Welcome to Capitaland Animal Hospital's Newsletter

Quitting smoking can be difficult, but according to the results of a new study, pets may be the incentive some smokers need to kick the habit. A study conducted by the Henry Ford Health System's Center for Health Promotion and Disease Prevention found that smokers who own pets reported they would be more likely to quit if provided with information about the dangers of secondhand smoke for pets.

The study was based on a web-based survey of 3,293 pet owners. Among the survey respondents, 50% were either current smokers or lived with at least one smoker. While taking the survey, many of the smokers and non-smokers indicated they would be interested in receiving information about quitting smoking.

The results are good news, both for pets and pet owners trying to quit smoking. While the effects of secondhand smoke on humans are well known, studies have also found that secondhand smoke can cause health problems in pets. Lymphoma in cats and nasal and lung cancer in dogs have been linked to secondhand smoke. Additionally, secondhand smoke has been identified as a possible cause of allergic reactions in dogs, eye disease and respiratory problems in birds and oral carcinoma in cats, according to the Henry Ford Health System.

Most of all, the study provides further proof of how devoted pet owners are to their best friends. While pet owners who smoke may not think twice about their own health when lighting up, it's clear that many are thinking about their pet's health and taking that into consideration when they smoke.

Currently, about 63 percent of U.S. households (about 71.1 million homes) include a pet as a member of the family. About a fifth of all pet owners are current cigarette smokers.

With warmer weather approaching, plenty of pet owners are thinking of getting into shape before hitting the beach. But what about pets? Obesity is a growing problem among both cats and dogs. And much like humans, too many extra pounds can have far-reaching consequences for our animal companions. In this report from the Veterinary News Network, Dr. Jim Humphries discusses the health problems that can occur if your pet is overweight and shares tips on how you can get your pet's weight under control.

The first five reasons for barking are rarely the cause of "excessive" or "annoying" barking. They are usually specific to certain situations and are short-lived. The sixth and seventh reasons are those most likely to be considered problem barking, and they are not unrelated. Barking for companionship can turn into barking for reward: The dog barks to get its owner’s attention, the owner comes to the dog to tell it to be quiet, perhaps petting it or playing with it, and goes away again. The dog is quiet while the owner is there, but has learned that barking will bring the owner back. Thus the system of barking and reward is established.

A solution, again, is to spend more time with your dog and have it near you rather than tied up somewhere separate from you. However, if your dog is separated from you and it begins to bark to get your attention, do not immediately go to the dog. It must learn that barking will not guarantee your presence. By spending more time with the dog at regular intervals not instigated by barking, your dog will feel more assured that it will get sufficient attention from you and will not have as much inclination to bark for companionship.

Teach Your Dog to Distinguish Friends

How do you teach a barking dog to distinguish between friends and strangers?
The solution is to show the dog that certain individuals (garbage collectors, mailmen, milkmen) are, indeed, friends. To accomplish this, the dog has to be introduced to these people and given an opportunity to get to know them. While this is not always practical, it is nonetheless a potential solution. As you restrain your dog, stop delivery people and have a short conversation with them, letting them meet the dog for a brief period. Repeat and lengthen the process over the next few weeks. Eventually, your dog should accept these individuals and all should be well until your regular mailman is sick and another person takes his place.

What do you do with a dog that barks at guests in your house?
One solution is to take the dog to another room and give it something to do. Or, if the guest comes to your home often and you don’t want to have to lock up the dog every time, work to gradually introduce one to the other. Have the guest get on his knees, pet the dog, offer it a treat, and more or less become part of the family. Let your dog establish the speed at which this relationship develops: Don’t force it, or your dog may become alarmed by a "pushy" guest.

How do you deal with a dog that barks at the phone?
This is simply a case of a dog that has been rewarded for barking at a ringing phone. When the dog barks, someone eventually answers the phone and it stops ringing. To stop your dog from doing this, have a friend call and let the phone ring until the dog loses interest. Continue over a period of days, and in time, the dog will learn that barking at the phone accomplishes nothing.

Teach Your Dog To Stop Barking By Understanding Prevention Steps

Finally, what do you do with the dog that barks while you are away from home?
There are several possible solutions. One is to act as if you are leaving, then stand outside the door until the dog barks. When it does, return and scold verbally. Another is to get your dog a companion—but you might end up with two barkers! A third is to use a sound-activated tape recorder. When the dog barks, the sound switch turns on the tape recorder for a minute. The tape plays your voice scolding the dog. Some systems can repeat as many as 45 times while you are away.

The best way to reduce your dog’s barking is to pay attention to the reasons for the barking. If you can satisfy the dog’s needs, barking will automatically be reduced. By the same token, learned barking can be extremely persistent. Internal rewards can cause the cycle to go on for years.

The best solution to barking is prevention, so be aware of the possibilities and work to stop problem barking before it starts.

There are many ways to communicate with your cat. Although we don't speak the same language there are ways to understand what your cat is trying to tell you through vocalization and body language.

MEOW!

If you listen closely to your cat's vocalizations throughout the day, you might notice that she or he expresses far more than a typical meow. Along with body language and the "signatures" produced by marking with scents glands, claws or urine, vocalization is an important and expressive communication tool for cats. Cats use sound to let other cats and humans know if they are happy, scared, or angry.

The range of cat vocalizations can be broken down into three broad categories: murmurs, vowel patterns and strained intensity patterns. To put it into human perspective, cats can go from whispering to screaming depending on the situation. Murmurs, produced while the mouth is closed, include purring, chirping, and mating vocalizations. Vowel patterns include the more recognizable "meow" and are produced when the cat opens its mouth and then closes it. Strained intensity vocalizations are, in contrast, generally a sign of distress and are produced when a cat holds its mouth open with a prolonged sound. Such emotional sounds also include growling, hissing and screaming. Though hearing these sounds can be distressing to a human, it is equally if not more upsetting to the cat.

Tricks of the Tail

A cat's tail acts as an extension of its feelings and as a warning of its intentions. A good rule of thumb is, the higher the tail, the better the mood. Broad swishing indicates agitation or annoyance, while twitches are a sign of excitement and curiosity. If you notice your cat giving you the signal of annoyance by swishing his tail from side to side, it might be wise to keep your distance. Often a batting paw will follow a swishing tail! A straight tail with a slight curl at the end (imagine a tail in the shape of a question mark) indicates general contentedness and is a sign of a happy cat. A puffed tail generally means that something has spooked the cat, hence the picture of a black cat with an arched back and puffed tail that is commonly associated with Halloween.

Watching Ears

In general, a cat will hold its ears erect and forward. This means that it is relaxed, following a daily schedule or offering a friendly greeting. When the ears go down, however, watch out! Ears laid flat and back against the head indicates aggression. This helps keep them out of the way of teeth and claws if a fight erupts. Ears back but down indicate fear, but aggression is always a possibility depending on the cat's personality. A frightened cat can often be an aggressive cat.

Cats are a communicative bunch. If you pay attention to your cat and know how to read the signs you are given, you can have an open and mutually beneficial relationship. If you can avoid handling him in a way that makes him unhappy, this avoids the risk of turning your happy, purring kitty into an angry, growling kitty, making life for both of you that much more enjoyable!

Despite their independent ways, your cats are very sociable animals. Of course, they will never let you know that, which is why they quickly hang up the phone when they hear you coming. But the truth of the matter is, they can get lonely and bored if you don't spend enough time trying to get them to play with you.

To minimize the chance of your cat feeling isolated, you may want to consider getting another cat. And to minimize the chance of that cat getting lonely, you may want to get yet another cat...and so forth. Here are some tips you might find useful for multiple cat households.

In general, the following combination of cats seem to work best: two kittens, a mature, neutered cat and kitten, or two mature neutered cats (either two females or a male and a female). The most volatile combination seems to be two uncastrated mature male cats.

Consider your current cat's personality before introducing a new cat. An active cat is more likely to accept a new kitten. A quieter, more reclusive cat might prefer a mature, adult cat as a companion.

If your cats exhibit personality conflicts, you can reduce the tension between family felines by making sure each cat has enough personal space and personal possessions to fulfill its needs.

Make sure you have at least one litter box on every floor and that they are easy to get to in an emergency. To avoid territory conflicts between cats, consider placing litter boxes in various locations throughout the house to avoid the exclusion of one cat from another cat's territory.

Be sure to keep plenty of clean, fresh water available for your cats at all times. Keeping bowls in multiple locations throughout the house might be a good idea.

Keep scratching posts and beds in several locations to accommodate all the cats in your household.