This year, the summer has gone on for longer than usual. Mild balmy weather is continuing through October, with no sign of the first frosts. In the veterinary world, this is having one obvious effect: we are seeing more itchy cats and dogs at this time of year than usual. Two of the most common causes of itchiness are linked to ambient temperatures. The first cause is fleas. Despite more products than ever to kill these parasites, they continue to thrive, causing millions of animals to feel itchy. Traditionally, in Ireland, fleas stopped being so active from autumn through to spring. But the warmer climate now allows fleas to breed outside for longer, and this means that dogs and cats can easily pick up fleas when visiting areas frequented by other pets.
Fizz is a young adult toy poodle with an unusual behavioural problem. He is afraid of feathers, an issue known as “pteronophobia”. Fizz needs help, because this is upsetting his daily life and routines.
Harry, a young adult Collie, was in trouble when he arrived at our clinic. He was in a dwalm, as if he was only half-conscious. He was far duller than normal, and he kept on trying to walk in a small circle, continually turning to the left. The whites of his eyes were bloodshot. There was something very seriously wrong with him. There was no possibility of trauma or poisoning. What could it be?
?A few weeks I wrote about how the cropping of dogs’ ears has been completely banned in Ireland. This week, one of the common breeds to have their ears cropped, the XL American Bully hit the headlines. The UK government made the decision to ban the breed completely following a series of attacks by large XL Bully dogs, with the death of a man near Birmingham in the latest incident.
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