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Paws & Claws

Jill Bowen has practiced veterinary medicine in England and Texas. She lives in Blacksburg now, and answers local pet owners' questions every week in The Roanoke Times and roanoke.com.

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I have a 2¹₂-year-old rat terrier. She loves to chew on everything. How can I break her from doing this? Is there a certain type of pet toy she can chew on that is safe?

One of the best toys for dogs who like to chew is a Kong. This is a hard rubber toy that is hollow inside, which can be filled with dry dog food.

The Kongs come in various sizes and are available at most pet stores and online. It is important to get the correct size for your dog.

Most dogs chew because of boredom and loneliness. In order to protect your home and furnishings, your dog should be crated whenever you go out, and at night. Furnish the crate initially with nonchewable items such as stainless steel water and food bowls, and a bedding of newspaper that is easily cleaned and replaced.

Each time you put her in the crate, give her the Kong filled with kibble. This should keep her busy and entertained for some time as she tries to get the food out of the toy. After which she usually will nap.

It is important that your dog be getting enough exercise; just popping her out in the back yard is not sufficient. She at least needs to be taken on two half-hour walks daily, so that she is tired when back at home. Otherwise, she will be a bundle of hyperactivity, releasing her pent-up energy by chewing anything she can find.

We are the unwilling owners of a Vietnamese pot-bellied pig. We know very little about how to look after it and were surprised when it sometimes screams and appears paralyzed for a minute or two in the rear end. A visitor said it was a "dippity pig!" My animal book did not mention this. Also it seems to shed a lot, which I didn't think pigs did.

Dippity pig is a rather unfortunate name given to a fairly common skin condition that occurs in pet pot-bellied pigs.

So far, no definitive cause has been found, although it is suggested that it could be an allergy, photosensitization, or sunburn, as it does seem to occur more frequently in the summer.

The usual signs are a moist dermatitis along the back. This appears to be very painful, causing the pig to squeal, at the same time dropping its hind end and dragging its back legs as if paralyzed, only to recover and repeat the cycle.

Many pigs make a spontaneous recovery, while others respond to oral antihistamines or anti-inflammatory agents. Clearing up the dermatitis on the back should ensure no further relapses.

Vietnamese pot-bellied pigs do shed. Most pigs shed their coat once a year in the summer. However some strains of these pigs shed twice a year, once in the spring and again in late summer.

There is also a syndrome called "blown coat," which appears to be related to some form of stress. This results in hair loss lasting anywhere from a few hours to two weeks, with regrowth taking two to four months.

I have owned several cats, all with different personalities. But this latest one is the strangest. Every evening she goes mad for about 10 minutes, leaping all over the furniture before being normal again.

Many house cats have a "mad half-hour" especially if they are totally indoor cats. They release pent-up energy by suddenly racing around the house and leaping over the furniture.

Even the most controlled and serene cat needs to let off steam from time to time. Cats who go outside have a chance to expend this energy while out and about. A cat who has killed a mouse will dance around the body in great excitement, expending all sorts of energy, while on an adrenaline high. Indoor cats do not have this luxury.