All About Our Pets(Pics, Advice, Etc)

[orca2011]

Ugh. I don't know what it is, but my guinea pigs have been pretty potent smelling lately and I just cleaned the cage yesterday evening.

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[hazelmoo]

Ugh. I don't know what it is, but my guinea pigs have been pretty potent smelling lately and I just cleaned the cage yesterday evening.

Are they males? Any feces or other debris stuck in their anal sacs?

 

[orca2011]

Are they males? Any feces or other debris stuck in their anal sacs?

My one is an intact male. He was just in for his annual, so I would have hoped they would have checked his anal sac for impaction. He doesn't let me clean it out very well but I'll check it out tonight just in case. I use fleece bedding so the amount of debris he can get up there is a bit more limited than if I had chips or CareFresh.

 

[hazelmoo]

My one is an intact male. He was just in for his annual, so I would have hoped they would have checked his anal sac for impaction. He doesn't let me clean it out very well but I'll check it out tonight just in case. I use fleece bedding so the amount of debris he can get up there is a bit more limited than if I had chips or CareFresh.

I never even knew impaction could happen until we had a male guinea come in to the clinic for his stench... There was so much stuff stuck in there it looked like a giant tumor on his butt. Hopefully it's nothing
There are these things that I used to get when we had rats and mice long ago... They were like little hanging pouches that you could put on the outside of the cage that would "soak" up bad smells. I don't know if they still make them, but it worked really well!

 

[orca2011]

I never even knew impaction could happen until we had a male guinea come in to the clinic for his stench... There was so much stuff stuck in there it looked like a giant tumor on his butt. Hopefully it's nothing
There are these things that I used to get when we had rats and mice long ago... They were like little hanging pouches that you could put on the outside of the cage that would "soak" up bad smells. I don't know if they still make them, but it worked really well!

I'm really hoping it's nothing either since he was literally just in. But if there isn't anything, I don't understand why it's happening now. I've been doing the cage the same way and he's lived with the same spayed female for the past two years. He's obviously always been smellier since he's a boy, but when they live in my bedroom, it's not exactly pleasant to study/sleep with.

 

[cowgirla]

Random thought of the day:
I want to be a puppy in my next life

 

[that redhead]

Euthanized my beta yesterday

 

[WildZoo]

Euthanized my beta yesterday

I'm sorry trh

 

[cowgirla]

Euthanized my beta yesterday

Dislike.

 

[dyachei]

Sorry TRH.

 

[Skimble]

Euthanized my beta yesterday

I'm sorry. I always get really attached to my bettas too. I hope this doesn't come off as insensitive, but how did you do it? I haven't found a fish euthanasia yet that I feel comfortable with.

 

[that redhead]

I'm sorry. I always get really attached to my bettas too. I hope this doesn't come off as insensitive, but how did you do it? I haven't found a fish euthanasia yet that I feel comfortable with.

I anesthetized with clove oil, decapitated quickly with a very sharp knife then froze for 24hrs. Working in lab animal we always used MS222 for fish and amphibians- which I do not have, nor does my SAGP job - which is effective and approved, but always seemed to cause a lot of distress in the fish and frogs we were euth'ing. The clove oil could probably cause similar signs but it wasn't bad at all in this particular instance. VIN also had some suggestions for euthanasia solution (Fatal Plus, etc) intra-cardiac but without anesthetizing him first that wasn't going to work (not to mention he's tiny compared to the trout and such that this would be easier on) and I'd have to take home juice for that or bring him to work and I didn't want him suffering any longer. There were also reports of putting sevo or iso in the water, which I would like to try at some point.

In my opinion, I don't think there is a great method for fish right now, just many adequate options. Just so long as you aren't putting them in the freezer live (although I'm sure plenty of hobbyists and pet stores do that), boiling them alive or feeding them to something alive, I think any options are as humane as the next.

 

[pinkpuppy9]

I'm sorry. I always get really attached to my bettas too. I hope this doesn't come off as insensitive, but how did you do it? I haven't found a fish euthanasia yet that I feel comfortable with.

I was really 'happy' with how my euthanasia went with MS-222. I've seen it used a lot with minimal distress and my fish was out instantly (although he was pretty far gone anyways), but I've read a study where they found that some fish actually would spontaneously recover after the event. Another thing about MS-222 is that you should buffer it with baking soda, or you are guaranteed to see distress. This is a good read: http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2786934/ It could be that since I've only seen sick fish euthanized, the MS-222 worked faster and they were under less stress than research fish.

I anesthetized with clove oil, decapitated quickly with a very sharp knife then froze for 24hrs. Working in lab animal we always used MS222 for fish and amphibians- which I do not have, nor does my SAGP job - which is effective and approved, but always seemed to cause a lot of distress in the fish and frogs we were euth'ing. The clove oil could probably cause similar signs but it wasn't bad at all in this particular instance. VIN also had some suggestions for euthanasia solution (Fatal Plus, etc) intra-cardiac but without anesthetizing him first that wasn't going to work (not to mention he's tiny compared to the trout and such that this would be easier on) and I'd have to take home juice for that or bring him to work and I didn't want him suffering any longer. There were also reports of putting sevo or iso in the water, which I would like to try at some point.

In my opinion, I don't think there is a great method for fish right now, just many adequate options. Just so long as you aren't putting them in the freezer live (although I'm sure plenty of hobbyists and pet stores do that), boiling them alive or feeding them to something alive, I think any options are as humane as the next.

I'm kind of interested in researching this after dealing with how to euthanize my betta. There's obviously some demand for humane ways to euthanize fish in a clinical or home setting. I've heard the same about adding iso to the water, but would that be uncomfortable? I once helped with a frog anesthesia that mixed iso with lube and we applied it to the skin. No way to prove it, but the frog sure as hell seemed to be in a world of pain....

A pet store suggested I freeze my fish, because that is what most stores do (it's free, after all). Supposedly, the freezing temperature instantly knocks them unconscious. I didn't do it because I just wasn't comfortable with that. It's such an iffy area....people are still trying to decide whether or not fish even feel pain. For me, freezing/boiling alive is a little upsetting...if my fish can feel pain, even a split second of him feeling that would be awful.

Anyways, I'm sorry for your loss Bettas are beautiful creatures with unique personalities, and make great little friends.

 

[KCgophervet]

A pet store suggested I freeze my fish, because that is what most stores do (it's free, after all). Supposedly, the freezing temperature instantly knocks them unconscious. I didn't do it because I just wasn't comfortable with that. It's such an iffy area....people are still trying to decide whether or not fish even feel pain. For me, freezing/boiling alive is a little upsetting...if my fish can feel pain, even a split second of him feeling that would be awful.

Unless you're dropping them in liquid nitrogen, that is complete BS. It's not like you put water in ice cube trays, put them in the freezer, and they're instantly frozen! It cools over a period of time, and if you think about how long it takes to make ice cubes I'd imagine quite awhile.

 

[Trilt]

Unless you're dropping them in liquid nitrogen, that is complete BS. It's not like you put water in ice cube trays, put them in the freezer, and they're instantly frozen! It cools over a period of time, and if you think about how long it takes to make ice cubes I'd imagine quite awhile.

It's also expressly called "unacceptable" as a sole method of euthanasia for finfish via AVMA euthanasia guidelines. https://www.avma.org/KB/Policies/Documents/euthanasia.pdf (page 71)

 

[pinkpuppy9]

Unless you're dropping them in liquid nitrogen, that is complete BS. It's not like you put water in ice cube trays, put them in the freezer, and they're instantly frozen! It cools over a period of time, and if you think about how long it takes to make ice cubes I'd imagine quite awhile.

The water you're 'supposed' to use in this situation should be slushy, or at least have a a sheet of ice over it. I'm told the process is knocking them unconscious with that frozen water, and then leaving them in the freezer for however long. You're not supposed to put the fish in tap water and just stick them in the freezer, although I'm sure some people do it that way.

It is definitely a bit barbaric, but so are some acceptable methods IMO, especially since not all hobbyists have a way of making the fish unconscious prior.

 

[Skimble]

A few years ago my co-workers put a very sick fish in a trash can and let it die. I was so upset when I found out. It was a fairly large fish and there was access to fatal+, I'm sure someone could have figured out a way to make that work. I didn't know about iso in the water, that would have been another good option though.

I think I may have told this story before, but my advisor for my MS wanted to do an experiment many years ago using gouramis. He wanted to test cortisol levels after strenuous swimming in a flow tank. His plan was to immediately drop them into liquid nitrogen to euthanize and then blend them up. The school vet said that wasn't an approved method to euthanize fish, instead he would need to remove the fish from the water, place them on a hard surface and bludgeon them to death. That would have altered the results of his experiment so he just never did it. He also couldn't understand how bludgeoning them was more humane than liquid nitrogen, which given how thin guoramis are, would have killed them pretty instantly.

 

[pinkpuppy9]

A few years ago my co-workers put a very sick fish in a trash can and let it die. I was so upset when I found out. It was a fairly large fish and there was access to fatal+, I'm sure someone could have figured out a way to make that work. I didn't know about iso in the water, that would have been another good option though.

I think I may have told this story before, but my advisor for my MS wanted to do an experiment many years ago using gouramis. He wanted to test cortisol levels after strenuous swimming in a flow tank. His plan was to immediately drop them into liquid nitrogen to euthanize and then blend them up. The school vet said that wasn't an approved method to euthanize fish, instead he would need to remove the fish from the water, place them on a hard surface and bludgeon them to death. That would have altered the results of his experiment so he just never did it. He also couldn't understand how bludgeoning them was more humane than liquid nitrogen, which given how thin guoramis are, would have killed them pretty instantly.

I don't understand it either, although the AVMA says blunt force is only acceptable if the fish is under anesthesia.

My own experience with liquid nitrogen at the dermatologist has been extremely painful. I've experienced it throughout my life and just thinking about it now makes me nauseous (and I like to think I have a pretty high pain tolerance). I would assume that submersing a fish in it would cause a brief few seconds of excruciating pain, but I also don't know how rapidly the fish would lose consciousness in a tank of it either. It's not like my fingers were submersed in it, but even just a few seconds of having it pressed to my skin is pretty awful. I actually have to go back and have it done on my finger tip and I'm dreading it.

 

[that redhead]

I was really 'happy' with how my euthanasia went with MS-222. I've seen it used a lot with minimal distress and my fish was out instantly (although he was pretty far gone anyways), but I've read a study where they found that some fish actually would spontaneously recover after the event. Another thing about MS-222 is that you should buffer it with baking soda, or you are guaranteed to see distress. This is a good read: http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2786934/ It could be that since I've only seen sick fish euthanized, the MS-222 worked faster and they were under less stress than research fish.

I'm glad it went well for your guy. All of those euthanized I've been involved with were flipping around violently pretty much instantly and it took a few minutes for them to even start losing balance/etc, let alone be unconscious. If I had MS-222 I probably would have used that (and decapitated and then frozen, just to be sure) instead of clove oil. Back in my lab animal days, people certainly euthanized mice and chickens by cervical dislocation without anesthesia and it is very, very quick; decapitation with a properly sharp blade and a skilled user seems like it would be sufficiently humane for at least the smaller fish.

 

[pinkpuppy9]

I'm glad it went well for your guy. All of those euthanized I've been involved with were flipping around violently pretty much instantly and it took a few minutes for them to even start losing balance/etc, let alone be unconscious. If I had MS-222 I probably would have used that (and decapitated and then frozen, just to be sure) instead of clove oil. Back in my lab animal days, people certainly euthanized mice and chickens by cervical dislocation without anesthesia and it is very, very quick; decapitation with a properly sharp blade and a skilled user seems like it would be sufficiently humane for at least the smaller fish.

Yeah I'm wondering if it was just because he was so sick at that point (as were all the other fish I've seen euthanized this way), that it didn't take much to at least knock him out. I did leave him in the solution for an hour to be sure, then I placed him in the freezer. I wouldn't have been able to decapitate him, personally.

I would probably hesitate too much for any blunt force method to be humane. I had to do it on a dead chicken (practice lab) and I was hesitating even then!

 

[hazelmoo]

Woah! I am late to this convo. I am really interested in the different methods of fish euthanasia. I know for turtles, the most humane way is head pithing (IMO) just because their metabolism is so slow that it takes hours for the euthasol to actually stop their heart. But still, I have never been able to do it because myself because it seems so barbaric!

 

[that redhead]

I can see that blunt force seems inhumane, and if done incorrectly I'd agree 100%. I guess I think of blunt force more as someone bludgeoning their dog to death with a tire iron or something whereas a quick snick of the spinal cord or a captive bolt to the brain (both followed by a secondary method like pithing or freezing or whatnot) has worked extremely well and very fast in all cases I've observed personally. I'm a little less sensitive to that kind of thing at this point I suppose.

 

[Caiter92]

Dear cat, I know you hate being pilled. I hate doing it because how much you hate it. But unless you want to eat your pills in some sort of treat or let me hide them in your food, that is what I have to do. Just be glad it is three a day now instead of six. Lets hope you keep your **** together or it will have to go back up. Grumble.

 

[pinkpuppy9]

Dear cat, I know you hate being pilled. I hate doing it because how much you hate it. But unless you want to eat your pills in some sort of treat or let me hide them in your food, that is what I have to do. Just be glad it is three a day now instead of six. Lets hope you keep your **** together or it will have to go back up. Grumble.

We must have the same cat. My boy is perfect for both pills and liquid. My girl runs like the dickens and fights me so hard. She's never mean about it, but it's hard to get her. She's on pred and cephalexin now (last day for the antibiotic!). It's kinda cute...after she gets her liquid cephalexin and shakes her paws and head because it tastes so gross

 

[pinkpuppy9]

I can see that blunt force seems inhumane, and if done incorrectly I'd agree 100%. I guess I think of blunt force more as someone bludgeoning their dog to death with a tire iron or something whereas a quick snick of the spinal cord or a captive bolt to the brain (both followed by a secondary method like pithing or freezing or whatnot) has worked extremely well and very fast in all cases I've observed personally. I'm a little less sensitive to that kind of thing at this point I suppose.

I think I'd be more comfortable with doing captive bolt myself, at least on something bigger than a fish, but I've never actually seen it. I am just not confident enough to be able to snap a spine quickly enough to know it'd be pain free. I think I'd make too many errors on my part for it to be humane.

Woah! I am late to this convo. I am really interested in the different methods of fish euthanasia. I know for turtles, the most humane way is head pithing (IMO) just because their metabolism is so slow that it takes hours for the euthasol to actually stop their heart. But still, I have never been able to do it because myself because it seems so barbaric!

I've actually done this in turtles a lot (injectable euthanasia). It certainly does take quite a long time, but the turtle/tortoise is unconscious for the majority if you are able to inject into a good vein. We would keep them for a period of 24 hours after injection and use a doppler to ensure there was no beat that we could find. Sometimes people do other injections if they cannot find a vein, too. Euthanasia solutions are quite caustic, so I would think that injecting anywhere but the veins intentionally (coelom, lungs, etc) would cause discomfort. Some vets inject everywhere for good measure just because it can take so long and be so unpredictable if you can't find a vein.

You'd be surprised what kind of head injuries reptiles can survive. I once had a fully alive turtle that had a completely crushed head. Like pancake crushed. The thing was still trying to get away from me. It still took over 24 hours to be euthanized. I've also had a tiny little snake that was torn almost in half and was attached by a thread of skin, but still had a heartbeat. Reptiles are amazing creatures that can survive some pretty impressive trauma. I'm sure a full decapitation would likely result in death, but if done incorrectly...plus, sometimes it's not possible to pull the head out without causing a ton of stress and pain.

 

[hazelmoo]

I think I'd be more comfortable with doing captive bolt myself, at least on something bigger than a fish, but I've never actually seen it. I am just not confident enough to be able to snap a spine quickly enough to know it'd be pain free. I think I'd make too many errors on my part for it to be humane.

I've actually done this in turtles a lot (injectable euthanasia). It certainly does take quite a long time, but the turtle/tortoise is unconscious for the majority if you are able to inject into a good vein. We would keep them for a period of 24 hours after injection and use a doppler to ensure there was no beat that we could find. Sometimes people do other injections if they cannot find a vein, too. Euthanasia solutions are quite caustic, so I would think that injecting anywhere but the veins intentionally (coelom, lungs, etc) would cause discomfort. Some vets inject everywhere for good measure just because it can take so long and be so unpredictable if you can't find a vein.

You'd be surprised what kind of head injuries reptiles can survive. I once had a fully alive turtle that had a completely crushed head. Like pancake crushed. The thing was still trying to get away from me. It still took over 24 hours to be euthanized. I've also had a tiny little snake that was torn almost in half and was attached by a thread of skin, but still had a heartbeat. Reptiles are amazing creatures that can survive some pretty impressive trauma. I'm sure a full decapitation would likely result in death, but if done incorrectly...plus, sometimes it's not possible to pull the head out without causing a ton of stress and pain.

Wow! Reptiles are my thing. I think they are completely amazing. But omg, it is crazy what they can survive. It scares me to think that they are possible in pain for the time they are being euthanized, so they quick pin to the head seems the only way I'll ever be able to do it.. One time we had a huge HBC snapping turtle. It's shell was completely destroyed, with most of his organs falling out of his body. Never been so happy to see so something be put out of his misery as fast as possible!

 

[Caiter92]

We must have the same cat. My boy is perfect for both pills and liquid. My girl runs like the dickens and fights me so hard. She's never mean about it, but it's hard to get her. She's on pred and cephalexin now (last day for the antibiotic!). It's kinda cute...after she gets her liquid cephalexin and shakes her paws and head because it tastes so gross

Sounds like it! Haha, the little head shake after liquid meds is so cute.

Her sister still thinks her morning pill pocket is the greatest thing ever and gets so excited when I'm prepping her meds after a year. Even when she was on three meds a day for two weeks this summer she was still so excited.

This girl? Ate one pill pocket and decided it was crap. Tried pill wrap, wouldn't even touch. Tried the hickory flavored dog pill pockets (clinic cat goes batsh*t for them, so I was hoping she'd approve), sniffed and licked, but then walked away. She fights pilling so hard though. Actually managed to get her to take her pred a bit ago by hiding a pill pocket in like a teaspoon of her food and then crushing a dehydrated salmon treat over the top... hopefully she'll take her evening meds the same way tonight.

 

[hazelmoo]

Sounds like it! Haha, the little head shake after liquid meds is so cute.

Her sister still thinks her morning pill pocket is the greatest thing ever and gets so excited when I'm prepping her meds after a year. Even when she was on three meds a day for two weeks this summer she was still so excited.

This girl? Ate one pill pocket and decided it was crap. Tried pill wrap, wouldn't even touch. Tried the hickory flavored dog pill pockets (clinic cat goes batsh*t for them, so I was hoping she'd approve), sniffed and licked, but then walked away. She fights pilling so hard though. Actually managed to get her to take her pred a bit ago by hiding a pill pocket in like a teaspoon of her food and then crushing a dehydrated salmon treat over the top... hopefully she'll take her evening meds the same way tonight.

When my Apollo was still alive, I would give him a tablespoon or so of wet food in the AM and PM and hide his pill in a little ball of the food. He never suspected a thing!

 

[Caiter92]

When my Apollo was still alive, I would give him a tablespoon or so of wet food in the AM and PM and hide his pill in a little ball of the food. He never suspected a thing!

I wish she'd do that! She eats all wet, so she's not excited enough about wet alone to not notice meds. Pretty sure the only reason she let me do the above was because it was covered in the salmon treat.

Also previously tried rolling a pill pocket in crushed salmon treat.... ate the first one. Next one just licked off the salmon. Next time wouldn't even touch. She's such a brat! haha

If she doesn't let me pill her again soon (she bit her metronidazole Wednesday night... that's when pilling went from horrible but doable to nearly impossible) and starts refusing the food and treat combo, I'm just going to bite the bullet and get all her meds compounded and switch to injectable anzemet from oral cerenia. Will be ridiculously expensive compared to now, but less of a hassle for both of us.

 

[DVMDream]

Sounds like it! Haha, the little head shake after liquid meds is so cute.

Her sister still thinks her morning pill pocket is the greatest thing ever and gets so excited when I'm prepping her meds after a year. Even when she was on three meds a day for two weeks this summer she was still so excited.

This girl? Ate one pill pocket and decided it was crap. Tried pill wrap, wouldn't even touch. Tried the hickory flavored dog pill pockets (clinic cat goes batsh*t for them, so I was hoping she'd approve), sniffed and licked, but then walked away. She fights pilling so hard though. Actually managed to get her to take her pred a bit ago by hiding a pill pocket in like a teaspoon of her food and then crushing a dehydrated salmon treat over the top... hopefully she'll take her evening meds the same way tonight.

My cat is too smart for the pill hidden in food. I hate having to shove the pill down her throat but it seems to be the only thing that works. I tried hiding in a favorite treat, she found it and will no longer eat those treats. Canned food, nope she noticed it and walked away and refused canned food for months. What I have finally done is use one of her favorite things as a treat after pilling her. So I use no food, no treats, nothing. When I need to give her meds, I hold her, shove the pill in then immediately allow her her most favorite thing... fresh flowing water from the sink. Works great and then she is drinking to wash the pill down as well. I can't give her liquid meds, it doesn't work. Pill + water from faucet = magic.

 

[pinkpuppy9]

My cat is too smart for the pill hidden in food. I hate having to shove the pill down her throat but it seems to be the only thing that works. I tried hiding in a favorite treat, she found it and will no longer eat those treats. Canned food, nope she noticed it and walked away and refused canned food for months. What I have finally done is use one of her favorite things as a treat after pilling her. So I use no food, no treats, nothing. When I need to give her meds, I hold her, shove the pill in then immediately allow her her most favorite thing... fresh flowing water from the sink. Works great and then she is drinking to wash the pill down as well. I can't give her liquid meds, it doesn't work. Pill + water from faucet = magic.

You've said your cat is fairly cranky anyways, right? At least my cat doesn't try to murder me when it comes to pilling. I just have to lure her out of her hiding spots with treats and grab her before she realizes what's going on. My other cat doesn't run away from me unless he knows for sure that I'm about to wipe his butt (that's his least favorite thing on the planet). Tonight is their last dose of cephalexin. I'm looking forward to brushing the orange crusties out of Panda's snow white fur, lol.

I will mention that they were on the antibiotic/steroid combo for the feline acne thing, and it really has cleared up quite well. It's still somewhat there and one of them woke up with what feels like a really deep zit, but other than that, I'm happy with the improvement.

 

[DVMDream]

You've said your cat is fairly cranky anyways, right? At least my cat doesn't try to murder me when it comes to pilling. I just have to lure her out of her hiding spots with treats and grab her before she realizes what's going on. My other cat doesn't run away from me unless he knows for sure that I'm about to wipe his butt (that's his least favorite thing on the planet). Tonight is their last dose of cephalexin. I'm looking forward to brushing the orange crusties out of Panda's snow white fur, lol.

I will mention that they were on the antibiotic/steroid combo for the feline acne thing, and it really has cleared up quite well. It's still somewhat there and one of them woke up with what feels like a really deep zit, but other than that, I'm happy with the improvement.

Yeah, my cat is fairly cranky, but she lets me pill her fairly easily, which is nice. And usually I can get the pills back far enough that I don't think she tastes the majority of them, so that helps as well. However, I'll never give benadryl to her ever again. That stuff must be incredibly bitter because it didn't matter what I did with that she was always frothing and vomiting after giving her that.

 

[cowgirla]

I wish she'd do that! She eats all wet, so she's not excited enough about wet alone to not notice meds. Pretty sure the only reason she let me do the above was because it was covered in the salmon treat.

Also previously tried rolling a pill pocket in crushed salmon treat.... ate the first one. Next one just licked off the salmon. Next time wouldn't even touch. She's such a brat! haha

If she doesn't let me pill her again soon (she bit her metronidazole Wednesday night... that's when pilling went from horrible but doable to nearly impossible) and starts refusing the food and treat combo, I'm just going to bite the bullet and get all her meds compounded and switch to injectable anzemet from oral cerenia. Will be ridiculously expensive compared to now, but less of a hassle for both of us.

Have you tasted the metronidazole? It's disgusting. I hate RXing it to cats because I don't blame them at all for fighting it. Even the compounded stuff is bitter

 

[Lupin21]

Have you tasted the metronidazole? It's disgusting. I hate RXing it to cats because I don't blame them at all for fighting it. Even the compounded stuff is bitter

Makes my cat foam something fierce, even when I syringe water. I hate it with a passion.

 

[Trilt]

One of my ferrets had to have metrons and it was a pretty impressive fight, complete with flailing/peeing/an occasional poop. He runs to the front of the cage and takes his pred happily from a syringe now, so it was totally just the metro tasting horrendous. I tried a little bit of his and agree...

 

[Caiter92]

Have you tasted the metronidazole? It's disgusting. I hate RXing it to cats because I don't blame them at all for fighting it. Even the compounded stuff is bitter

Makes my cat foam something fierce, even when I syringe water. I hate it with a passion.

Yep, I know. I don't blame her one bit, just wish she was as in to pill pockets as her sister. I always gave it first, because first pill always goes down easiest with her, and that worked fine until I didn't pill her right and she ended up biting it. Her vet is doing that with pred to limit the amount of pred she needs, but the plan is to switch to all pred if needed. Which it's looking like it might be. I know compounded metronidazole tastes like crap too, but shooting a liquid in her mouth is a little easier than pilling.

Google tells me transdermal metronidazole may be an option (I knew they had it, just wasn't sure if it would be an option when it's use is GI not nail fungus like when my mom used it), so I'll talk with her vet to see if that may work for her.

 

[dyachei]

Transdermal is hit or miss in terms of absorption

 

[LadyOtheFarm]

Have you tasted the metronidazole? It's disgusting. I hate RXing it to cats because I don't blame them at all for fighting it. Even the compounded stuff is bitter

I worked with one vet who swore that the banana flavored liquid was less bitter. She started with the fish flavored liquid compound for cats and the banana was originally ordered for birds. I don't know the story, but there was a mix up at some point and that's how she discovered it. Most of the cats we saw did seem to prefer it and do less of the foamy head shake.

 

[that redhead]

I wish she'd do that! She eats all wet, so she's not excited enough about wet alone to not notice meds. Pretty sure the only reason she let me do the above was because it was covered in the salmon treat.

Also previously tried rolling a pill pocket in crushed salmon treat.... ate the first one. Next one just licked off the salmon. Next time wouldn't even touch. She's such a brat! haha

If she doesn't let me pill her again soon (she bit her metronidazole Wednesday night... that's when pilling went from horrible but doable to nearly impossible) and starts refusing the food and treat combo, I'm just going to bite the bullet and get all her meds compounded and switch to injectable anzemet from oral cerenia. Will be ridiculously expensive compared to now, but less of a hassle for both of us.

We have liquid, flavored metronidazole for cats - those pills are horribly bitter.

 

[Gwenevre]

TIL if my cat can see me, but is unable to interact with me because I'm in an area she isn't allowed in (the kitchen) she will whine at me. And cry. And complain. Incessantly.

 

[animalrie]

Guys...I need to be talked down. I'm really wanting to adopt a dog but I know my life will be about 1000x simpler if I don't. I've already got two cats and if I get accepted to vet school I know my next few years will be super busy, giving me no time to spend with a dog. Buuuut I keep seeing pictures of dogs who need homes and I can't help but WANT THEM ALL! I want a hiking buddy, and to go to dog parks, and a friend to play with my super energetic cat. I can't seem to listen to reason...

 

[orca2011]

Guys...I need to be talked down. I'm really wanting to adopt a dog but I know my life will be about 1000x simpler if I don't. I've already got two cats and if I get accepted to vet school I know my next few years will be super busy, giving me no time to spend with a dog. Buuuut I keep seeing pictures of dogs who need homes and I can't help but WANT THEM ALL! I want a hiking buddy, and to go to dog parks, and a friend to play with my super energetic cat. I can't seem to listen to reason...

While life would definitely be easier, I don't regret adopting my dog for a second. I got super lucky and he's extremely well behaved and can either be low energy or up for some long walks/hiking. Because he's low key and a bit older, I feel less bad about the long hours because I know he can handle it, but I always go home as early as I can do all my paperwork from my house so I can spend time with him. Then on days I have off, we spend a lot of time snuggling and on walks. Do I miss out on some activities, sure, but I love having him around and wouldn't change it at all. I also have two super demanding guinea pigs, one of which has some medical issues.

Not really helping with the talking down part. I would suggest waiting until after first year though, to give you some time to adjust to vet school. A few of my classmates just adopted younger dogs right in the middle of clinics and they seem to be okay so far too.

 

[KCgophervet]

Guys...I need to be talked down. I'm really wanting to adopt a dog but I know my life will be about 1000x simpler if I don't. I've already got two cats and if I get accepted to vet school I know my next few years will be super busy, giving me no time to spend with a dog. Buuuut I keep seeing pictures of dogs who need homes and I can't help but WANT THEM ALL! I want a hiking buddy, and to go to dog parks, and a friend to play with my super energetic cat. I can't seem to listen to reason...

Just saying, this is probably not the right audience to talk you out of getting a dog Mine has made my life a lot more complicated, a lot more stressful, and also a lot better So... do what you gotta do. But it also wouldn't hurt to wait until you know where you'll be living, and how hard it is to find pet-friendly (specifically dog-friendly) housing, and how much stuff you can get discounted as a vet student.

 

[Trilt]

I regret not adopting my first surgery dog. I have way too many animals already (2 cats, 3.5 ferrets, and an dingus snake) and dogs are definitely more work, but there is never ever a particularly good time to get one imo and vet school would have been fine in retrospect.

 

[WildZoo]

3.5 ferrets

 

[Trilt]

Just the front half - all the cutes, none of the poops.

(There are four total, one is in joint custody with my roomie haha).

 

[animalrie]

Thanks for the advice guys. Definitely gonna have to consider but glad to see nobody seems to regret adopting their dog!

 

[hedgiehog]

Guys...I need to be talked down. I'm really wanting to adopt a dog but I know my life will be about 1000x simpler if I don't. I've already got two cats and if I get accepted to vet school I know my next few years will be super busy, giving me no time to spend with a dog. Buuuut I keep seeing pictures of dogs who need homes and I can't help but WANT THEM ALL! I want a hiking buddy, and to go to dog parks, and a friend to play with my super energetic cat. I can't seem to listen to reason...

I got a border collie puppy during vet school. Couldn't be crazier than that. They only time I've ever regretted getting him was during kennel training when he wouldn't let me sleep at night . I love having my dog! He forces me to go outside and exercise. He's helped me meet new people. I think the best part is having Zaius forces me to do things that aren't school related. I got a dog that needed a job so we found classes for him. He goes herding once a week and just started agility. It's nice to have some guilt free hours to spend not studying. Plus look at that face:

 

[jmo1012]

caught my dog with a block of what i think was bromethalin in his mouth on our walk today. thank goodness he listens and dropped it immediately, but holy smokes. he didnt ingest more than a trace amount, but i'm still having a heart attack anyway

 

[Devastating]

Today was my dog Axl's 2nd birthday

(the "cake" was made my my sister out of bread, peanut butter, kibble and a treat, lol)