The Daily Reset: Dr Saadiya Mangera Vet - Choosing & Caring for Pets

0:00Asalamu alaikum wa rahmatullahi wa barakatuh, and welcome back, this is the Daily Reset. And today we're talking about something that quietly shapes so many homes, our pits, the animals who greet us at the door, curl up beside us when we stressed, chirping the backgrounds of our living rooms or swim peacefully in tanks, adding calm to our spaces. But owning an animal is more than just cuddles and cute pictures, it's responsibility, understanding the health, the nutrition, the emotional needs, and long-term commitment. And sometimes what we don't know can unintentionally harm the animals we love. So whether you are cat-parent, a bird owner, a rabbit enthusiast or a fish keeper, or maybe someone who's thinking about bringing a pet into your family, today's conversation is going to be practical, honest and eye-opening. Joining us is someone with 25 years of experience caring for animals, Dr. Sadiya Mangera. She has dedicated her career primarily to treating cats and dogs with the occasional rabbit, hamster and rat.

1:02Beyond the clinic she's a mum of three daughters who share her passion for animals and her home is ruled quite happily by four cats, cinnamon, nutmeg, sugar and pepper. I absolutely love those names. Dr. Sadiya, Assalamu alaikum and welcome, Shukran, for making the time fast. Alaikum, Palam, do you thank you so much for having me on your show? It's an absolute pleasure. So starting up right up at the top, as a vet, what inspired you to work with animals and what do you love most about your profession? So I've always had a love for animals from the time I was a child. I think most of us that have pets will always say that, that they've always had a love for animals. I had a love particularly for cats and I had parents that really encouraged me to become a vet. But the love, what I love most about my profession is actually quite a few things. I'm actually going to just sort of break it down, just give you a few points as to why I love absolutely loving a vet.

2:06The first one is helping animals. Every day I get to help animals feel better. You know, imagine fixing a puppy's broken leg or making a sick kit and healthy again. That feeling when they get better because of your help, it's the best. The second one is loving animals. All vets really, really, really love animals. And working with them, understanding what they need and seeing them happy and healthy is why we get up in the morning. Amen. For us, every day is completely different. We don't have, you know, where we're sitting behind the desk and we're looking at a computer. Every day is completely different. One day we might be helping a dog. The next day it could be a snake. The following day it could be a cat. It's never ever boring. And then, you know, in the mix with that, when we actually treating animals, it's like solving puzzles. Sometimes animals get sick and they can't tell us what's wrong. It's like a puzzle we have to solve. So we figure out what's making them sick and then how to make them better. And then also we meet, we meet so many animals with their families.

3:09It's really special because we get to be a part of their lives. We share happy moments like when a pet gets better. And we also there to help them bring the tough. Also, there are some animal sicknesses that can spread to people. So we help stop that from happening as well. It's good to know that we're keeping everyone not just animal safe and healthy. The best part of the job is obviously when an animal gets better and goes home happy, knowing that we helped to make that happen. And that's why we all love being rich. That is absolutely beautiful. And I think, you know, like you said, a lot of people forget that animals don't have a voice. So you as a vet become that advocate for them. And I love what you said about the bond between pets and families. That's really so true and so beautiful. And Hamza de la. So, you know, speaking of bonds, cats are such a big part of mini households. I myself have one little cat. And one of the most common health issues you see in cats today.

4:11So most of the time, most cats come in for sort of mild complaints with things like getting into a fight. Often the territorial sort of, you know, fighting that takes place. So the most common issue we tend to say, especially if, you know, they're not, they've not been sterilized, especially the male cats. We end up seeing things like that. But in general, over their lifespan, dental disease is quite common. So over 80% of cats over three years will have dental infections that will result in tooth loss and pain. Talking about that yesterday, I had a cat came in that's actually only three years old and actually has a condition in the mouth. And I actually ended up removing most of her teeth. Thankfully, I live quite a normal life without teeth. I myself, my, my sugar, one of my four cats actually has no teachers. Only got canines. She had an issue and she was very young and actually removed most of them.

5:12She's very healthy. She's actually a little bit overweight, but they love really well. You know, they actually love longer bitter lives when they've had their teeth seen too. The other very common thing that happens to cats is chronic kidney disease. It's very common. This is particularly in cats all the seven years old. Then we have things like feline lower urinary tract disease, which tends to cause a lot of discomfort in cats where they can't urinate properly. I'm sure the listeners at home, there'll be quite a few of them already nodding their heads, knowing what this one is all about because it is quite common. And this can be seen in any age of cats from the time they won till the time they're 14 years old, you know, it's something that is quite common. There is a little bit of food history that goes with it, where it could be a certain type of food that might be causing it, but often it's just the metabolism of that cat. Then the other things we tend to see are general complaints, such as diabetes, joint pain, parasites can cause quite a problem.

6:18We often, in the summer months, when summer starts, we start to see viral conditions, knuffles, just like how we have flu season cats also come in with flu, with symptoms such as sneezing, coughing, runny eyes. And then they can get things like gastrointestinal problems with vomiting, diarrhea, and so all long-haired cats we always recommend having them on some kind of hairball treatment because that is quite common as well. Wow. I think it's interesting that some of those are actually preventable with early care. And a lot of the time people just run into cats when they think something is obviously wrong, when the cat is crying or visibly something's the matter. Absolutely. 100%. I think preventable things in these, you know, half of the things I've mentioned are things that are definitely preventable. And I think that's why annual checkups with your pet is so important. I mean, we always advocate for vaccinations. I know that there's a big movement at the moment of anti-vaxxers

7:19but having your animal vaccinated prevents a whole lot of diseases from happening. The most common one or the most important one, not common one. Sorry, the most important one being rabies. But when you take your cat in to have the annual vaccinations, at the same time, they are giving a full checkup, literally from nose to toe. And if there are any issues, they can be picked up at that annual checkup. Yeah, I think that is really important, which I think a lot of us tend to ignore or not prioritize when it comes to that. And that leads me to, you know, the follow-up question that I have is that a lot of people, especially if you're looking at cats, think that they are low maintenance. What would you say are the basic daily and weekly care that cats actually require? So I will actually agree with that. I mean, cats are probably low maintenance and dogs. They're all sort of some extent low maintenance than I think birds as well, because there's not that much cleaning involved. Yeah. You know, cats tend to be wholly independent.

8:20Then most cat owners will probably agree and say, you're actually their slave. You know, they rule the rules, basically. Yeah, very much. So you're a cat owner. So, you know, exactly what I mean. Unlike with dogs, you know, dogs are very loyal. They always keep the teasing. You know, they do anything for attention, whereas cats can sulk. You know, and if they don't like something, they literally, you know, look as if they cross with you. But in general, care, you know, feeding and water. So obviously providing fresh, high quality meals and having clean water bowls daily. Cats can be very fussy about drinking clean water. And that can lead to what I spoke about earlier on with lower urinary tract disease. Sometimes I know a lot of cats actually like to drink from running water. And then actually got their humans trained to open the tap for them. I see the thing, it uses things, you know, that they can actually ask for a drink of water and the owners have to open the tap rather than drink from a bowl.

9:21And then litter box. I know a lot of cats are, you know, indoor cats. So it's very, very important that that waste is cleaned on a regular basis at least once a day. And again, going back to lower urinary tract disease, if that water box is not cleaned regularly, it can actually lead to lower urinary tract disease. And then playing with them is quite important actually engaging with them, playing with them to bond, but also to burn energy so they don't become too destructive. Long head cats, like I said, need to be on a hairball control or something for hairballs, but brushing is very, very important. And the final one for low maintenance, as we call them with cats, is very important. It's ensuring a safe environment for them, particularly by keeping branches items away from curious cats. So these are things like having ribbon, cotton, lying around that they can potentially play with and possibly ingest. Believe it or not, I've actually operated to remove a needle

10:22and thread from a cat that swallowed the needle, yes. Parable cat survive did really well. The other things that people don't know is certain plants are toxic to cats, release particularly. What tends to happen in that kind of situation is, you know, somebody gives you, you buy a beautiful bunch of lilies, come home with it. And that lily powder that falls from the flower falls on some surface where the cat will walk on or lay in. The cat will then lick their paws and they can ingest the pollen from release that can be quite toxic. So, you know, ensuring that we have a safe environment for them is very, very important. You know, cats, especially when they younger, will play with odd things and end up following it. So making sure that you don't have tiny things lying around is important. Wow, I think you should a lot of things which we don't actually consider as a cat owners or someone who's considering to get a cat like you said about the lilies. That's a very important one for us to, you know, to remember.

11:25Full families that are thinking to bring a cat home. What should they realistically consider before bringing it home? I think the first thing for any pet owner that, you know, I always say is the long-term commitment. It's not a wind up toy. You know, it's something that you're going to renew with that for the next, and that's unbearable. But it's not a wind up toy. It's not when you get tired of it. That's it. You know, you're looking at a commitment of at least 15 years. Cats can live even older. The gender lifespan of a cat in South Africa is around 12 to 14 years. But if you're lucky, they can actually live up to 20. Obviously, the time, so a time factor, so aside from long-term commitment, time factor to make sure that you're actually going to be spending time with your cat, making sure you have time to clean the litter box, making sure that you have time to make sure that they have fresh water, fresh food, and then financial costs. Financial costs is important to talk about.

12:27A lot of people just think, you know, there's not much finances that need to go to it's caring of a cat, but the years. Cats do need to have the first set of three vaccinations, and then they need to be sterilized. And then, like I said, annual vaccinations are really important because it picks up if they are going to be any problems that can then be prevented. Other key considerations is your living space. Is it suitable? So a lot of people get cats and don't realize that they scratch everything. As a pet, I was waiting for your laugh because I know you've got scratch furniture in your office. To me, any cat owner. Yes, any cat owner will have scratch furniture in their house. And even if you provide them with a scratching post, they will often prefer to use something like the side of your sofa or your dining room table, or your dining table. Unfortunately, it goes with the territory of owning cats. A lot of people try to then clip their clothes on a regular basis, which is not a bad thing to do,

13:28but can be sometimes become uncomfortable for the cat in that they don't always like you to do it. It's not a painful procedure to cut nails. It's just like cutting our nails. But cats often won't sit still for it. And then, obviously, making sure that you're going to be prepared to clean litter boxes and account for, like I said, the behavioral challenges of scratching. And the other one is early morning activity. They often look at what I call the zoomies usually at about 4 o'clock in the morning. When it's summer and feather is early, I don't think that's a problem. But when you're trying to sleep in, and you've got a cat racing around and bouncing on your head. I don't know whether that would be pleasant for most people. The other key considerations would be pet-proofing compatibility with children, or if you already have other pets. And of course, arranging care for when you travel. Definitely. You've raised some really important points. And yeah, I think, you know, also with the move of technology,

14:28like I, for example, have you, even if you look online, you can buy these little water sort of fountains for the cat. That's also something which is constantly running for them. It's easier. There's also ones where you have automatic feeders. So if you are able to, and the finances allow it, you can do that out, you know, as well. But there's a lot to consider. And I think when you have the cat, you get excited in the first few weeks. And then after that, when you see your furniture and the curtains and the carpets and everything, getting damaged, you quite, like think to yourself, what did I sign up here for? But then the cuddles make up for it in the cute faces. So I think it balances out. Yeah, I'm just pushing it. Let's move on to another popular pet, which is a bird's. What are the common mistakes that people make when caring for birds? Okay, so I'm just going to first say that I don't really deal much with birds. I didn't do it for a short while when I was early in practice, but it's, it's a fairly specialized thing.

15:29And it's, you know, you do need to have specialized equipment for this as well, which again, I think a lot of people, you know, underestimate what it takes to have a bird. And so when they do have a bird and it gets sick, they don't realize that that costs money as well. So a long time ago, I actually stopped working with birds all together because I would often get a very, very emaciated bird coming in and you would already be at the point where I wouldn't be able to do much. And people couldn't understand that actually the care of the bird was there. It's once we're seeing that mine. And so I'm going to just first of all say I don't deal that matter with birds, but the most common mistake that I have seen is giving them a seed only diet or worse sunflower seeds only. That is the most common problem with with birds, keeping the bird that people don't realize that they actually need quite a very diet. Just like we enjoy fruits, veggies, and some birds are actual carnivores.

16:30And they're not getting all of that. 90% of birds caged birds that get ill is due to diet and diet only. So I don't have much more than I can tell you about birds. But in the time that I did use to see birds that was the most common thing that we saw. Wow, okay. So how can owners tell if a bird is unwell since they often hide the illnesses? So the most common thing that I saw is that the owner would come in saying that the bird's not been eating for a few days. But not eating for a few days is already past the point of being sick. Not eating for a few days is usually the birds are already very, very, very sick. The second common thing would be that the bird was either plucking feathers, losing feathers, or just getting extremely, extremely thin. And then the final thing would be and this is usually with an observant owner that the stool, the droppings of the bird were not looking normal. But by that stage, the birds are already quite sick.

17:32So I think it's really important for people to remember to obviously, you know, by the time the birds show symptoms that can already be quite serious, you have to monitor it closely. Yes, but I think, you know, with most pets, you know, we now in a technology advanced age, you can research just about anything. You know, you can go online and check what does it, but you need to look after a bird. If you're getting a certain species of bird, if you're getting an African grey, you're getting a ring neck, you're getting a love bird, go online and look up what they need. There are so many resources out there. And if you don't, or you can't access it, phone your local vet, you know, they'll be able to put you in touch with somebody who will be able to give you that information. That's what we lay for. We're not just lay as vets, just to, you know, when you come in, you can phone us to ask for information. Hmm. Gettily, I think we must consider that a lot more, especially if you are looking to, you know, get a get a pet and you're not sure what to do, which one to get or how to care for it. This is the best way for us to do it

18:33from professionals and experts themselves. Let's talk a little bit about rabbit. I think they are becoming very common pets. What should families know before bringing a rabbit home? Okay, so rabbits are becoming more common as pets, but unfortunately, I am seeing a fair amount of issues with them as well. But again, comes from just pure lack of knowledge. I think people just don't research what it is to get a rabbit and they just think, oh, they look really cute. It would be nice to have a bunny. So the first thing I would probably say with, you know, with what family should look at is number one, this is not a pet for a child. If you want to get your child a pet, especially any child under the age of 12, I would say a cat is going to be a better pet than a rabbit. Grabbits do not socialize easily. They don't tame easily as well. Unless you are handling that rabbit every single day for at least, you know, three to four hours, obviously not in a row, but for at least three to four hours,

19:35they actually don't tame very easily at all. Then again, same with cats, long-term commitment, rabbits can typically live for up to 10 years. So, you know, eventually, if you are then buying it for a child under 12, you know, they interest do move on and you end up just with this rabbit that's just left up to its own devices. So making sure you have that long-term commitment is very, very important for a rabbit. Space requirements, they need ample room to run and play. Ideally, free roaming is good for them. They need to jump. They need to, you know, really have those little births and speeds, which is, but often people see it's really cute. But in their own home environment, it's sometimes not always feasible to have that. Rabbits are also very big chews. They tend to chew electrical cords. They love chewing electrical cords. Any type of cord. They also love chewing wood. So making sure that you have, you know, you're protecting all your electrical cords, blocking access to valuable items. And even some house plants,

20:35they will eat some house plants as well. Diet in care for a rabbit's diet is consistent, consists primarily of unlimited hay. A lot of people buy this rabbit pellets, which is like, from me, the equivalent is like eating McDonald's every day. Or pretty every day. Eating a pellet is not a good idea. It's good as a snack, but ideally they need unlimited hay. Unknown fact, two facts actually about rabbits. The first one is that their teeth actually grow all the time. They're not like ours. So they have to eat a diet very high in fiber to grind their teeth. And if they don't have access to high fiber, those teeth will overgrow and cause quite severe dental problems. The second unknown fact about rabbits with diet is they actually have a certain type of waste or sort of almost like a feces that they produce very early in the morning and very late in the evening

21:37or the early evening part which they actually re-ingess in order to facilitate prepodidation. So this is equivalent to like a cow where we say they chew, they cut, they you know, you see them sitting and they're not actually grazing but they constantly chewing. They also have a system where they cows have four stomachs and so they will initially graze so actually bite the grass and chew it but at a later stage they were put down actually regurgitate this and eat to it. So rabbits have a similar diet system where they will eat their food, they produce a certain type of mucousine dropping that has to be re-ingested in order to facilitate proper digestion. And also, you know, contrary to popular belief, most rabbits actually just like being picked up and prefer to keep all four paws on the ground. They are not ugly pets and they prefer interacting on their own terms. They are also sociable in that they do prefer a meat. So if you look at, you know,

22:38any, you know, documentary and rabbits, they live as a colony and they live underground. You know, they live together in social situations. They're not isolated animals. So it is preferable to get two bunnies and the perfect match is a male and a female. But bear in mind that if you don't sterilize the one, you're going to have lots and lots of babies which is not ideal for them. To constantly obviously have babies all the time is not an ideal situation because that is not what happens in the wild. You know, rabbits get together can literally have a litter every two months which is, I think, to be a little bit on the cruel side for the female to constantly having litter. And then again, when they decay comes at a financial cost, they are considered exactly pets. They require a specialized vet, not all can treat them. They need annual examinations which can potentially be expensive because they are considered a specialized vet. I also don't see that many rabbits.

23:40The only reason I have a vast knowledge of rabbits is because I did spend quite a number of years in the UK where I was, you know, I did see a lot of rabbits then but I had specialized equipment at the time where I was able to treat them, you know, to whatever, you know, require whatever illness they had I was able to treat them. But in the practice where I am at the moment, I don't have a high enough, you know, rabbit patient load. So I actually refer most of my rabbits to either the little pets or to Ronaldo gets in the North. I do see basic problems but if they are complicated, I just don't have the facilities for it. Their lifestyle impact on you is actually quite important as well because they do need a fair amount of time and they need a fair amount of time. You're constantly cleaning after them. So I think that's something that's quite important to look at if you're considering having a rabbit as a pet. Yeah, definitely. I think you've raised a lot of good points that

24:42people can consider if they are getting and if they want a rabbit, you know, as a pet. And I think often like you said, people think that they're cuddly, they're cute, it's a bunny. Let's just get one and then you realize that, okay, no, it's not that easy. Like you said, they also not be cuddly, they're only like to be cuddled all the time. So that's a very important consideration there. Let's talk a little bit about fish right for those who keep fish at home. What is one major mistake people make with fish tanks and fish care? Okay, again, I'm going to start up by saying I don't really see fish. It is also considered an exactly pet and you actually do have this specifically deal with this. But from my little knowledge of when I was in university, so, so, so many years ago. The most common fish owner mistake including skipping the nitrogen cycle, all the ducking, overfeeding and inadequate water changes. These usually cause toxic hymonia water and other critical areas are using untreated tap water

25:45neglecting to check compatibility and choosing tanks that are too small. Okay, very interesting. They about fish. We will often think it's easier to have a fish than any other pet because the inner tank they not as much work. I think people assume that's not completely. Yeah, the cleaning and that picks a lot of a lot of effect and a lot of time and you need to clean that tank at least once a week. There is a lot of mold algae that can sometimes be toxic to the fish themselves. And if you're not doing it on a regular basis, they all the fish will die. So it's not as easy. Okay, adding conclusion today. If we can ask you what is one piece of advice you wish every pet owner understood before choosing to own an animal, what would it be? Oh, goodness. I think I think research what pet you're going to get. Like really really research it. When I've had pet owners come in that have done their research, even down to if they decided to get a particular type

26:49of breed of a dog. And when they come in knowing what that breed needs, the difference between that and a pet owner that has not researched is vast. You know, the pet owner will come in that has researched what kind of pet they're getting, what they need and all of that, makes for a happy pet, but also a very, very happy pet owner. Yeah, most definitely that's a really powerful message. Pets, I like we know are also not accessories. They are responsibilities. And today's conversation really reminds us that bringing an animal in our home is an amount of trust. So whether it's a cat, whether it's a bird of fish, a rabbit, these are living beings who depend entirely on us for safety, nourishment and care. Yes, 100% yes. A huge occurrence to you. A duck decided I'm a gear up for sharing your 25 years of wisdom with us today. And from cinnamon, nutmeg, sugar and pepper into all the countless cats and dogs you've treated, your passion truly shines through when you talk about your animals of Hanela. We all had to add a reward you in abundance

27:50for all your efforts. And she cried for your time and we wish you and your family everything off the best for Ramadan. As-Salaamu alaykum. Yes. Yes. And now I continue.