This page is dedicated to posting articles & sites on a wide variety of topics that we think worthy of your attention. It will include timely alerts, events, breed and training information as well as recommended reading. The contents will evolve so we suggest you check back often. STRICTLY GSD STUFF
Types of GSDs
HISTORY OF THE BORDER PATROL DOGS
A Tribute to the German Shepherd Dog
Interesting study on tail chasing
HEALTH RELATED
FDA Approves First Canine Cancer Therapy
Plants, Foods, Medications Toxic to Pets + Poison Control phone numbers
CANINE ANATOMY: BONES, JOINTS & DISEASES
What's that Gagging sound my dog makes?
VACCINATION INFO PRO & CON:
CANINE VACCINATION -- DR. JEAN DODDS
Danger of Pet Vaccination - Vaccinosis - adverse reaction to routine vaccinatiions
HEALTH - Adverse Vaccine Reactions by W. Jean Dodds
Canine Vaccination Concerns - England
Vaccine Reaction In A Dog at ThePetCenter
Sedona Red Rock News, Sedona, AZ - Rabies still a danger to domestic pets
What many people may not know is that if your dog or cat is bitten by a rabid animal state regulations require either euthanasia or a 6 month quarantine often costing some owners up to $4000. For dogs or cats that are currently vaccinated, an immediate rabies booster vaccination and 45 day home quarantine are required.
RABIES WARNING--THIS FROM A COUNTY EMPLOYEE:
You raise some very good points about Rabies and Vaccinating your dogs. I would like to elaborate if I can just a little. You have not mentioned any cases of Wildlife attacks on people/pets in our own county of Maricopa.
MCACC field officers run an average of 5-10 Rabies Exposure calls in Maricopa County every month. A majority of these are Wildlife to Pet exposures. And please do not think that if you live in the city, that you are immune from your pet being exposed to a Rabid Wild animal. Bats are the major Rabies carrier in the state of AZ. This last year we removed bats from the City Hall building in Glendale, an apartment in Phoenix, and numerous inner city schools. We had to quarantine 3 cats in a household in North Central Phoenix, when one of the cats, (we don't know which one) brought a bat in through the doggie door and deposited it in the person's hallway.
We have coyotes living in North Central Phoenix in an electric substation at 17th Ave/Orangewood Ave area, we had to quarantine a woman's dog, when the coyotes got into her yard and attacked it. I almost hit a coyote crossing the on ramp of I-17/Union Hills. There are quite a few in that area. Sun City is plagued with coyotes and although it seems like their behavior there is unusual, it is not. The Sun City coyotes have just lost their fear of people. One lady's Pomeranian was snatched away from her while she was walking it on a leash. Another coyote actually went into the woman's house after her poodle via the doggie door. We have had a few skunk exposures just north of Happy Valley Road. A raccoon fell from a tree and the dogs attacked it in a backyard around 7th Ave/Coral Gables area. Your pets can encounter any exposure to wildlife just about anywhere in the county including the city itself.
Best protection is to keep your dogs vaccinations current at all times and keep them licensed. It may mean the difference between a 6 month quarantine (which means no agility shows people) and a 45 day quarantine. If the animal that created the exposure is deceased and we test it and it is positive for Rabies, you will not be allowed to quarantine your animal at home unless its vaccinations are current at the time of exposure. Most of the bats that we test come back positive and the bat does not have to bite your animal for your animal to suffer an exposure.
If you see a bat out in the daytime, do not touch it and isolate your animals immediately. If it is out in the daytime, it is sick. Pick it up with a shovel and put it in some type of container and call Rabies Control. If it is still alive and you do not feel that your animals were around it, leave it alone and call Rabies Control.
VALLEY FEVER
Valley Fever Center for Excellence
VALLEY FEVER ARTICLE-Arizona Daily StarŪ
Incidence of Infection Study results
TICK FEVER/ERLICHIOSIS
INSURANCE ISSUES
Insurance, Liability and Dog Owners
Insurance, Liability and Dog Owners - Part 2
ASPCA Pet Health Insurance Plans
While not all pet insurance plans pay off in the long run, having just accident insurance is often a wise move. One emergency surgery could cost thousands. A friend recommended such insurance through ASPCA...check it out.
BEHAVIOR
Working with a fearful, scared or shy dog
SEPARATION ANXIETY - WHAT IS IT AND HOW TO DEAL WITH IT
Dog Owner's Guide: Pack dynamics
MISCELLANEOUS ARTICLES