit LED Collar Light. $9 from Amazon.	These are often very bright. Very easy to clip onto a dog’s collar or harness.	When attached to the dog’s collar, these tend to illuminate the ground in front of the dog in a way that some dog walkers find disorienting; the dangling, swinging light can make it more difficult to see one’s path.
Light-Up Collar	BSEEN LED Dog Collar. Available in three colors. Collar is one-size-fits-all (cut it to length). USB rechargeable. $13 from Amazon.	Helps viewers identify the lighted object as a dog.	May be obscured by the coat of a long-haired dog. Some, like the example listed here, are an “extra” collar meant for visibility only; they slip over the dog’s head and there is no leash attachment.
Light-Up Leash	Illumiseen LED Leash. USB rechargeable. Available in 4' and 6'; multiple colors to choose from. $25 from Amazon.	Length of leash increases visibility. Particularly helpful for long-coated breeds, whose coats may reduce visibility of a light-up collar.	Not as flexible as a standard leash; not likely to work if chewed by a dog. Lighted on only one side (but it’s pretty bright, so it may light up enough even when twisted).
Light-Up Vest or Harness (for dogs)	Lighthound from Noxgear. USB rechargeable harness (with leash attachment) stays charged for 12 hours. Numerous flashing and color-changing modes. $50 from noxgear.com.	Vests and harnesses provide maximum lighted surface area for drivers to see; also aids in identifying the lighted creature as a dog. This is helpful for other pedestrians or dog walkers who are trying to avoid other dogs.	Vests or harnesses whose primary purpose is lighting may not be designed well for the dog’s comfort and may not provide a leash attachment.
Light-Up Belt (for humans)	Illumiseen LED Reflective Belt. USB rechargeable. $20 from illumiseen.com.	As the taller member of a walking pair, the human provides a more easily seen site for a light-up garment. Product example listed here has both LED illumination and reflective accents.	A light-up belt can easily be hidden by outer layers if worn as a belt. Can be worn over one shoulder, crossing the body, for better visibility.
Light-Up Vest (for humans)	Noxgear’s Tracer 2. USB Rechargeable. Comes in 3 sizes. $50 from noxgear.com.	Some products (like the example listed here) have flashing and color-changing options for the greatest visibility.	Light-up vests help you be seen but don’t light your way.
Headlamp or LED Beanie	Nite Ize Radiant 170 Rechargeable Headlamp. $25 from niteize.com.	Headlamps work best for lighting the human’s path. They also help you find your dog’s poop and free up your hands for easy pick-up.	Some people find it distracting to walk with a headlamp or find them uncomfortable to wear. (As an alternative to a head strap, Nite Ize offers a model that clips onto a trucker-hat brim.)
REFLECTIVE PRODUCTS
Reflective Gear for Dog (vest, leash, collar)	Ruffwear’s Lumenglow High-Vis Dog Jacket. Comes in 6 sizes, 3 colors. $45 from Ruffwear.	Reflective products offer increased visibility to drivers, where light-up products may get “washed out” by the headlights. Look for products with as much reflective material as possible. The Lumenglow Jacket has a wide strip of reflective material.	The dog isn’t very visible until a light hits the reflective material. Pedestrians (or other dog walkers) who are walking without lights won’t know the dog is present until they are close.
Reflective Gear for Humans	JK Safety 9-Pocket Safety Vest. Comes in 7 sizes, up to 5X-Large. $15 from Amazon.	High-visibility vests are available in multiple styles for outdoor workers in many fields. Most are lightweight and offer wide reflective strips and piping. We like the example product for its many pockets (handy for treats, poop bags, keys, etc.).	EVERYONE will see you coming! Some people don’t want to wear an additional layer. You might be mistaken for a transportation worker and get asked about the most recent road closures or construction projects.

Safety Tips for Walking Dogs at Night

Use a leash! Even the best-trained dogs can be led astray by the scent of a critter, many of which are most active at dawn and dusk.
Bring your phone for emergencies, but keep it in your pocket as you walk. Pay attention to your dog and your surroundings, not your text messages.
Skip the headphones. Use all your senses to survey your surroundings.
Walk against traffic so you can see what’s coming up ahead.
Take a familiar route. Save exploration for daylight hours.
Carry identification of some sort, including emergency instructions for your dog should you be incapacitated in an accident. Consider adding this information to the emergency setting on your cell phone.

How To Get Cats and Dogs to Get Along

Behavior

By

Kathy Callahan, CPDT-KA, FDM

-

November 19, 2021

13

How To Get Cats and Dogs to Get Along — A very tall cat tree and a well-trained dog help smooth a canine/feline introduction. Our kitty Bo and dog Mojo have been friends for years, but we often host foster dogs, so the tree and the baby gate on the other side of it help give our cat a quick path to safety.

According to family lore, when my husband was a little boy, his bedtime request was always the same: “Tell me a story about a doggy and a kitty who made friends.” Those of us who have navigated the doggy-kitty waters know that he was definitely onto something. This topic has drama, surprise, even a bit of danger – all with the potential for a gleefully happy ending. Luckily, in real life, there’s much you can do to short-circuit the suspense and get to the “happily ever after” as soon as possible.

1. Plan carefully for the first minute, and stick to the plan.

If you take away only one thing from this article, make it this: You don’t get a second chance at the first minute.

The time to think about facilitating a good canine-feline introduction is way before you add the new pet. The very first moments in the house together can set the tone for this new dynamic. If you’ve taken a spontaneous, “Oh, they’ll work it out” approach, and the all-but-inevitable giant chase scene takes place, you have already blown it.

That’s so easy to prevent with just a little upfront planning. Remember that you’re going to have a lot on your mind as you enter the house with that new pet. The most frustrating call I get is this one: “Oh, I meant to have the dog in the crate when we came in with the new kitty, but we were so excited we just forgot. There was a chase. Honestly, Rover just wanted to play! He didn’t mean any harm. But, um, Fluffy hasn’t come out from under the bed for two days. What do we do now?” You’ll wish you could get that first hour back.

2. How to introduce a dog to a cat

The new pet in question, whether the dog or the cat, has a lot to take in at first: New people, new home, new vibe. It makes sense to postpone the much-anticipated dog-cat introduction until there’s been time settle in. For example, if a kitty is the newcomer to the home, you may want to keep her in a bedroom for anywhere from an afternoon to a few days as you bond with her.

In some cases, allowing the dog and the cat to sniff each other under a bedroom door can be a perfect start. Without that intense visual stimulus, the interaction is often calmer. You can exchange bedding materials to allow even closer investigation via the nose.

Once the new kid is a bit settled, it’s time for a formal introduction. Ideally, you’ll get a ho-hum reaction along the lines of “Oh, it’s the dude from under the door.”

3. Contain the dog.

There are two keys to the best introductions: canine containment and feline confidence. Think hard about how you can reinforce both at your house.

Typically, a dog is the more excited part of the new duo, which is why that’s the side you’ll want to contain. Please don’t assume the rules are different for a little puppy! People often discount the emotional trauma an exuberant (if physically harmless) puppy can cause. The bottom line is that if you want a dog and a cat to become friends, you’ll start by keeping the dog from getting in the cat’s space.

If your dog is comfortable with a crate, that’s the ideal place for him when he’s first meeting the cat. Alternatively, you can use gates or pens to establish a safe separation. Either option has the advantage of leaving you hands-free and able to move between the pets to manage the situation and deliver treats.

While keeping a dog on leash for the intro might be fine with a completely uninterested dog or the tiniest of puppies, it might be a challenge, and here’s why:

1. - Your hands are occupied with the leash, making it difficult to manage treats or petting.
  - You get tired of holding on, which could lead to a slip-up.
  - If you let your leashed dog pull you around after the cat, the cat will feel there’s no place that is dog-free, so her anxiety stays through the roof.

Tethering the leash to something fixed in place can mitigate some of these issues. Still, crates and gates will likely give you a better experience for the initial phase.

This cat tree is not tall enough to keep the cat safe – and she knows it, if she’s tense and scared, she’ll run – and almost any dog will give chase to a running cat. You need a much taller tree.

4. Give the cat a safe, high place to retreat to.

With the exception of the very young and the very old, most cats will be able to jump and climb up to spots a dog can’t reach. The faster the cat figures that out, the faster you’re on your way to a peaceful home. A high, safe perch gives the cat that all-important confidence that she’s got some control over the situation, which will allow her to entertain the idea of exploring a friendship.

Before the big day, ponder the possible cat perches in your house. The size and agility of the dog will determine whether that will be a chair, a table, a counter, or the top of the refrigerator! You may need to do a little rearranging to make sure it’s easy for the cat to reach and impossible for the dog to get to. Help the cat learn that this is her spot by putting a bed there and bringing her there often for treats and petting. (She can eventually learn that many tall spots will do the trick, but at first we want her to know about one for sure.)

If it’s in your budget and you can get over the impact it has on your decor, get a giant kitty condo tree. It’ll have a carpet grip that a scared cat can count on when seeking a climb to safety. The most fun ones have landings at different heights, too, so that as your cat gains confidence she can choose to hang out just a bit closer to the dog. If you’re handy you might want to consider stylish cat climbing shelves which have the same utility, but may work better with your home’s decor.

I bought a monstrosity from Chewy.com that I adore. (Goodbye, nice dining room.) It’s brought me peace of mind because Mr. Bojangles knows he can streak to his tall treehouse if some new foster dog decides to chase him. Bonus: We also feed him up there, which is a great way to keep the dogs out of the cat food.

5. Take a crash course in dog and cat body language.

Now that you’ve figured out how you’ll contain the dog and where you’ll encourage your cat to stay out of reach, it’s time to introduce the two. Sometimes, that moment will be such a non-event that you’ll feel off-duty almost immediately. More likely, though, you’ll be spending hours to days – and even weeks – watching body language and being ready to intervene.

Familiarize yourself with the big warning signs:

1. - If your dog stiffens and stares, take a break, because that’s what it looks like when his predatory behavior is kicking in.
  - If the cat’s ears are pinned back and her tail swishes back and forth, take a break, because she’s very concerned. (Remember that the cat may be the one to do some harm!)

6. Introduce the cohabitants and reward calm behavior.

While you want to be ready to take action if you see too much intensity, also be ready to reward calm. Plan to have amazing treats ready near the introduction/bonding area. If possible, have a second person available for this moment, so that each pet has a handler throughout the session.

Here’s what it might look like: Perhaps your dog is in a crate with you sitting next to him, and another family member calmly brings the cat to her now-familiar spot up in her kitty condo tree. Or we’ve got the cat on her now-familiar kitchen counter area, and we bring the dog to the gate just outside the kitchen.

The moment the cat is in sight, offer your dog bites of hot dog, feta cheese, ham, or whatever is new and exciting to him. This is a three-prong strategy as you are:

1. - Distracting him from the cat.
  - Rewarding him for doing something other than obsessively focusing on the cat.
  - Building a positive association with the cat. “Oh! So the presence of this cat means I get amazing treats I’ve never had before! What do you know? I like this cat.”

Use tiny pea-sized pieces so you can keep up a stream of activity. If he’s too excited to take them, increase his distance from the cat. If he’s eating them, you can begin asking for sits, downs, spins, and touches to help take his mind off the cat.

Have one person standing near the cat, offering a sense of security, petting, and treats. If the cat realizes the dog can be in sight without being a threat, she may well go into “boring kitty” mode, which is ideal. The last thing we want is a cat who darts very provocatively – which is why you want to do everything you can to calm the cat without restraining her, which would set this whole scenario way back.

It may be that one 5-minute session is plenty for now. Help everyone go back to their separate areas of your home, and repeat this every few hours. Soon enough, both will anticipate what’s next. Ideally, your dog will run over and – rather than thinking “Oooh, a kitty to chase!” – he’ll think, “Oooh, time for me to sit for a hot dog!” As the cat sees the dog approach her perch, rather than thinking, “Oh no!” she should be thinking, “This is where he sits and doesn’t bother me, and I get those crunchy treats I never get any other time!”

HARD WORK PAYS LIFELONG DIVIDENDS

Make no mistake: These early sessions are a lot of work for the human. It’s fascinating, though, and in the end it can pay off dramatically with a smooth and relatively quick path to calm. As you witness both parties relaxing, it’s time to slow the stream of treats, and let them begin to focus on each other from time to time without trying to distract them.

If you’re lucky, your cat will decide it might be fun to reach down and experiment. You’ll know things are going well when the cat starts to dangle a tail, or a paw . . . You’re on your way to the two of them figuring out just how they can play together.

BRAVE CATS, CALM DOGS

Shadow the wolf hybrid, snuggling with his pal Fritzy, against all odds.

Even if you do everything right, there are some dogs who will never be safe around any cat, and cats who will never be able to relax around a dog. When considering getting a second pet, think carefully about both personalities before you take the leap.

If you are in a position to choose the new animal (as opposed to, say, needing to take in your Aunt Matilda’s old cat) then you’ll want to stack the deck in your favor by picking wisely. The cat or dog who has already happily lived in a “mixed” canine/feline home is an ideal choice. Try to fall in love with that one!

If you don’t have a candidate who has demonstrated that she can live with the “other side” already, look for positive-indicator traits. The ideal cat will be confident and interested in new things. She’ll stand her ground, look at a dog calmly and say, “Nope, I’m not prey.” The nervous cat who runs is a disaster, because she’ll turn a dog who was otherwise inclined to be mellow into a drooling, chasing mess.

The ideal dog will be on the calmer side, exhibit some impulse control, and will respond to a few cues like sit, down, touch, shake, or spin.

DOGS AND CATS: HAPPILY EVER AFTER

With enough effort, a multi-species household can work out even when, on the face of it, the candidates don’t seem ideally suited for long-term cohabitation.

About 18 years ago, we had two dogs and a desire for a cat. On the face of it, it looked a wee bit ill-advised, since Shadow was a strong, athletic wolf hybrid (don’t ask) whose intensity around small running things indicated this could be dicey. On the plus side, though, our dogs were well-trained, and we knew Piper, the little yellow Lab, would be BFFs with the cat in no time.

I was wildly interested in this prospect from all angles, and I was the one who was home all the time to do the work.

So we headed to the shelter with the kids and asked those smart folks which of the 30 or so cats might be a good choice for us. They pointed out two. We chose one and headed home to start a months-long journey of gates and leashes and treats.

At first Shadow was a shaking, drooling mess any time he was near the kitty. But Fritzy the cat just looked at him calmly – almost rolling his eyes – waiting for him to become civilized.

At some point, the novelty wore off just enough, the treats smelled just delicious enough, and Shadow’s pack instinct kicked in just enough. His body language no longer worried me. Still, I wasn’t about to remove our gates. But then … Fritzy started leaping over those gates to be with the dogs – and Shadow paid him no mind. Once my heart returned from my throat, I realized we’d done it.

Soon they were the classic “doggy and kitty who made friends” curled up together on the bed, much to my grown husband’s delight.

Download The Full December 2021 Issue PDF

By

Nancy Kerns

-

November 18, 2021

5

DOGS AND CATS
GET LIT
DON'T HAVE A SEIZURE
HUMAN-GRADE DOG FOOD
TAPE ME UP, COACH!
ADOLESCENT ANGST

Don’t Have a Cow

Editorial

By

Nancy Kerns

-

November 18, 2021

0

When I was a teenager, I had a Jersey cow, and I had to milk her two times a day. No one made me do it; having the cow was my own idea. I loved animals, and I loved milk and seeing as how we had an acre of pasture and no good sense, my parents indulged me. I bought a book called The Family Cow, which was a wealth of information about the care, feeding, and yes, milking that was required to keep my cow healthy. With the book and occasional advice from a farmer neighbor, I channeled my interest in agriculture and love for animals into a far-too-ample supply of fresh, delicious, creamy milk. (The pigs got milk, the dogs and cats got milk, and even the chickens got milk. We gave milk to everyone.)

But it wasn’t all butter and cream. There was the whole thing about having to be in the barn every single day at 6 a.m. and 6 p.m. No one else in my family milked the cow; the self-imposed chore was my responsibility. It was hot out there in the summer and muddy as heck in the winter. And sometimes, my cow didn’t feel like cooperating. On those days, it would take a few minutes for her to relax and “let down” her milk, and rushing her made things worse. Sometimes, if her udder was very uncomfortable, she would quite literally kick the bucket – and that beautiful milk would splash into the mud. And if I lost patience, she would escalate, aiming to stomp on my foot or whacking me in the face with a poopy tail.

I was 16 or 17 on the day I had the worst time with her – she had done everything to annoy and inconvenience me. She kicked over the bucket twice. When I yelled at her and whacked her on the butt, she swished her tail hard and stomped a hind foot into the bucket – like, “There, have some mud with your milk, you intemperate teen!” I flew into a rage. I jumped up from my milking stool and went to her head, grabbing her halter with one hand, and I punched her in the face!

And at that very moment, I heard my mother’s voice; she had entered the barn and was standing right behind me. “Oh, Nancy,” was all she said.

I felt profoundly ashamed of myself then, and to this day, I get filled with shame thinking about it. Losing your temper with an animal that you have put into a situation that they would never be in otherwise – and being mad at them for not magically doing what you’ve never really taught them to do – that’s bottom-of-the-barrel behavior. I buried my hot face in my cow’s neck and took some long breaths. Somehow, we got through that milking (though the milk was all ruined).

I’m not saying I’ve never lost my temper with an animal since; far from it. But every time I do, I swear I feel my gentle mother’s deep disappointment with me and feel that shame all over again. And that’s what keeps any frustration I experience with my animal companions in check.

Adopting Sibling Puppies

Blog

By

Nancy Kerns

-

November 17, 2021

30

puppy_siblings — These pups were not habitual playmates when I had the whole litter here. The two girls who looked the most like pure Ridgebacks played together nearly exclusively. The black fuzzy girl was the runt, and was a little intimidated by the much-larger tan girls. But she's caught up in size, and now seems to be highly bonded to her short-haired sister (and vice versa).

I have the privilege (and responsibility) of dog-sitting two of the pups from my most recent foster litter – for a whole week! – while their family is on vacation.

How many of you caught the “two pups, one family” thing? If you noticed it (and winced), you’re probably a dog trainer.

Originally, the family was interested in adopting two pups, and I talked them out of this (they are my former in-laws, so we have more of a rapport than in most cases!). Most training professionals try to dissuade people from adopting sibling pups – and insist on a singleton adoption in cases like this, when the family lacks a lot of dog experience. There are numerous reasons for this, but to name a few:

• Sibling pups often bond more firmly and pay more attention to each other than to the human family members.

• House-training (and every other kind of training) often requires twice (or more) of the time that it takes to train one pup.

• Many families lack the time and resources to separate the pups frequently enough that they learn to be confident and social when they are not in the company of their sibling.

There are more reasons to not adopt siblings (and some workarounds, too) in this article by WDJ Training Editor Pat Miller, and I listed all of them to this family. They listened, heard me, and ended up adopting one of the two females in the litter that strongly resembled a purebred Rhodesian Ridgeback. They named her Xena.

But a couple weeks later, the husband’s mom, who lives in the same town as Xena’s family, met Xena and fell in love with her, and then contacted me to inquire about adopting one of the two remaining pups. I ended up driving to the town where both families live, to give the mom a “meet and greet” with the two last puppies, so she and her husband could choose which one suited them best. They ended up falling for the boy pup, and I left him with her and her husband.

I then visited the family who adopted Xena – who was overjoyed to have a chance to play with her last unadopted sibling, whom she hadn’t seen for a couple of weeks.

Over the course of the afternoon that I visited with my former in-laws, they fell in love with the last unadopted puppy, and made a strong and renewed case to be allowed to adopt her, too. I could have just said no – even though the shelter that I was fostering the pups for would have said yes; they don’t have a policy against multiple-pup adoptions. We discussed the pros and cons again, and I reminded them once again about the many accommodations they would need to make to ensure that both pups would end up as well-trained, socially secure pups who could be separated without trauma. They were willing to do the work, they said.

Two things clinched my decision to permit the adoption to go forward:

1. They were doing a great job already with Xena. After just two weeks in their home, she was clearly bonded to the whole family, responding appropriately to her name, nailing a “default sit” whenever anyone made eye contact with her, and still at a healthy weight. I saw lots of dog toys laying around, and a crate in the parents’ bedroom. (I like to see this; it’s the only way to hear the pup who might be fussing in the night because she needs to go potty. People who put their puppy’s crate in some distant room or worse, the garage, end up with dogs who hate their crates and/or learn to just go potty in the crates, since no one could hear or would respond to their cries of distress.)

2. They are in the process of building a new house on a rural property. Frequently, the dad stays in the not-quite-finished house and the mom stays at their old house in a nearby town. This gives them an easy way to easily and frequently separate the pups for a night or day during this critical socialization period.

It’s hard to believe that these pups came from the same litter; if it weren’t for the fact that they both have ridged backs, you might say it’s very unlikely. They may have had different fathers, since the mother was on the streets when she was impregnated. What’s interesting is that she was said to be part Australian Shepherd and part Rhodesian Ridgeback – and though *she* didn’t resemble either breed, each of these puppies look like one of those!

But, some weeks later, ironically, I feel like I’m the one who has been most inconvenienced by this sibling adoption. While I’m truly happy to be able to spend a week with the pups (I hardly ever get to get my hands on foster puppies of this age; once they get adopted at about 10-week-old mark, I rarely see them again!), now I have to take my own advice and separate them for training and socializing! Especially since, just as I worried, the family is finding it difficult to find the time to take them on separate outings and hold separate training sessions – so I feel I have to do it! And BOY does it take a lot of time!

One thing I should be doing but just don’t have the time to do is to take them on separate walks. I’m already taking my own two dogs on separate walks on certain days! These days, with 14-year-old Otto losing the physical ability to take long walks, I often take just 6-year-old Woody for a drive to our favorite off-leash trails, and then come home and take Otto for his own walk in our rural neighborhood. At this point, he’s content to walk on leash and leave his mark on trees and shrubs along the roadside; we go about a half-mile up the road and then mosey back to our house. In order to get any work done with the puppies here for the week, I need to exercise them to the extent of their energy and fitness level, so I have been taking them out to the off-leash trails with Woody. This is terrific for tiring them out, but it would be better for their social development if they were taking individual outings, not just relying on each other for confidence in new situations.

Did you or someone you know adopt sibling pups? How did it work out? What were the most challenging aspects of the adoption?

Pet Health Insurance Calculations

Blog

By

Nancy Kerns

-

November 10, 2021

76

Otto and Woody at sunset — Though I love my two dogs equally, 14-year-old Otto (the fuzzy guy) has had significant health care needs over the past few years, and I expect this to continue until he passes, so I am maintaining his health coverage.

It’s at this time of the year that my dog Otto’s health insurance company sends out a renewal letter. And, of course, the older he gets, the more the annual premium goes up.

It only makes sense. He just turned 14 years old. His healthcare costs have increased. In addition to twice-annual well-dog visits, he gets an annual chest x-ray and abdominal ultrasound; he’s had benign growths removed from his liver, and had (a few years ago) a nearly symptom-free case of pneumonia, so we monitor abdomen and organs (for abnormal masses) and his lungs (to make sure they are clear of excess fluid). Plus, I give him a very expensive daily pain-relief medication for his osteoarthritis; it’s metabolized in a way that stresses the liver less than other nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs, so it supposedly helps with his slightly compromised liver function. (It works, so I’m not messing with it, no matter its cost!)

But, yikes! Today, I had to do some math to see if the increasingly high cost was still worth it. I looked at what I spent this year as a guide:

Total cost of Otto’s vet bills in 2021: $3,025.00

What I actually paid:

Total cost of Otto’s insurance premiums in 2021:	$2,557.37
Deductible:	$250.00
10% of costs (insurance reimbursed me for 90%):	$302.50
*Total cost (so far) in 2021:**	$3,109.87

*This includes the cost of his daily medication and the premiums for the entire year, and presumes we have no more vet visits through the end of the year.

If we make no more visits to the vet this year, I will have paid $84.87 more with insurance than if he had not been insured. But, as everyone knows, just one emergency vet visit, with, say, just one blood test and a prescribed medicine or two, can easily cost $500 or more. If Otto has to go to the vet once more this year for even something quite minor, the insurance will have been worth the cost.

Otto takes a very expensive pain reliever for his arthritis, and it works so well for him that I’m loathe to change it. Insurance helps with the cost.

But the peace of mind of knowing that, no matter the cost, I could likely afford 10% of nearly any bill that he might incur… that’s priceless.

The fact is, knock wood, 2021 was one of our most event-free years in a while. The insurance paid off in a major way in the previous two years, when he needed more medical care.

In 2020, Otto incurred $4083.17 worth of veterinary care (including two major dental procedures). I spent $2,252.27 on his insurance premiums, $250 on the deductible, and paid just $408.32 for all those vet bills, because the insurance reimbursed me for 90%. My total was $2,910.59; insurance saved me more than $1,000.

2019 was the year when he had his liver surgery, with two nights spent at the specialty hospital where he had surgery. His total veterinary expenditures that year came to $7,152.45. I spent $1,745.27 on his insurance premiums, $250 for the deductible, and $715.30 for the vet bills (the insurance reimbursed me for 90%) for a total of $2,711.57. Having him insured saved me more than $4,400 that year.

Funny/not funny: Because of the rising price of his insurance premium each year, in 2021, even though he received less medical care than in either of the two previous years, I’ve spent more than in either of those years.

But if Otto hadn’t had insurance in either of those years, I might still be paying off credit card bills!

The increase in the annual premium has gone up steeply; in 2018, the monthly premium for Otto’s coverage was a full $100 less than I’ll be paying in 2022. The difference is more than what I was paying for my younger dog’s coverage.

Yes, I just used the past tense. Despite what I’ve just said about the clear benefit of having Otto insured, two years ago, I actually stopped paying for Woody’s health insurance. (This added to the cost of Otto’s coverage, as I had been getting a multiple-pet discount of 5% prior to cancelling Woody’s coverage.)

Woody’s in the prime of his life and quite healthy. I hope to be able to insure him again when I’m not paying so much for Otto’s insurance.

I’m taking a calculated risk with this tactic. I first bought health insurance for Woody when he was just a pup, and it was a good darn thing. He was an accident-prone adolescent, and I’ve lost track of exactly how many emergency vet visits he had in his first three years (I can think of five off the top of my head, though I think there must have been more). But after he turned about 3 ½, his medical visits reduced sharply (so far! knock wood!). His annual well-dog visit is pretty minimal, and he hasn’t needed a dental yet.

If I had been paying insurance premiums at the current rates for both dogs over the past three years, it would have tipped the balance; I would have been paying more for the insurance than what the two of them have incurred in costs. But, like I said, it’s been a calculated risk. If Woody had suffered from bloat, a torn ACL, or some other major health problem, then I would have been better off with insurance for both dogs.

When Otto dies, I’ll for sure buy health insurance for Woody again; he’s getting to the age that he’ll need a dental and should start having more tests at his annual vet visits.

As much of a fan if pet health insurance as I am, I can’t imagine affording health insurance if I had three or more pets; even with the multiple-pet discounts, it would add up to a lot. At that point, I’m guessing that most people would be better off saving money each month in an account dedicated for direct health care costs.

What accommodations have you made concerning health insurance for your dogs? Has it been worth it? Not worth it?

Adopt a Senior Pet Month

Blog

By

Nancy Kerns

-

November 3, 2021

7

Why am I just learning about this now? Apparently, some years ago, the ASPCA and Petfinder.com founded November as “Adopt a Senior Pet” month. Both of those organizations promote the benefits of adopting older dogs and cats – defined as just 5 years old or older. Many people are reluctant to adopt older adult dogs and cats, so they tend to experience longer stays in shelters and are at higher risk of euthanasia.

NationalToday.com has an unusually accurate summation of the problem that’s being addressed by National Adopt a Senior Pet Month:

“One misconception older animals suffer from is that they are in shelters because of their destructive or bad behavior. Though this is far from the truth, there are many reasons why a pet would end up in a shelter. Many of these senior pets were once someone’s faithful companions. Changing home circumstances, financial restrictions, death, or relocation can have adverse effects on a pet’s life. These pets have much to offer, and they are usually adaptable. Younger pets can be adorable, but they also demand a lot of attention and can be destructive and very hard work to keep up with. Usually, an older pet can easily fit into your lifestyle and adapt well to a loving new home.”

But here’s a delicious bit of good news: In honor of this national designation, premium pet food maker Stella & Chewy’s is sponsoring the adoption of senior pets – reimbursing adoption fees from a licensed 501(c)(3) non-profit shelter or rescue organization located in the United States or a shelter or rescue organization that is a registered charity in Canada. How cool is that? The fine print: Stella & Chewy has committed $80,000 to this effort, and when they’ve exhausted that amount, their sponsorship will end. So if you know someone who is on the fence about adopting an adult dog (or cat!), tell them about this promotion and see if you can push them over to the joys of adopting a worthy senior. See this link for more details.

DIY Gifts for Dogs: Healthy Homemade Dog Treat Recipes

By

CJ Puotinen

-

October 30, 2021

2

homemade dog treats meat biscuits — All of these healthy biscuit doughs can be rolled flat and shaped with cookie cutters or shaped with a cookie press or by hand before baking. © rojoimages | Getty Images

Looking for a special gift for a friend – or, better yet, a friend’s dog? We’ve put together this helpful gift guide for dogs, and everything is homemade: homemade dog treats, training treats, or grooming products. You’ll save a bundle, improve the quality of the products, and even have fun customizing them. Healthy homemade dog treats can be customized with fun cookie cutters, and you can pick your ingredients to match the lucky dog’s diet and tastes.

For homemade grooming products, see our article, DIY Gifts for Dogs: Homemade Dog Shampoo.

Jump to: Homemade Dog Treat Recipes

How to Make Dog Treats

Dog treat cookie cutters for homemade treats — If you start collecting dog-related cookie cutters, you may not be able to stop. These adorable kitchen tools are available in the shape of many breeds and types of dogs.

Years ago, wheat was the main ingredient in dry dog foods and biscuits. To meet the demand for gluten-free foods and treats, some manufacturers substitute peas, beans, and other legumes for wheat and other grains, but those ingredients have become controversial, too. Today, a range of alternative flours are widely available, making it easy to create biscuits and treats for dogs with any sort of dietary restrictions; you can easily make treats that are free of gluten, legumes, fat, sugar, nuts, or salt. Experiment with substitutions!

Watch the Whole Dog Journal team make some homemade dog treats!

When making homemade dog biscuits, combine dry ingredients with a mixer, food processor, or by hand, then add other ingredients to create a stiff or soft dough. Line cookie sheets with kitchen parchment paper or lightly grease them before baking to prevent sticking.

Stiff doughs can be rolled flat with a rolling pin and shaped with a cookie cutter, pizza cutter, or knife. Alternatively, shape stiff dough as a log or cylinder, wrap it in plastic wrap, refrigerate until firm, then slice the roll into discs and bake.

Soft doughs can be pushed through a cookie press to create different shapes or rolled into balls and pressed flat with your hand or the tines of a fork.

If using a silicone mold, spray it lightly with oil to prevent sticking, then add the dough and press firmly.

Leaving treats at room temperature for a day or two after baking helps harden biscuits, making them sturdier and crunchier. Depending on ingredients, home-prepared dog treats may last several days to a week or more at room temperature or longer in the refrigerator. For long-term storage, freeze in air-tight containers.

For holiday baking, mix cookie doughs ahead of time and refrigerate or freeze them until a few days before gift giving, then bake and gift-wrap.

Ingredients that are perennial dog favorites and are delicious additions to homemade dog treats include peanut or other nut butters, carob (which tastes like chocolate but is safe for dogs), shredded coconut, carrots, cheese, bacon, and diced or pureed meat, fish, or poultry.

Avoid adding ingredients to your DIY dog treats that are not dog-safe. These include chocolate, raisins, macadamia nuts, onions, and the sweetener xylitol (check peanut butter labels to avoid products containing xylitol).

Homemade Dog Treat Recipes

To test recipes for this article, I used all of the ingredients mentioned here in a variety of cookies, crackers, and training treats, which were enthusiastically tested by 30 dogs of different sizes, breeds, and ages. Here are their favorites:

Ingredients:

3 1⁄2 cups almond, equivalent (see sidebar), or all-purpose flour blend
1 teaspoon baking powder
1⁄4 cup butter
1⁄2 cup finely chopped cooked bacon, fish, meat, or chicken
1⁄2 cup milk or coconut milk

Instructions:

Combine ingredients and mix well to create a soft dough. If you have a cookie press, experiment with different shapes and press cookies onto parchment. If you don’t have a cookie press, create balls and press them with the tines of a fork. Bake at 275 ° F for 30 to 45 minutes or until light brown.

Download the recipe card for Meaty Dog Biscuits.

Ingredients:

3 cups almond, equivalent, or all-purpose flour blend
1 cup blueberries
2 ripe bananas, mashed
2 eggs
2⁄3 cups unsweetened peanut butter or nut butter

Instructions:

Combine ingredients, roll to 1/2 inch thickness, and cut to desired size and shape. Bake at 350° F for 20 to 30 minutes or until slightly brown.

Download the recipe card for Blueberry Banana Dog Biscuits.

Ingredients:

1 3⁄4 cup tiger nut, almond, or equivalent flour
1/2 cup toasted carob powder
1 cup rolled oats
1⁄2 teaspoon baking powder
3/4 cup milk or coconut milk
1/2 cup diced cooked bacon
1/2 cup unsweetened peanut butter or nut butter
1 tablespoon olive oil or coconut oil

Instructions:

Combine ingredients and form 1/2-inch balls. Press into lightly greased silicon molds or place on parchment-lined cookie sheets and press to flatten with your hand or the tines of a fork. Bake at 350° F for 18 to 20 minutes or until brown.

Download the recipe card for Peanut Butter and Bacon Dog Biscuits.

Peanut Butter & Bacon Dog Biscuits recipe

Ingredients:

1 3⁄4 cup almond, equivalent, or all-purpose flour blend
1⁄2 cup canned pumpkin puree
2 tablespoons unsweetened peanut or almond butter
2 eggs
1 cup grated carrots
1 cup shredded dried coconut

Instructions:

Combine ingredients, roll to 1⁄4- to 3⁄8-inch thick, and shape with cookie cutters. Bake at 350° F for 30 to 35 minutes or until light brown.

Download the recipe card for Pumpkin, Carrot & Coconut Dog Biscuits.

Pumpkin, Carrot, Coconut Dog Biscuit recipe

Ingredients:

2 cups almond, equivalent, or all-purpose flour blend
2 cups shredded cheddar cheese
1⁄2 cup cold cubed butter
1⁄4 cup milk or coconut milk
1 tablespoon Herbs de Provence or dried savory herbs such as rosemary, thyme, basil, marjoram, lavender, parsley, and/or oregano

homemade cheese dog treats — You’ll be tempted to share these Savory Cheese Ribbons with your dog – but ask first!

Instructions:

Combine ingredients and mix well to create a soft dough. If you have a cookie press, use a star-shaped or sawtooth tip and move the tip while pressing the plunger to create ribbons. Cut the ribbons into 2- to 4-inch lengths. Bake at 350°F for 18 to 25 minutes until light brown.

Download the recipe card for Savory Cheddar Cheese Dog Treats.

Most packaged “soft” treats contain vegetable glycerin, a plant-derived sweet syrup that acts as a moisturizer and preservative. Food-grade vegetable glycerin is easy to find online and in natural food stores. I experimented with soft treats by adding vegetable glycerin to different recipes with good results. Honey also works well in soft treats.

Ingredients:

2 cups cooked, mashed sweet potato or pureed pumpkin
1/2 cup grated apple or 1⁄4 cup applesauce
1⁄4 cup honey or vegetable glycerin
1 egg
1 1⁄2 cups almond or equivalent flour

Instructions:

Combine ingredients and scoop the dough with a spoon to form mounds on prepared baking sheets. Bake at 350° F for 20 minutes. Refrigerate after baking to maintain soft consistency and prevent mold growth.

Download the recipe card for Double Sweet Soft Dog Treats.

Homemade Sweet Potato Dog Chews

Sweet potato chews are incredibly easy to make, cost a fraction of what you’d pay for them in a pet supply store – and most dogs absolutely love them. If you’ve ever picked up a $20 bag of sweet potato chews and thought you could make them yourself for a lot less, you’re right. In fact, nothing could be simpler. Here’s how to make these dog treats.

diy dog treats - sweet potato chews — Sweet potato chews are incredibly easy to make, cost a fraction of what you’d pay for them in a pet supply store – and most dogs absolutely love them.

Cut raw sweet potatoes or yams into slices (lengthwise or crosswise) between 3⁄8 and 1/2 inch thick. Bake at 250° F for an hour, turn slices over, bake for another hour, and repeat until they’re completely hard. Or let them finish drying in a food dehydrator set to low heat. Once completely dry, these chews have a long shelf life and do not require refrigeration. Several of my tester dogs preferred these to all the other treats.

Gummy Gelatin Dog Treats

Gelatin is the key ingredient in sweet or savory dog gummies. Unflavored gelatin powder is available from Great Lakes, Knox, and other widely sold brands. Compare labels if you prefer gelatin from grass-fed cattle. Gelatin is recommended for aging joints, increased mobility, improved digestion, strong bones, and skin and coat health. Unfortunately, gelatin does not freeze well. Use these homemade dog gummies as training treats or additions to your dog’s dinner.

To make gummies for dogs, sprinkle 2 tablespoons gelatin powder over 1⁄4 cup unheated

coconut water, bone broth, soup stock, or other liquid and let stand a minute or two until the gelatin is absorbed. Heat 1⁄2 cup of the same liquid until almost boiling, add it to the gelatin, and stir.

If desired, add 1⁄4 to 1⁄2 cup chopped meat, fish, chicken, pumpkin puree, or other additions. Pour into a lightly oiled silicon mold, loaf pan, or tray. Refrigerate until firm. Remove gummies from silicon molds. If using a loaf pan, remove the single slab of cold gelatin and cut it with a knife or cookie cutters. Refrigerate gummies, tightly sealed, for up to 2 weeks.

A Guide To Ingredient Substitution

If your dog has certain dietary restrictions or you want to make some of these DIY dog treat recipes grain-free or gluten free, some replacement flours can be substituted for equal amounts of wheat flour but others require adjustments. The following ingredients can be substituted on a one-to-one basis (equivalent flours) for wheat flour:

Several gluten-free flour blends contain almond flour, coconut flour, arrowroot starch, tapioca starch, cassava flour, rice flour, potato starch, or other ingredients designed to replace equal quantities of wheat flour. Look for “gluten-free flour” or “Paleo flour.”
Almond meal (ground whole almonds) or blanched almond flour (ground after skins are removed).
Buckwheat, millet, rice, or sorghum flour.
Oat flour (use rolled oats, quick-cooking oatmeal, or make your own oat flour by grinding oats in a blender or food processor).
Sunflower seed flour (may be labeled as “sun-flour”).
Tiger nut flour (made from a tuber, not a nut).

OTHER REPLACEMENTS

Cassava flour: Replace 4 cups wheat flour with 3 cups cassava flour.
Coconut flour: Replace 4 cups wheat flour with 1 cup coconut flour and add 1 or 2 eggs or additional liquid (coconut flour quickly absorbs liquids).
Green banana or plantain flour: Replace 4 cups wheat flour with 3 cups banana flour.
Carob powder, plain or toasted: Replace 1/4 to 1/2 cup of wheat (or equivalent) flour with an equal amount of carob powder.

GLUTEN-FREE FLOURS These widely sold gluten-free blends and many like them are available in supermarkets, natural food stores, and online.

King Arthur Gluten-Free Measure-for-Measure Flour. Contains: Rice flour, whole grain brown rice flour, whole sorghum flour, tapioca starch, potato starch, cellulose, and xanthan gum, and is vitamin fortified.
Krusteaz Gluten-Free All-Purpose 1-to-1 Flour. Contains: Whole grain sorghum flour, brown rice flour (rice flour, stabilized rice bran with germ), whole grain millet flour, rice flour, modified food starch, whole grain quinoa flour, xanthan gum.
BakeGood Paleo Flour Blend, Gluten-Free 1-to-1 All Purpose Flour. Contains: Almond flour, arrowroot starch, coconut flour, tapioca flour.

Groundbreaking Dog Allergy Medicine: Apoquel and Cytopoint

Health

By

Dr. Eileen Fatcheric, DVM

-

October 29, 2021

37

Apoquel and cytopoint are two new medications for dog allergies.

Apoquel and Cytopoint, both manufactured by Zoetis, have been around for some time now – eight years and five years, respectively. They represent the newest and most effective drugs in the veterinary arsenal to stop itching in dogs with allergies – but their use is not without risk of side effects or contraindications. That said, these drugs have vastly improved the lives of many severely allergic dogs without any ill effects whatsoever.

Before I explain why these drugs are so ground-breaking, allow me to briefly explain why allergies are so hard to treat in some dogs, and how the veterinary medication predecessors to these drugs differ.

Dog Allergy Treatments

The hallmark of allergies in dogs is normal, healthy-looking skin that seems to itch. The offending allergen is either inhaled (atopy) or ingested (food allergy). Inhaled allergens frequently cause seasonal itching (only in the spring or only in the fall). Food allergy typically causes itching year-round.

The goal of allergy therapy is to eliminate the itch. If you don’t stop the underlying itch, your dog will scratch, chew, bite, and rub his way to secondary skin infections, which add a second layer of itch and discomfort.

There is a complex, biochemical cascade, with lots of different mediators, that occurs between the allergen first being recognized by the body and the result, which is skin inflammation and itch. In broad terms, treatments for managing the allergic itch block or interrupt this cascade at various points. The more complete the block or interruption, the better the allergy itch control.

It would be ideal if it was possible to completely prevent the dog from coming into contact with any of the substances that he’s allergic to, but in the case of atopy, this is pretty much impossible. It is possible in the case of food allergies – if you can identify the food or foods that your dog is allergic to by undertaking a diet trial. To properly rule out food allergy, you must feed either an extremely limited-ingredient diet containing only ingredients that are novel for the dog (he’s never eaten them before) or a hydrolyzed protein diet and nothing else for eight to 12 weeks, and see if the itch subsides. (If it doesn’t, atopy, not food, is likely the issue.)

Most of the medications used to relieve allergy-caused itching don’t manage food allergy itch very well, so if you skip this step, you may end up disappointed and frustrated.

In lieu of complete protection from contact between the dog and the substances he’s allergic to, the gold standard for managing allergies is still allergy testing and immunotherapy (allergy shots), just like those that humans get.

The goal of this therapy is to stimulate the dog’s body to create antibodies against his allergens, thereby blocking the inflammatory cascade right at the starting gate. Unfortunately, this is not the most popular approach to allergy management for pet owners, as it is expensive, labor intensive, not without risk, and comes with no guarantee.

So we move on to medications. Antihistamines are inexpensive, available over the counter, and safe. The problem is, they don’t work very well in dogs. They definitely won’t help in the face of a full-blown allergy inflammatory breakout. Blocking histamine at that stage is just too late.

Probably the most useful place for antihistamines would be leading up to your dog’s allergy season. If you know he has trouble in the fall, starting an antihistamine ahead of time might help dampen his initial reaction to his allergens. Or, if a prescription medication is helping but not giving 100% relief, sometimes adding an antihistamine will help. Discuss this with your veterinarian.

Steroids work well to stop allergic itching and their effect is immediate, but they come with a plethora of negative effects on the body, including immune suppression. I’ll still prescribe them for severe, acute cases, but only in the beginning, to get the inflammation under control. After that, we look for a safer, long-term solution.

Atopica (cyclosporine) was approved by the Food & Drug Administration in 2003. It’s a reasonable alternative to steroids for longer-term allergy management. But like steroids, it can cause immune suppression. It also takes too long to kick in. It can be as long as four to eight weeks before you see maximal response – way too long for the allergic dog and his owner to wait.

Newer Dog Allergy Medicine

The newest allergy treatment options are Apoquel and Cytopoint. These medications interrupt the inflammatory cascade at different points. They are both rapid-acting and have minimal side effects. There are pros and cons to each which we will discuss.

Apoquel

Apoquel (oclacitinib maleate) blocks the effects of cytokines, which are pro-inflammatory proteins heavily involved in the allergy cascade. It is an oral tablet administered twice daily for 14 days, then once daily. It takes effect quickly, within 24 hours, and works really well for many dogs. Side effects are not common, but vomiting, diarrhea, loss of appetite, and lethargy have been reported.

The results of safety testing done on Apoquel suggest the possibility of some immune suppression when using this drug. This is one of the potential downsides of Apoquel. Some dogs developed significant infections (pneumonia) and demodectic mange, which typically occurs in the face of immune suppression. This was especially true in puppies, which is why the drug is labeled for use only in dogs 12 months or older. It’s also not for use in breeding dogs or pregnant or nursing mothers.

Neither I nor my colleagues have had issues in our clinic with Apoquel causing immune suppression, and I do not hesitate to use it in appropriate patients. But the possibility makes careful monitoring of these patients prudent.

There is also a label warning – “Use with caution” – regarding the use of Apoquel in dogs with tumors. Cytopoint may be a better choice for these dogs, since it has no warnings or concerns regarding tumors.

Sometimes Apoquel works great when dosed twice a day, but not as well when the dose is reduced to the once-daily, long-term dose. I see this a lot in the clinic, and it’s so disappointing for the pet owner. A number of owners have asked me if they can just continue with twice-daily dosing. Unfortunately, long-term safety studies at this dose have not been done. Apoquel can be used this way off-label, but there is no way to know if it’s truly safe for your dog.

My preference for these dogs is to continue the Apoquel once a day (as labeled) and add Cytopoint. These two medications are perfectly safe to use together, and in my experience, this combination is often the magic bullet for those difficult-to-manage allergy dogs.

Cytopoint

Cytopoint (lokivetmab) is a monoclonal antibody against the cytokine interleukin 31 (IL-31), a big player in the allergy inflammatory cascade. It is an injectable medication, administered under the skin. It takes effect quickly, relieving itch within 24 hours, and typically lasts anywhere from four to eight weeks.

Side effects are rare, but once again, vomiting, diarrhea, loss of appetite, and lethargy have been reported. Pain or discomfort at the injection site occasionally happens, but typically is mild and short-lived if it occurs. Cytopoint is not immune-suppressive, and there are no warnings or concerns about tumors.

However, the one potential downfall of Cytopoint is that the dog can form antibodies against it. If this happens, then the medication will lose its effectiveness – forever. I haven’t seen this yet, but if your dog is responding well to Cytopoint at first, and then less and less so, this is likely what’s happening. I hope I never see it.

As a practicing veterinarian, I really like Cytopoint. If I had an allergic dog, I would choose Cytopoint first.

If you have an allergic dog, hopefully this information helps you as you navigate your journey. As always, the best advice for you and your dog comes from your veterinarian.

Dog Impulse Control Training

Training

By

Pat Miller, CBCC-KA, CPDT-KA

-

October 28, 2021

0

dog impulse control — Once they have learned a cue for "wait" (in the context of waiting to be released to eat their food), most dogs are able to easily generalize the behavior to different situations, such as waiting to go out a door, waiting to jump out of a car, and so on.

The behavior has several different names (inhibitory self-control, emotional self-control, self-regulation), but the term “impulse control” is used frequently in dog training. It means that dogs can resist the temptation to perform an unwanted behavior that would give them access to a desired reinforcer – that is, they can control themselves.

Puppies aren’t born with impulse control (nor are children); it has to be learned – and it can be encouraged and deliberately taught! Teaching your dog to develop his impulse control is a valuable use of your time because, as dogs learn to control their behavior, we can relax and enjoy their company without feeling like we always have to control them.

Generally, humans don’t consider a dog to have a problem with self-control unless his impulses drive him to exhibit behaviors we don’t care for. It’s when dogs do things like help themselves to food on the coffee table or kitchen counter (counter surfing), jump up on people when greeting, dart out doors before invited to do so, or grab things from the hands of their humans that dogs tend to be labeled as lacking in impulse control. From the canine perspective, however, a dog who does these things is just helping himself to something he wants: food, contact with humans, freedom, or a desired toy or other item.

Fortunately, with relative ease, most dogs can learn to resist the impulse to help themselves to these things – practicing delayed gratification or accepting an alternative reward – when their humans implement several impulse-control behaviors already frequently taught in the force-free training world, including Wait, Leave-It, Polite Greeting, Mat, On-Off Switch, and more.

WAIT

As much as we force-free trainers love teaching dogs to do stuff, I will admit that “Wait” is one of the most useful behaviors I teach my dogs, as well as my favorite impulse control exercise. Unlike a formal “Stay” cue, which means “Stay in the exact position you are in and don’t move until I tell you to,” I use “Wait” more informally to mean “Pause.”

We teach “Wait” using a food bowl. This gives you one or two built-in training sessions every day (depending on how often you feed your dog) – no excuses! “Wait” can then be easily generalized to waiting at doors, or any other situation where you want your dog to be able to control herself (i.e., not rushing forward to greet the senior citizen with the walker, or not grabbing the hotdog out of the toddler’s hand). Here’s how to teach it:

1. Have your dog sit and tell her “Wait!” Put a mixture of some of your dog’s regular food and some high-value treats into her food bowl. You can use her regular food as a treat if she’s highly food-motivated, but to make a greater impression, use the higher-value treats for reinforcment.

Hold the bowl at shoulder level (off to the side so you’re not lowering it directly under her nose), and before she can (or does) move, mark her “pause” with the “click!” of a clicker or a verbal marker such as the word “Yes!” Then take a treat out of the bowl and feed it to her.

If she gets up before you click, tell her “Oops, sit!” and try again.

If she gets up after you click and treat, just ask her to sit again before the next repetition. Repeat several times, telling her “Wait” each time.

2. With the bowl at shoulder level, tell her “Wait,” and lower the bowl a few inches. Mark (with a click or “Yes!”) if she’s still sitting, and quickly raise the bowl back up; then take a treat out of the bowl and feed it to her.

If she gets up when you lower the bowl, try again, and lower it only a fraction of an inch.

3. Gradually lower the bowl a bit more, still starting at shoulder level, telling her “Wait” each time, with several successful repetitions at each new position before going lower. If you get two “Oops!” in a row, you’ve gone too quickly; back up to where she can succeed and proceed more slowly with your bowl-lowering.

4. When you get the bowl all the way to the floor, set it down, click, and pick it back up before giving your dog the treat. Repeat several times, telling her “Wait” each time. (Be ready to raise the bowl quickly if she tries to go for it!)

5. Next, when you get the bowl to the floor, click, but leave the bowl on the floor while you feed her the treat. Repeat several times, telling her “Wait” each time.

6. Finally, tell her “Wait,” set the bowl on the floor, click and treat, and tell her, “Okay, you can have it!”

Dogs who naturally have better self-control may “get it” in one session. Those who are more challenged by their impulses may need to practice over a period of several days or more before you get the bowl to the floor. At each mealtime practice session, work as long as practical for you and your dog, then just go ahead and set the bowl on the floor with an “Okay you can have it!”

Eventually you’ll be able to ask her to wait while you put the bowl on the floor, and you won’t have to mark and treat, just release her; her meal is the reward.

LEAVE IT

I use “Trade” when a dog already has something that I want in her mouth. (See “Protocol for Teaching a Safe ‘Trade’ With Your Dog,” May 2020, for information about how to teach your dog to happily give you something he has that you want.) But I teach “Leave It” for the random object on the ground that my dog covets – and that I don’t want her to grab. Here’s how:

1. Show your dog that you have a high-value “forbidden object” in your hand – something you’re going to tell her she can’t have. I use freeze-dried liver cubes for this – they are high-value and durable. Let her sniff it, lick it, even nibble at it, but don’t let her have it.

2. Say “Leave It!” as you hold up the cube, then immediately place it on the floor under your foot, to protect it. (Note: Wear sturdy shoes. Do not do this barefooted, with open sandals, or in your nicest shoes!)

3. Let your dog sniff, lick, nibble, and chew in an effort to reach the treat under your foot. She might even paw at your shoe (hence, the no-sandals or bare feet suggestion). If her tongue can reach the cube under your shoe, tip your toe forward so she can’t lick it.

Just wait; she will eventually give up. The instant she stops sniffing, licking, or looks away from the treat, mark (click or “Yes!”) and give her a tasty treat. As she gains fluency at this behavior, you may be able to move your foot away and still have her “leave it”.

4. Wait. Don’t repeat the cue; she will eventually give up. The instant she stops sniffing, licking, etc., or looks away, even by accident, mark (click your clicker or use a verbal maker, such as the word “Yes!”) and give her a tasty treat. She’ll probably immediately return her attention to the forbidden object under your foot, so just wait some more. Don’t repeat the cue. When she looks away again, mark and treat again.

5. If possible, mark-and-treat again before her nose returns to your foot. You want to reinforce “Look-away, look-away, look-away, keep-looking-away” not “look at foot-look away, look at foot-look away.”

6. After several repetitions, pick the cube up, show it to her again, repeat the “Leave It” cue, and place it under your foot again.

7. When she looks away from the cube easily, move your foot slightly to uncover the treat and give repeated mark-and-treats as long as her nose doesn’t return to the treat. She gets rewarded for staying away from the cube even when it’s visible and seemingly accessible. Keep your foot close! If your dog dives for the food, just re-cover it with your toe to prevent her from getting it. Mark/treat again when she looks away.

8. If your dog completely ignores the forbidden object on the ground, try tapping your toe next to it to draw her attention back – but be ready to cover it up quickly! Remember, she doesn’t have to look back at the cube and then look away – you want continuous “look-away” behavior.

9. Eventually you’ll see your dog’s “Aha!” moment – that golden moment in training when you see your dog really understands. With Leave It, that moment happens when she looks at the exposed treat, considers it for a moment, then looks up at you in anticipation of the mark and treat. Celebrate!

10. Next, place the forbidden object on the floor without covering it with your foot (be ready to protect with your foot!). Repeat numerous times until you can place it in plain view on the floor and she doesn’t try to get it.

Now you can generalize Leave It to more real-life situations. (For help with generalizing the behavior, see “How to Teach a Dog to ‘Leave It’” June 2018.)

POLITE GREETING

This is an important impulse-control behavior in any dog’s repertoire. It requires that you not reinforce her for jumping up – and that you prevent the rest of the world from reinforcing her as well! – while you reinforce her generously for an incompatible behavior such as Sit. You can simply turn your back and step away when she jumps up if she’s roaming free (or step into another room and close the door) – and you can use a leash or tether for more concentrated practice.

A tether was essential for teaching this little dog to stop jumping on kids; he had a long history of being reinforced for jumping up on kids (and licking and biting them). Once he was prevented from reaching the kid, he was able to learn to sit when he wanted to greet a child.

1. With your dog tethered to a solid object, approach slowly and calmly, wait for her to sit, then mark (with the click of a clicker or a verbal marker such as the word “Yes!”) and feed her a treat. If she jumps up, just step back out of her reach. Note we didn’t tell you to say “Sit.” We want her to think of and offer that behavior on her own, not be waiting for a cue. Use body language (such as leaning back and/or lifting your hands to your chest) to help her sit if necessary (quickly fade the use of this body language). Just don’t use your regular cue for Sit!

2. As she starts offering sits consistently when you approach (and you consistently reinforce these), gradually increase the energy of your approach until you can greet her with excitement, and she still sits and stays sitting until you release her.

3. Now generalize the behavior to the rest of the world. With your dog on leash, have another person approach her. Instruct them to approach calmly and tell them to step back if she jumps up. When she sits politely at their approach, mark and treat her for sitting. They can then greet and pet her but remind them to move back if she gets up.

Eventually, if you want, you can have the people approaching feed her a treat – providing they understand they must move away if she gets up.

MAT

Place the treats you use to reinforce any on-the-mat-behaviors on the mat. This will help your dog understand that being on the mat is a rewarding place to be! Use the higher-value treats every time she happens to lie down; she will likely start offering downs more frequently – excellent!

The introduction of the “place mat” is a brilliant addition to the force-free training repertoire. The place mat is a portable rug, bed, or blanket that you teach your dog to lie down and settle on. The more comfortable the mat, the easier the training.

When your dog learns to park herself on her mat you have an incredibly useful tool to help with impulse control at home as well as in new environments or those with guaranteed arousal-causing distractions. Here’s how to train the behavior:

1. Hold your dog’s mat and show great interest in it: Examine it, talk about it, sniff it, and so on, until your dog shows interest in what you are doing.

2. Place the mat on the floor. Have a supply of medium- and high-value treats. When your dog looks at, sniffs, or shows any interest in the mat, mark and place a medium-value treat on the mat for your dog to take.

3. Continue to mark for any mat-related behaviors (except for grabbing it and playing with it!), placing a medium-value treat on the mat each time you mark.

4. Any on-the-mat-behaviors (OTMBs) deserve a mark-and-treat, but if she offers a down, she gets a high-value treat. Other offered OTMBs still get medium-value treats. Continue to mark any OTMBs, but occasionally cue her to “Down” on the mat. When she does, mark and give her a high-value treat.

5. After you have cued, marked, and treated a half-dozen random downs interspersed with her other behaviors, pause for several seconds and see if she chooses to offer you a down when she doesn’t get marked for other behaviors. If she does, mark and feed her several high-value treats. If she doesn’t, go back to marking any OTMBs, interspersing cued downs. Again, deliver high-value treats for downs and medium-value treats for other behaviors.

6. Repeat step 5 until your dog begins offering downs during your pauses. Your dog is learning that downs get better rewards. She should soon begin offering only downs on the mat, even though other behaviors will still get medium rewards.

7. Now give your dog a release cue, move a few steps away from the mat and invite her to follow you. When she does, stand quietly and ignore her – no marks, treats, or praise. Most dogs will return to the mat to prompt you for more treats. (If she doesn’t, go back to Step 5.) If she does, start marking and treating again, using medium-value treats for any behavior, high-value treats for downs. You are reinforcing her for returning to the mat. Downs are great if they happen, but remember to reward any OTMBs. Gradually increase your distance from the mat.

8. When she consistently/quickly returns and lies down on the mat each time you move away, increase time in small increments – a few seconds at a time. If she gets off the mat before you release her, pick up the mat, ignore her for a minute, place the mat down and try again.

9. When your dog will go to her mat and lie quietly on it for an extended period of time, you can add your cue – “Mat,” “Place” – or whatever you want to call it. Practice sending her to her mat from increasing distances and eventually from anywhere in the house.

10. Finally, add distractions and generalize the behavior. Start with kindergarten-level distractions – jump once, jump twice, clap your hands … gradually work up to college level – kids running through the house, dropping food on the floor … and eventually PhD work – doorbell ringing, visitors entering, and anything else that might challenge your dog’s self-control. When she’s good with distractions in the home – take it on the road; generalize it to the rest of the world!

ON/OFF SWITCH

Sometimes your dog will just get excited by some stimulus. Many dogs get super amped when the leash comes out because it is such a reliable predictor that “good stuff is about to happen!” Asking them to calm down can be counterproductive – you’re paying attention to them (reinforcing!) as they leap about, and they just get more excited as you interact with them. I use “Oops!” as a “no reward marker,” meaning “That behavior doesn’t get reinforced – in fact that behavior makes the good stuff go away …” and then I take away the opportunity for reinforcement.

If I have the leash in my hand when my dog starts to leap with excitement, I say, “Oops!” and lay the leash on the table, then go sit down. If I was holding a toy, I’d say, “Oops!” and hide it behind my back or turn away. If I was opening the door, I’d say, “Oops!” and walk away.

When your dog can remain calm as you pick up the leash, hold up the toy, or open the door, she has learned impulse control – she can control her excitement in order to make the good stuff happen.

Note: I prefer “Oops” to the “eh-eh” that some trainers use, as it’s really hard to say “Oops” in an aversive tone of voice, while “eh-eh” can end up sounding quite nasty. The intent is simply to give information in a neutral or cheerful tone – “That behavior made the good thing go away” – not to be angry or intimidating to the dog.

Your goal? To help your canine companion learn to control her own behavior so you can live harmoniously together in a relationship of mutual love, trust, and respect, knowing your dog will choose to do the right thing even when temptation looms, and knowing you don’t have to be the behavior police.

Whole Dog Journal reviews dog food, dog toys, and dog health and care products, and also teaches positive dog training methods.

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Human Grade Dog Food: Takeaway Points

Show Us the Studies on Human Grade Dog Food

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Signs Your Dog Is Having a Seizure

Life-Threatening Seizures

Generalized Dog Seizures

Causes of Seizures in Dogs

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Should You Treat for Seizures?

Medications for Dog Seizures

HIGH VISIBILITY GEAR FOR DOGS

HIGH VISIBILITY CLOTHING FOR HUMANS

HIGH VISIBILITY PRODUCT SELECTION

PROS AND CONS OF VARIOUS NIGHT-VISIBILITY PRODUCTS

1. Plan carefully for the first minute, and stick to the plan.

2. How to introduce a dog to a cat

3. Contain the dog.

4. Give the cat a safe, high place to retreat to.

5. Take a crash course in dog and cat body language.

6. Introduce the cohabitants and reward calm behavior.

HARD WORK PAYS LIFELONG DIVIDENDS

BRAVE CATS, CALM DOGS

DOGS AND CATS: HAPPILY EVER AFTER

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WAIT

LEAVE IT

POLITE GREETING

MAT

ON/OFF SWITCH

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