WEEKLY EXAM
Your pet should get a thorough nose to tail exam once a week.
Get comfortable in examining your pet. Your pet should be fine with letting you put your fingers in his mouth or brushing his hair to feel for lumps.
The first thing that you have to be familiar with are ‘normals’:
Vital Statistics: Pulse and Heart Rate
Normal resting rates: Cats: 150-200 bpm Small dogs: 90-120 bpm Medium dogs: 70-110 bpm Large dogs: 60-90 bpm
Pulse should be strong, regular and easy to locate.
Checking the pulse
The easiest place to locate a pulse is the femoral artery in the groin area. Place your fingers on the inside of the hind leg and slide your hand upward until the back of your fingers touches the abdomen. Gently move your fingers back and forth on the inside of the hind leg until you feel the pulsing blood. Count the number of pulses in 15 seconds and multiply that number by 4. This will give you the beats per minute (bpm).
If the pulse is elevated, then you may be dealing with a nervous pet, an underlying metabolic disease, such as hyperthyroidism, or a primary heart problem.
If the pulse is slower and weak, then I look for other signs of shock (i.e. internal bleeding) or a poison.

A normal dog's temperature is 101 F (38.0 C), a normal cat's temperature is 102 F (38.5 C). Taking your pet's temperature involves placing a thermometer in their rectum. If your pet has a temperature of 103.5 F (39.5 C) or more, they have a fever.
Thermometer should be almost clean when removed. Abnormalities are indicated by blood, diarrhea, or black, tarry stool. If your dog has a temperature KEEP THEM HYDRATED, this is very important. Anything over 40c I would take to the vet anyway and they can and will often put them on a drip to keep the fluids up! Offer plenty of fresh water in different spots around the house. If your pet refuses to drink, use an eyedropper or turkey baster to squirt water into the side of its mouth. For an added boost, add Pedialyte, an electrolyte solution available from the pharmacy; minerals become depleted when your pet is dehydrated. Some pets prefer chicken or beef broth, or tuna juice; give them whatever works.
Also over 41c your pets organs will begin to breakdown so emergency veterinary treatment is required!!
If the fever persists for more than 24 hours or your animal is not drinking call your vet!

The Eyes
The surface of the eye (cornea) should be clear. The middle of the eye (pupil) should respond to light. You can shine a light into your pets’ eyes and see the pupil constrict. The right and left pupils should be equal size.
The lens, which sits behind the pupil, should be clear. If it appears cloudy, then your pet may be developing cataracts. This may be normal for an aging pet, or may be a sign of disease, such as diabetes.
The area around the eye, the white tissue, is called the sclera. It should be a clear white color. In cases of liver disease, it will become yellow (jaundiced).
The pink tissue around the eye is called the conjunctiva; it is normally a light pink color. In infections, it becomes a darker pink and the eyes will produce a white or greenish discharge. The Eyelids should be free of any lumps or bumps; older pets commonly develop benign eyelid tumors, which may need removal by your veterinarian.
There should be no discharge from your pets’ eyes; excessive tearing may indicate a blocked tear duct.
The last part of the eyes to examine is the 3rd eyelid. It sits in the corner of the lower eye closest to the nose. It is not usually seen. In cases of conjunctivitis, it may become very red. It contains a gland that can pop out (prolapsed 3rd eyelid gland). This may respond to anti-inflammatory medication or have to be treated surgically.

The Ears
Your pet should not be shaking their head; if they do there may be an ear infection.
The outside of the ear (pinna) should be a light pink and palpate as being flat. Any thickening could indicate an ear infection, allergy or a blood blister in the ear (aural hematoma).
The inside of the ear (ear canal) should be easy to see and free of discharge. A small amount of light yellow discharge is probably normal wax. Any foul smelling odor indicates an infection. A yellowy discharge often indicates a yeast infection. Hard black debris in your cats’ ears likely indicates ear mites. If debris an odor are present, then clean your pets ears.
A safe home remedy involves a 50:50 mixture of vinegar and water. Drop the mixture in the ear canal, rub the base of the ear well to loosen up the debris, and then wipe out the excess by placing a cotton ball as deep as you can into the ear canal. Repeat the cleaning until the debris appears removed from the ear.

Nose
Check for any signs of discharge from the right or left nostril. The occasional clear discharge is normal for some pets, but ongoing discharge indicates a problem, such as an allergy or grass seed.Any purulent (thick, whitish) discharge is abnormal and indicates a bacterial infection in the nasal cavity or sinuses.
Feel that air is flowing through both nostrils by placing a hair in front of each nostril. An abnormal growth in the nose can block airflow into the nostril.
The nose may appear dry or wet; a wet nose means that the glands in the nose are producing more fluid. This is not a sign of disease.

The Mouth
Examine the outside of your pets’ mouth first. The lips should appear smooth and have no signs of inflammation.
Pay close attention to lip folds in the large breed dogs with lots of extra skin. If saliva accumulates, then wipe the area with a medicated antiseptic such as Hibitane.
Lift up your pets lips and examine their teeth. The gums should appear a healthy light pink color (except in breeds such as Chows with dark pigment). Pay close attention to the area where the teeth begin. Inflamed gums appear a darker red and may even bleed if you touch them. This is a sign of gingivitis and may mean your pet needs a dental cleaning. Examine all the teeth (42 in a dog). The teeth should not be broken or cracked. None of the tooth roots should be visible.

The Neck
Palpate base of the jaw and the beginning of the neck. In this area you can feel the corner of the bottom jaw (mandible).
Here you should be able to feel the submandibular lymph nodes and parotid salivary gland. Most of the time you won't feel anything in this area.
If there are palpable swellings, then the lymph nodes are probably enlarged suggesting an infection in the body. There are two other lymph nodes areas that I routinely check. The area in front of the shoulder blades has the prescapular lymph nodes. The area behind the knees in the rear legs has the popliteal lymph nodes. The lymph nodes may be enlarged due to a local infection, a generalized infection or even due to cancer.
Any lymph node swelling is serious, so have your veterinarian look for the causes of the swelling, but it is important to catch the signs early. Your pet may benefit from some immune stimulation.

Hypoallergenic Diet

If your dog has ongoing skin problems or you suspect a food allergy here is a recipe that is very low in possible ingredients that could be a cause of the problem.

Boiled white fish or canned tuna 1 cup
Boiled potatoes or Cooked rice 4 cups
Calcium carbonate or Tums 1 teaspoon
Corn Oil 1 tablespoon
Potassium chloride (light salt) 1 teaspoon
One-a-day multivitamin 1 tablet

There is always a million recipies for dogs and people seem to guard their opinions very dearly. This recipe is one of countless but one none the less.

Poisoning First Aid

It is a good idea to have hydrogen peroxide and activated charcoal always on hand.
In my opinion it is always better to prevent rather than cure poisoning. It is like childproofing your home, so it is for animals and particularly Australian Bulldogs....as they will eat anything! It still makes me reel remembering the stories of these people, one who bought ferrets and one who had two slipper dogs(shitzu types). Both had ratsack laying around and lost pets and had very sick animals! I live in the bush and suffer mice, I find mousetraps work very well at keeping the population down and there are many sealed traps available....the best being from farm supply stores. In the country you will never be rid of mice, but you can keep them to a few!

This is what I would advise in the case of poison:
TO YOUR VETERINARIAN. If your pet is showing signs of ingesting a poison, it is important that she is examined by your veterinarian and treated appropriately. Some toxins can progress and lead to severe seizures. If you suspect Antifreeze poisoning, it must be treated within 4-6 hours, before irreversible kidney damage is done.
PURGE THE POISON. In most cases of poisoning, getting your pet to vomit is the most important thing that you can do. DO NOT INDUCE VOMITING if something caustic has been consumed (such as drain cleaner or bleach). To induce vomiting, give hydrogen peroxide at 1 teaspoon per 10 lbs of body weight. If your pet does not vomit in 10 minutes, repeat again. NEVER do more than two treatments of peroxide. You can also try salt: dilute 1 teaspoon of salt in a tablespoon of water per every 10lbs of body weight.
DELAY ABSORPTION. Activated charcoal is readily available at most pharmacies. It delays absorption of any toxin by binding to the toxic compound in the stomach. The easiest way is to give the capsule form.