Question: Seeking the current treatment options for cat asthma. Are Flovent and Brethine still used? How Does Flonase fit into the tx. plan which is what my vet suggested.

Answer: Inhaled steroids (e.g. flovent) are currently the treatment of choice for feline asthma. Medications such as inhaled albuterol or oral terbutaline are used for acute flare-ups of coughing in asthmatic cats. Flonase is not typically used in asthma. It is a nasal steroid and has use for nasal allergies (rhinitis) and other nasal problems. Perhaps your veterinarian detected a nasal issue in your cat…it often goes hand in hand with asthma. Ask to be sure.

Hope that helps.
Dr. Donna Spector

Question: My dog, who has no history of urinary problems, was recently diagnosed with mineralization of the renal pelvis bilaterally. This diagnosis was made from a CT scan for an unrelated issue and was later followed up by a negative urine culture, so we do not have any more detailed information about what exactly caused the mineralization. Our vet suggests switching to a prescription diet with these ingredients:

RICE, GROUND CORN, CHICKEN FAT, CHICKEN MEAL, CORN GLUTEN MEAL, NATURAL FLAVORS, DRIED EGG POWDER, SODIUM CHLORIDE, CELLULOSE POWDER, POTASSIUM CHLORIDE, DICALCIUM PHOSPHATE, CHOLINE CHLORIDE, CALCIUM CARBONATE, CALCIUM SULFATE, TAURINE*, VITAMINS [DL-ALPHA TOCOPH should also mention that oEROL ACETATE (SOURCE OF VITAMIN E), BIOTIN, D-CALCIUM PANTOTHENATE, NIACIN, PYRIDOXINE HYDROCHLORIDE (VITAMIN B6), VITAMIN A ACETATE, VITAMIN D3 SUPPLEMENT, THIAMINEE MONONITRATE (VITAMIN B1), VITAMIN B12 SUPPLEMENT, RIBOFLAVIN (VITAMIN B2), FOLIC ACID], TRACE MINERALS [ZINC OXIDE, FERROUS SULFATE, COPPER SULFATE, MANGANOUS OXIDE, SODIUM SELENITE, CALCIUM IODATE], PRESERVED WITH NATURAL MIXED TOCOPHEROLS, ROSEMARY EXTRACT, AND CITRIC ACID.

I know that this prescription diet is designed to increase water intake in the dog, increasing the volume and frequency of urination, but it appears low quality to me. Instead, I am considering switching from Spot’s Stew dry to canned food, to increase the water content of the food, along with getting him to drink water more frequently, which we can usually do by encouraging him and offering fresh water. What do you suggest? Thank you!

Answer: Increasing water intake is undoubtedly one of the most important treatments to promote kidney health and to prevent canine urinary stones! Drinking more water produces dilute urine. Dilute urine contains less concentrated minerals so they are less likely to form calcification and then stones.

You can increase your dog’s water intake by feeding canned food. Some dogs will drink more voluntarily if a pet-designed continuous water fountain is used. Also try large bowls placed around the house in all of your dog’s favorite places. The addition of light salt (potassium chloride) to your pet’s food can also effectively increase the amount of water they take in.

Hope that helps.
Dr. Donna Spector

Halo, Purely for Pets was founded two decades ago on the principle that excellent nutrition is the single most important factor in the quality of a pet’s life. This week, the National Canine Cancer Foundation recognized Halo’s commitment to your pet’s health in every can or bag of Halo Spot’s Stew, awarding us with the first-ever National Canine Cancer Foundation Seal of Excellence.

“I have been a big fan of Halo Pets for years,” says Gary D. Nice, president of NCCF. Some of the criteria that NCCF used to choose Halo include our high-quality, natural products and fresh food products developed by experts in pet nutrition.

We at Halo are honored to receive this award. “So many of us have lost four-legged loved ones to this terrible disease,” says David Yaskulka, Halo’s Vice President of Marketing Communications, who lost a cat to cancer. “While we all strive for a cure, health professionals are telling us to eat natural foods, avoid harsh chemicals, and lead active, healthy lives to have the best chance of avoiding cancer. Halo customers try to do exactly that for our pets.”

According to the National Cancer Institute, proper nutrition plays a tremendous role in the prevention of many diseases, including cancer: “Leading causes of death, which include heart disease, high blood pressure, many cancers, diabetes and stroke, are largely preventable through lifestyle choices such as eating more fruits and vegetables. Eating 5 to 9 servings of fruits and vegetables a day is one of the easiest things everyone can do to lower their chances for all of the diet-related diseases.”

In Halo Spot’s Stew, we make sure to include a variety of fruits and vegetables including carrots, celery, yellow squash, zucchini, green beans, green peas, sweet potatoes, apples, blueberries and cranberries.

Question: I am a recent customer of Halo dry cat food. I have been attempting to transition my two cats over since early December, I first started them on the Sensitive Stomach formula and they did not take to that at all, I changed them to the Salmon and they were both constipated. I contacted Halo and was told that was a rich brand so I chose to change them to the Chicken formula which they have been on for a few days and appear to be drawn to the taste but I am still unsettled with their liter box habits. Their stools are very soft and the male doesn’t appear to be urinating as much as before. I love everything I have read about this food but am wondering if it is right for them. I hear differing opinions about how long to transition over and at this point we are at the 3 week mark, should we hang in there a bit longer to see if their tummies will settle down so they can be comfortable eating their meals again.

Answer: Sounds like you started the chicken near the end of December. I would recommend the chicken formula only for 3 weeks as some cats require a much longer transition period. Also make sure you are not feeding low quality treats or other things that may have synthetic additives, flavors and colorings. Treats filled with these ingredients can cause digestive disturbance and allergic-type reactions. You can try the Halo Liv-a-Littles or some of our other natural treats that cats love. If after three weeks, your cats are still having tummy troubles, ask your veterinarian about a high quality natural probiotic to get them on their way to feeling better.

Hope that helps.
Dr. Donna Spector

Do you REALLY know what you’re feeding your beloved dog or cat? Probably not, according to a study conducted by Harris Interactive.

The majority of pet owners don’t even read the label and have no idea what they are giving their pets, according to the study, brought to our attention by Generation Natural Pet, a social media community launched by PETCO (Halo is a founding Council Member).

Frighteningly, most pet foods — unlike Halo, which uses only real meat, fish and eggs — have chicken meal. Sounds tasty, right?

Well, dear reader, chicken meal is legally unfit for human consumption and may contain waste products from restaurants, supermarkets, meat processing facilities and packinghouses. It is not the lean muscle that WE eat, but the stuff humans are forbidden by law to consume: the remaining bones, organs, beaks and other products that are rendered (obtained by melting down the animal’s remains) in a processing plant when made into meal.

“Chicken meal sounds like something wholesome that could be served in any household,” says Halo’s veterinarian, Dr. Donna Spector. “But don’t be fooled. Meat meals — such as chicken meal — are unfit for human consumption. In my mind, that means unfit for our beloved pets.”

Yet ignorance is bliss: despite confessing no knowledge of the ingredients on a bag or can of food, the majority of the 1,305 pet owners surveyed say they treat their animals as a member of the family, and wouldn’t want to feed their pets food containing allergens and prefer to feed their pets only natural pet food.

Halo never uses chicken meal or other rendered meats. Halo uses real chicken that can be sold to humans and meets FDA human safety standards. And while we don’t advocate opening up a can of Spot’s Stewto share with your pooch, many of us have.