Watch that hungry horse!

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A pet is a member of the family. When a pet falls sick, the rest of the family worries. How does one gauge when a pet is sick? Especially if your four legged fur ball is a new addition to your family.

Vet Lohith advises all new pet owners to first understand the norms of the species of their pets. “We always have a small training session for all new pet owners. We teach them what normal behaviour is for their pet. For example, hamsters generally sleep during the day and are active at night. They run on the wheel of the cage for most of the night.”
The diet and eating habits of a pet is the most important factor. Most common symptoms are loose motions and vomiting. Abhilash V says that her dog gets sick only when she eats rubbish off the roads during her walks. “That’s probably the only thing I worry about. As long as her diet is fine, nothing goes wrong. The best symptoms is diarrhea. I also check her nose to see if it’s dry. Their stomach gets extremely warm. That’s when you know that something is wrong.”
Vet Pavan Kumar says smaller animals like hamsters, rabbits and guinea pigs require a complete check up every three to six months. They also require regular vaccinations and de-worming. However, for birds it is much lesser. “Once a year is fine. It is pretty easy to gauge if birds fall sick. They lose their appetite and they become extremely dull and inactive. They also peck their body.” The most common symptom for a bird falling sick is a syndrome known as ‘ruffled feather’ syndrome. This is when their feathers get puffed up.
Dr Lohith says, “Any pet, be it a hamster or a dog, have their own specific diet. They should be given what they would eat in their own natural environment.”
It is difficult to gauge when hamsters fall sick, says Jatin S. “When I first got my hamsters, I wasn’t aware of how they behave. One of them would just sit in a corner during the day and night and wouldn’t move, while the other one scurried around. It was only much later that I understood that she was sick and it wasn’t just her ‘personality’.”
Regular health check ups, healthy diet, lots of exercise and love is what keeps our furry friends from being under the weather!