DEAR READERS: We need certain vaccines because of the ways we live and work -- and especially how we raise farmed animals for consumption under crowded and often unsanitary conditions with poor air and water quality. These and other environmental factors increase the probability of infectious and contagious disease. And rather than addressing these issues, we have come to over-rely on vaccines, antibiotics and other drugs, profitably promoted as preventive medicine (as was using DDT in the home decades ago).

The overuse of antibiotics has led to the evolution of highly resistant strains of bacteria, increasing human and farmed-animal mortalities. The same can be said about highly toxic herbicides and insecticides leading to the evolution of resistant “weeds” and insect pests. The overuse of vaccines has resulted in an increase in autoimmune and other so-called “vaccinosis” diseases in dogs and humans alike. Some vaccines that are composed of weakened viral strains like measles and polio may cause temporary shedding from recipients, leading to infection of non-vaccinated children and greater susceptibility to other infections in those who are malnourished and have compromised immune systems.

Vaccinations have helped reduce the incidence of zoonoses -- diseases transmissible from animals to humans -- such as rabies and tuberculosis. Expanded immunization of animals as barriers against human exposure has been proposed. Species-specific diseases that can decimate local populations of cats and dogs, such as feline panleukopenia, canine distemper and parvovirus, have been effectively controlled in many communities with vaccinations. Human smallpox has been eradicated globally thanks not only to vaccinations, but to international collaboration and the fact that there are no domestic or wild animal reservoirs of this disease.

Humans are susceptible to few of the hundreds of thousands of animal viruses that exist in nature, but changes in the human-animal interface increase the chances for zoonosis. And experts warn that humans can also transmit viruses to animals. “Any time viruses have the potential to mix and mingle with others, it can cause serious issues, especially when they can jump between animals and people in either direction,” said veterinarian Casey Barton Behravesh, director of the CDC’s One Health Office.

But with rising human and farmed animal populations, and incursion into wildlife habitats, the emergence of new diseases like COVID-19 is inevitable. The SARS-CoV-2 virus responsible for this disease is a challenge to vaccinate against: Coronaviruses rapidly multiply, mutate and recombine to create new strains, which could potentially infect a person simultaneously. They also have RNA repair mechanisms that other types of viruses lack. To a far lesser degree, we see this vaccination-effectiveness issue with the failure of influenza vaccines, since newly recombined and unanticipated viral strains come from factory-farmed poultry and pigs around the world. These are also widely spread by international travelers, migratory birds and, some believe, by the microbiome in our planet’s upper atmosphere.

Bioremediation -- restoring healthy, disease-preventing natural ecosystems protected from human encroachment -- along with more effective human population control through family planning and spay-neuter programs for dogs and cats -- would be significant progress. But this can’t happen without a reduction in the use of climate-changing, environment-polluting fossil fuels and worldwide factory-farmed animal production. Their populations must be supplanted, and the acres used to feed these poor animals must be restored, by the rise of organic, regenerative and sustainable food production systems.

If we give life to such long-overdue initiatives now, future generations will have greater health, economic and food security than the millions who are needlessly suffering today. We all must strive to live like the trees, which give more to life than they take, rather than to take all we can for ourselves.

DEAR DR. FOX: I would like your opinion about the most humane dog food. We are needing to put a couple pounds on our 12-year-old rescued collie, Danny. -- J.H., Minneapolis, Minnesota

DEAR J.H.: As part of the aging process, older dogs lose muscle (and weight) through a process called sarcopenia. They need more fat and protein to stave this off. Arthritis may also be involved, along with some kidney dysfunction with loss of protein in the urine.

I would feed The Honest Kitchen freeze-dried dog food (with grains) and add, on alternate days, a tablespoon of cottage cheese, grated Parmesan cheese, blueberries or plain yogurt or kefir; a few drops of Nordic Naturals cod liver oil or good-quality fish oil; a teaspoon of ground turmeric and ginger; and an emptied capsule or crushed tablet (daily human dose) of L-carnitine and chondroitin-glucosamine-MSM. Transition to this new diet over five to seven days.

Older dogs also benefit from good-quality human probiotics, taken daily, and digestive enzymes, which can be provided through a daily tablespoon of canned, unsweetened pineapple or papaya. I also give our dog a little Halo dog kibble and U.S.-made rawhide chews to help keep the teeth clean.

(Send all mail to animaldocfox@gmail.com or to Dr. Michael Fox in care of Andrews McMeel Syndication, 1130 Walnut St., Kansas City, MO 64106. The volume of mail received prohibits personal replies, but questions and comments of general interest will be discussed in future columns.

Visit Dr. Fox’s website at DrFoxOneHealth.com.)

DEAR READERS: I am disturbed by the frequent appearance on various TV advertisements of flat-faced breeds like the bulldog, French bulldog and pug. They suffer from a human-wrought deformity called brachycephaly, which can mean a lifetime of great difficulty breathing, coupled with eye and respiratory tract infections, digestive and dental problems and great susceptibility to heat stroke (most airlines will not fly them). Many require corrective surgery to relieve partial asphyxiation. Because of their relatively large, domed skulls, pups cannot be birthed normally and must be delivered by C-section.

They may seem adorable with their appealing, big-grin faces, but they are actually panting in effort-demanding breathing. Many snore, some sleeping with a ball or toy in their mouths so they can get some oxygen. Having no muzzle and a soft palate that is pushed back over their windpipe, normal breathing is impossible.

I was shocked the other day to see a young woman in jogging attire pulling on a leash, forcing her gasping pug to run with her. At least the dog wore a harness and not a neck collar, which can lead to collapse of the trachea or windpipe.

So please do not be taken in by whatever you find appealing about these poor dogs, which were created by generations of selective breeding for this abnormality. They are also expensive to purchase and to care for. Consumer beware!

A MAJOR OMISSION IN PANDEMIC PREVENTION

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has been addressing the COVID-19 pandemic and posted a public guide, “How to Protect Yourself & Others,” at cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/prevent-getting-sick/prevention.html.

It is evident from this CDC publication that this infection is believed to be only a respiratory virus, spread mainly from droplets in the exhaled air of infected individuals. But this coronavirus can also infect other organs and result in the virus being shed in people’s feces.

Cases in which the COVID-19 disease involved the intestines rather than the lungs were being discussed in the Journal of the American Medical Association and other medical publications expressing concerns over fecal-oral transmission of SARS-CoV-2 in March. Several diseases often regarded as “food-borne,” notably norovirus, come from human fecal contamination.

From my perspective as a veterinarian with some familiarity with other coronavirus infections (notably feline coronavirus, which has not been known to infect people), it is well known that these viruses can be passed through the feces, or from saliva and respiratory tract secretions, and infect other animals. So I find this serious omission in the CDC’s advice to the public inexcusable, and I trust that this egregious error will be quickly rectified.

Part of preventing the spread of COVID-19 must include extra precautions in food-handling, slaughterhouses, nursing and any situations involving exposure to human fecal material, such as public toilets, showers and swimming pools. This is another reason for meticulous hand-sanitizing, keeping fingernails short and wearing protective gloves.

DEAR DR. FOX: In a recent column about a dog with itching problems, but no fleas, you did not mention what you’d advised another reader a few years ago. I read that column, which was about the same thing my German shepherd had, and you recommended local honey in the dog’s diet. It totally took care of the problem -- no more itching. So I wanted to mention that again, as it really works. -- S.B. Trenton, New Jersey

DEAR S.B.: Thanks for this timely reminder. Local bee pollen or honey -- one teaspoon per 40 pounds of body weight daily -- in the food can help many dogs with seasonal allergies.

SOME INSPIRING READING IN THESE CHALLENGING TIMES

My book of prose and poetry, “The New Eden: For People, Animals and Nature,” with illustrations by Susan Seddon Boulet, may give readers some spiritual insight and comfort during these challenging and tragic times, as well as direction and purpose to make this ravaged planet a better place for all creatures. The health and well-being of future generations of humans and non-humans alike depend upon how we choose to live and find the way of compassion and ahimsa: avoiding harming others.

ACID-REFLUX MEDICATION OFF THE MARKET

If you have any medication like Zantac to treat acid-reflux in you or your dog, stop using it immediately. This medication has been taken off the market by the FDA because the longer it is kept, the more a “probable” cancer-causing chemical (N-Nitrosodimethylamine) forms. Consult with your physician or veterinarian to find a safer alternative.

(Send all mail to animaldocfox@gmail.com or to Dr. Michael Fox in care of Andrews McMeel Syndication, 1130 Walnut St., Kansas City, MO 64106. The volume of mail received prohibits personal replies, but questions and comments of general interest will be discussed in future columns.

Visit Dr. Fox’s website at DrFoxOneHealth.com.)

DEAR READERS: My memory of seeing cattle handlers restrain young bulls for branding and castration was triggered when I saw the footage of Minneapolis police officer Derek Chauvin. He nonchalantly kept one hand in his pocket while his knee and body weight were on the neck and throat of the handcuffed and prone George Floyd, with other officers alongside. As a veterinarian with a doctoral degree in ethology (animal behavior), I have a trained eye for interpreting the behavior of humans and other animals, and I was immediately struck by the similarity of the two situations. A man was treated like some beast, without any compassion or respect -- only power and control, which proved fatal.

Racism and speciesism are coins of the same inhumane currency, as are hate crimes and crimes of indifference and neglect. Jewish author Isaac Bashevis Singer, who received the Nobel Prize in Literature in 1978, made the comparison in several of his stories, including “The Penitent” and “The Letter Writer.” In the former, the protagonist says, “When it comes to animals, every man is a Nazi.”

This endemic virus of inhumanity, cruelty and injustice makes the COVID-19 pandemic pale in comparison. There is no vaccine to make us humane and responsible citizens and planetary stewards -- only the examples of good parents, teachers and leaders. As I have urged in my book “The Boundless Circle: Caring for Creatures and Creation,” respect for all life is a boundless ethic, and is the essential cornerstone of any viable society. The essence of democracy in spirit and politics is egalitarianism: equal and fair consideration and justice for all sentient beings.

DEAR DR. FOX: We began feeding a stray female cat years ago. She has had several litters, and the local SPCA took in many of them. I have tried to catch her with a Havahart trap without success.

Is there anything available that could be put in a cat’s food to sterilize them? I believe I saw a news program about a town in New York where they had a deer population problem, and they put something in baited food that sterilized them. -- J.O., Staatsburg, New York

DEAR J.O.: Here is a recent posting that answers your question. The Alliance for Contraception in Cats and Dogs (acc-d.org) is a nonprofit whose mission is to advance nonsurgical sterilants and contraceptives for cats and dogs and to promote their global accessibility. I took the following information from their website on May 29:

“In light of the need to provide healthcare workers with protective gear, conserve resources and to maintain social distancing, the U.S. Surgeon General issued an order to limit both human and veterinary ‘non-essential’ or ‘elective’ surgeries during the COVID-19 pandemic. Surgical sterilization (spay/neuter surgeries) are being defined by some organizations/local or state governments as non-essential. Animal welfare organizations and veterinarians are concerned about how this policy will impact their work. Several influential entities in veterinary medicine have advised animal shelters, spay/neuter clinics and veterinarians to comply with this order by deferring sterilization surgeries for dogs and cats and continuing to manage adoptions. Organizations and professionals are understandably worried that pregnancies will result in unwanted litters that will further stress shelter intake and the community when shelter resources will be low and community need high, especially during high seasonal reproduction for cats.”

The organization then provides the following statement from veterinarian Julie Levy:

”COVID-19 brought a sudden need to evacuate animal shelters across the country, and communities responded by taking thousands of pets into their homes. There wasn’t even time to spay and neuter before they were placed. I support ACC&D’s recommendation that the field deploy megestrol acetate as a stop-gap contraceptive for female cats to prevent heat cycling and pregnancy until surgery comes back online.” -- Dr. Julie Levy, DVM, Ph.D.

A local veterinarian or the SPCA should be able to help you get the hormone to put in the cat’s food to stop her from having even more kittens.

(Send all mail to animaldocfox@gmail.com or to Dr. Michael Fox in care of Andrews McMeel Syndication, 1130 Walnut St., Kansas City, MO 64106. The volume of mail received prohibits personal replies, but questions and comments of general interest will be discussed in future columns.

Visit Dr. Fox’s website at DrFoxOneHealth.com.)