musingsbyromela

If you want to make your pet live longer remember not to give acetaminophen ever!!! Acetaminophen toxicity is not an uncommon clinical condition that is encountered and is mainly caused due to ignorance and lack of awareness by pet owners. Although this drug is not toxic to owners up to a certain level, dogs and especially cats do not resist. Symptoms of toxicity may occur within 24 hours of drug administration. You may identify an affected cat or dog by the following signs: Lethargy Swollen face (facial edema) Bluish tongue and gums Drooling Difficulty in breathing The reason for toxicity in dogs and cats is that they lack the glutathione conjugating enzyme which converts the toxic acetaminophen to non toxic glutathione sulfate. Animals affected by acetaminophen toxicity need emergency and critical care by a veterinarian.

If you give your fish a balanced diet that includes both processed natural food, you do not need to give them additional vitamins. Here are the vitamin sources that are easily accessible A: crustaceans, egg yolk, green food B1, B2, B6, B12: cow's liver, beef, eggs, yeast, algae, green food, fish meat C: green food, algae, cow's liver, fish eggs D: earthworms, meal worms, algae, sea weeds, snails, shrimps E: egg yolk, algae, green food H: egg yolk, liver, yeast K: cow's liver, green food, water fleas

It is important to understand the way of providing adequate food supply for your fish and when to feed them. A hungry aquarium fish may tend to focus its attention to the smaller inmates of the tank if it is unable to find any food. A correct diet should include the right type, form and amount  of food. Types of food for fish: 1. Manufactured food 2. Live food obtained from nature or cultured 3. Household scraps 1. Manufactured food several forms: pellet, flake, tablet/granular made from: cereals, meat, fish, vegetables, vitamins and minerals can be fed to all types of fish usually unless breed-specific variations are included in the package  i) Pellets: floating pellets for surface-feeding fish and sinking pellets for bottom dwellers   ii) Tablet food: can be stuck to a surface to provide feeding stations at different water levels iii) Flakes: for carnivores, vegetarians and omnivores. Flakes float at first and then sinks slowly allowing the mid-water ...

If your fish has red sores, itchy skin definitely there's something fishy! Argulus infestation is also known as Branchiuran infestation. History includes itchy skin, red sores in wild-caught or pond-raised fish. Physical examination by a veterianrian wil, show focal red lesions on skin; focal colour change especially darkened skin   Argulus is common on gold fish and koi and is also common in wild freshwater fish. Argulus feeds itself by inserting the stylet into the hist and sucks body fluids with the proboscis like mouth. At this time the fish may show erratic swimming or other abnormalities in  behaviour due to the stylet. The hooks, spines and repeated piercing on the skin of fish by Argulus may cause skin irritation and mechanical damage to the skin of fish Diagnosis could be done by morphological examination of the louse. Prevention is by avoiding egg contamination by using a disinfectant or bleaching powder to clean the tank. Thereafter leave the tan...

Want to improve your dog's looks? here we have some routine grooming jobs for you! FIVE TIPS TO MAKE YOUR DOG LOOK NICE 1. Eyes: check for any discharges, watering or reddening and for corneal opacity. Clean the eye discharges found around the eyes with a clean piece of cotton dipped in lukewarm water. 2. Ears: lift the ear flaps and check for the presence of ear wax, unpleasant odor, purulent discharges and whether there are any  ticks or fleas. Clean the external ear with a specially formulated canine ear cleaner. Apply recommended parasiticides if there are ticks or fleas. 3. Nails: if your dog gets a sufficient amount of walking the nails will automatically ware off. If not, the nails should be trimmed at least every three months under the supervision of a veterinarian. 4. Teeth: use a canine toothpaste and a toothbrush for this purpose. Brushing is important especially in toy breeds that tend to lose teeth at an early age. 5. Coat: need to be hand-stripped or b...

Becoming the owner of a dog is a serious undertaking that needs long-term dedication. The average canine life-span is 12 years, during which time the dog must be fed, bathed, exercised, groomed and given veterinary attention when necessary. The owner should also consider how the dog is to be treated when the owner is away from home for more than a matter of hours. Here are some tips to consider when adopting or buying a dog. Whole - hearted willingness: First and foremost, it is important to be willing to rare a dog whole heartedly with the consent of the rest of the family members; likewise the choice of the breed   Do not merely depend on face value: Check out the other abilities of the dog so as to meet your requirements of raring a dog. If you want a large breed dog or one that needs exercise make sure that you have the required space for exercise as well as that you have the physical strength to control the dog. Puppy health check: Be certain that the puppy of your...

With many years of experience in keeping a pooch as your pet I do see a plenty of benefits! Of course you gotta dump the litter properly and brush the dog daily but what you get from it is far more than that! 1. Companion A dog is man's best friend. From the pre-historic   era dogs were the companions of   human beings. 2. Guardian Dogs sense when there's something fishy. They could protect you by barking when a robber arrives at your door-step 3. Stress-reliever Definitely a dog is a shoulder to cry on. They are secret keepers and could tolerate our mood-swings. They improve your mental health, reduces blood pressure and lower your heart rate 4. Could be trained They are one of the wisest animals in the universe and therefore could be trained to abide by the orders given. From bringing the newspaper to you from the gate to finding narcotics, dogs are trained in numerous ways at present  5. Keeps you fit     ...

Food intolerance Food intolerance is a non-immunologic, abnormal physiologic response to a food or food additive (Ettinger 6 th ed). Food intolerance is similar to food allergy except that it can occur with the first exposure to a food or food additive, because non immunologic additives are involved. Another cause of food intolerance is pharmacologic reactions to substances found in food. Vasoactive or biogenic amines such as histamine cause clinical signs when present in excessive amounts in food. The exact mechanism of food intolerance has not been depicted in dogs. Intolerance to solid food commonly occur secondary to rapid food changes. Loss of gastric mucosal enzyme activity contributes to vomiting and associated enteritis. Inadequate gastric enzymes are another factor contributing to vomiting subsequent to rapid food changes. More time is required for gastric enzyme activity to get adapted to changes in food carbohydrate and protein sources. Sudden ...

If you're new to raring a pooch or if you're keen on knowing how to treat your dog well, you've got there! First of all you need to be a dog lover to keep your dog in good condition. THE SHOTS! As soon as you either adopt or buy a dog, do give the shots of anti-rabies, parvo and DHL vaccines to the dog if it hasn't been already given. Vaccination schedule for dogs in Sri Lanka that is effective at present: Generally the first vaccine for a newly born pup is given at the age of 06 weeks.  If the dam of the pup is known to be immunized, the first parvo vaccine is given at six weeks of age followed by the ani-rabies (ARV) and the DHL separately after two weeks each. Boosters of the the three vaccines will be given again every two weeks time If the dam of the pup is not known to be immunized, the firstARV vaccine is given at six weeks of age followed by the parvo and the DHL separately after two weeks each. Boosters of the the three vaccines will be...

Background Bone fractures are one of the most common clinical conditions encountered in animals in Sri Lanka. There are two ways of fracture healing namely, primary healing and secondary healing. Primary bone healing involves intra-membraneous ossification while secondary bone healing involves endochondral ossification. Fracture healing involves a complex and sequential set of events to restore the bone , in which stem cells play a crucial role. (Aiyer, no date) . Bone defects present a therapeutic challenge to both the surgeon as well as to the patient. When not treated properly, patients can have long-lasting symptoms such as non-unions, pseudoarthrosis and large bone defects. Such patients are left untreated due to the absence of further facilities to enhance bone growth and fracture healing. Tissue engineering with stem cell auto grafts have proven to be the gold standard for fracture healing and therefore is used by surgeons to treat bone defects and large-bone fractures. B...