Albuquerque Journal Articles

Question: We adopted “Peaches” from Animal Humane 9 weeks ago. She is a 5 year old Australian cattle dog mix. She has escaped 4 times, like playing, but won’t come when called and bounds away covering lots of territory in a short time. She has crossed Tramway twice. Otherwise she completely blended into our home–so loving, cooperative, fun. Dr. Nichol: I understand how frustrating this is. Peaches means a lot to you. She needs to quit her gleeful and dangerous jail breaks. People like us love our pets like little children in furry suits but that special bond can fool…

Question: My bulldog is 9 years old and losing hair. Her skin is dry and it smells bad. Her ears have gooey junk in them and they stink too. Is this just because she is old? Dr. Nichol: Dry skin problems and hair loss are not signs of good health and, except for humans of a certain age, aren’t considered a normal part of membership in AARP. Your bulldog’s foul odor and her infected ears are indicators of a serious skin problem. More than just exuding B.O. she may have seborrhea and chronic infection. I consulted with veterinary skin specialist…

Question: “Sage”, our female Lab mix, began to urinate on the bed during the night. She was diagnosed with a bladder infection, given antibiotics, and the problem disappeared. It reoccurred a couple of months later; another round of antibiotics fixed it. It reoccurred again, and this time the antibiotics had no effect. About the same time, my stepson, his fiancé, and their two dogs moved in with us. While the dogs seem to be coexisting harmoniously our hypothesis is that our Lab’s latest behavior is connected to the extra dogs. Her only issues seem to be at night, so our…

Last in a series Fear is a miserable emotion. It happens in-the-moment, before there is time to think. And it can be dangerous. Whether a threat is real or imagined you need to either get the heck outa there or drive off a scary monster – who might retaliate. Stimpy had trembled and hidden from visitors, but later chased those beasts while snapping at their heels. He’d improved. While his good leader Amy entertained guests, he stayed busy in the other room extracting bits of sustenance from challenging food toys and puzzles. Not bad. Amy now wanted Stimpy by her…

Third in a series Which of these statements is true? (a) Some dogs try to dominate their people and need us to keep them in line. (b) Dominance behavior among dogs happens but is sexual in nature. (c) It is a rare dog who tries to bully a human. (d) Alpha rolls work on dogs because they are innately knowledgeable in the Greek alphabet. (e) None of the above. Stimpy, the alpha-rolled heel nipper, feared annihilation by anybody other than his person. In his anxious mind, they could all be mass murderers. What started as trembling and hiding from strangers,…

Second in a series Remember what happened to Stimpy, the ankle biter? He was alpha rolled and pinned to change his behavior but, call me crazy, I’ve never known bullying to help anyone get well. The disconnect for Amy (Stimpy’s person) and her visitor was believing that dogs need to be dominated to learn their rightful place as our subordinates. Unbeknownst to these folks, as they swapped jokes on the couch, Stimpy’s dread had him hiding in the shadows. His burst of bravado as he ran, snapping and growling at the heels of the departing visitor was not about him…