The full article: Anxiety in Pets

In order to understand anxiety we first have to understand what fear is and the role it may play in anxiety. Fear is an instinctual feeling of apprehension resulting from a situation, person, or object that appears to present an external threat, whether real or perceived. The result is an autonomic nervous system response. This is your pet's normal “fight or flight” response.

Whereas, Anxiety is the anticipation of future dangers that result in body reactions (also known as physiologic reactions) associated with fear. You can see these reactions in a frightened or anxious animal, they include: elimination (urination and/or passage of bowel movements), destruction (eating your shoes for instance), over-grooming in cats, and excessive barking or crying. These are only the visible signs, many of our pets, especially cats will hide their anxiety from us.

The most common form of anxiety in our pets is separation anxiety. Separation anxiety can result in any of the physiological reactions listed above. Also, if your pet has separation anxiety they are more likely to have noise phobias, such as a fear of thunderstorm or the dreaded vacuum cleaner. Separation anxiety can be treated with acupuncture, herbs, medications and/or calming pheromones. In addition adjusting their environment and behavioral modification are useful.

In Traditional Chinese Veterinary Medicine (TCVM), anxiety and phobias are considered disturbances of the Shen or emotions. The intellect is housed in the brain, but the emotions (the Shen) are controlled by the Heart. Thus the heart is not just the organ that pumps blood throughout the body, but the whole Chinese Heart System, which incorporates the heart, blood vessels and the entire nutritive system for maintaining the health of the body and is also responsible for helping to maintain a healthy emotional balance. If the Heart System is deficient, or if problems with other bodily systems negatively affect the Heart, then a Shen disturbance can result. The most common Shen disturbances we face in veterinary medicine in dogs are separation anxiety, noise phobias and aggression. In cats, we most commonly see litterbox issues.

Because the Shen is housed in the Heart, we can treat acupuncture points along the Heart meridian to directly influence the functioning of the Heart System to improve Shen disturbances. When the Shen disturbance is due to Heart deficiency, we can treat points to nourish and strengthen the Heart, which bolsters the Shen. In addition to acupuncture, we also use TCVM herbal preparations for long-term Heart and Shen support. These herbs can be used in conjunction with conventional Western drugs if needed.

Whole Pet Technician Tips for helping dogs through Fireworks!

1. As the owner it is best if you do not get excessively emotional or coddling to a pet that is anxious, it may make them feel insecure with you as their protector. Instead act calm and confident as though nothing at all is awry.
2. Keep your pet in a dark room that is furthest away and most protected from firework noise. Or, allow them to go into a closet or under a table where they feel safe.
3. Play music moderately loud. Play something that the pet has heard played in the house before, a favorite CD.
4. Apply a pheremone collar (Adaptil) or install room pheremone diffusers several days before and after July 4^th.
5. Place a “ThunderShirt” to help calm your pet (available for both cats and dogs). A snug piece of clothing may have the same effect.
6. Put Bach flower essence “Rescue Remedy” for pets in their water and around the house.Or try "Harmonese" herbal supplement beginning one week before fireworks.

Case study on Anxiety Disorders in Dogs

Hello all. Anxiety disorders in dogs are the source of discomfort and stress for the dog and for us as pet owners. There is no "cure all" for behavior problems, but at Whole Pet I see a good amount of success combining medication with alternative therapy or with just alternative therapies. Here is a case I would like to share with you about one of my patients.

This is "Wally" He is 11 1/2 years old. He was treated at Whole Pet for anxiety and is doing GREAT.

Wally is loved by a family that has been burdened with some stress and illness. So, naturally he is feeling some of the family's stress. As a result, Wally started to present with abnormal behavior. He would have vacant staring around the house, get lost and run into things. He also became very lethargic. He had some energy in the morning but then would crash and sleep after noon. He would get very nervous if owner was away from him. Regularly he suffered from constipation, even though he drank excessively.

At presentation, treatment included Clomipramine medication for anxiety and Lactulose medication for constipation. The goal of the owner was to wean him off the Clomipramine drug, and the Lactulose for constipation. In addition she wanted him to have energy and be happy again.

A Traditional Chinese Veterinary Medicine (TCVM) approach was desired for Wally since the medications did not work that well..and they wanted him to have his life back. Based on TCVM Wally was diagnosed with Liver Qi Stagnation (this develops from emotional or physical stress) + Qi deficiency (represented by lack of energy) + yin deficiency (stress leads to heat and the yin is all used up cooling the heat).

I prescribed acupuncture every 2-3 weeks for 4-6 treatments as well as Chinese herbs. After one acupuncture treatment Wally had more energy and was playing with the other dog in the house. After 2 treatments he was less anxious and not staring into space. Wally received 6 acupuncture treatments from early February to early May, at which time the owner was completely satisfied that Wally had more energy and was so much happier.

Two Chinese herbal formulas were used. First, Wei Qi Booster to help booster Qi or energy. This formula is great for older dogs as it boosts the immune system also and helps fight diseases like cancer and dementia. A second formula called Er Yin Jian was added to nourish the “yin” or cooling and grounding aspect of the body. This formula is good for behavior disorders caused by yin deficiency. I also believed this formula would help resolve his constipation. After we had Wally on the formulas several weeks we began to wean him off the Clomipramine and then off the Lactulose. He is now off both, with no constipation and he is very happy. Herbals may be continued for 3-6 months depending on how Wally feels.

Wally illustrates how TCVM can be used for anxiety disorders. TCVM may be used as a first line treatment or if medication does not work as expected, or side effects of medication prevent using them.

Tech Tips - Reducing allergens in your home and on your pet!

5 tips for reducing the allergen content in your home and on your pet

1. Wipe your dog or cat down with a clean damp towel when they return from outside. Focus on the face, nose and ears, all 4 legs and paws and the underbelly.
2. Wash their bedding once a week. Wash in water at least 140°F with one rinse.
3. Dust house to remove pollen, then vacuum regularly to keep dust mite and pollen levels down  Keep your pet out of the vacuumed room for 15 minutes while the dust settles.
4. Give a fish source of omega-3-fatty acid daily.
5. Use AAAAI to monitor pollen counts in Oregon and prepare in advance:

http://www.aaaai.org/global/nab-pollen-counts.aspx

"Cinder" - Why a “multi-pronged” treatment approach to allergies is needed

Cinder, a female flat-coated retriever, became a patient at our clinic in January 2011 after she was adopted from the humane society. She was about 8 ½ years old and had been with 2 previous owners before now. Needless to say there was some change and resulting stress in her life. She had some itchy skin and watery eyes that winter.

As we moved into late spring 2011 Cinder's itchiness continued and she was treated with oral antihistamines and acupuncture. Acupuncture would give her immediate relief but that would wane after about 5 days. She was on regular flea preventative and had no sign of fleas.  At this time Cinder was diagnosed as likely allergy to pollens or “atopy”. The pollens may be from trees, grasses or shrubs. They gain entry into the body through inhalation, but also if the pet licks the pollen from the feet. Some plants can cause skin inflammation from direct contact; this is often seen on the underbelly.

As the weather got warmer her itching intensified and she was treated with oral steroids, which were only moderately helpful.  Because steroid use can be associated with side effects, we switched to Chinese herbal formulas for allergies and used them along with antihistamines and added a fish oil source of omega-3-fatty acids. Fish oil has been shown to reduce inflammation from skin allergies as well as benefit overall health in both humans and animals. Cinder also continued to respond to acupuncture treatments with several days of immediate itchiness relief.

In addition, topical medications that contain steroids were used intermittently; these are not absorbed into the blood stream to any significant degree and can give some extra help controlling itchiness.

Treatment for mild itching continued on into the fall and through the spring. At this point food allergy had to be considered as pollen allergies are normally seasonal. A specially formulated hypoallergenic diet was begun in November 2011.

After she had been on the special diet for about 4 month Cinder's need for additional medication was greatly reduced. We have been able to manage the itchy skin with herbals, antihistamines, topical medicated spray, bathing, and fish oil.

Cinder's case illustrates beautifully the need to “slay the dragon with a thousand tiny cuts”. The fish oil and the medications work together, called synergistic, to provide an enhanced effect against allergies. This combined with acupuncture and herbs allowed the most comfort for Cinder.  Cinder is like many dogs in that often a pet has more than one type of allergy. In her case she is probably allergic to everything (fleas, pollen and food) but we are able to easily eliminate fleas with modern preventatives and lessen the effect food may have with the special diet. Cinder's owner is also instructed to mechanically remove pollens with wipe downs once she has been outside.

As of this writing Cinder's allergies are almost completely under control, or resolved.

Here are the thousand tiny cuts, many only used as needed.

-Fish oil

-Antihistamine, we tried 3 different types to find the best one.

-Chinese herbs, 2 different formulas used

-Acupuncture

-Medicated topical spray

-Hypoallergenic diet

-Monthly, year round flea control

-Medicated baths when needed

-Mechanical removal of allergens (pollen) from the fur.

-Avoidance of allergens

Allergy season begins in Willamette Valley Oregon

Yes, allergy season is upon us, and it doesn't just affect us but our four legged friends as well. There are three main categories of allergies in pets, flea allergies,  pollen allergies and food allergies.

A flea allergy is the most common allergy amongst cats and dogs. It is actually the flea's saliva that a flea allergic dog or cat is allergic to. As a result, in sensitive dogs a single flea bite can cause an allergic reaction.  Symptoms of a flea allergy include hairloss on the backs of thighs, tailbase and rump; chewing or scratching on the back half of body; and flea dirt (the flea's waste product). The best way to prevent an allergic reaction is monthly, year round flea prevention.

Pollen allergies are called Atopic allergies, or atopy for short, and describes an allergic reaction caused by inhaled allergens such as dust, mold, pollen, or even dust mites. This is the second most common allergy in pets and can be seasonal or non-seasonal.  Atopy can present in many different ways, the most common are: itching, licking paws, skin irritation or redness, recurrent ear infections that are difficult to cure and skin chewing.  Although you cannot cure allergies, there are many treatments available such as: antihistamines; fish oil supplementation; topical shampoos, oils and cream rinses; topical antihistamines and anti-inflammatories; acupuncture; oral herbal therapy and diet therapy. In addition allergy testing and immuno-therapy can be helpful. In severe cases immune suppressing drugs must be used.

Food allergies are not as common, but do occur. Food allergies are caused by an allergic reaction to a protein and or carbohydrate in the food your animal eats. The most common food allergens (the particle that cause the reaction is called an “allergen”) in dogs are beef, dairy and wheat. Whereas the most common food allergies in cats are beef, dairy and fish. Only a food trial with a single protein and carbohydrate source lasting 6-8 weeks can rule out a food allergy. Keep in mind,  food allergies are not seasonal.

So, what is the take home message? There are three main types of allergies: flea allergies, atopy and food allergies. Flea allergies and atopy are the most common with food allergies being the least common.  Animals can have more than one or even all three types of allergies.  If you suspect that your pet has allergies you can bring them in for a consultation.

Laser and local honey save Max's foot!

Max is Whole Pet Veterinary Care's "Featured Pet" for May and June. Just a few months ago Max had a severe reaction and abscess on his front foot. It became necrotic and he was unable to walk. After surgical debriding of wound,

Top of paw after surgical debridement

Bottom of paw after debriding

Bottom of paw 8 days later

we applied low level laser to the wound bed.The laser dramatically shortened healing time, is anti-bacterial and relieves pain.  In addition the wound was bandaged with a dressing of local honey. Honey is antibacterial and nourishes the healing tissue. All of us at Whole Pet were in awe of how quickly the foot healed.

Top of paw 8 days later

During the whole process Max patiently and bravely let us perform all treatments. He was sad and painful for a while but now he is back to his happy, cuddly self. We love him so much. He is a pleasure to have at our clinic.