Protecting pets from heat stroke: In a report from WTSP in Tampa, veterinarian Dr. Isabelle Roese with Hillsborough County Animal Services warns pet owners not to push their animals or they'll be at risk for heat stroke.
Kitty is hard-wired to find places he feels secure. / Getty Images
Ferrets are fun, bu tthey can be a handful around the house. / Getty Images/GK Hart
More
Our new kitten is about 5 months old, and he’s very nice except when he uses the washing machine as a toilet. Then, when he’s a bad boy, we confine him to a bathroom with two litter boxes and his food and water — and he does what he should. There is a litter box in the laundry that he could use, but he usually does not. We have three adult cats, and his two older “brothers” don’t have a problem. Does he have a loose wire?
- T. B., Houston
In fact, your kitten is hard-wired to find a bathroom place where he feels secure. My guess is that he feels unsafe with those brothers nearby; they may be giving him a hard time. Even if it seems they’re all getting along, the kitty may feel intimidated. The washing machine is perfect because it provides him a safe lookout.
There should be the same number of litter boxes as you have cats, plus one. It’s interesting you have the perfect number of boxes when you seal off the little guy in the bathroom. The boxes should not be side-by-side-by-side in the same room — that’s like having one giant box. The problem may simply be your kitty is persnickety about in-box hygiene. There are other possibilities as well, and you should see your vet to rule out a physiological explanation.
My 14-year-old dog has gone blind. She bumps into walls and furniture. Most people I talk to say I should put her out of her misery. What do you think?
- M.K., Chicago
Start talking to new people. I understand mourning your dog’s loss of vision, but she’ll adjust if you give her the chance. Assuming she is otherwise healthy, vision loss is absolutely no reason to euthanize her. And I can relate — our recently deceased 16-year-old dog also had vision problems.
Your dog will very soon develop a Mapquest of your home in her head. Don’t add roadblocks by rearranging the furniture. If you have stairs, use a baby gate. And don’t allow your dog off-leash outside.
Ferrets in the wild are really mean, like weasels. My 14-year- old boy wants a ferret. Do you think ferrets are good domestic pets?
- S. H., Southfield, Mich.
European ferrets, the kind you find at pet stores, are domestic. They’ve been domesticated for a few thousand years — originally used to catch vermin. Their cousins are tenacious predators such as polecats, minks, badgers and the endangered black-footed ferret. But wolves are distant cousins of dogs, and the kitty in your lap isn’t exactly a tiger. In fact, left to their own devices outdoors, cats may survive, but domestic ferrets seem to have lost that ability.
Not all pets are for everyone. Ferrets are fun, always on the go and curious. Without supervision, though, they can get into trouble, so rooms where ferrets run amok require ferret-proofing (such as locking cabinets and sealing small spaces they could “ferret into.” Ferrets (even when they are descented) have a musky odor, which some people like, others not so much. Because they are social, two ferrets may be better than one, and they need daily human interaction. For the right family, ferrets are wonderfully entertaining pets.
Please give me some information on how to use brewer’s yeast to prevent fleas. It seems like a wonderful option, since my cat likes to be outdoors.
- M.T., Safety Harbor, Fla.
I put your question to Michael Dryden of Kansas State University-Manhattan, a veterinary parisitologist. “Using brewer’s yeast will have either no effect or very probably help a flea population thrive,” he says. “I use brewer’s yeast in my lab to grow fleas. See your veterinarian about choosing the right product. If your cat goes outdoors and you live in Florida, without using an appropriate product, fleas are a certainty.”
POWERED BY USA WEEKEND Magazine & more than 
