TV5’s pet health checkup for April

BREWER, Maine (WABI) - Ai Takeuchi, the co-medical director at Eastern Maine Emergency Veterinary visited TV5 for another Pet Health Segment.

There’s been a few things that she and her colleagues have noticed during the month of April.

First, quill dogs.

“It means that the porcupines are back out and they’re most active at dawn and dusk,” said Takeuchi. “We recommend that you have your dog on the leash during those times because they can get in through even fenced in backyards. It is a myth that porcupines dart or like to throw their quills, the dog has to bite or touch the porcupine, but they are barbed and once they embed into your pet skin, they will keep moving in that direction and it is quite painful to pull out.”

If this situation happens, she said it’s critical to keep an eye on where the puncture is on the animal’s body.

“If it is in the area of the chest, abdomen or near the eye, it can cause fatal complications because it’ll keep moving and go into the chest cavity and go into the lungs,” said Takeuchi. “We’ve had some dogs where it goes into the abdomen and punctures an organ or the gallbladder. It’s very important if your dog has it in the chest or the abdomen to seek immediate medical attention and try not to let them move around so much.”

She also said the clinic has seen a rise in Parvo virus.

“Parvo virus is one of the viruses in routine vaccinations,” said Takeuchi. “It is a virus that can last for years even in the environment. Some of it can withstand bleach so it is very highly contagious, and it attacks the rapidly growing cells in your body so your gut and your bone marrow. It starts with vomiting, diarrhea progresses to sloughing of the gut lining, so you’ll have bloody diarrhea and then it will decimate the bone marrow so your white blood cells will get shut down for a little bit making it deadly.

While it’s a scary situation, she said there have been positive results when it comes to intensive care.

“With intensive care, most puppies will survive,” said Takeuchi. “We have like close to an 80 to 90 percent survival rate but it is very intensive ICU care and expensive care. We do have a new monoclonal antibody. It is an expensive treatment but so far, we have a 100 percent success rate with it and survival rate which is fantastic.

She also wanted to remind pet owners of different toxins that their pets are exposed too, and she’s seen a rise of one toxin.

“We’ve actually seen a spike in albuterol toxicity,” said Takeuchi. “Albuterol is the inhaler that people use when they have bronchitis. People with asthma have it too and because of the uptick in respiratory viruses, I think people have their inhalers lying around more and the puppies are chewing them. What happens as the inhaler ruptures in their mouth, and they get a huge volume of the inhaler in their mouth, and it’s instantaneously absorbed and they’re having to spend 24 to 48 hours in the hospital, and it can lead to fatal arrhythmias.”

If you need to contact Eastern Maine Emergency Veterinary clinic, you can follow the link to their website or call them at (207) 989-6267.

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