We’re launching a new biweekly “Ask The Vet” section on our blog and we want your input!
Do you have a question that you’ve always wanted to ask your vet, but by the time your pet’s next appointment comes around you’ve forgotten what it is? Well here’s your chance to ask it. What would you like to know from our Animal Rescue League of Boston shelter and BVC vets? Please share your questions in the comments section below and you just might see one of our wonderful vets answer your question. The first blog post answering your questions will be published in early November, so keep checking our website!
My cat has allergic reactions that result in sores on her body from licking so much. I take her to the vet at least once a year to get some medicine, but it keeps coming back.
I swear my cat is allergic to dogs, but the vet says this is impossible. They keep insisting it must be dust or seasonal or something…
1. We lived in a less-than-spotless undergraduate apartment for 2 years and she was fine except for minor food allergies which didn’t result in sores (rules out dust/mold/anything related to cleaning). She was out on our 2nd story porch right in the trees at all times of year and we left our windows open constantly during the warmer months (rules out seasonal).
2. She didn’t start having these sores until we moved in with dogs. We thought maybe the new apartment was somehow dustier than the first because it was in a historical building and had old carpets.
3. We have since moved and the apartment is clean with no old carpet, but we got a dog about 6 months after moving and she started getting them again!
Is it possible she’s allergic to her canine friends? It just seems the only logical explanation, but my vets seem too stubborn to even consider this possibility just because they have never personally heard of it. Am I crazy?
HI!
I have a 2 year old female cat that I got when she was 8 months old from a shelter. I do not know her weaning history.
She does a couple of odd things:
1.) She grinds her teeth when she is happy. If something is close by as she is doing it, she will grind and chew on that item. Hard corners are her favorite way to chew.
2.) She love my boyfriend and when he pets her she starts licking the couch. There is now one spot on the couch that she has licked to death. She kneads while she does it. She used to lay on me and suck the bottom of my shirt while I petted her. She is very happy while she is doing it.
I have a feeling that she wasn’t weaned properly as a kitten. Should I be worried? I am mostly worried about the teeth grinding as I think it is wearing down her teeth. I’ve taken her to the vet and mention it each time I go. For now they say to not do anything but I worry she’s damaging her teeth.
My 11 year old cat is a cuddle bug that’s for sure, but once she starts licking, she doesn’t stop. She will literally sit there and lick anyone’s hand, arm, any exposed skin really for as long as someone will let her. She won’t stop until someone pulls away.I haven’t had the heart (or the skin left) to test how long she can actually go. Sometimes she will reach out with a paw, wrap it around a hand or arm and drag it back to her to continue licking. She does this with everyone, not just me.
I’ve been told it’s affection or the fact that she likes the salt on people’s skin. I wonder if she had kittens and misses the mothering aspects of them. I got her from a shelter at 8 years old, and they found her as a stray, so I can’t verify anything of her life before that. It doesn’t seem to affect her health, but it’s just puzzling to me. Any ideas?
My 4-year old male cat (8.5 lbs) with a formally small appetite is suddenly, over the past few months, seemingly starving about an hour after eating and bugs me for the rest of the night. He also wakes me up in the morning now wanting food (which he never did, that was left to my other (fat) cat). I took him to the vet and they did a fecal and found nothing wrong, or no physical symptoms like weight loss, etc…is it worth getting blood work? They didn’t’ think so, unless his weight changes.
They suggested it could be just behavioral, that I may have given him treats a few times and he caught on…but I did that over the past few years and it didn’t change his appetite. He seems so desperate!
Thanks!
How invasive is a dental cleaning for an elderly dog? Is there much discomfort afterwards, and is there a need for antibiotics following the procedure? What exactly does the procedure entail as far as teeth and gum line?
I’d like to get more info on what can be done to socialize kittens. I recently ‘adopted’ an orphaned kitten (mother was killed by a car), who is about 4-5 weeks old. Since her mom won’t be there to teach her how to grow up and be a proper cat, what can I do to help in that regard? I’ve heard cats taken from their mothers too early often have behavioral problems.
We also have a dog, and she hisses at him, but so far, they stay out of each other’s way. I’m not sure of the best way to bring them together.
Thanks!