Precaution for Your Pets in Rainy Season 

By Dr. C Bhattacharya

Every year, Rainy season comes and yes, our pet owner friends have lot to think about their pet’s health. Due to high moisture content in the air, there is a tendency that your pet suffer from different diseases, which are very common now a days.

As a pet owner, you must be very concerned for your beloved’s health and you want that it should always be in good health. The question is what type of problem you suppose to face in monsoon season and how to combat with it. As a veterinarian, I must advise you that the foremost thing is not to give your pet a direct and sudden cold exposure during rainy season. It could be dangerous for your pet, because the sudden change may create some problem for the basic immunity of your pet and even pneumonia can be developed. So be careful during monsoon season.

It is very common to see your pet is suffering from respiratory diseases. Due to high moisture content, wetness, lack of exposure towards sunlight etc, pets are suffering mainly from upper respiratory tract infection which may be associated with allergy. Make sure that your pet should be kept in dry and warm place instead of putting your AC on. Coolers are not advisable too. It will create an adverse effect on the organism which is already under stress due to heavy rainfall. You can give warm milk with vitamin B complex and can add some anti allergic preperation. But remember, for any specialized treatment you must contact your vet.

Fungal infection is very common in this season. Many pet owners complain about this. You may notice that in pows, abdomen and other parts of the body, there are pimples, redness, itching sensation etc. It may be because of fungal infection. It is advisable to clean your pet regularly, brush it properly and apply some anti fungal powder regularly. All the products are easily available at your pet shop. You can use some ointments having anti fungal properties for localized infection.

Deworming is absolutely necessary for your pets in rainy season. Pets are very succeptible to worms in this season. Worm infestation may lead to anemia, general debility anorexia, dullness of coat and many other complication.

I think that nutrition of your pet comes in foremost in rainy season. Due to bad weather condition, sometimes it is not possible to take out your pet for walking or exersise. If you are unable to do so for a long time, then you may notice obesity problem specially in case of Labrador. So you should be very careful about the feeding practice. Now a days, there are lot of good range of pet foods are available at your pet shop. In this season it is better to give feed according to the nutritional requirement of your dog. In home made feed, it is impossible to calculate the energy requirement of your dog for you. So you should go for a good quality feed of a good brand of dog feed. There are breed specific and weight specific feeds available in the market so you can choose at per your requirement. In my clinical practice, I have noticed that different dogs are suffering from nutritional diseases due to lack of protein, vitamins, minerals, who are provide home made feed. In case of home made feed, some minerals, vitamims live to be compensated from outside. So it is advisable to provide your dog readymade dog feed in spite of giving home made feed in rainy season. I may be contacted for any advise to the bellow mentioned phone and email.