Hundar och andra djur- Vad de betyder för oss, kompisar i vår stressiga tid.

To view this email as a web page, go here. Dog Crazy Newsletter Thursday February 23, 2012 Toothpicks Can Be Dangerous - See What Happened to This Happy Dog Hi Celia Sager, I'll tell you - dogs are something. My friend Jack has a very sweet and fun Labrador retriever named Sweet Lips. Believe me, she always lives up to the "retriever" part of her name. If I stop to say hi to Jack, Sweet Lips brings me something - sometime her stuffed monkey also known as her Monk-Monk, and sometimes she brings me her favorite ball. Jack has a fireplace and has been burning some firewood to keep warm during the winter. So...Sweet Lips enjoys helping out by carrying around a log in her mouth. Jack calls it her toothpick. This is all well and good until something happens. And last week - something did happen. Sweet Lips was running around with her "toothpick" and suddenly she started pawing at her mouth and yelping. Ever protective of his sweet dog, Jack immediately gave me a call. Sweet Lips had gotten a piece of stick lodged somewhere in her mouth and throat and she seemed to have trouble breathing. So...Sweet Lips got a trip to the vet. This reminds me of a very common issue with dogs. Oral trauma, or any kind of damage to the mouth, is frequently seen after dogs chew or gnaw on an object which breaks or splinters into their mouth. This can cause cuts, infections, and other damage in your dog's mouth. A lot of owners ask me about what's safe for their dogs to chew on. How about sticks...are they safe? Learn more Dog toys are another tricky issue. How do you know which toys are safe for your dog? Finally, choking is a common result of chewing on foreign objects. It's crucial to learn how to recognize and respond to choking in your dog. Go to: Choking in Dogs What happened to Sweet Lips? Well, when she got to the clinic she was very stressed out. We gently sedated her so we could look in her mouth and what we found was a large stick lodged in the roof of her mouth. She was bleeding from the spots on her gums where it was stuck, the poor thing. We removed the stick and checked for more oral trauma. We flushed some wood segments out and cleaned her up. It had to be very painful but the stick was gone! Yeah! We allowed Sweet Lips to recover from her sedation and she was fine. We sent her home with pain medications and antibiotics. Until next time,

 Dr. Jon

 P.S.: If your dog does play outside, always supervise him or her to make sure they are not nibbling on something inappropriate. I'd hate for them to get hurt.

This way to help animals >>‏ Newsletters | 2/22/2012 Reply ▼ Humane Society of the United States Schedule cleanup To boris_sagers@hotmail.com Prevention is the answer to a better world for animals -- and you have a say. Come to Humane Lobby Day in Trenton» Trouble with links or images? View this message online. February 22, 2012 Get to the Heart of the Matter Dear Celia, In order to fix the problems that animals face, we need to do more than address the symptoms. We need to focus our efforts on the root causes of cruelty, and prevent animals from ending up in distress. To turn around these large-scale problems facing animals, we must turn to public policy reform. I can't emphasize how important it is that your legislators hear from you. Join us for Humane Lobby Day on March 15 in Trenton. Perhaps these numbers will speak to you: Last year we helped pass 91 new state laws to protect animals and defeat 70 harmful bills. These outcomes are not self-executing, and only occur with the active participation of people like you who care about animals. Please -- be a part of the answer. Thanks for all you do for animals. Wayne Pacelle, President & CEO Closing the Loop It’s time to close a major loophole in the federal animal fighting law. Crack down on spectators at animal fights by contacting your legislators today and urging co-sponsorship of H.R. 2492/S. 1947. Tell your legislators» Superstar! Is your pet ready for the spotlight? Help save animals' lives by sharing your pet's photo and story in the World Spay Day Pet Photo Contest! Plus, you could win great prizes. Enter now» Cruelty Free Thousands of products are unnecessarily tested on animals using crude and painful procedures. Take a stand against inhumane animal tests; take our cruelty-free pledge» A True Star The 26th Genesis Awards will honor "Vampire Diaries" star and dedicated animal advocate Ian Somerhalder as the 2011 Wyler Award winner. Get tickets» © 2012 The Humane Society of the United States | All rights reserved | 2100 L Street, NW | Washington, DC 20037 humanesociety@hsus.org | 202-452-1100 | humanesociety.org We are committed to protecting your privacy, so your email address will NEVER be sold, rented, or exchanged. This message was sent to boris_sagers@hotmail.com. Visit your subscription management page to modify your email communication preferences or update your personal profile. To stop ALL email from The Humane Society of the United States, click here (or reply via email with "remove" in the subject line). nonprofit software