Lone Mountain Animal Hospital
September 2009 Newsletter

Share Your Halloween Pet Photo
Do you have a picture of your pet in Halloween costume that you want to share? We are looking for fun, cute, or wacky pictures of your pet in their best Halloween garb. Photos will be displayed on our waiting room television and on our website. Drop a photo off at the office or email your digital photos to lmahpics@embarqmail.com (please note this is not an active mailbox for client communications).

A New Dog Disease- Canine Influenza
There have been recent reports of the novel dog disease, Canine Influenza being diagnosed in Las Vegas. At current date there have been only a few cases suspected in Las Vegas and no LMAH patients have been diagnosed with this disease. Fortunately most cases are mild kennel cough like infections, although some dogs may develop pneumonia. The fatality rate for Canine Influenza is less than 8%. To learn more about Canine Influenza see our fact sheet on our website. LMAH will soon be offering the Canine Influenza vaccine- we will keep you posted.

Canned Cat Food Debate
Do you feed your cat dry or canned cat food? Previous nutritional belief was that it was best for cats to eat a dry food. However, this has been questioned by current veterinary nutritional thought. A recent veterinary paper authored by Dr. Deb Zoran, speculates that the use of dry foods and the grains common in dry diets can predispose some cats to diabetes, obesity and even urinary tract blockages. The argument originates that cats are obligate carnivores- meaning that they need meat and cannot fully use carbohydrates. The carbohydrates in cereals aren’t utilized for immediate energy and wind up being stored as fat.

Veterinary nutritionists now recommend feeding grain free, canned cat foods. But leaving full bowls of kibble and feeding canned foods can easily result in overweight cats. If you are rethinking your cat’s diet-remember that nutrition and other factors such as genetics and environment all play a role in development of disease. So changing to canned food does not guarantee your cat won’t get diseases. In fact, millions of cats have eaten dry foods for years and thrived with excellent health

The down sides to feeding canned cat food include higher cost of canned foods, wastage of dried out food, and more mess feeding and cleaning the litter box. And some cats just don’t like eating canned foods. Many veterinarians are concerned that cats will over eat on canned food or develop increased dental issues from eating canned diets.

If you are considering a diet change, speak to your veterinarian about your cat’s individual health needs. There are many good quality dry and canned foods available for your kitty’s health.

Pet of the Month
The votes are in…. and our October Pet of the Month is Pierre, an American Eskimo. He’s adored by our hospital staff and is king of his household. Visit our website to see his photo at www.lmah.net
 

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