Blog Posts by Webvet

National Pet DayBy WebVet.com

Even though it's assumed you cherish your partner every day, we have Valentine's Day dedicated to that special love. Similarly, we know you shower your pet with affection on a daily basis, but we still have National Pet Day to honor the joy our pets bring to our lives. And that day is April 11th! Happy National Pet Day!

This special holiday was founded not only to celebrate the amazing companions in our lives -- but to raise awareness of those less fortunate who have not yet found their forever homes. If you're looking to add a furry, feathered or scaled friend to your family, WebVet encourages you to visit a shelter or rescue, where you'll save one life -- and elevate those of everyone around your new pet.

Need a reason to adopt instead of buy? Here are five:

1. You'll save a life: The Humane Society estimates 3 and 4 million dogs and cats are euthanized each year in the United States. The number of euthanized animals could be reduced dramatically if more people

By WebVet.com

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Dogs and cats shed hair year round, although they typically shed more as the hair coat thickens or thins during the fall and spring. The level of shedding is more of a response to the length of daylight than to the temperature. Shedding can also be affected by nutrition, hormones, and stress. Poodles shed very little and certain terriers shed less than other breeds, so these dogs need periodic coat trimming and more grooming than short-haired breeds such as pugs or beagles.

Shedding is much more noticeable in dogs and cats with long, thick hair than in those with short hair. Unless pets with long, thick coats are groomed regularly, their hair can form mats. Mats frequently develop around the ears and on the long hair on the legs, but they can form anywhere on the body. Matted hair can lead to skin conditions such as hot spots. Mats are best removed with electric trimmers; using scissors can accidentally cut the skin.

Normal shedding is gradual and produces no

By WebVet.com
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April 10th is a day dedicated to something you probably do multiple times within every 24-hour span: hug your dog. According to a new survey of U.S. dog owners, 68% of respondents actually hug their pups more often than the people in their lives.

How much do we love grabbing onto our furry friends? 30 percent of those surveyed said they hug their dogs more than their relatives -- and 26 percent said that the hug their dogs more than their best friends.

WebVet: Do You Want An Affectionate Dog? Read This

It' easy to celebrate Hug Your Dog Day. All you have to do to (officially) participate is join Beneful's Virtual Hug Fest on Benefel's Facebook page. Sharing a photo, tweeting and using Instagram are all ways to hug and will score you a Beneful Baked Delights coupon, while supplies last.

Which Breeds Are Most Affectionate?

Most dogs will appreciate your hugs -- but who is most likely to reciprocate your affection? Check out these cuddly breeds:

Cocker spaniels

By WebVet.com
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With Spring comes long days, warm weather, flowers and the wonderful Easter holiday. But along with Spring also comes some of the most dangerous poisons known for our pets, and you must be on guard against them. Both Easter lilies and Antifreeze can be deadly to pets.

Lilies

Easter lilies in particular -- and all other lily flowers, as well -- are deadly poison to cats if any part of the plant is ingested. Families with house cats simply should not risk the lethal danger posed to their pets by having lilies anywhere near their cats. I reiterate that all portions of the plant are poisonous to a cat's kidneys when eaten and, even with prompt veterinary care, treatment is not always successful. Lillies -- as beautiful as they are -- are life-threatening to cats and so the two should be kept far apart.

Antifreeze

Spring is also the time of year when many people go outside and do seasonal work, including working on cars. Therefore it's important to be

By WebVet.com

2320080514122536sadenglishbulldog Most pet owners know that chocolate is off limits to their dog or cat, but do you know why? And that some types of chocolate are worse for them to ingest than others? When it comes to a potentially dangerous product that will inevitably be the house -- especially around holidays -- it's imperative know all you can, which is why WebVet is here to help!

Why is chocolate dangerous?

Chocolate contains caffeine and a compound called theobromine, which stimulates the nervous system and can be toxic to animals. If enough is ingested, your pet can suffer from vomiting, diarrhea, abnormal heart rhythms, tremors, seizures, and worst-case scenario, death.

Which chocolate is the worst?

While all forms of chocolate can be toxic to cats and dogs, white chocolate has the least amount of stimulants. The unsweetened or baking chocolate is the most dangerous as it contains the highest percentage of Theobromide per ounce; 400 MG per once as compared to 45 MG per ounce to milk

By WebVet.com

2120080605125359dogtip The dog ate my tickets! It wasn't just an excuse for Russ Berkman, who won a coveted prize in an online lottery for four tickets to the Masters -- only for his Swiss Mountain dog, Sierra, to mistake the paper for a tasty snack.

"When I walked in the house, I noticed there was a few strings on my hard wood floors that appeared to be the strings on my Masters tickets," Berman recounted. His girlfriend suggested he get the dog to vomit -- which produced approximately 80 pieces representing 70 percent of the actual ticket paper.

(To induce the vomiting, Berkman fed Sierra Hydrogen peroxide -- which is safe for animals to ingest for this purpose.)

After attempting to connect the vomit-soaked pieces, Berkman finally contacted the ticket office and explained his situation. "First, they said, 'Are you serious?!,'" Berkman recalled. The stunned but symapthetic staffers eventually re-issued his prize.

Probably wishes he made that call before the puke-digging, huh?

What about

By WebVet.com

2320080730115956catwithballofyarnEvery so often, a sensational animal story featuring a "Janus cat" will go viral. Most recently it was the tale of "Frank and Louie" who entered the 2012 Guinness Book of World Records as the longest-surviving Janus cat. So who exactly is a Janus cat and what makes them so special?

In simple terms, a Janus cat is a cat with two faces. In these cases, the cat suffers from Diprosopus, "an extremely rare congenital disorder whereby part or all of the face is duplicated on the head." It's not a conjoined twins situation caused by the incomplete separation of two embryos, rather it means the cat has too much of a protein called sonic hedgehog homolog (SHH), which makes facial features wider and in severe cases, leads to the duplication of facial structures.

Frank and Louie:

Photo credit

Why Are They Called Janus Cats?

The origin of the name comes from the Roman god, Janus. In ancient Roman religion and mythology, Janus is the god of beginnings and transitions, whose two

By WebVet.com
1820090907123258Doggettingvaccinated Is neutering getting a high-tech makeover? New York-based company Ark Sciences has developed an alternative method to the necessary snip in the form of a simple injection.

"Zinc Neutering" terminates a pup's ability to reproduce by injecting a shot into their scrotum that contains a mixture of Zinc Gluconate, L-Arginine (an amino acid) and purified water. The company claims that the compound works by killing off sperm and permanently blocking the tubes in the testicles.

Around 300 animals have received the treatment thus far, and while there have been no reports of long-term ill-health, minor side effects include vomiting and loss of appetite. The company said, "We followed 40 dogs for over two years and have data on many of these dogs for over five years. Since 1999, when the initial clinical studies were performed, there have not been any reports of long-term side effects."

The compound is currently pending approval by the U.S. government, but Ark expects it to hit