All posts by Dr. Marty Becker

New DNA vaccine may help some dogs with oral melanoma

Pet Connection, Veterinary Medicine

Few things strike quite as much fear in the hearts of pet lovers as a cancer diagnosis in their beloved companion. One reader wrote to ask me about a possible new treatment for oral melanoma, which had just been diagnosed in her dog:

Q: My Golden Retriever had a swelling in his mouth, and it has been diagnosed as melanoma. I understand there is a vaccine for the disease. What can you tell me about this type of cancer and its treatment?

A: Melanoma is a common oral tumor in dogs. We see it more often in males than females, and certain breeds seem to be affected more often, including goldens, chow chows, cocker spaniels, Gordon setters and Scottish terriers.

This type of tumor invades the bone of the jaw and is likely to spread elsewhere in the body, especially to the lungs and lymph nodes. Surgery and radiation therapy can help to manage localized tumors, but once melanoma starts to spread (metastasize), it tends to be resistant to chemotherapy.

A DNA-based vaccine has been developed that may help control oral melanomas in some dogs. It’s approved by the Department of Agriculture for treatment of “locally controlled” stage 2 or 3 oral malignant melanoma in dogs. That means the tumor and any metastasis to the lymph nodes has been reduced to undetectable levels through surgery and radiation treatment before the vaccine is administered. Dogs with locally controlled melanoma who receive the vaccine can have good survival times.

However, according to my colleague Michael Childress, DVM, an internal medicine specialist at Purdue University, a recent study documented no significant improvement in survival for dogs treated with the vaccine, called Oncept, compared to dogs who did not receive the vaccine. He does note, though, that this study had certain limitations. In his observations, the vaccine “seems to afford significant benefit for some dogs, but limited benefit for many others.” It may be, he adds, that certain tumor-related factors affect response to the vaccine, but these are as yet unknown.

Oncept has a good safety record. Common side effects tend to be reactions or hematomas at the injection site.

Read more, including about summer books for pet lovers, in this week’s Pet Connection!

What to do when your cat keeps getting bladder infections

Pet Connection, Veterinary Medicine

As a veterinarian, I see plenty of cats who urinate outside the litterbox or have other signs of urinary tract disorders. Most of these cats have a medical, not behavioral, problem. Here’s what I had to say to one reader:

Q: My cat gets bladder infections all the time, and it’s driving us both crazy. Help!

A: Lower urinary tract infections are common in cats, and they can be difficult to diagnose and treat. Possible causes include inflammation, structural defects of the urinary tract and environmental stress.

A complete workup can help determine the best way to proceed. That includes a urinalysis and culture to check for the presence of bacteria, and X-rays to screen for bladder stones. If your cat is a senior with recurring bladder infections, a complete blood count (CBC) and serum chemistry profile can also be useful diagnostics.

When a cat has recurring cystitis not caused by an obstruction such as a bladder stone and not associated with bacterial infection, medications that may help are those that minimize inflammation and relieve pain, and relax or smooth out the muscle of the urinary tract to relieve frequent or painful urination. Nutraceuticals such as glycosaminoglycans or glucosamine and chondroitin may help as well.

It’s also important for your cat to get plenty of water. He may be intrigued by a fountain that provides running water. Feeding canned food is another excellent way to get extra water into your cat. Your veterinarian may recommend a specific diet to help reduce inflammation.

Make environmental changes to reduce stress. Try adding a tall cat tree or window perch for outdoor viewing, build a “catio” so he can get some outdoor time, provide him with puzzle toys that will challenge his mind, and keep his litter box super clean. Give him his food and playtime on a regular schedule so he has something to look forward to. And make sure he’s not having conflicts with other pets in the home. If this is a problem, antianxiety medications such as clomipramine may help.

Other strategies may be helpful for individual cats. It can’t hurt to try pheromone sprays or diffusers in the home to reduce anxiety, or complementary therapies such as acupuncture provided by a veterinarian with training in that field.

Read all this and more, including tips on turtles as pets, in this week’s Pet Connection!

Help bring rescue and hope to suffering animals nationwide!

News

In just the past ten years, the American Humane Association’s Red Star program has rescued, sheltered and cared for some 80,000 animals.

They have fought to eradicate the gas chamber in animal shelters across the nation. They recently led the successful effort to pass a national law mandating that military working dogs be returned to U.S. soil and given the opportunity to be reuinted with their handlers through adoption when their tours of duty are finished.

And right now, they’re involved in the rescue and rehabilitation of 85 small Beagle mixes, many pregnant, saved from a single home. When animal workers arrived at the home, they found dogs in horrible condition, some dead. The AHA’s Red Star rescue team loaded up its 50-foot truck and headed for the scene, where they are now providing 24-hour-care to the dogs.

thermometer-red-star-goal-ahalogoI am very proud to be a member of their board, and I’m asking you to make it possible for them to rescue more animals by helping them qualify for a matching grant to purchase a second truck.

They’re almost there… they need to raise $160,000 to qualify for the $150,000 grant, and they just need another $22,000! Can you help bring this home, my friends?

Just click here to give — even a small amount will be turned into double the impact thanks to this generous matching grant!

On behalf the animals, I thank you for donating and sharing this message.

Below you’ll see a slideshow of some of the many animals who have found their salvation with the help of the AHA Red Star Rescue Team. Let’s help it grow!

Give now!

Am I playing favorites with my pets?

This and That

I never played favorites with my children, but I’m starting to worry I’m doing that with my dogs.

Our oldest dog is a 15-year-old, blind, deaf, but still very active Golden Retriever named Shakira. Next is the dog Teresa calls her little angel,  12-year-old Quixote. Then there’s our little girl, an 11-year-old Pomeranian mix named Quora. Then there’s my very special girl, a 5-year-old, black, female, horrifically crippled Lab/Pit cross named Gracie.

Our latest addition is what’s kicked the emotional hornet’s nest, a 3-month-old, 5-pound, mixed breed puppy named QT.

QT (whose full name is QTπ, QT Pi or Cutie Pie) is what my social media manager, Christie, calls “deadly adorable.” Tiny, with translucent mule ears, white with a brown patch over his left eye and other Pollack splotches here and there, playful, mischievous, fun, and so, so loving. And oh yeah, he’s got puppy breath.

Because we’re still housetraining and training him, we’re with him almost 24 hours a day and he’s either in our lap, connected with a 6-foot leash, or we’re right with him outside. Teresa and I talk about him all the time as in “QT did this,” “QT did that,” “isn’t he cute!” Yes, a cute QT. But I’m having trouble looking the other dogs in the eye. Why?

Because I’m feel like I’m just pouring myself into this new little beast and not giving the other dogs the attention and love they deserve. Don’t get me wrong, Shakira still gets her tennis ball tossed, all the dogs get petted and given treats, I still talk to them in that syrupy “Yuuzzz a gooood girl Gracie!” voice, and they still sleep in bed. But it’s not like with our children Mikkel and Lex, where I know I could take a lie detector test and say unequivocally that I treat them both the same.

I know I’m giving QT the bulk of my daily output of 4-legged love. Will it go when the puppy breath leaves? Will it even out over the coming weeks? What, if anything, should I do? Readers, what do you think?

And QT’s family goes home!

News

Here’s some great news: Our little shelter puppy, QT’s, mother and littermates have been adopted!

For any who don’t know, I first met this canine family when one of the puppies was brought to see me at North Idaho Animal Hospital from the Panhandle Animal Shelter with respiratory symptoms. Those turned out to be caused by distemper, the disease that claimed his life.

When two more puppies came down with the same symptoms, my wife and I paid to have them cared for at the veterinary teaching hospital at Washington State University, but one of the babies died within hours of arriving. The third, however, fought back and survived — and then became part of our family and named QT.

But his mother, Mercy, and three other littermates were still back at the shelter.  Mercy was lined up to be adopted, and the puppies had to wait until they’d had a second negative distemper test. Mercy’s first adoption fell through, so she joined her puppies in looking for a home.

And now they’ve all found one!

QTlittermate3From our friends at Panhandle:

Mercy was adopted to a lovely woman who is living in an assisted living facility.  Her dog had recently passed away so her husband brought her in to look for a new companion.  She and Mercy hit it off immediately.  This woman is in excellent physical health and loves to take walks with her dog so Mercy will be getting lots of exercise, love and attention.

Mercy needed a home that provided trust and a good lap. She has certainly found her perfect match.

QT’s siblings were adopted into equally loving families, as evidenced by the photos here. (There’s no photo of the third puppy, but he was adopted, too!)

Thank you to everyone who supported these little lives with prayers and good thoughts! If you would like to help Panhandle Animal Shelter, who saved them all, you can consider donating to their distemper fund here.

PS: QT is still the cutest, though.