Animal Airwaves

One of the many mysteries of animals is how they navigate. We hear about lost dogs and cats making their way back home over hundreds of miles, but how do they do it?

Numerous senses are likely involved. For example, dogs rely mostly on their keen sense of smell. They tend to follow overlapping areas of familiar scents. First, they might retrace their own scent trail before picking up the smells of another familiar dog. That may lead to the scent of a marked tree, then on to the smell of a familiar person and so on.

On the other hand, cats — like many other animals — may instinctively use the earth’s magnetic fields to guide them along great distances.

One thing’s for sure — we need to do a lot more work to unlock the black boxes holding the answers.

The animal kingdom is full of wonders, not the least of which is a unique way of reproducing called parthenogenesis [par-then-ō-GEN-ah-sus].

Of course, the usual way animals reproduce is by mating, during which egg cells and sperm each contribute 50 percent of the genes required by their offspring. In parthenogenesis, the female’s body comes up with unique ways to substitute for the genes supplied by sperm.

Without going into all the genetic and physiologic details, suffice it to say that female animals from honey bees and snakes to fish and lizards have surprised us by giving birth to offspring with no history of male contact. Parthenogenesis began millions of years ago in the simplest of organisms, but now it may help bolster some species in tough environmental circumstances.

Along with the joy of being a pet parent comes the eventual heartache of losing a pet, often including the tough choice of euthanasia.

Some folks would rather spend their final moments at home with their buddy in familiar surroundings instead of in a veterinary clinic. That’s why some veterinarians provide in-home euthanasia.

After arriving, the veterinarian meets the family and their pet and explains the procedure. First, the pet receives an intramuscular injection that induces sedation within minutes. Next, the veterinarian places a small intravenous catheter through which euthanasia solution is injected. This painlessly and rapidly stops the pet’s breathing and heartbeat. All the while, the pet’s family is right there, providing love and comfort.

One of the most common heart problems seen by veterinary cardiologists is degenerative mitral valve disease. Although any breed of dog can be afflicted with the disease, certain small-breed dogs are more prone to it, and the likelihood of developing the ailment grows as dogs age. The progressive nature of mitral valve disease means that many dogs with it will go on to develop congestive heart failure, and ultimately die. Only open heart surgery, a highly specialized procedure, can offer a definitive treatment. On this show, Dr. Darcy Adin, a board-certified veterinary cardiologist who oversees a new open heart surgery program for dogs at the University of Florida, will discuss how the program is making a difference in the lives of mitral valve disease patients and their owners.

If you’re a pooch parent, chances are you sometimes let your dog out into the yard instead of taking him for a walk — especially in bad weather. But before you do it again, think about how it deprives your buddy.

Dogs need exercise and they’re unlikely to get it by themselves. Once in the yard, they’re more apt to just lie down.

Our canine companions also need mental stimulation — the kind they get from seeing and sniffing new things. They also crave companionship — especially with us.

Dogs that aren’t walked have a greater risk of depression and anxiety —and often other health problems too.

So next time you’re tempted to just open the back door, think about how much you’ll both get out of taking a walk together.

Keeping Fido fit is not only important for his mental and physical health, it’s a great way to build your bond and keep you active as well. However, just as people can hurt themselves by engaging in too much or the wrong types of exercise for their bodies, dogs, too, are susceptible to injury if a fitness plan isn’t carefully thought out. On this show, Dr. Christina Montalbano, a clinical assistant professor of integrative and mobility medicine, will discuss safe exercise for dogs of all ages. She’ll also offer recommendations for safe levels of exercise for dogs of different ages, from puppy to senior, surface considerations, safer ways to play fetch and how to identify signs of fatigue and injury.

So you want to be a veterinarian? In addition to caring for dogs, cats and other animal species as clinical practitioners, today’s veterinarians use their skill sets in a variety of careers, including the military, industry and others. A successful application to veterinary school involves an understanding of the profession and how prospective students aim to contribute to it. On today’s show, Dr. Ashley Allen-Durrance, assistant dean of admissions and student success at UF, will discuss veterinary student recruitment, what’s involved in getting into veterinary school, how to prepare a strong application and what potential applicants should keep in mind before they apply.

Did you know that cats can spend nearly 10% of their waking day grooming themselves? Licking each other is also an important part of feline socialization. But what does it mean when your cat licks you?

You might like to think it’s a sign of affection — and it could be. But true to the cat’s reputation, there’s often a more self-serving reason involved. Your feline friend may lick you to indicate that you’re not a threat — much like the reasons behind cat-to-cat grooming.

On the other hand, your cat’s licking may simply be a way to mark you as belonging to them. And because cats are hard-wired to check out scents, licking is another way to investigate what you’re made of — or they just might like sampling a bit of what you last ate.

More than one in 10 new veterinary appointments are related to gastrointestinal, or GI, problems in pets. Some of these issues are due to abnormalities in their microbiome — that’s the body’s collection of internal microbes that aid digestion and immunity.

Identifying changes in the microbiome can help determine if a pet has acute or chronic GI disease or something else, each requiring different treatment. A newly available diagnostic test may help provide answers. Called the Dysbiosis [dĭs-bī-Ō-sĭs] Index, it can track the levels of various bacteria over time, which are linked to chronic GI diseases.

The test also can warn of these diseases before clinical signs appear, helping veterinarians get a jump on management.

Seizures are always something to take seriously, in humans and animals alike. But they don’t always look the same.

Sometimes seizures in pets look the way we imagine, with a recumbent animal shaking and drooling. But other seizures are more subtle, with affected animals biting the air, staring blankly into space or not responding to their name or commands.

Often an animal’s behavior changes just before, during or hours after a seizure. Unusual behavior may include neediness, fear, aggression or seeming lost.

Because there are so many reasons for seizures, it’s useful to record — either on video or in writing — what you see. It often requires teamwork to reach a diagnosis — and this can provide important clues.