Archives

DEAR READERS: When animals greet us, play with us and care for us -- especially children -- with patient understanding, we are witness to a spiritual connection between one species and another. Our re... more

DEAR DR. FOX: Now more than ever, our children are overwhelmed with the challenges of an often unkind and troubled world. From our politicians down to our social media interactions, people are bickeri... more

DEAR READERS: Efforts to protect the wolf in North America have now been thwarted yet again by the Trump administration, as the Department of the Interior decided to remove the gray wolf from protecti... more

DEAR DR. FOX: Thank you for your reference and support of indigenous and alternative treatments in a recent column. Since you mentioned you’ve received criticism for this, I felt I should write and ex... more

DEAR READERS: The medical and psychological benefits of animal companionship have been well documented: Children with pets often have fewer allergies and infections, and adults can relieve loneliness,... more

DEAR READERS: With regard to the possibility of cats from COVID-infected families infecting other cats and wildlife if allowed outdoors, I recently wrote a letter to the Journal of the American Veteri... more

DEAR READERS: The U.S. presidential election highlighted how divided states have become as they confront a global pandemic, along with an unsustainable global economy based on polluting, climate-chang... more

DEAR READERS: Below are two troubling reports from wildlife organizations.... more

DEAR READERS: Some people think it is great to own an exotic or wild animal, until they learn it will never become a true “pet.”... more

DEAR DR. FOX: You asked for input from your readers about pets having adverse reactions to insecticides. I used Bravecto on my Lab mix, Chance, several years ago. He began having seizures and would co... more

DEAR DR. FOX: I saw an article about flea treatments causing drastic behavior changes in dogs, and wrote a detailed letter to my dog’s vet about my experience. I would like to hear what you think, as ... more

DEAR READERS: After evaluating veterinary practices in the Minneapolis-St. Paul area, the nonprofit Twin Cities Consumers’ Checkbook published some of its findings in the Star Tribune (“Finding the be... more

DEAR READERS: Several mammalian species, including cats, are susceptible to infection by people with COVID-19. A feline lockdown is called for, keeping all cats indoors (except for safe enclosures, ak... more

DEAR DR. FOX: We spend the winter in southern Texas and need something for fleas. Our dog had been taking Simparica, but the last time, he had an adverse reaction: He got kind of catatonic and it took... more

DEAR READERS: A team of Indigenous scientists from the Yukon have published a letter in the prestigious academic journal Science, “arguing that Indigenous principles and knowledge should inform a glob... more

DEAR READERS: Here is some important information about isoxazoline parasiticides (as in Bravecto, Simparica and Nexgard) that are commonly given to dogs. This is a synopsis of the report “Survey of ca... more

DEAR READERS: We are all witness to the tragic loss of lives, personal suffering, and social and economic chaos that have accompanied COVID-19, along with a lack of governmental and personal responsib... more

DEAR DR. FOX: Halloween will soon be here, and every year around this time, I read about black cats being caught and tortured. I know it is irrational, and goes back to the fear of the bubonic plague ... more

DEAR DR. FOX: I have an 18-month-old mini-labradoodle. He was bred for good temperament, and in fact, many dogs from his breeder work as therapy dogs.... more

DEAR DR. FOX: I have to tell you about a strange thing that has been happening to me over the last four weeks.... more

DEAR READERS: Climate fires are ravaging the drought-afflicted states of Oregon, Washington and California -- like the recent devastating conflagrations in Australia, Siberia, the Amazon and Brazil’s ... more

DEAR READERS: My concern that the coronavirus could be present in the feces of infected humans after they test negative for the virus in respiratory samples has been recently confirmed in the gastroin... more

DEAR DR. FOX: Here in New Jersey, almost everything that had shut down due to the pandemic has been reopened, wholly or in part. But not animal shelters. At the shelters near me, anyone interested in ... more

DEAR DR. FOX: Many thanks for your recent column addressing how cruel TNR is, and offering alternative solutions, which city councilors are always wanting to hear. I forwarded the article to the Anima... more

DEAR READERS: Recent studies have furthered our knowledge on the connections between children’s allergies and pets. Some recent highlights:... more

DEAR DR. FOX: I have a friend who has many feral cats in his backyard. A previous neighbor (who has since moved away) used to feed these cats, leaving a problem for my friend. Being a good Christian, ... more

DEAR READERS: Humans and other animals would very quickly die if all the viruses, bacteria and other microbial organisms were removed from our bodies’ surfaces, mouths and digestive systems. These com... more

DEAR DR. FOX: I would like to thank you for your reply to my questions about our cat, Dusty, crying to go outside all the time. I followed your advice to get another cat. I tried to adopt a young adul... more