Q: I have an indoor cat who is 14 1/2 and a dog (Australian Shepherd) who is 11 1/2. Since Smokey, the cat, never goes outside, what immunizations does he need, or not need? Does the fact that Mackinaw, the dog, goes outside quite a bit and plays with the cat make a difference?

Also, Mackinaw has taken to “exploring” when he is let outside and occasionally does not return for up to an hour. A year ago, on New Year’s Eve night, he was out all night. He did the same thing last night. I am concerned about this behavior and have not been able to get him to “tell” me if he is running to something or away from us. What advice can you offer?

A: Thanks for the question. If your cat Smokey was well vaccinated as a kitten and boostered as an adult, he should need minimal vaccinations at this point. As a strictly indoor cat, he is not at significant risk of exposure to respiratory viruses or other infectious diseases. He should get a booster vaccine if you are planning on introducing a new cat into your house, or boarding or grooming him regularly. Rabies vaccination is required by state law and should be boostered as recommended by your local veterinarian.

As far as Mackinaw is concerned, his “exploration” could get him into trouble. There are numerous dangers for dogs running off-leash — some minor (like getting too much food from the neighbor!) and some serious (like automobile trauma or poisoning). It is difficult to say why he is behaving this way; he may just be enjoying his time outdoors or it may be related to aging. As dogs age they can develop disorientation and wander away from their homes. For his safety, you should keep him confined to your home grounds.

Q: I have a 10-year-old cat with diabetes. He receives two injections per day. Your web site gives me hope that I may be able to reverse this problem; however, none of your foods list carbohydrate percentages to know if this product will be better than what he is already eating (Hills Prescription Diet W/D dry food). Also, if I switch to your food, should I be decreasing his insulin injections until I know how he will respond? Any info you could give me would be greatly appreciated.

A: The most important thing to do for your diabetic cat is to switch to an all canned diet — the amount of carbohydrates is always significantly lower in canned versus dry food. There have been many studies that prove diabetes in cats can resolve with a high protein, low carbohydrate food.

Ask your veterinarian if they approve of our canned chicken, as that would be the best choice for your diabetic cat. It provides 45% protein, 15% fat, 10% carbs with 15% fiber. It has 64 calories per 3.5 ounce can. Your veterinarian can help you determine how much to feed. You should keep the insulin amount the same and recheck with the vet one week after starting the new food to see how his blood sugar is. It is important to cut out ALL dry food, including any dry treats.

Comparison:
W/D dry: 39% protein, 9.8% fat, 37.4% carbs, 7.6% fiber
W/D canned: 39.6% protein, 16.6% fat, 26.4% carbs, 10.6% fiber
Halo chicken canned: 45% protein, 15% fat, 10% carbs, 15% fiber

Good Luck and keep us posted!

As a pet lover, hearing about the numerous product recalls and pet illness and death associated with tainted food is devastating. It is a fact that the challenges to food safety are growing and since our pets don’t question the quality of the food they are eating—we must!

Even great pet food companies can find themselves in recall situations, however, pet owners should research a food thoroughly before making a decision to feed it to their pet. Important questions to ask the company and their manufacturer include:

• Have any of their products been recalled?

• Do they use USA-sourced products or do they import?

• Can you call or email someone readily with questions? I encourage you to call and ask any questions you have!

It is critical to read and understand labels and thoroughly evaluate ingredients

• Avoid synthetic preservatives like BHA, BHT, ethoxyquin

• Look for real and simple ingredients. Make sure the first 5 ingredients include whole meats, grains and vegetables. Avoid “meals” or “by-products” in the top ingredients, as these are sub-standard sources of protein and indicates the use of beaks, feet, bones and other unsavory animal parts. Yuck!

Regularly check for recalled pet foods and treats. The FDA and The Humane Society of the United States maintain a current list of recalled products.

We’ve put a whole new twist on the soup wars. We created two un-identified ingredients lists.

Label #1: 
The ingredients of Halo Spot’s Stew. 

Label #2: 
The ingredients of a leading national brand of (human) chicken soup.

Then we took our twisted ingredient challenge to the streets of LA. We showed random soup lovers both lists of ingredients and asked them to pick which they’d want to feed to their family.

Which do you think they chose?

See the Ingredients Challenge video to find out!

Q: Hi, I have a 7-year-old French Briard named Murphy. Three months ago he started having loose stools with a lot of mucous. I called my vet, and he recommended Immondium and Metamucil. It worked when I gave it, but as soon as Murphy ate, the mucous came back. Murphy has to have his food moistened because Briards are prone to bloat — the breeder told us to never give him dry food. Now the vet has him on a dry weight loss food, and I am so worried it will only add to the problem. I was feeding him a variety of vegetables, brown rice, sweet potatoes, lamb and chicken, and the vet said it might not be digestable for Murphy.

I am at my wits end and need to know the natural food I had him on is not going to hurt him. He is just the sweetest dog. He does need to lose weight, but the mucous must be a healing crisis of some kind and it would be great to know how to help him through it. I don’t know if Murphy having surgery twice last year — once to have a toe amputated and then to have a torn ACL and meniscus repaired — may have caused this due to the drugs he was on for inflammation and pain. I use homeopathy for my family and when I know what is going on with the animals I treat them as well, but this has me stumped.

A: Sorry to hear about Murphy’s digestive upset. In a dog that was previously normal, we can often trace the culprit back to something they have been exposed to or are currently eating.

Antibiotics and anti-inflammatories can act as triggers for digestive problems, so if he is still taking any medication, ask your veterinarian what the expected side effects are.

Also, critically evaluate what you have been feeding in the last several months — any new doggie treats or snacks? Many commercially available treats (even gourmet treats) are filled with artificial colorings and flavorings, carbohydrates and sugars and can be the cause of digestive upset. You said you were feeding vegetables…some can cause diarrhea and gas (especially broccoli, cauliflower, cabbage, many root veggies, etc)….so make sure you haven’t started something in the last few months that may be a problem.

Some dogs also require more fiber in their diet to maintain digestive health as they age. There are many natural forms of fiber, from pumpkin to psyllium. Ask your veterinarian what might be the best choice for Murphy.

You can also try a little slippery elm in addition to a high quality natural dog food to get Murphy back on the right track!