I have five pets -- how can I afford insurance?

Recent conversations on these topics

• K9 Advantix Side Effects?

  Today I used K9 Advantix topical flea prevention on my 40lb dog. After I put it on her, she began pacing around the house and has been completely uninterested in anybody all day, she just wants to curl up in any strange corner she can find. Why is she acting this way? Is she having an allergic reaction to this product? She acted a little strange last time but I didnt think anything of it, this time...i'm not so sure. Should I stop using this product? Any suggestions are appreciated, thanks.

• Hacking

  5 days ago I was surprised with a 3 month old adorable female schnauzer. Everything is going great. I took her to her kennels vet for a 72hr. follow up check and was told evertything looked good. She was hacking a lttle when I first got her, and now seems to do it more. Nothing comes up. It hasn't affected her appetite, activity, although it wakes her sometimes. When I mentioned it to the vet, he said she was getting over a cold. Will this pass or should I be concerned? I don't see it getting any better (2 days)

• osteochondritis dissecans

  Hi, does anyone have experience with a puppy with osteochondritis dissecans? My puppy showed intermittent front leg limping at about 4-5 months. X-rays showed osteochondritis dissecans (actually in both shoulders - although no symptoms on the other side). The vet recommended restricted activity to give it a chance to heal. 2 months later, the limping was only intermittent, and a repeat x-ray suggested the the lesion may have gotten bigger. The vet recommended let her run to see if the flap would break lose. It's since been 2 more months, and she is limping worse over the last couple days. How long is reasonable for allowing it to heal on its own? Isn't my pup at risk for arthritis if I let it go any longer? Is surgery usually successful? Any one have any experience either with conservative treatment or surgery and how did your dog do several years after?

• Toe Pads "fused" - what to do?

  The two center toe pads on BOTH of our puppy's front feet are fused/connected. (she is a female Akita) There is no involvement of the bones of the toe - they are separate. Its just that the the pad on these two toes is connected. I'm not referring to "webbed feet" which I'm familiar with - the toe pads are actually connected. This is obviously a congenital issues and I've never seen anything like it before (and I've "Googled" ever imaginable search term for this and keep coming up empty). Has anyone seen this before? I'm wondering if we should just leave it "as is" or surgically correct the issue. She seems to manage fine with the issue however she does get a little sensitive when touching her feet / paws. Additionally, i've noticed that she does NOT like walking up steps which obviously puts pressure on her paw pads (and the center toes don't really separate which I imagine is uncomfortable since there is essentially no "give"). We just had her spayed and the vet mentioned that she hasn't really seen this issue before however it should (theoretically) be easily corrected by simply surgically cutting/tearing the skin between the fused pads which would free them up and give her better range of motion, balance?, etc. Has anyone seen or experienced this? I'd be curious to hear from others since i'd like to make a determination now while she is still a puppy if we should just leave it as is OR have the issue corrected before she reaches full maturity (she's 6 months old now). Thoughts?