News & Announcements

Winter has arrived though we had a pleasant delay for awhile.  Outdoor activities become more difficult, especially with ice and extremely low temperatures.  Try to increase indoor activities and stimulaltion and decrease calories unless your cat or dog is involved in a lot of outdoor time.  Enrich the indoor environment with human play interactions.  Cats enjoy predator/prey toys on a wand such as a feather, laser pointers, small mice toys or balls they can play soccer with or carry around.  Dogs enjoy balls, squeeker toys, tug of war toys and toys with hidden treats (just be careful of the number of treats).  Rotate toys by putting some away for awhile, then bringing them out again.

Make sure the older dogs and smaller dogs go out to urinate, even if it is really cold, to decrease the risk of bladder infections.  Indoor/outdoor cats may use the litter box more, thus more cleaning.  Make sure it is in a private, safe, conveniant area with little interruption to avoid house soiling problems from developing.

February is pet dental month which doesn't mean everyone needs to run in and have a dental cleaning done (unless you have been advised to do so), but rather a time to bring awareness to the importance of good dental health.  It is best to take care of dental problems before they get way out of hand.  Dental disease won't get better on its own only worse.

Omega -3 fish oil supplements for our pet are receiving renewed attention.  Various studies are finding them beneficial for kidney disease, heart disorders, osteoarthritis, itchy skin and inflammatory bowel disease.  More studies are exploring their use with senility, seizures, aggression and cancer.  Call if you have questions about dosage, products available or the benefits.  Caution, it can be overdosed and may not be appropiate to your pet.

Enjoy the special beauty of winter in Montana.  Stay warm and drive safe.