All internal parasites, over a period may drain an animal’s natural defences, leaving it susceptible to infections and diseases. All are likely to cause loss of appetite and lethargy, poor condition and many secondary health problems. Tapeworms leave visible, light-colour segments that look like rice grains. When infestation is significant they can be seen in stools, around sleeping areas, under the animal’s tail, or near its anus. Roundworms look like spaghetti; they are light yellow, two to four inches long, have slightly pointed ends, and can be seen in stools or vomit. Hookworms are almost invisible to the naked eye, but can cause diarrhoea (often with blood present), cramps, pale gums and lips, a dry coat, a slight cough, and noticeable weight loss. Whipworms cause symptoms similar to those caused by hookworms, as well as possible inflammation of the colon. Heartworms block an animal’s arteries, causing tiredness, listlessness, a poor coat, weight loss, and constant panting and coughing. Worms normally not seen but only with infestation is marked.

Coccidia are protozoa infection, mostly causing diarrhoea, emaciation, Toxoplasmosis is a parasite that afflicts mostly cats but can also affect dogs. It frequently presents no symptoms at all in cats and cane cause variable symptoms in dogs such as neurological problems. Giardia and Trichomonas are intestinal parasites causing diarrhoea and loos of condition.

An infestation of internal parasites is a debilitating condition that should be dealt with by a veterinarian. Preventive medications for all worms such as Drontal, Panacur, and Advocate are available. Treatment with medications like Panacur would be affective for the treatment and prevention of most worms, Trichomonas and Giardia. Pets that are affected with protozoa infection such as Coccidiosis ot Toxoplasma should be treatment by a veterinarian.

Fleas, ticks, lice, maggots, and mites are common external parasites that host animals. Most cause animals to scratch excessively, and can bite human too. Fleas are tiny brown-black insects that move through the animal’s coat. They spend most of their time off the animals and ‘jump on’ to feed. Blood meal is essential for them to reproduce. For good flea control the whole life cycle should be stopped. This may be the main reason for failure in their control. It is advisable to control fleas all year round and not let them build up during the winter months. Most households in the UK are blessed with the use of central heating, which “save” the fleas and help them surviving the cold winter.

Ticks are small, round, dark-colour insects with hard shells (when young) that attach themselves to an animal’s skin. They feed blood and have long mouth parts that can cause pain, infections at times. Most female ticks lay hundreds and even thousands of eggs for secure the next generation. Ticks can transfer a disease called Lyme disease. A serious disease that must be dealt by a veterinarian.

Lice are small, dark-gray insects that remain in one place on an animal’s body. They mostly cause irritation, which may lead to secondary skin disease. Lice can be treated with the same potions that work on fleas and ticks

Maggots look like small worms. They are a larva stage of flies, which hatch after flies are attracted to dump and dirty places. They are more common to attack rabbits and can inflict horrendous injury. Maggot infestation is not very common in dogs and cats but is rather common in rabbits. If present, should be treated by a veterinarian with no delay.

Mites & Mange, which are invisible to the unaided eye, characteristically cause skin and ear irritation and can lead to mark skin infection. Most common mites affecting dogs are sarcoptic mange and demodex. Harvest mites could also be a problem occasionally.

External parasites can be readily eliminated and controlled with commercially available powders, baths, sprays, and dips. Not all pet products are affective for all types of external parasites. And not all products out there on the shelves have the same efficacy for the proposed parasites. Check the labels of such treatments carefully to be sure they are appropriate for use on your animal and that they will control the parasite in question. Most importantly make sure that the product is intended for the use of a specific animal species. Some product intended for dogs are very toxic to cats. Fleas can be controlled with flea collars, sprays, powders, baths, and spot-on preparations. The spot-on preparations are mostly used for fleas and ticks due to ease of application and good efficacy. Not all spot-on preparations are the same. The most recommended are Advocate.  Frontline and Advantage. Frontling has the advantage of dealing with fleas and ticks. Advocate has its advantage by dealing with fleas, mange, mites, and round worms.

It is extremely important to treat animals, surrounding furniture and carpets to eliminate infestations. Remember that we need to eliminate all life cycles for the infestation to stop. Mange infestation could be serious and if recurrent or not responding to initial treatment it should be treated by a veterinarian.

Preventative treatment for external parasites should be tailored to the life style of the pet. An indoor cat would not need the same intensity of treatment as a heroic hunter. A dog that spend long hours in wood lands also will need more care than a lap dog that its toughest activity would be to  his number one on the nearby patch of grass.

Dog and cat knees are similar to humans. For example, knees have five ligaments, two menisci, a knee cap, and joint cartilage. The ligament most commonly affected in dog and cat knees is the cranial cruciate ligament or sometimes referred to as  anterior cruciate ligament. It is the same ligament most commonly damaged in professional athletes.

Dogs and cats usually tear this ligament when out running around, or sometimes when landing wrong after a jump. Evidence show that the torn ligament in most cases is already diseased or weak, and an apparent traumatic incident is only the last straw. Occasionally No apparent trauma would be detected and the symptoms may appear gradually over a period. The reason for this weakness has not fully explained and demand much research and attention.

The cranial cruciate ligament is a large, strong ligament located within the knee joint. It is not actually a single structure, but is, in fact, made up of a bundle of individual fibres tightly bound together to form the ligament. Most of the time when the ligament is injured, it is completely torn in half. Sometimes, though, only a portion of the ligament will tear. Though only a portion of the ligament may be torn, the whole ligament is damaged.

When a cranial cruciate ligament is torn, it causes sudden pain and often results in the pet holding its leg up. It also causes instability in the knee joint. The pet may put the leg down and start using it within a day or so, but will continue to limp for several weeks. Normally, at the end of several weeks, the initial pain subsides and the pet is willing to use its leg more; however, the joint remains unstable. Every time the animal puts weight on the leg, the tibia (shin bone) slides forward in relationship to the femur (thigh bone). This abnormal motion causes wear and tear on the joint cartilage, causing pain and leading to arthritis. This motion can also put excessive stress on the menisci (C shaped pieces of cartilage within the knee joint), causing damage or tearing.

Conservative management usually fail to yield good recovery in most dogs but some small dogs may do just fine providing the right care is given, such as anti-inflammatory medication, hydrotherapy, Acupuncture, physiotherapy, weight control and diet modification. There are many other treatment modalities, such as joint supplements, Acupuncture and other natural remedies. Although some show some subjective improvement no hard evidence had been produce to show consistent results.

Surgery is the only corrective measure for cranial cruciate ligament injuries. Many surgical procedures have been tried on people and animals during the last 60 years; however, most orthopaedic surgeons agree that the procedures are not as successful as they would like. Knees that suffer this injury are never completely normal even after surgery is performed. Surgery does, though, stabilize the knee, allowing it to regain normal motion and thereby reducing the formation of arthritis. Surgery has been and remains the treatment of choice for this injury. If surgery is not performed, progressive arthritis will occur and the lameness will worsen with time. In the next session I will discuss the rational behind choosing the right treatment for the specific dog. This is a complex issue and require some understanding of cruciate disease and  therefore  separate attention.