Products

Dr.Pagel’s favorite pet products

Yes, there’s 1 or 2% credit we get if you buy from these links. As sellers change rapidly at Amazon, I will try to give a description of the type of product for you to search for in case the links are not kept up to date or the seller or brand disappears. I will never list anything on this page I do not believe in or use myself on my own animals. -Dr. Pagel, Owner, Companion Animal Hospital

Index:
Dog Dental Products
Cat Dental Products
Grooming Tools
Puzzle Feeders / Portion Control
Cat Toys
Other Gear – UV Light, Heating pads
Ear Cleansers
Litter Boxes, Litter Mats
Behavior Aids

Teeth / Dental Products
The most expensive thing to ignore !

Clean teeth means a longer life. Period.
An $800 dental cleaning and extraction and X-rays could have bought a LOT of water additive and PlaqueOff and Greenies. Let’s not wish we could text ourselves 10 years in the past, start dental care now.

The BEST advice I can give is to download the approved list PDF and check the approved product list from the Veterinary Oral Health Council (www.vohc.org). Companies submit testing data to the VOHC and earn (they cannot just buy) the VOHC seal of approval for plaque and/or tartar control. These products work, I’ve seen their benefits for over 20 years in pets. Yes, annual cleaning is the best, but that’s a lot of anesthesia and expense. Yes, daily brushing is second best, but few owners do that. Dental formula food is third-best, and those are in the VOHC lists.

Every $1 you spend on preventatives is probably $6 you aren’t spending years down the road, and oh, your pet’s teeth may be easier and cheaper to clean if they do need cleaning, AND their mouth won’t hurt as much.

Dog Dental Products

My personal favorites are a combination: Daily brushing, Dental formula food, PlaqueOff on the food, Greenies treats, and water additive.
PDF list of VOHC approved Dog Products at the VOHC

>>>Dog Dental Foods with both a plaque and tartar claim:
Hill’s® Science Diet® Dog Adult Oral Care Dry
Hill’s® Healthy Advantage™ Adult Oral+ Dog Dry
Hill’s® Prescription Diet® Dog t/d® Dry (Pricier, Rx needed)
. . . . Other foods with only a Tartar claim:
Purina® Pro Plan® Veterinary Diets Dog DH Dental Health Diet Dry
Royal Canin Dental dog food
Royal Canin Dental Small Bites dog food
Eukanuba Adult Maintenance Large Breed, or Small Breed

>>>Dog Dental Chews
Purina® Pro Plan® Veterinary Diets Dog Dental Chewz
Tartar Shield Soft Oral Care Rawhide Chews for Small Dogs, Large Dogs, oh my gawd X-Large Dogs

My first favorite is Greenies® Dental Chews for Dogs (4 sizes, various quantities)
… Greenies® also available in Blueberry, Grain Free, and Freshmint
… Greenies at Amazon

Checkups Chews for dogs 20lbs and over
C.E.T.® Enzymatic Oral Hygiene Chews for Dogs (4 sizes)
C.E.T.® Chews Hextra™ (chlorhexidine anti-bacterial, anti-viral)
C.E.T.® VeggieDent® Zen Tartar Control Chews for Dogs (calming ingredient)
C.E.T.® VeggieDent® Flex Tartar Control Chews for Dogs (joint supplement)
C.E.T.® VeggieDent® Fr3sh® Tartar Control Chews for Dogs
Milk-Bone Original Brushing Chews, (Mini,S/M, Regular, various quantities)
OraVet® Dental Hygiene Chews
Purina DentaLife ActivFresh Oral Care Small and Toy, Small/Medium, Large breed
….Dentastix by Pedigree
HUGE variety and quantiy for puppy/Toy in chicken, bacon or beef, or mint/fresh,
Small/Medium breed in regular or mint/fresh, and
Large breed in regular flavors or mint/fresh.

>>>My other favorite food additive/ chew is PlaqueOff. For dogs it comes in various forms:
…PlaqueOff original mini-flake “powder” 60 gram trial/small dog, or 180 gram, or 420 gram tub
…chew bones, in Chicken+Pumpkin, Turkey+Cranberry, Vegan Mini Peanut Butter+ Banana, and Vegan Mini Vegetable size.

>>>Water Additives. Yes, they absolutely can work, but most everyone stops using them. I’m a pet-owner, too, so I know what the thinking is. You dump out their water dish with unused additive ($$), pour a new bowl, and add more additive which you will throw away half of tomorrow ($$). There’s no glitter, it doesn’t foam, so there’s little psychological reward. I’m telling you, the owners who keep the dental water additives right by the bowl have great success with slowing or eliminating tartar build up.

I’ll repeat: An $800 dental cleaning and extraction and X-rays could have bought a LOT of water additive and PlaqueOff and Greenies.

TropiClean Fresh Breath Oral Care Water Additive
Naturel Promise Fresh Dental Water Additive
HealthyMouth Dog Water Additive

>>>Others without VOHC approval that I’ve seen work:
Maxi/Guard® Oral Cleansing Gel (Gel that goes on their gums with zinc to reduce bacteria)
Maxiguard Oral Spray

Cat Dental Products

My personal favorites are a combination: Daily brushing, Dental formula food, PlaqueOff on the food, Greenies treats, and water additive. VOHC approved Cat Products

>>>Cat Dental Foods, either as the entire meal, or, cleverly, mix a small bag into a new bag of your super-food of choice and mix it in. Foods with both a plaque and tartar claim
Hill’s® Prescription Diet® Cat t/d® Dry
Hill’s® Science Diet® Cat Adult Oral Care Dry
Hill’s® Healthy Advantage™ Adult Oral+ Cat Dry
Purina® Pro Plan® Veterinary Diets Cat DH Dental Health Diet Dry
… food with just a claim about tartar control:
Royal Canin Dental Dry for Cats

>>>Cat Dental Chews
(My Favorite)Greenies® SmartBites Treats for CatsGreenies® SmartBites Treats for Cats
…or Greenies at Amazon: Catnip, Tuna, Shrimp or Salmon, Chicken
Purina® Pro Plan® Veterinary Diets Cat Crunchy Bites Treats
Purina DentaLife Made in USA – Chicken
Purina DentaLife Made in USA – Salmon

>>>My other favorite is PlaqueOff. For cats it comes in two forms:
…PlaqueOff original mini-flake “powder” 60 gram trial/small dog, or 180 gram, or 420 gram tub
…and a yummy formula mixed with yeast extract for a huge umami / glutamate flavor:
Plaque Off for Cats 40g – Special Feline Formulation

>>>Water Additives. Yes, they absolutely can work, but most everyone stops using them. I’m a pet-owner, too, so I know what the thinking is. You dump out their water dish with unused additive ($$), pour a new bowl, and add more additive which you will throw away half of tomorrow ($$). There’s no glitter, it doesn’t foam, so there’s little psychological reward. I’m telling you, the owners who keep the dental water additives right by the bowl have great success with slowing or eliminating tartar build up.

I’ll repeat: An $800 dental cleaning and extraction and X-rays could have bought a LOT of water additive and PlaqueOff and Greenies.

HealthyMouth Water Additive

>>>Others without VOHC approval that I’ve seen work:
Maxi/Guard® Oral Cleansing Gel (Gel that goes on their gums with zinc to reduce bacteria)
Fresh Breath by TropiClean Oral Care Water Additive for Cats, 16oz – Made in USA (zinc antibacterial)

Grooming Tools

Brush / Rake

Cautions: “Blades”. I do not like nor recommend any comb or brush with blades unless you know exactly what you’re doing. Animal skin stretches a lot, and I’ve seen lots of cuts from grooming tools.

I’ve used most kinds of combs, brushes, an gizmos over the decades. I have a few favorites.

Single Row Undercoat Rake (blade-less !). I’ve used these from kittens to lion manes. Bad: Double-rows of teeth grab and bind too hard. Bad: Blades are not appropriate for most animals nor their owners, that’s a groomer’s tool, or if your groomer shows you how to use one.

Use finger-tip pressure on the handle, not a gorilla-grip, go in a herring-bone kind of brush pattern / \ / \ / \, avoid bony spots like elbows, ankles, top of the spine, and it can pre-emptively catch and pluck out mats.

Amazon search for “pet undercoat rake short tooth” and most of the first two pages are NOT what we’re looking for, they’re all bladed or double row, until I get to these, as examples:
Buster Undercoat Rake
ConAirPro Short Tooth Rake
Master Grooming Tools Short Tooth Rake
Coastal Pet – Safari Single Row Rake
Pet Republique single row rake

Second favorite grooming tool for very short hair and the best thing to clean your cat trees with is any “slicker brush”. Clean the slicker brush with the short tooth rake in 2 swipes.

Furminator: I’m not a fan. They take out TOO MUCH hair. You can keep pulling hair until the cat is half-bald, and I have in fact done that to my own cats and have seen it in patients.

Nail Trimmers

Knowing what to trim and how to hold is more important than the type of trimmer.
Ask our staff for a demonstration at a paid nail trim.
It’s a good idea for dog owners to have styptic powder handy. If you hit a “quick” and get blood, you’ll need styptic powder, or corn starch, or (least favorite) flour at hand.
I like to “register” or have one of the cutting edges just barely digging in to the nail on one side to keep it in place in case the pet wiggles.
See what you are about to cut, don’t go blindly chomping. If they’re wiggling, wait for them to be still. If you are letting them get free, they’re learning they can get free. When in doubt, have our technicians show you at a paid nail-trim at Companion.

Stypic I’ve used for 30 years, another Styptic powder , More Styptic

I have big hands, and I like fine control and a tool-handled, scissors-type nail trimmer that’s not caught around my fingers. (I remove the weird paddle, it gets in the way of seeing the nail, but that’s up to you). I’ve used these from 1 week old kittens up to small tigers and lions (yes, really).

My favorite nail trimmers, these too, and another brand, and yet another.

Some folks like the finger-loop style for cats and small dogs. I don’t like how they open and close if I’m having to grab and re-grab the elbow and paw, but many people like these little guys:

Wee scissors, and another brand, and a third choice.

Grinder: I’m not linking to one. It takes experience, and knowing the risks about binding hair, trimming too hot, trimming too close.
Same thing for a guillotine trimmer (eg: Resco). They have to be razor sharp, and you have to know what you’re doing.

Hair clippers

There are fairly decent and inexpensive cordless trimmers out there with ceramic blades (the upper blade is white in the Amazon ad). Be very sure you know what you are trimming and how to use them. These clippers do NOT like falling off a table, but they’re only $35 or less.
Any Amazon search for “Cordless pet trimmer” will bring up dozens of examples. I just look for highly rated with lots of reviews. This one seems popular, also Example 2, Example 3

Puzzle Feeders / Portion Control

Dry food Puzzle Feeder
Puzzle Feeder
Puzzle Feeder
SlimCat Feeder Puzzle Ball
Silicone Mini-Muffin pan as a slow feeder, right side up, or upside-down in a quarter sheet cookie pan
Quarter Sheet pan – Just put the food in a mono-layer so they can’t gulp mouthfuls
6 meals a day High Tech timed feeder – frequent, small meals
Up to 12 meals a day automatic feeder – frequent, small meals

Cat Toys – Kitten Tested, Dr.Pagel approved

Spring Toys(12), More spring toys(60), LOTS more spring toys(120)
Cat Dancer – Made in Wisconsin !
Cat Charmer – Made in Wisconsin !
Da Bird
Catnip – which is all over Wisconsin if you know what it looks like. There’s likely some within 100 yards of your house right now.
Cat Track ball chase tower
Greatest Hits pack of Springs, Glitter Poms, Crinkle Balls
Glitter Poms: I’m a nut for cat toys, and I’m a discerning connoisseur of glitter poms. Believe it or not, they can be terrible. They can fall apart, they can have too little glitter, too small, too large, or they can act more like a sponge in the water bowl than a toy. You want 1″ or bigger, I like lots of tinsel, not so much of the core fabric, so if it gets in the water bowl, a hard slam into the ground and they are half dried.
These three look good, but I’ll edit the list as I try them, too.
30 count Glitter poms, (same price as 70?) 70 Glitter poms, 100 Glitter poms
Laser Pointers Laser pointer – Red, USB Chargable (link may be broken.)
Green lasers work in sunshine, (NEVER shine in their eyes) but are more expensive.

Note: I am puzzled that the links at Amazon change so frequently I can’t keep a link working. These low-end lasers are all dubious quality, I can’t find many with more than 100 reviews. You might be better getting them in a store and testing them, or going more expensive for presentation devices with a built in laser.

UV Light (365nm) and Heating Pads

365nm Ultra Violet light. Used for both tartar assessment on the teeth (turns fluorescent orange), and great for finding older pee spots to help with litterbox issues. Key points: like the number of days in a year, 365nm is barely visible to the eye making the tartar or cat pee stand out, NOT 395nm, which is a big purple spotlight. The products are from China and the “seller” can change at Amazon frequently. I like the ones with black aluminum bodies with heat-fins on them. Let’s hope one of these example links works:
365nm flashlight (purchased and use daily)
365nm flashlight (another version)
….
Heating Pads: I am dismayed when I look at the Amazon listings for pet heated beds. Many of these products can be set to a mind-boggling 131’F, that’s medium-rare for a steak !
I looked through heated pet beds for about 4 hours and just did not find one I could recommend with a clear conscience.

I wanted to find one that was machine-washable, had cord-chew-protection, would ideally be UL-listed, had a constant-on setting, AND wasn’t able to be accidentally set to Medium-Rare 131’F. I found none.

What I’m left with is a human heating pad. I know the brand SunBeam, I’ve had some for decades. The pad is machine-washable, and if I spray no-chew spray on the cord, they’re great for old cats.
I insulate the floor if it isn’t carpet with a yoga-mat like material, then the heating pad, then setting on the LOWEST heat settings (1 or 2) with it constant-on, then one or two layers of either towel or polar fleece.
Sunbeam 12×15″ heating pad
Sunbeam 12×24″ pad

Ear Cleansers

There are at least 2 things I like to see in maintenance ear cleaners: the claim that it “dries” or touts “drying”; the other is “acidifies” or “acidifying”. Yeast and bacteria like things wet, dark, and not acidic. I’ve carried many, many products over my decades. Once or twice weekly cleaning unless directed by your veterinarian helps, especially for right after swimming, bathing, or for dogs and cats prone to infections.
Stratford Ear Cleaner sold at Companion and Amazon
Epi-Otic at our e-Pharmacy partner
Epi-Otic at Amazon
Vetoquinol Ear Cleansing Solution at our ePharmacy
Vetoquinol Ear Cleansing Solution at Amazon
EarWell at Amazon

Litter Boxes, Litter Mats

I have owned dozens and dozens of cats, I’ve had and placed over 1,000 kittens and cats out of Companion. I have tried almost every litter box known. I have some favorites. The best box is one you will use and take care of and keep clean. Remember: Clean it every day ! One more box than you have cats, one on every floor of the house. As big of a litter box as you have foot-print for.

I LOVE my Litter Robots, they keep an immaculate, dry litter pan for my family of cats. I use 30% less litter, which adds up quickly. (The urine cakes don’t keep soaking up more litter, they’re sifted 7 minutes after deposition). Various coupon links (and Companion gets some credit):
$25 off Litter-Robot 4 (the latest generation)
Litter-Robot 3 Connect ($25 Off) (phone app notifications helps me a LOT with 14 cats)
Litter-Robot Bundles: Save $75 (various combos)
Refurbished (sporadic availability) Shop All Reconditioned Products
All Litter Robot Products: Never Scoop Again

A much less expensive and nifty alternative to a litter robot is an Omega Paw litter box. Think of it as a manual litter robot, where the box itself is the sifter. Roll it onto its top, roll back, and pull out the drawer for disposal. Omega Paw Litter Box(Large)

I’ve used and tried half a dozen Litter Maid – type boxes. They’re very particular about depth of litter, and if the cat has a soft or loose #2… you have a pretty gross clean up.

Litter catching mats: I’ve tried a bunch. The cats need to like the feel or ignore the feel, or you have problems. I like the type of mat that looks like the links below, where the material looks like… plastic angel-hair pasta? It’s soft on their feet, it catches the most litter I’ve ever tried, and you can roll them up and shake them back into the box or garbage pretty easily. The original product by 3M is very, very durable, we’ve vacuumed ours for years. The knock-offs do not tolerate vacuuming with a beater head, they shred, but they’re 1/10th the price. I like getting as big a mat as I can, the more steps they take, the more litter falls off.

Knock-off scraper matting with color choices: Gorilla Grip Dirt Grabber Mesh Door Mat
and another knock-off SlipToGrip Universal Doormat, and yet a third Entryway Mat
Pricier and durable: Heavy Duty mesh entrance mat
Expensive but amazing: 3M Nomad Scraper Matting

Behavior Aids

Area denial / deterrent
Pokey, stay off it, matting. Unconfortable to walk or sit on. Like your cat is a pigeon.
….
PetSafe Scat Mat electrostatic mat. Various sizes, I’d start with the 48″x20″ with just the battery, no wall plug needed. I’ve used this brand extensively in my home, I assume the knock-offs are also fine. One 9V battery lasts a surprisingly long time (months) on the lowest setting. For doorways, spend a few bucks more for the 48″x20″ version. My cats all figured out how to kitty-corner jump over the smaller one.

I have stood on these in bare feet on all three shock settings. Lowest gets your attention, and most cats only ever need this. Middle is unpleasant. Highest is quite unpleasant, but not cruel if we’re talking the life or death choice of escape into the night or an unpleasant zap.

My holiday season starts with setting up 4 big mats with a wall plug and a declaration of, “Merry Shock Mats”. I have a rotating tree and lights that used to get devastated by my cats.
….
No Chew Spray: Cord chewing is life threatening. I have a cat who will die if I don’t spray absolutely every power cord down with some kind of no-chew spray. Every birthday or gift-opening event I keep the no-chew at my side to spritz and coat any cord (power, ear bud, etc) the minute it comes out of the wrapping.
I hold the cord, spray the cord and my hand, then squeegee the liquid on the cord until I feel it go dry, then re-load my hand and keep coating the cord. The bittering taste lasts a long time if it’s dry.

I’ve used Grannicks Bitter Apple Taste Deterrent for decades, so it’s here out of habit. It works.
….
Enzymatic Cleaner: I have tried a LOT of these, and like to refer to two.
Simple Solution Cat Stain and Odor Remover I buy by the gallon for Companion and home.
Nature’s Miracle works, too. Lots of varieties of Nature’s Miracle I’ve not tried yet.

You need to SOAK the peed on area, possibly multiple times, for the odor to diminish, and that may mean carpet all the way through to underlayment. Be careful with your sub-floor, most don’t like to get wet.

If you do not treat the underlying problem, cleaner won’t work. Get a urinalysis to make sure it doesn’t hurt to pee or no amount of cleaning will stop them from house soiling. Make their litter box spa-like and calm and visible and pleasant. One more box than you have cats, one on every floor, with some light in the room, and multiple box locations for multi-cat households.
….
Night Lights: Cats and dogs can NOT see in the dark. They can see in the dim (star light), but not in the dark (over-cast). Vision requires photons to get absorbed by the retina, which signals the visual cortex of the brain. No light, no vision.
Menard’s has cheap 4-packs of nice LED photo-sensor lights I’ve used for 10 years.
Amazon 6 pack cool white or warm white
Amazon 24 pack warm white or cool white

Head Collars: There are only 2 brands I know by heart, Halti and Gentle Leader, and I would not risk such a vital piece of equipment to knock-offs of dubious sewing.Wolves exert dominance by gripping another wolf gently by the bridge of their nose. These head collars exert the same pressure, giving the same cues to your dog, hopefully getting their attention and cooling their jets.

Head collars are a fairly precise fit, I’d recommend going with your dog to one of the BIG pet stores to get the exact right size, these links are for replacement or a visual aid when you go looking.
Halti
Gentle Leader
…
No Pull Harness Exactly what it says.

Choke and Pinch collars: Nope. Not going to link to these. Choke collars have a 50% chance of being put on wrong, and are easily misused. If we think you may benefit from one, we’ll show you at Companion. Pinch collars have very, very few dogs who need them, and the risks need to be discussed and shown.

Basket / Cage Muzzle: Dogs MUST be able to pant to stay alive. You cannot just put on a fabric, mouth-shut muzzle for a walk or dog park. Basket muzzles reduce the chance of damage if combat breaks out. Also gives other dog owners and people a little heads’ up that your pet needs space.

Go to your local BIG pet store and get the perfect fitting rubber or wire basket muzzle. You will likely get the wrong size guessing from online. There are very customized profiles out there for the various dog breed muzzle shapes eg:Pug, German Shepherd, Rottie, Pittie, Greyhound; all have very different faces such that just choosing “XL” online won’t work well.

Bark Collars: I like to see multiple things in an anti-bark collar: multiple prong lengths, easy recharging, tone-warning, vibration-warning, and lots of gradations of shock.
Tone, Vibration, Static zap Bark collar at Amazon

Shock-free option: citronella spray hits all their main senses (smell, touch, taste, hearing, sight) without any shock. You will need citronella refills, which means sticking with a company that won’t disappear next week. PetSafe Citronella cartridge collar