Do You Need Help With Your Veterinary Bills?

Below is a comprehensive list of pet financial aid-related organizations for the regions of Florida, Georgia and Puerto Rico. We always recommend to  contact your local registered / certified rescue groups and veterinary schools to learn about resources that may help.

If your organization is offering assistance (such as pet food, discounted veterinary services including spay/neuter, temporary foster care, etc.) to individuals facing financial difficulties due to the current economic situation, please let us know about your programs by emailing us at admin@bestvetsforpets.com

Florida

Central Brevard Humane Society: Cocoa (assistance for veterinary care including spay/neuter)

www.crittersavers.com

Humane Society of Broward County: Ft. Lauderdale (low-cost spay/neuter)

http://humanebroward.com/

Alachua County Humane Society: Gainesville (pet food)

www.alachuahumane.org

St. Francis Animal Hospital: Jacksonville (assistance for veterinary care including spay/neuter)

www.saintfrancisanimalhospital.org

Bright Paw Pet food Bank: Melbourne (pet food assistance)

321-733-7672

SPCA Suncoast: New Port Richey (pet food)

http://www.spcasuncoast.org

Pet Project for Pets: Oakland Park (provides pet food and supplies for terminally ill, disabled and senior pet owners)

www.petprojectforpets.org

Central Florida Animal Pantry: Orlando (pet food and supplies, spay/neuter assistance, and grooming assistance)

http://www.animalpantry.org

SPCA of Central Florida: Orlando (pet food, spay/neuter assistance, temporary foster program, discounted veterinary care)

http://www.orlandopets.org

Spay Shuttle: Palm Beach County (spay/neuter assistance)

www.pbcgov.com/publicsafety/animalcare/spay_shuttle.htm

SPOT Low Cost Spay/neuter Clinic: Pinellas Park (spay/neuter and vaccination assistance)

www.spotusa.org

Humanitarian Animal Relief Program (HARP): Port Orange (pet food and supplies, assistance for necessary veterinary medical care) 386-795-7323 http://www.harpforpets.com/

Pasco Animal Welfare Society (PAWS):Port Richey (spay/neuter assistance)

www.pawsfl.com

Collier Spay Neuter Clinic: Southwest Florida (spay/neuter assistance)

www.collierspayneuter.org

Animal Coalition of Tampa (ACT): Tampa (spay/neuter and vaccination assistance)

www.actampa.org

Humane Society of Tampa Bay: Tampa Bay (pet food, discounted/free vaccinations)

http://www.humanesocietytampa.org/

SPCA Tampa Bay: Tampa Bay (spay/neuter assistance)

http://www.spcafl.org/site/PageServer

The Humane Society of Vero Beach and Indian River Co.:Vero Beach (pet food, spay/neuter assistance, limited medical assistance)

772-388-3331

Georgia

PALS: Pets Are Loving Support (veterinary care assistance programs for senior, disabled or ill pet owners)

palsatlanta.org

Cherokee County Humane Society: Acworth (spay/neuter assistance)

www.cchumanesociety.org

LifeLine Animal Project: Atlanta (spay/neuter assistance)

http://www.atlantapets.org/

PAWS Atlanta: Atlanta (spay/neuter assistance)

http://pawsatlanta.org

Project CatSnip: Atlanta (spay/neuter assistance)

http://www.atlantaanimalalliance.com/catsnip.htm

Stopping Pet Overpopulation Together (SPOT): Atlanta (spay/neuter assistance)

http://spotsociety.org

Humane Society of Hall County: Gainesville (spay/neuter assistance)

http://www.humanesocietyofhallco.com/

Daffy’s Pet Soup Kitchen: Lilburn (pet food and supplies, spay/neuter assistance, temporary foster program, assistance for necessary veterinary medical care)

http://www.daffyspetsoupkitchen.com/

Spay And Neuter Team of Atlanta Marietta (spay/neuter and vaccination assistance)

www.spay-neuterteam.com

Floyd County Animal Control: Rome (pet food assistance for Floyd County residents)

http://www.floydcountyga.org/Animal%20Control/About.htm

Pet Assistance League of Savannah: Savannah (spay/neuter assistance)

http://www.geocities.com/Petsburgh/3592/

Spay Georgia: Statewide (spay/neuter assistance)

http://spaygeorgia.org

Carroll County Humane Society’s West Georgia Spay/neuter Clinic: Villa Rica (spay/neuter assistance)

http://www.westgeorgiaspayneuter.com/

Puerto Rico

Puerto Rico Animal Welfare Society: Isabela (spay/neuter and vaccination assistance)

http://www.petfinder.com/shelters/PR07.html

als.org

Please keep in mind that each organization is independent and has their own set of rules and guidelines. Therefore you will have to investigate each one separately to determine if you qualify for assistance.

Information source:  The Humane Society of the United States www.humanesociety.org

Why Does My Dog Eat Poop? (Coprophagia)

Coprophagia (poop eating) is usually a nasty learned habit and not a medical problem. Here are the top reasons why dogs eat poop and what you can do to curb their appetite!

1. Oral fixation habit—puppies (like human children) go through a phase where they put anything and everything in their mouths in order to investigate. Unfortunately, this often includes feces. As dogs mature, usually this habit goes away…but not always.
Vet Tip: encourage oral investigation of toys and other objects. Do not punish or give excessive attention if your puppy does eat feces—this will just reinforce the behavior.

2. Allelomimetic behavior—this is the fancy name for learned behavior. If your dog watches you pick up poop, he can learn to do the same. If his beloved master is doing it, why shouldn't he…?
Vet Tip: Clean the poop out of the yard when your dog is not around!

3. Attention getting behavior—many dog owners get very upset when their dog eats poop…which means he is getting the attention he desires. Although it is negative attention, it is attention nonetheless.
Vet Tip: Try not to react so negatively when you know your dog has been snacking on his poo. Pretty soon it will lose its novelty and without your attention, many times they drop the behavior.

4. Housekeeping—dogs that are crated, kenneled, or even kept in one room within the house will learn to function as their own housekeeper. In other words, if they poop in their space, they will "clean up" the only way they know how!
Vet Tip: Clean any feces up immediately. If your dog is crated throughout the day, consider hiring a dog walker or someone to come in during the day to clean up.

5. Hiding the evidence—if your dog is reprimanded for pooping (for example, in his crate or other space), he may eat the poop to stop you from finding it and getting angry.
Vet Tip: Tone it down if your dog poops in the cage. Don't punish the dog or you may have a nasty habit to deal with.

6. Genetics/Instinct—there are some breeds that are "carriers"…they carry poop around and may or may not eat it. Also, if your dog has puppies, she is likely to eat their poop. This is an instinct to hide the poop from predators.
Vet Tip: This instinct usually goes away in a mother dog. Otherwise, the best you can do is to teach the "leave it" command and be a meticulous cleaner!

7. Food problems—If a dog is not getting a nutritionally balanced diet (rare, these days), or eating a poor quality food, they may be eating their poop because of a deficiency. If your dog is eating too little or eating too much, they can also engage in poop-eating.
Vet Tip: always feed a high quality, nutritionally balanced diet in the correct quantities (work with your vet) to maintain your dog's ideal weight.

8. Medical problems—this is the least likely reason for your dog to eat poop. If a dog is plagued with parasites or problems that cause maldigestion or malabsorption, they may eat poop.
Vet Tip: Have your vet check your dog for parasites and perform a general health check. Remember, if your dog eats poop routinely, they are more likely to acquire parasites and you should have them checked 2-3 times a year.

If all else fails, some dogs respond positively to the addition of fresh pineapple to their food. The natural enzyme in pineapple causes their poop to taste distasteful to them...as if it wasn't distasteful enough!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Donna Spector, DVM, DACVIM,, is a renowned, board-certified Veterinary Internal Medicine Specialist who has practiced at the Animal Medical Center in New York City and other leading institutions. She is an active member of the American Veterinary Medical Association (AVMA) and the American Holistic Veterinary Medical Association.

A Kiss From A Dirty Mouth!

It’s good to give hugs, but avoid giving kisses. Kisses seem nice, but dogs have very dirty mouths. Dogs go through garbage cans, toilet bowls, and love smelling and licking specific body parts of some other dogs. There is an old... wives’ tale that says that the mouth of a dog is cleaner than that of a human. This couldn’t be farther from the truth.

Please Help Your Local Rescue Group!

Rescue groups are always in need of foster homes to continue their important work. Rescues often provide food, supplies, and cover veterinary expenses for dogs in foster homes. If you are interested in fostering or adopting a dog, please contact one of our recommended rescue groups in Georgia: Hickory Level Hound Rescue and Laskey's Lucky Ones & Volunteers.

How To Teach Any Dog PERFECT Obedience!

Very interesting video about dog training! Please watch How To Teach Any Dog PERFECT Obedience (Sit, Down & Stand)

Jerky Treats & Fanconi Syndrome in Pets

In this video we briefly discuss the causes, clinical signs and diagnostic tests needed in Fanconi Syndrome cases. This condition has been recently associated with the feeding of contaminated jerky treats to pets in the USA.

Doing Volunteer Work At Our Veterinary Hospital

Want to learn about what Veterinary Medicine ? Are you interested in the field of animal care ? If the answer to any of these two questions is yes, then we want you to be part of our volunteer program. Watch the following video and find out if you have the qualities to be one of our volunteers.

 

If you are interested in doing volunteer work with us, please call us at (404) 366-4370 for more information. You must be at least 16 years old to participate in our volunteer program.