Dog Whistles, Cat Food and Skin Mites

Q: A friend of mine showed me a dog whistle he got from his
dad’s desk. He says his dad uses it to call their dog. But when we
blew on it, there wasn’t really any sound. How does a dog whistle
work?
Q: A friend of mine showed me a dog whistle he got from his dad’s desk. He says his dad uses it to call their dog. But when we blew on it, there wasn’t really any sound. How does a dog whistle work?

A: Dog whistles produce a sound that is ultrasonic. These whistles work in the range of 16,000Hz to 22,000Hz. Human ears can usually only pick up sounds below 20,000Hz.

But dogs are able to hear sounds in the higher range and can actually be trained with these devices. So even though you and your friend might not hear anything from this whistle, you can bet the dogs know when someone is blowing it!

Q: I heard someone say that only dry cat food is good for kitties. Is this true? Our vet says we should use only a special dry food for our cat because he keeps getting a bladder infection.

A: Over the years, our knowledge of nutrition has changed dramatically. Still, there’s a lot of disagreement over how best to feed our kitties. Cats, by nature, are carnivores. So foods that are not meat-based are not as natural for them. These cereal-based foods have the potential to be a problem, especially with regards to the urinary tract. And to use an example, let’s talk about bladder stones in kitty-cats.

Uroliths (bladder stones) are crystalline objects in the kidney, bladder or urethra. They can cause a complete urinary blockage that can be fatal in some cats if not treated.

Wild cats almost never have a problem with these stones, and researchers believe that this is due in part to their carnivore diet. Meat contains phosphoric acid and other attributes that inhibit the development of the most common type of urolith that can cause urinary blockage. Cereal-based cat foods don’t contain adequate amounts of these nutritional substances.

Some people say that dry food helps to clean teeth as cats chew it. This, too, is controversial because some dry cat food actually turns into a sticky paste that can do damage to the surface of teeth.

Dry food is convenient and easy. But it may not be the absolute best thing for your cat. A more balanced diet might be made of a blend of many ingredients including a little raw meat. And the reason? Once again, some people believe healthier diets should more closely resemble those of wild cats, because those beasts never seem to suffer from urinary tract problems.

There’s a new book out that discusses all this in a fairly objective manner. The title is “Your Cat-Simple New Secrets to a Longer, Stronger Life.” It’s written by Dr. Elizabeth Hodgkins, a veterinarian whose 3-decade career includes work in private practice as well as in the pet food industry. She has interesting insights into nutrition and its effect on kitties. It’s published in hardback by Thomas Dunne Books and it’s easy reading. Cat owners might consider looking at this reference to learn more about proper feeding.

Q: Our purebred dog, Schatzy, has been diagnosed with Demodex mites on her skin. She has just a small spot on her cheek and another on her neck. The vet says we should have her spayed and not breed her. But she is a show dog with great bloodlines and is very beautiful. Do you think we should breed her?

A: Probably not. Demodex, or puppy mange, is a skin condition caused by a mite that lives in the deep part of the hair follicles. It weakens the hair shaft which breaks off or falls out, causing patchy or even diffuse hair loss.

The good news is that most dogs recover from this condition and regain a full, normal fur coat. But Demodex mange is caused by a hereditary inability of the skin to deal with these naturally occurring mites. Dogs that develop this disease can pass this same trait on to their offspring. And even though they fully recover from the disease, they will pass the genetic predisposition for the disease to their puppies.

Because of this, most veterinarians recommend that dogs affected by Demodex mites never be bred, hoping that the disease will eliminated from breeding bloodlines.