DR BRUCE CHARD

contact@northharbourvet.co.nz MY 12-year-old labrador, Rex, refuses to go up the stairs to the upper level in our townhouse. He fell down when he last used them. He is on tablets for arthritis and is still keen to go for walks and can use the steps to go out to our garden. Do you think he has a back problem?

Refusing to use stairs can be a sign of back pain in dogs, but as he is not worried by the steps into the garden then there may be another reason. Often as dogs get older they are not as able to manage stairs so well. This is particularly so with narrow stairs in a house and in this case he has probably lost confidence. Your vet can check for back pain by palpating along his spine and checking his hip joints for arthritis. It does not sound as though he has degeneration of his spinal cord as this also can lead to poor control of his back legs. Best to just accept his absence from your bedrooms.

We have recently noticed that Smokey our 5-year-old cat has broken the tip off his lower canine tooth. He does not seem worried by it and is still eating normally. Should we have it removed?

Although Smokey is apparently not showing signs of discomfort with his broken tooth it would be wise to have him checked. If the pulp cavity has been exposed then the tooth will be painful and need either advanced dental care or extraction. Many vet clinics now routinely do dental x-rays and this will show if there is an abscess involving the tooth, which would then need to be removed. Often cats will not show obvious signs of dental pain so you will help Smokey by seeking expert help. ● Dr Bruce Chard owns North Harbour Veterinary Clinic in Auckland.