Welcome to St. Marks Newsletter

As with any companion animal, potential bird adopters should be ready to invest money for regular veterinary care, a nutritious and varied diet, appropriately-sized cages and toys. Birds are social creatures. Birds in the parrot family particularly depend upon human contact for their happiness and well-being. Owners must be prepared to spend time playing with and talking to their feathered friends.Once the decision is made to adopt, a variety of bird species with distinct characteristics and needs are available. Tiny canaries delight with their vibrant colors and beautiful songs. Fast-moving finches can entertain observers for hours. Looking for a more interactive bird? Budgies and cockatiels enjoy being handled and often mimic words and household noises. And if you can commit substantial time and space to a loud, demanding, intelligent bird, one of the larger members of the parrot family may be right for you. These brainy birds need mental stimulation, companionship and extensive exercise time out of their cages daily. Keep in mind that medium-to-large parrots can live 25-50+ years.

How do you know if a bird is the right pet for you? And how do you decide what type of bird will best suit your household? The following scenarios should help potential owners make a decision that's right for them and a new avian friend:

• I don't like a lot of mess. Choose small birds, such as parakeets, canaries, finches or lovebirds.
• I don't like loud screaming birds. Although there are individual exceptions, avoid conures, parrots and cockatoos.
• I don't have much space. Choose any bird, as long as you allow for a large enough cage and time out of it almost every day.
• I am afraid of being bitten by my bird. If this is a concern, find out how large your bird will be when fully grown. As babies, medium and large-sized birds are very sweet and have little beak strength. But when they mature, they can become somewhat aggressive, their beaks more powerful and their behavior somewhat erratic. Instead, choose a smaller bird, such as a cockatiel, who is less able to cause harm when it bites



African Gray Parrot (left) and Amazon Parrot

• I want my bird to talk. African gray parrots and Amazon parrots are considered the best talkers, but there is no guarantee that your bird will talk. Birds who speak the most are those who are spoken to most often.
• I am concerned about how my new bird will get along with other pets and young children. Adequate space and close adult supervision will promote harmony among birds, children and other pets. You will need a room in which you can close off your bird for his or her protection when you are not present, even if you are just in another room. If you have a very large bird, such as a macaw, you may need to protect your children and other pets from the bird if he has been provoked inadvertently.
• I want my bird to bond with me, so maybe I'll buy an unweaned bird. Newborn, unweaned birds, like human infants, need to be fed by hand, which requires a great deal of care. Also, they are more likely to develop problems that weaned birds (birds able to eat by themselves) don't experience. So if you have no prior experience hand-feeding birds, make sure the bird you select is weaned. As for the bonding issue, birds that are young but already weaned bond very well with caring and affectionate owners.

Canine Distemper? Parvovirus? Lyme Disease? Which vaccines are truly needed by our pets and which ones can they do without? As pet owners increasingly use the Internet and other resources to learn more about the health of their pets, it is easy to get lost and confused by myths and misconceptions about vaccinating our pet friends. Veterinary scientists are helping to clear the confusion with new technology that can protect our pets without exposing them to potential adverse side effects. Watch this video to learn more.

Half of all dogs will develop some sort of cancer in their lifetime and one in four dogs will die. These are the sad statistics of this dreaded disease that affect people and pets. Canine cancer is so prevalent that it is the leading killer of dogs over the age of two. The Canine Cancer Project is now underway to help fund studies aimed at eliminating canine cancer in the next ten to twenty years. Watch this video to learn how you can help eradicate cancer in your dog’s lifetime!

Dental care is vital to your pet's health! If you've already established a dental care program for your pet, you're off to a great start. But if your pet hasn't received a dental exam from your veterinarian, it's time to get started. February is National Pet Dental Health Month, the perfect time to schedule a dental exam for your pet and develop a home care regimen for your best friend.

Why is dental care so important for your pet? Periodontal disease is the number one diagnosed problem in pets - by the age of two, more than 80 percent of dogs and 70 percent of cats have periodontal disease in one form or another. The buildup of plaque and tartar on your pet's teeth leads to bacterial infections that can enter the bloodstream and infect other parts of your pet's body. Periodontal disease has been linked to heart attacks, strokes, kidney disease, osteoporosis and other problems.

The good news is that periodontal disease is easily prevented. Routine dental cleanings and a home dental care regimen can eliminate the plaque and tartar that lead to gum disease and oral infections. During a dental cleaning, your veterinarian also performs a complete oral examination of your pet. This includes screening for oral cancer, broken teeth and cavities. Spotting these problems early on makes them easier to treat and improves your pet's overall oral health.

Your pet's dental cleaning is more involved than the same process you go through at the dentist's office. Anesthesia is required to keep your pet still and comfortable during the procedure. Because of this, your pet undergoes a thorough physical examination before each dental cleaning. Laboratory blood tests, as well as other diagnostic procedures are also used to screen for potential problems and risks before anesthesia is administered. Using these results, we develop a safe anesthetic protocol specifically for your pet.

During a dental cleaning, tartar is removed from your pet's teeth with a hand scaler. Next, a periodontal probe is used to check for pockets under the gumline - where periodontal disease and bad breath start. An ultrasonic scaler is used to clean above the gumline and a curette is used to clean and smooth the teeth under the gumline and in the crevices. Finally, the teeth are polished and an anti-bacterial solution is used to help delay future tartar build-up.

Dental care doesn't end in your veterinarian's office. Brushing your pet's teeth at home is an added level of protection against gum disease. In order to be most effective, brushing must be done at least three times a week; however, daily brushing is ideal. Brushing your pet's teeth can be supplemented with antiseptic rinses. Some pet foods and treats are also effective in preventing plaque and tartar buildup. However, there is no substitute for regular brushing and professional dental cleanings.

Schedule a dental examination and cleaning for your pet today. Your best friend will thank you!

As the daylight hours increase or decrease (during the fall and spring) pet ferrets naturally begin shedding their fur. Like cats, these sleek little animals spend quite a bit of time grooming themselves, thus ingesting quite a bit of their own fur.

Due to the ingestion of fur, hairballs can be a significant problem for pet ferrets, even to the point of being fatal. The ingested fur can accumulate in the animal's intestine causing intestinal impaction and blockage. Symptoms of a blocked intestine include lack of bowel movements, decreased activity, lack of appetite and vomiting.

Since ferrets enjoy grooming themselves, it's important to be aware of the potential for hairballs. By regularly administering a laxative, hairballs can be prevented. There are several brands of petroleum-based laxatives considered safe for ferrets, including Ferret-lax, Laxatone and Cat lax. Usually the little furry animal enjoys the taste, so the laxative can be licked off a finger, a spoon or directly from the tube. During shedding season, a little bit should be given every day. Outside shedding season, the laxative should be administered weekly.

Most people can believe that global warming affects sea levels and cause weird variations in weather patterns, but how many would believe that the warmer weather is contributing to a deadly disease of our pets? The rising temperatures across the globe may be helping mosquitoes to survive, which, in turn, are transmitting heartworms to our dogs. Despite this dire news, protection for our friends can be found in a simple monthly tablet. Watch this video to learn more.

Veterinary experts continue to see a rise in heartworm cases among our dogs and, although less is known, it is assumed that feline cases are rising as well. We have safe, inexpensive and effective preventives that can stop this disease in its tracks, so why do these parasites continue to cause illness and death? As this video explains, part of the problem could be the shortcuts some owners take with their pets' care. Watch and see the best way to stop heartworms from causing heartache!

We’ve identified seven general reasons for barking. Each generates a different kind of bark with a unique sound.

1. Barking to induce play—Dogs will stop barking as the play proceeds. If you do not play with the dog, he (or she) will eventually give up and stop barking.
2. Barking to discipline young—This bark generally does not persist, as one or two warnings usually stop younger animals in their tracks.
3. Barking to warn of danger—This is a deep, repeated bark. The barking will generally persist until the source of danger is removed or until the dog is able to retreat to a position of safety.



4. Barking to threaten intruders—To stop such a bark, you must either remove the intruder or remove the dog from the situation. Sometimes, stepping to the dog’s side and assuring it that all is well will cause it to stop barking.
5. Curiosity barking—In general, this bark is displayed when there is some activity near a dog, but in such a place where the animal cannot have a good look. To stop the barking, all you have to do is let the dog see what it is curious about.
6. Barking for companionship—This is an incessant, repetitive bark, accompanied by a relatively motionless tail and concentration toward the area most associated with the dog’s owners. The solution to this type of bark is to spend more time with the dog and to allow the dog access to the area where humansspend their time. This bark is often displayed by dogs that are ignored, tied out alone or locked up alone.
7. Barking for reward—Dogs can be inadvertently trained to bark and will persist with remarkable persistence. Barking can become associated with almost any activity that leads to reward. For instance, a dog that barks at garbage trucks because they intrude within its territory will learn that persistent barking leads to the disappearance of the trucks. This rewards the barking behavior, and a cycle is begun that is difficult to break. To break the cycle, it is necessary to interrupt the natural system of reward.