Telluride, Colorado:
The idyllic town of Telluride (visittelluride.com) boasts that it has more dogs than people. So dogs are welcome in more than half of the inns and hotels in Telluride and neighboring Mountain Village, and nearly all of the condos and vacation homes allow pets to stay with their owners. Pets are allowed in select cabins of the free, energy-efficient gondola that connects Telluride with neighboring Mountain Village, ensuring man’s best friends can also enjoy the 360-degree views. The town’s free shuttle bus system, the Galloping Goose, welcomes well-behaved pets on a leash. (Between the shuttle bus system and energy efficient gondola, there is no need for a car in Telluride.) Designated “puppy parking” spots throughout town let dogs chill out for a few minutes while owners pop into nearby retail shops. And the annual Telluride Fur Ball each August is a celebration for dogs and their owners. Benefiting the Second Chance Humane Society, the event features live music, food and dance. The town’s surrounding hiking trails are open to dogs – just be sure to pick up their waste and pack it out!

San Diego, California:
Dogs love beaches, making San Diego and adjacent Del Mar a great place to visit year-round. During off-peak months, dogs are allowed to run off leash at the 2-mile long Del Mar Dog Beach (aka Del Mar North Beach), in addition to the city’s two major parks, Seagrove Park and Powerhouse Park. But if you want to get your dog in the water, check out Del Mar’s annual Surf Dog Surf-A-Thon (every September, surfdog.kintera.org), where dogs compete in a surf competition and costume contests.  Doggie Surf Clinics are also available prior to the event to turn pets into surfing pros, and you can buy Surfah Dog Surf Boards in the San Diego North coastal community of Carlsbad – the only dog surfboards manufactured by a professional surfer and surfboard manufacturer (a portion of the proceeds benefit the Helen Woodward Animal Center). Unwind at night at L’Auberge Del Mar, which offers luxurious accommodations and special pet packages for pampered pooches.

Of course, there’s always the most economical option of all: camping. Dr. Janice Trumpeter, DVM, AAHA Deputy Executive Director, and her husband Scott have taken their cats and dogs camping with them for years. It all started with Pokey, their orange tabby, who was diabetic and needed insulin shots twice a day, so they took him camping with them since they couldn’t leave him alone. He’d wear a little harness outside and loved to look around the campground.

Looking back on time spent with pets, she says, “Some of the best times were when we were camping.” Now if they have a short camping trip and don’t take their cat Wally, a Himalayan who likes to hang out in the camping trailer, they miss him.

“I think it can be so beneficial for owners and their pets, whether it’s camping or traveling with pets, because they get to spend time together,” Trumpeter says. “Pets really enjoy it because they get to spend time with you!”

And, remember that it’s always a good idea to check with your veterinarian about the area you’re planning on traveling to. They will make sure your pet has the necessary vaccinations and medications and/or products appropriate for the area.

written by JEN REEDER

Jen Reeder is a freelance journalist who used to spend summers on a sailboat with her grandparents’ cat “Fun Fur.”

via Top Pet Friendly Destinations.

Everyone uses the term “spay” when they are getting their dog “fixed” so she can’t have puppies. But do you know what an actual “spay” is and how we do it, and why it is called a “spay”? Well we are here to answer all of these questions!

The origin of the word “spay”, according to Dictionary.com is from the “Middle English spaien , from Anglo-Norman espeier , to cut with a sword , from espee , sword , from Latin spatha ; see ‘spathe’ “. So to “spay” means “to cut”. But what are we cutting? When we do a spay, we are removing the ovaries and the uterus from the dog or cat. So we are doing what would be a called an ovariohysterectomy. The same surgery is done often in women for various reasons as well. The way we do this is by making an incision on your pet’s belly that is long enough for us to open up and get inside her abdomen and be able to reach the ovaries as well as the entire uterus. The uterus is shaped like the letter “Y” and at the top of each point on the “Y” is where the ovaries are. So all of this “Y”, including the ovaries, is removed when we do the surgery. This is a major surgical procedure, just as it is in women. It is done under complete anesthesia, in our surgical room under sterile surgical conditions. Once the uterus is removed and the incision is closed, your pet is allowed to recover at our hospital overnight. You wouldn’t want to be sent home right after you had your belly completely opened up! This allows your pet to get a good night of rest, we can check her incision in the morning, make sure she is not licking, and keep her from doing any strenuous activity, like jumping around, immediately after her surgery.

So, now you know what a “spay” really is! Go out and share your knowledge! The next time you hear someone say, my dog is getting “spayed”, you can tell them why it’s called a spay, what it really is, and how it is done and you will impress your friends and family!

So, what is distemper? Almost everyone has heard of distemper, but most don’t know what it is or what it does. Well, distemper is a nasty virus that will attack the respiratory system, the intestinal system, and sometimes the nervous system of puppies and dogs. It most commonly affects puppies under 16 weeks of age that have not been fully vaccinated but it can also affect unvaccinated or improperly vaccinated adult dogs. It can also infect foxes, wolves, coyotes, raccoons, skunks, and ferrets and often this is how it gets back into the pet population. It is most commonly spread through respiratory secretions of infected dogs but can also be spread through other secretions. Unfortunately, anything or anyone that comes in contact with these secretions can potentially spread the virus to other dogs. The one good thing is that the virus doesn’t survive for much longer than a few hours at room temperature and is pretty easily killed in the environment by bleach or quaternary ammonium disinfectants.

What are the symptoms of canine distemper? The first symptoms that we may see are a greenish or yellowish eye and nose discharge. It can be watery to very thick and mucusy. This can progress to a cough and in some cases into pneumonia. These dogs can be lethargic, may have a fever, and may lose their appetite. Vomiting and diarrhea may also develop. You may also see thickening of the nose and foot pads. The first signs of distemper can develop about 1-2 weeks after exposure to the virus but in some cases can take as long as 4-5 weeks. Often dogs with distemper may appear to recover from all of these symptoms, only to have the virus spread to their nervous system. About 1-3 weeks later they may develop neurological symptoms such as seizures, tremors or twitching, imbalance, or muscle weakness. These symptoms may progress to death, or can cause permanent damage to the pet. Some can recover from this is their immune system is strong enough.

Diagnosis and treatment of distemper are challenging. There are several ways to test for distemper. The problem is that recent vaccination may interfere with some tests giving a “false positive” result. “False negative” results are also possible with testing as the virus can be hard to find in some pets. For this reason, clinical symptoms combined with testing are used to try and diagnose distemper. The other challenge with diagnosis is that distemper can look like other diseases such as Kennel Cough or other respiratory infections, Parvo, or Epilepsy. As for treatment, we don’t have anything that will cure distemper. Treatment is aimed at helping the dog with the symptoms they have. Preventing secondary infections with antibiotics, helping with dehydration from vomiting or diarrhea with IV fluids, and treatment for seizures are some examples of helping dogs with the symptoms of distemper.

The good news in all of this is that distemper is a preventable disease. The vaccine for distemper is highly effective in preventing the disease. Puppies begin the vaccine at their veterinarian at 6 weeks of age and then receive boosters every 3-4 weeks until 16 weeks of age, then they receive annual vaccination. We strongly discourage owners from doing their own vaccinations as we often see these vaccinations fail due to improper storage, improper handling, given in an improper series, or are just poor quality vaccination. In addition, when your dog completes it’s distemper vaccinations at our hospital, that distemper vaccine is guaranteed by the manufacturer. Don’t let your dog become a victim to distemper this summer. Call to get your dog vaccinated today!