Archive for August, 2007

Can cats remember?

August 27, 2007 at 2:35 pm · Filed under Cat Health

We’ve heard the saying about elephants and their memory, but what about our beloved cats? Can they remember? Personally, I’m afraid that my cat was not in line when brains were handed out and received the last one, leftover and not quite functional. She does manage to get to the litter box, but feeding time requires delivering her direct to the bowl or she circles your feet crying and crying like you actually would walk around the house carrying the cat food instead of leaving it in her bowl!

Researchers at University of Alberta actually did a research study to investigate the length of a cat’s memory. They compared memory length after performing a certain task or after simply seeing something in their path. How in the world did they do this you might wonder. I wondered the same thing. Actually, they placed in object in the path of the cat. To test how long the cat could remember the position of the object, they first allowed the cat to step over the object with their front feet but then stopped them before their back feet went over. They distracted the cat with a treat and then allowed it to proceed onward after varying lengths of time. They found that the cat lifted its back feet as if to step over the object (even if the researcher had taken the object away) up to the 10 minute mark. One conclusion that was made is that cats are so confident of their movements within the environment because they have a good memory of where their bodies have been.

So, how did the cats do if they saw the object but were not allowed to step over it? The cats were walked up to an object and then stopped. Their vision was obscured so that they could no longer see the object. The cats never stepped over the object, even if they were only momentarily stopped. So, the memory is directly related to the action of stepping over. Think of yourself stumbling back from the bathroom in the middle of the night, blinded by the light that you have just turned off. You may remember something was in your path, but if you are like me, you really have no idea where it was. Applications for this research include the study of individuals with memory loss and how actions may help improve the recovery of memory. If you want more info, click here to listen to the podcast from University of Alberta’s Express News.

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Recall’s impact on the pet food industry

August 23, 2007 at 7:08 pm · Filed under Pet Food

Procter & Gamble, manufacturers of Iams and Eukanuba pet foods, reported a decline in the pet food sector of their business. It seems that the impact on the pet food industry of the recalls last spring may have just taken some time to be realized.

“Unfortunately, even though these wet and semi-moist products are a small, less than 10% of our product line, we frankly got hit pretty hard,” stated A.G. Lafley, P&G CEO and chairman. Even though P&G’s larger dry food business was unaffected by the recall, many have speculated, due to dropping sales and shares, that P&G may sell their Iams and Eukanuba brands. From Pet Food Industry

Pet Food Institute, an organization representing the pet food industry, reported the results of a survey shortly after the recall that said 70% of the individuals surveyed had not lost confidence in the industry and were continuing to feed their regular pet food diet.

I’m not sure when the survey was taken or who the respondents were, but it seems that the impact on the industry has been  greater than would be felt with only 30% of the respondents admitting that they were making a change.

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Retailers handle customer complaints of pet illness – how should it be done?

August 22, 2007 at 2:12 am · Filed under Pet Food

So, MSNBC reported today (from the AP wire) that back in July, Wal-Mart pulled two different brands of dog jerky treats from the shelves. Testing is ongoing, but the treats were pulled because of an unspecified number of consumer complaints of pet illness associated with the consumption of the treats. The treats not only were pulled from the shelves, but the cash registers were programmed so that the packages could not be purchased (so if a package got put in the wrong aisle and a customer happened across it after wondering why they weren’t on the shelf, thinking how lucky they are to have the very last package, they could not leave the store with it). To me, this sounds like a pretty serious action over a few customer complaints.

I wonder how many complaints there were, or what they were, or why this was not reported to the FDA? Wal-mart chose to handle the investigation and action at the retail level on its own, or at least this is how the news report makes it sound.

If I were a pet food or pet treat manufacturer, this would make me very worried. Typically the manufacturer is responsible for investigating and handling complaints. These treats were imported from China, so maybe this was not a possibility, but what if it was a name brand dog food or dog treat made right here in the US? It seems the pet food recall has put enough pressure on retailers, or at least on this specific retailer, that they have decided to take matters into their own hands.

This points out the need for a centralized reporting system for pet food and pet treat problems or suspected problems. Although this sounds overwhelming, with the large number of treats and foods out there, it would greatly improve the ability of all parties involved to determine if there really is a problem and when the problem occurred (or what lot number it was associated with).

What do you think about this? Should retailers handle consumer complaints on their own, or should they forward them to the manufacturer or to some other source? How should they determine whether the complaints are valid? An example would be a complaint of diarrhea or vomiting – if the real story of the puppy eating a whole bag of treats or having a brand new kind of food without a transition were to come out, we would have a very simple medical explanation for the digestive upset and quickly can determine that absolutely nothing is wrong with the treat or food.

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Question about a failure in housetraining in an adult dog.

August 21, 2007 at 2:04 am · Filed under Dog Health

From Rob in Colorado: Our 2 year old lab has been housebroken for a long time and has recently started peeing on the carpet. It started around the time she injured her leg. She now has had knee surgery and the issue is still occurring. Also, our 4 year old German Short Hair Pointer is now peeing on the same carpet even though she has been house broken for years.

Well Rob, this is a bit of a dilemma. This behavior that started when your Lab was injured likely first occurred when she had a hard time getting to the door or getting outside when she needed to because of the pain in her leg. This one accident was probably just an accident, but now both dogs are marking the area in a bit of a territorial peeing war it sounds like to me.

One thing to consider is that your Lab had or has a urinary tract (bladder) infection. When a dog has an illness or an injury, they are more likely to develop other medical problems as a result of their immune system being down and a change in their patterns (injured leg means getting out less, holding the urine longer, etc). This might be a good first step, having your veterinarian check her urine to make sure it is ok. If she does not have an infection, than you need to intervene to stop this behavior.

You will need to retrain both dogs to choose only the outdoors for their bathroom. Keep both dogs crated or confined when you are gone or when they are not being closely watched. Keep them on a leash if necessary so that they can’t sneak off to their new favorite “peeing” spot. Walk them outside on a leash and when they urinate outside, give them a treat and an abundance of praise. This will remind them both that going to the bathroom outside is a pretty great thing because treats are associated with it.

If both dogs are using the same carpet and it is in a room that can be closed off, simply close the room off so they can’t enter. If the room can’t be closed, you might consider building a barricade so that they can’t get to their new favorite bathroom spot. If it is in one area, turn a Rubbermaid container upside down over the spot so that they can’t get to it. Or build a barrier with furniture or boxes (temporary of course). Once you have completed the “retraining”, then you can allow them access to the room (when supervised) and if they do not try and pee, then you can likely allow them freedom to roam.

If these measures don’t work, you might consider contacting a veterinary behaviorist for a consultation.

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What are pet food companies doing to protect our pets?

August 21, 2007 at 1:33 am · Filed under Pet Food

I would like to think that they are doing a lot! Not only to protect themselves (this makes sense from a business perspective) but also to protect the pets that they are serving.

I know that many consumers have a beef with large pet food manufacturers and I can certainly understand this. Many of these individuals have a beef with a lot of large organizations. And yes, pet food manufacturers are out to make money – most businesses are. However, pet food manufacturers are in a relatively low margin business trying in most cases to make healthy and easy to serve foods for us consumers to purchase and offer to our pets.

Since the massive recalls that occurred in the spring of 2007, pet food companies have had to work hard to protect not only their good names, but also the pets that are eating their foods. IMI Global has launched Pet Supply Verified™ as a tool for pet food manufacturers to help ensure that their ingredients are meeting the standards that have been set. A daunting task, but third party investigation and verification is a must for companies. Most, if not all, pet food manufacturers had a quality control program in place last spring to prevent this type of occurrence. However, the compound that was implicated, melamine, was not something that anyone was looking for because it simply should not have been there. This is a quandary – it is impossible, physically and fiscally, to test pet food ingredients for EVERY potential harmful compound that could sneak its way in (or be added intentionally as was the case with the melamine).

So, what is the solution? Well, more vigorous testing and inspection for one. Third party verification of source of all ingredients. So many ingredients are purchased through brokers, that pet food manufacturers often do not know the origin. This can be remedied by involving an unbiased group to verify these sources. Often, though, ingredient suppliers are reluctant to allow non-personnel onsite. This is something that must be changed immediately. Any ingredient supplier who does not allow the manufacturer or a lawful representative of that manufacturer to enter their facility should simply be crossed off the list or forced to comply.

The FDA is developing a program to help ensure the safety of the pet food supply. I think this is absolutely wonderful, but likely will be a long time coming. AAFCO (Association of American Feed Control Officials) is already charged with the difficult and extremely large task of ensuring that all pet foods on the shelf are correctly labeled (this means that the ingredient label matches what is actually in the package and that the food inside meets the nutritional guarantees on the outside, as well as the fact that there are not any wild marketing claims being made like “Guaranteed to cure your dog’s heart problem!” or something to that effect) so how can they be expected to make sure that all these pet food manufacturers are using safe ingredients?

I think the recalls were certainly an example of how disastrous a contamination of an ingredient (whether for pet food or human food) can be in this country and abroad. Extreme diligence is critical to prevent another massive recall like the one that we just came through. What are your thoughts on preventing this from happening again?

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Genetic Testing for Your Dog?

August 21, 2007 at 1:10 am · Filed under Dog Health

I recently read an interesting series of articles about canine genetics. There is a new test available for dogs to determine their genetic makeup. Its primary purpose is to identify the heritage of mixed breed dogs. Why would we care about the breeds that were mixed together to make our adorable Heinz 57 variety dog? Well, we might want to understand which diseases this mixed breed is most likely to suffer from. There are some diseases, such as certain types of cancer, that individual breeds are more likely to suffer from than other breeds. Knowing what breeds make up an individual dog will help veterinarians and pet owners choose the most appropriate screening exams in order to detect problems early, usually resulting in more successful treatment.

Another purpose behind the test is so that pet owners can identify the different personalities that might be at work in their mixed breed dog. This may not be important to most pet owners, but some pet owners that are interested in why their dog is behaving a certain way might be willing to spend the money to see if there is a gene-based answer.

As scientists work hard to unlock the information contained in the genetic code of all species, they are creating some interesting and potentially useful technologies.

What do you think? Would you have your dog tested to determine his heritage?

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Help! My cat quit using the litter box!

August 17, 2007 at 1:34 pm · Filed under Cat Health

maine-coon-cat1.jpgThis question submitted by Anne from Missouri:

I have a large Maine Coon Cat. He is a bit overweight, but otherwise healthy. He has started going to the bathroom just outside the litter box. He urinates in the box, but the rest is outside. What should I do?

There are many reasons that a cat might stop using the litter box, but this very specific question may have an easy solution.  When cat owners tell me that their cat is a bit overweight, I usually would interpret their weight as significantly overweight. This cat is a Maine Coon, a large cat to begin with. If he is overweight, which hopefully Anne is working on, he may simply not fit in the box anymore. Since he is urinating in the box, he obviously is not avoiding the box itself so the problem may be that his bum is hanging over the edge when he goes.

An easy fix for this problem is to purchase a very large, low sided box. There are many options in the household storage section of your local retail outlet. A box designed to fit under the bed to hold sweaters or something like this should work just fine. This big cat should be able to stand sideways in the box with plenty of room in front and behind him so that he hits the box every time.

When a cat begins avoiding the litter box, there is often a simple explanation, but sometimes a medical problem or a more significant behavioral issue is at work. Veterinary care is very important when litter box habits change, especially if a simple change or two does not eliminate the problem.

Sometimes a cat will urinate outside the box, but will do everything else inside the box. When this happens, it is sometimes because urination is uncomfortable because of a urinary tract problem. This situation requires expert veterinary care as bladder or urinary tract problems can be a bit difficult to deal with.

When a cat avoids the box altogether, maybe the box is not clean enough. Some cats are quite particular about this and some cats won’t even visit the box a second time (this is not very common). Scooping the box once or twice daily and completely changing the box every week is a tactic that should be used if the box is being avoided. It is important to provide adequate numbers of boxes for the cats in the house. If you have 3 cats, you should have 4 boxes and if you have 10 cats, well then you should have 11 boxes!

When you suddenly have a cat that is avoiding the box, it is a good idea to add some extra boxes that have different types of litter in them. Cats certainly have preferences for litter and often do not like a change, but if they quit walking on the litter that they have been enjoying for years, change might be good. DO NOT buy the cheapest litter or the one that you have the coupon for, unless you ALWAYS buy the cheapest or ALWAYS have a coupon for the same kind. Most cats will get stressed by a change in their bathroom and may avoid it altogether.

If a change has occurred in the household, make modifications to help your cat feel more comfortable. Did you just get a dog or a new cat, did your baby just start walking? These factors may be interrupting your cat’s bathroom time. When there are several cats in the house, one cat may be the bully and may be preventing the less aggressive kitty from using the litter box. This problem should be fixed by having multiple boxes in different locations because the bully can’t be everywhere at once!

Making some simple changes (number of boxes, size of boxes) may be good steps towards preventing a problem. Remember, if you have a cat with litter box problems, your veterinarian is the best source of advice.

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Thanks for visiting our blog!

August 17, 2007 at 12:57 pm · Filed under Uncategorized

Check out our pet health and nutrition blogs. Covering topics of interest to pet owners, taken from the news or from questions submitted from the Pet Supply Verified site, you should find something of interest here!

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