If you’re wondering what’s the cutest, most adorable exotic pet you can own, hands down the answer is… a sloth. Looking at this slow-moving, tree-dwelling Amazonian mammal, you’d swear it is smiling back at you. And how many friends do you have that own a sloth for a pet? Probably you’ll be the first in your group. So after buying that exotic pet insurance, prepare for the deluge of visitors who want to see your exotic pet.

Does a Sloth Make a Good Pet

Though sloths are slow, they more than make up their speed with their personality. Sloths are very affectionate pets. Cradling one is almost like cradling an infant. In fact, sloths particularly love to play peek-a-boo, like babies! They love to hide under blankets, seemingly saying “Come find me if you can.” And because sloths are slow, you wouldn’t have problem about them escaping and ransacking your closet like other exotic pets do. Sloths are great around young children also; they may have somewhat sharp claws, they don’t use it to claw on people. And sloths love to be bathed and blow dried; the animals are very clean despite being so hairy.

Pet Sloth Diet

Although you paid for an exotic pet insurance, it’s heartbreaking to see your sloth get sick. So keep yours healthy by feeding it proper sloth diet. In the wild, sloths eat mainly tree leaves and occasionally munch on fruits. If you live far from the Amazon, however, it’s impossible to get hold of the tree leaves that these guys munch on. Luckily, sloths eat prepared Marion Zoological Leafeater’s Diet Biscuits, which you can buy exclusively from Marionzoological.com. The Marion Zoological Leafeater’s Diet Biscuits are mainly sold to zoo keepers only, but you can get your supply by contacting the center. So it’s best to secure your sloth’s special food first before you bring home your new pet. For treats, you can give sloths lettuces, some tropical fruits, and a couple of insects.

Housing a Pet Sloth

Sloths are tree dwellers doing most of their business high up on tree branches: eating, sleeping, mating, and all the works. In your house, your sloth would appreciate if you can put a tall cage with a couple of fake trees in it. Put ropes and a hammock in to serve as your sloth’s cozy bed. But, like other house pets, sloths will eventually learn to love your house too. So expect your sloth to be comfortable in your sofa, bed, or in your heated bathtub once it’s domesticated enough.

Where to Buy a Pet Sloth

If you live in the U.S., you can count by your fingers the duly licensed sloth breeders and distributors. One such sloth distributor is Incredible Pets Incorporated located in Melbourne, Florida. If you live elsewhere, do not buy sloths from illegal poachers if you don’t want to face a hefty fine or imprisonment for illegal wildlife trade. Even buying a baby sloth from a friend who has one is considered illegal if you don’t have proper permits from your local Department of Agriculture or Bureau of Wildlife Rescue.

Is It Legal to Own Sloth

Aside from exotic pet insurance, you should secure all licenses before getting your first pet sloth. Different states and different cities have particular ordinances and laws that govern people who want to own exotic pets, let alone endangered, such as a sloth. So know the laws in your area first to avoid a hefty fine or a possible incarceration. Bornfreeusa.org should provide you an initial knowledge about your legal obligation and contact information of the proper offices in charge in the country.

Exotic Pet Insurance

And to ensure everything runs smoothly, don’t forget to purchase an exotic pet insurance for your sloth. No matter how you care for your sloth, sooner or later, your pet is bound to need an exotic pet veterinarian whose fee could run up to your neck. An exotic pet insurance should take care of this matter for you.

With the many choices available, it’s easy to get confused about the best pet rodent for your child. Imagine walking into a pet rat supplies store and introduced to gerbils, guinea pigs, hamsters, mice, prairie dogs, rats, etc. Where do you start?

You start by educating yourself briefly about each pet rodent choice: their unique needs, special characteristics, and the degree of care difficulty.

Gerbils

Although small, gerbils are pretty jolly rodents. They’re not a boring pet rodent to have – you can even take them out of their cage to play in the living room. Keep a pair of same sex gerbils if you don’t want to care for a litter, though. Gerbils are pretty easy to house and to feed, too. They require only a small cage and simple pellets, which you can purchase from your pet rat supplies store. A gerbil’s tail can be as long as its body length, but never pick up your gerbil by the tail please!

Guinea Pigs

Guinea pigs are larger compared to other popular pet rodent species. Despite their size, they’re very gentle animals who rarely bite even when provoked. So don’t abuse guinea pigs as they don’t know how to fight back. Their diet is more complex than their smaller pet rodent cousins though. They particularly need vitamin C supplement, which you can readily shop online from pet rat supplies stores. The cavies are social animals too, so a couple of same sex cavies is recommended than keeping only one. They also need their exercise, which they can get from playing in a training wheel in their cage or running in your living room for example.

Hamsters

If you’ve got limited space that you can only squeeze in one small pet rodent, then get a hamster. Hamsters are solitary rodents, so they need to be caged alone. However, despite their size, hamsters are pretty naughty specially those that are not used to human interaction. They’re known to bite! That’s why hamsters may not be the best choice if you have young children at home. There’s no question about their diet and housing needs though. They eat almost anything you give them, but it’s best to give them only hamster food sold in pet rat supplies store where you get your hamster from.

Mice

Although mice and rats look exactly alike, they are slightly different in terms of their size. Mice are smaller than rats, and they are more agile and cranky. So you can’t take them out of their cage for playtime. If watching your pets go about their business in their cage is enough for you, you can get mice. A pair of mice requires only a small cage: a 12 inches x 18 inches floor space and 12 inches ceiling will do. This pet rodent species is not expensive to feed; they can eat anything you eat – no need to shop from pet rat supplies stores. However, don’t give them high in salt, sugar, and fat diet to protect their tiny kidneys.

Prairie Dogs

Prairie dogs are the largest among the common pet rodent species. Unlike other pet rodent species that you can easily purchase from pet rat supplies near you, prairie dogs are mostly acquired from the wild as babies. Yes, it’s legal to catch prairie dogs for pets in the U.S. – ask your local authorities if you live in other countries. Despite their size, prairie dogs can be very affectionate animals if you raised them from babies. They’re really like little dogs in terms of affection if they’re well bonded with you. Untamed prairie dogs, however, can bite. So don’t get them as adults if you have young children at home. And because they’re wild animals, prairie dogs need a lot of exercise and interaction, so they need time commitment. They’re fed grass hays, green vegetables, and rabbit pellets on rare occasions.

Rats

Despite how rats are condemned in the allies, domesticated rats are very clean and very affectionate pet rodents. In fact, you can take out a well bonded rat from its cage for a playtime. Just keep an eye on it all the time; a rat can’t return home alone if it’s lost. You can feed your rat the same healthy food you ate for dinner, so it’s not expensive to keep a pet rat.

Whatever your chosen pet rodent, it’s best to buy it already tamed and in tip-top shape. Look into small breeders rather than large ones with plenty of stock in their nurseries. Small breeders have more time to spend associating with each rodent, so their rodents are tamer than large breeders’.

Ever since, mice have been given a bad rap by the media. They’re one of the most condemned animals that walked on the face of the earth—mouse control contraptions of all types and sizes have been created for their demise. But for some people, the atrocities of mice are part and partial of their being mice. And for some, a fancy mouse even makes a great, intelligent companion pet to have.

Varieties of Fancy Mouse

If you’re planning to have a pet but want to avoid the cliché (i.e. dogs, cats, birds, etc.), a good alternative is a fancy mouse. There are five varieties of fancy mice that you can choose from as identified by the National Mouse Club:

Self – Fancy mice that are singly colored belonged to this variety.

Tans – This variety has rich golden hue (tan) coloration on the belly with clear demarcation of the top colors from the jaw to the flank.

Marked – These are beautifully colored fancy mice with distinct color patterns.

Satins – Fancy mice with bright, glossy sheen on their fur belonged to this variety.

AOV (Any other variety) – These are other fancy mice that don’t belong to the first four verities.

Fancy Mouse Temperament

If you can look pass your prejudices toward a fancy mouse, you might be surprised to learn they’re actually pretty docile animals. They make good pets for children! A mouse control is not needed if you know that mice will not bite unless provoked. The known bites by pet fancy mice are caused by mishandling including holding the animal while your fingers smell like cheese from a recent meal.

Fancy Mouse Intelligence

Pet dog owners might stop patronizing their pets’ intelligence if they know that fancy mice are equally if not more intelligent than larger, more common pets. A fancy mouse is able to recognize its name; it can be taught tricks; it has acute sense of smell like dogs; and most of all it’s able to potty train itself.

Fancy Mouse Shows

Since the organization of the National Mouse Club, fancy mice have become one of the smallest livestock shown to compete and win coveted prizes. Mouse shows are awaited competitions among fancy mice owners. It’s an annual event that fosters new friendship and spurs new ideas for mouse breeding and for more events. Having a pet fancy mouse can’t be boring.

Fancy Mouse Show Preparation

Fancy mice owners go to great lengths to prepare their pets for mouse shows. Preparing these pets ready for competitions involves more than just shampooing, powdering, or mites control; the fancier has to prepare mentally too. They take these competitions seriously, after all. Most of all, there are certain winning points that judges look for from a fancy mouse; fanciers must know these points too in order to secure the price when competing in a mouse show.

Pointers for Raising Fancy Mouse

When you plan to enter your fancy mouse to a mouse show, the preparation goes further back than just weeks before the event itself. The way you care for your mouse, that is to say feed, shelter, handle, train, and play with your pet can greatly determine whether you have a good chance of winning in competitions or not. Even the choice of the cage and substrate for your pet have also a bearing toward bagging the prize.

Now that you know what are possible when you have a fancy mouse for a pet, you might finally change your mind toward these animals. You might even put your mouse control contraptions in exchange for a pet mouse cage.

Although they may look like a pet insect or scorpion, a whip scorpion is neither. Being an arachnid, whip scorpions are closer to spiders in terms of genetic makeup than an insect or a scorpion. Despite its monstrous look and intimidating name, however, a whip scorpion is a gentle pet arachnid to have. It’s gentler than other pet insects, and it’s not venomous compared to real scorpions.

Whip Scorpion as Pet

Whip scorpions are non venomous compared to real scorpions, and they rarely use their pincers to inflect damage to a human being. Their whip tail is nothing like a whip also; it practically does nothing in terms of defense. The only defense they have is to spray vinegar to startle another prey. So they are a safe choice for children who want a venomous pet insect or spider. Whip scorpions are not demanding in terms of care and maintenance too, so you never have to worry in case you’re left to care for the arachnid when your son goes to summer camp.

Whip Scorpion Description

A whip scorpion got its name because of its appearance; it looks like a scorpion with a long thin tail like a whip and foreboding pincers like scorpions’. The arachnid can grow anywhere between 0.98 mm to 85 mm with most averaging to 30 mm in length. To defend itself, it sprays vinegar from its abdomen, thus its other name vinegaroons. People not familiar with a whip scorpion may mistaken it for a pet insect because it walks using 6 legs only when really the other pair of legs in the front is modified for use as antennae.

Feeding a Whip Scorpion

Part of the fun of having a pet whip scorpion is to watch it hunt for its food. Whip scorpions are fed with live feeder insects, so they appreciate freshly caught insects in the garden like grasshoppers, crickets, forest cockroach, etc. If you can’t be bothered to hunt for insects, you can order mealworms or crickets from your nearest exotic pet store. An adult whip scorpion can eat a full meal, meaning large insect, at least 3 times a week. Keep clean water in a shallow water dish with sponge in your pet’s tank all the time.

Housing a Whip Scorpion

Lucky for you whip scorpions are diurnal, so you can observe them active during the day. They come from the tropics so they need their tank to be relatively warm at about 20 degrees Celsius. A heat mat laid under half of the tanks bottom is the number one choice for heating. They thrive well in sphagnum or peat moss substrate that allows them to burrow. To complete the set up, have some hiding place like log tunnel or a creviced rock.

Handling a Whip Scorpion

Unlike in other pet insects, children can hold whip scorpions. The pet, however, is easily spooked, so sudden movements or touch should be avoided when handling whip scorpions. They should never be held high from the ground because a bad fall can kill them. They must be held low on the ground; they’re not allowed to run over the edge of a table; and they should never be picked up by their tails.

Choosing a Whip Scorpion

If you don’t want to end up with a bunch of little whip scorpions, always ask the pet store owner to give you a male whip scorpion. If you want a female, make sure it’s not pregnant. A healthy pet whip scorpion is active that can run pretty fast. It’s not limp, and it should have 4 pairs of legs including the antennae, a pair of pincers, and a whip tail.

Whip scorpions are a perfect pet for people who love to observe. They are perfect for children not just because they’re pretty docile, but because they make good pets for show and tell too.

This might surprise some: choosing a particular parrot species to take home as pet is challenging. You think you know what pet bird to get only to be surprised with a wide array of pet parrot species when you get to the pet store. The choices can be confusing, and if you’re buying a pet parrot for the first time, it means double the trouble for you. Knowing just the types of parrot is too broad; what can help you avoid the confusion is to know exactly the parrot species you want to get.

1. Budgerigar

The budgerigar or the budgies for most people is the number one favorite pet parrot in the world. It’s the number one favorite pet bird in general. Budgies are attractive in so many ways than their vivid colors. For one, budgies are the least demanding compared to the other parrot species; they basically eat anything you give them provided it’s raw. If you choose, you can do away parrot insurance because budgies are pretty sturdy pet birds that can go on for days without water. And contrary to popular belief, as small as they are, budgies are able to speak too.

2. Lovebirds

In all honesty, lovebirds may have become the second most popular pet parrot because of the hype about the species. But lovebirds may not be the best choice if you are a first time parrot owner. You might be surprise to find out that there are larger parrots that are generally easier to handle than lovebirds.

Lovebirds tend to be aggressive especially when in pair, and you can’t cage them together with another bird species or even another unfamiliar lovebird because they’re pretty territorial. Nonetheless, they are the only small parrot species that resembles larger parrots in terms of color pattern, beak shape, and other abilities.

3. Cockatiels

Cockatiels are the crested, small parrot species from Australia. Like their cousins, the budgerigar, they are popular pet parrots for the right reasons too. Because of their popularity, you can get cockatiels pet parrot insurance much like other larger parrot species.

The Lutino cockatiel is the most popular color mutation among cockatiels. Lutinos have white to light yellow plumage with a cute orange circular pattern on the cheeks. And of course their crest makes cockatiels standout among other small parrot species. They are fairly easy to feed; a balance diet of seeds, fruits, and organic vegetables is fairly cheap and readily available to buy. On the downside, cockatiels have difficulty vocalizing like humans compared to other popular parrot species.

4. Hyacinth Macaw

The cobalt blue and the yellow coloring at the base of a hyacinth macaw’s beak are perhaps what make this species the most favorite among big parrots. Under different light intensity, the plumage of a hyacinth can show hues of purple to violet. Although large, hyacinth macaws are one of the most affectionate parrot species. But being just birds, they don’t know how much power their grip and their friendly pinch pack, so handing them over to children to play with is not advisable.

If you couldn’t get a properly socialized macaw, though, it’s best to get one as a baby. Making the bird understand their strength through proper training must start at a young age.

5. African Grey

If you want a talker, hands down the African grey parrot is the best parrot species for you. Because of their scary ability to speak, African greys tend to be expensive. That’s why you need parrot insurance for your African grey to mitigate loss or other possible cost outlay in owning the pet parrot.

The intelligence of African greys, however, can play toward their disadvantage. This parrot species need constant stimulation to avoid boredom, which could lead to plucking. They need human interaction; they’re not the type of parrot you can leave alone in the cage for days at a time.

These are the five most popular parrot species you can choose from. As you can see, not all of them are popular because of their amazing attributes, so choose wisely when you decide and stick to your plan when you actually shop for your pet bird.

Owning an exotic pet white lion may only be possible for hardcore pet lovers with extra million dollars to burn from their asset because keeping an aggressive predator such as a lion as pet is expensive. Having a lion in your yard can be a cause of alarm for many: the neighbors’ cats and their owners, your family and friends, even the life of the exotic animal itself can be in danger if proper care and looking after is not ensured. That’s also the reason most states regulate owning an exotic pet white lion in the household level.

Here are some common questions and answers if you’re considering owning a white lion as pet.

Who Can Own a White Lion

Licensed zoo included, anybody with millions of dollars extra budget to burn may own a pet white lion. To begin with, a white lion cub can cost no less than $130,000 to acquire—forget about the measly couple of grand exotic pet insurance. (Forbes list white lions as the world’s most expensive pet.) If money isn’t a problem, consider your qualification of owning exotic pets.

Owning any exotic pets, much more a lion, is highly regulated by the state. If your state’s laws allow exotic pets at home level, you still need to apply for a license from proper agency, usually the Department of Wildlife and Rescue or any equivalent office. You must prove to the state that you are capable of caring and barricading your potentially dangerous pet from harming you, your family, and your community. This is the trickiest part of applying for a license: you may need to hire a pro zoo keeper to look after your pet before a license can be issued.

Where Do White Lions Originate

White lions originate from specific regions in Africa: their natural habitat is the region of Timbavati in South Africa; some sightings of white lions are also reported in the Kruger region. It’s not true what they say that white lions die of starvation in the wild due to camouflage issues when hunting: they thrive well in this region where the grassland are pale in winter and the ground are mostly white from extinct seabed.

Why are White Lions White

The exotic pet white lions are white because of a yet to be identified recessive gene that’s dictating the color of their coat, contrary to popular belief that they are albino. However they differ in terms of genetic makeup from their tawny cousins, they’re not classified as a subspecies of the Panthera leomaking them just ordinary lions.

Why are White Lions Not Considered Endangered

Because white lions are not accepted (at least not yet) a subspecies of Panthera leo, they’re not considered endangered species. This means it’s easier to own exotic pet white lions than other exotic pet species, if you have the money. Even then, there is evidence of rarity of these kinds of lions in the wild, so owning them should be done in a very responsible and secure way, if the laws in your state will allow individual ownership.

What’s Involved in Owning a White Lion as Exotic Pet

Aside from the essential exotic pet insurance that’s required of you as part of granting you license to own white lions, you’re in to other “pricey” necessities of owning an exclusive fresh-meat-eating predator. The veterinary needs of lions are pricey too: not all vets and vet clinics can handle, much less trained to take care of, big, exotic pets such as lions. You might need to hire the same vets that licensed zoo hires for their animals

By now you should be able to decide if an exotic pet lion is for you or not. Just keep in mind to keep your family, community, the animal’s, and your safety above your desire to standout or own a stunning pet such as a white lion.

Considered the big cat for the big boys, the Bengal cat is an exotic pet that you can get if living with a dog in a condo is too cliché for you. Packed with playful attitude, immunity to common lethal feline viruses and leukemia, and a build of an Asian leopard cat wrapped in an amazing color pattern, you couldn’t ask for anything more from a Bengal. Despite the fact that they are bred by humans by crossing domesticated cat and Asian leopard cat, the Bengal is still considered an exotic pet fetching a price from $1,000 up.

Why Own a Bengal Cat

If you set a sight on a Bengal cat, there’s almost no more reason needed to get your own. Beginning on its exotic Asian leopard color pattern, you can see clearly that there’s no other domesticated cat that can come close. Proceeding to its precession built physique; the cat is agile like its wild ancestor. And then there’s its immunity to feline immune virus and other common viruses that are lethal to common housecats, the Bengal is built to last its lifetime. If you want a bonus, the Bengal is short haired, dander free so people with allergies can handle it!

Bengal Cat Temperament

Although Bengals have Asian leopard cat genes in them, they’re not at all aggressive like wild cats. In fact, they’re affectionate, sweet exotic pet kittens that adore their people. They’re very playful unlike their cousins the housecats that sits almost all day annoyed if you make the slightest move to play with them. A Bengal cat would definitely not pass an opportunity to sniff catnip or play hide and seek in the sofa with you. They’re gentle enough to be handled by your nieces and nephew too.

Bengal Cat Color Pattern

What attracts people to Bengal cat the most is its distinct coloration. There are basically four color patterns of Bengal cats: spotted to a brown or white background or marbled to a brown or white background. The most common color pattern is the spotted in brown background and the rarest is the marbled in white background, thus it’s the most expensive.

The leopard color pattern of a Bengal clearly shows it’s an exotic pet that demands attention wherever you take your cat. The best spot or marble coloration on a Bengal is that with light surrounded by dark hue.

Exotic Pet Insurance for your Bengal Cat

Because Bengal cats are exotic, they fetch a price from $1,000 up—they’re expensive but with their life expectancy of up to 16 years, it’s a good investment. Your exotic pet cat will be with you for the long haul. Exotic pets are illegible for exotic pet insurance—you must. It’s an expensive cat to have; an exotic pet insurance should mend possible losses with your pet, if not mend your broken heart. But to be sure, don’t let your pet Bengal roam outside your perimeter for whatever reason if you don’t want to post a lost kitten bill around.

Guide to Buying a Bengal

The high price of a Bengal attracts fly-by-night, unqualified breeders that results to Bengals that are not properly crossed. These Bengal cats are less immune to diseases—worse they develop signs of inbreeding that causes troubles to your cat’s health. So avoid unnecessary vet cost and heartache by buying from reputable Bengal cat breeders only. These breeders are licensed or a member of one or more Bengal cat owner and breeder associations; look for proof of membership from the breeder before buying your pet Bengal.

Bengals are playful, exotic pet that needs daily attention from their owners. So if you’re a first time cat owner, you might want to learn everything about them before coming home with an exotic pet such as a Bengal cat.

It’s a joy for thoroughbred owners to see their pet horse develop to its full potential and claim its glory, even just once, in a racetrack. To make this happen proper diet and “horse training” should be the brick and mortar of a thoroughbred. For this, horse racing programs that ensure the proper physical, emotional, and psychological development of your thoroughbred should be a pet horse owner’s top priority. If you must invest money on your thoroughbred, make it money well spent on horse racing programs that are developed by professional horse trainers and horse veterinarians.

Take it Slow

Have you heard of the saying “I’m slow because I’m in hurry?” To hurry to where you want to go with your thoroughbred (the winners’ podium), you must take it slow with your thoroughbred’s training. You can’t rush your horse’s development; a young horse takes time to develop its brain as well as its body muscle to be fit to run in a racetrack with an objective to win.

So be wary about trying horse training programs that promises your thoroughbred to be ready to race in a month or two. Although certified, professional trainers have slightly different approach to horse training, on average it takes about 6 months from start of training for your young thoroughbred to be able to run its first race—provided the training runs smoothly without injuries or other setbacks.

Teach the Gallop

Provided the young thoroughbred is already broken, the first exercise your pet horse is going to master is the gallop. Excellent horse racing programs almost always start with good gallop training. For this a trainer will have your pet horse jog one-half to one mile to warm up followed by the 1-2 miles galloping exercise daily, depending on your horse’s stamina and physical state. To start, a gallop speed of one-eighth mile in 18 minutes is good. This should pick up as the training progresses. It usually takes about 1 to 2 months for a young thoroughbred to develop a winning gallop speed, so be patient about the training.

Proceed to Breezing

By now you must have known that the daily horse training is started with a jog, and now with a gallop too, to warm up. The breezing part of the training is where you see an aggressive pickup in speed. But again apply the brakes by taking it slow at first. A good training program starts by an “in hand” breeze that lets your thoroughbred show off what it’s got by breezing through the track without urging of any kind by the rider—let your horse run on its own without cracking a whip or kicking the saddle.

The speed in breezing exercise will depend on the stage of the training and the kind of track your horse run through. Working closely with a professional horse trainer at this period is the best practice.

Ready to Race

Depending on your horse’s progress, a breezing exercise should wrap up your thoroughbred’s training program. Once your trainer is confident that your horse can deliver a good fight in the racetrack, you can now become a proud of owner of a thoroughbred that’s ready for its first race!

Other Thoroughbred Training Essential

No matter how you train your horse, without proper food and pampering your thoroughbred will just not have enough energy or inspiration to win a race. That’s why horse training programs always have the best health, diet, and pampering program in them. Think about the money you spend on horse massage as investment for your pet.

At the end of the day, a thoroughbred horse training program is subjective. No single horse training schedule fits a thoroughbred. The training schedule should depend on your horse’s progress and state of being. Because of this, working with a professional horse trainer is the only way to go.

There are two different types of common dog heart diseases. One of them is Congenital and the other one is acquired dog heart disease. Anyone who owns a dog must have the knowledge of these common dog disease and medications. If you have enough knowledge of common heart disease in dogs you can deliver swift medication and dog medications on the right time to save your beloved pet.

Congenital Heart Diseases

The congenital heart diseases are those with a dog is born with. Most of these diseases are caused by genetic predisposition, pregnancy problems, and even problems during birth. These are the main congenital heart diseases in dogs.

Tetralogy of Fallot

Tetralogy of fallot (TOF) in dogs is consists of four heart abnormalities that result in insufficiently oxygenated blood being pumped into the dog’s body. It is the most common cyanotic heart disease in dogs. TOF consists of pulmonic stenosis, a ventricular septal defect, ventricular hypertrophy defect, and an overriding aorta. For this there are not so many dog medications options available.

The only definitive solution for tetralogy of fallot in dogs is open heart surger, which is very dangerous especially for small dogs. There’s another heart surgery that are less dangerous and is recommended for smaller dogs, but it’s effects are less definite than full open heart surgery.

Patent Ductus Arteriosus

This is another main congenital heart disease in dogs. Patent Ductus Arteriosus is a small arterial connection between the aorta and pulmonary artery in dogs that normally closes at birth or shortly after that. The treatment of this problem can be done only by surgery. If your dog is younger than 2 years, then surgeries are the best dog medications for this disorder.

Heart Valve Dysplasia

A dog with heart valve dysplasia has a defect in the main mitral valve; it is the left atrioventricular valve of the heart. Unfortunately, there’s no cure available for this disorder. There are some dog medications that can be taken just to make your dog feel better, though.

Pulmonic Stenosis in Dogs

In this type of congenital disease the connection between the right side of heart and the lungs is blocked. Dog doctors suggest heart surgery to get rid of this disease.

Acquired Heart Diseases

Acquired heart diseases are not born defects. These disorders are caused or acquired after the birth of the dog. So they occur in their life time.

Chronic Valvular Disease

Chronic Valvular Disease is the degeneration and thickening of dog’s heart valves. It is very common. It also represents the adult canine heart diseases in dogs. To cure this disorder you can use positive inotropic drugs increases contractions of the main cardiac muscles.

Myocardial Disease

This disorder affects the muscular walls of a dog’s heart preventing the walls from expanding and contracting correctly for proper blood flow. This problem needs heart transplant, and since there is no transplant available for dogs, it cannot be cured.

Arrhythmias

Arrhythmia is caused by multiple problems like illness, hormones, electrolyte imbalance, etc. Common dog medications like digoxin and atropine are some of the treatments of this disorder.

Pericardial Effusion

Pericardial effusion is the fluid accumulation in a dog’s pericardium. This disorder needs prompt treatment. In most cases, vets will drain the fluid out of the lungs to reduce the pressure.

These were the main heart diseases and the corresponding dog medications to treat them. Look out for the symptoms of any of these disorders. If you suspect your dog has any of these heart diseases, go to your pet’s vet immediately for proper diagnosis and treatment.