Archives: Pets

Six ways to help your senior cat at home

We know that cats are the masters of hiding pain. Once you learn the subtle signs (here’s my article on how to decode these signs of pain) your next thought is – what can I do to help? A trip to the vet is always a great idea! Finding out if there is a major systemic disease, and treating it, can do the most to help your cat feel better. But what if your cat is otherwise...

3 Ways People Harm Wildlife While Trying To Help

You let your dog out in the yard, and he seems overly interested in one particular spot. You find a nest of baby bunnies. They have been licked, but otherwise seem OK. What do you do? A – Take them inside and contact a wildlife rescuer. Now that your dog has touched them, they have his scent, and the mother will abandon them. B – Take them inside and raise them yourself....

Snow Reveal – What Snow Can Tell Us About The Health Of Your Dog

It seems when it comes to dogs and snow, they either love it and can’t get enough, or hate it and want inside the second they are done pottying. I don’t know any dogs who aren’t quite sure how they feel about it. We veterinarians, however, have discovered over the years that snow can be a useful diagnostic tool. Whether your dog loves or hates snow, it might help reveal...

[Veterinary] Cannabis, Hemp, & Medical Marijuana Laws

You might have found a site online that states the miraculous wonders of CBD or hemp oil. Yes, there is a lot of promise in these medications for the treatment of seizures, pain, and other diseases. A lot is still not known! (Here’s my article explaining what these are, and what we do and do not know). You’ve heard mixed reviews on if different extracts are legal,...

Is There A Use For Medical Marijuana For Pets?

As medical marijuana becomes legal and accessible to more people in more states, pet owners are looking for ways they can use this new family of medications to help their pets. In humans, marijuana and hemp products, and their extracts, are being touted to treat a wide variety of syndromes and diseases. I know individuals who suffered from seizures, or chronic pain, and their...

The Day The Owner Of My Deceased Patient Consoled Me

Death and loss of life is a regular part of being a veterinarian, yet it never ceases to hurt when we lose patients.  However, no one lives forever and inevitably we are faced with disease circumstances for which there is no cure. It hurts even more when we deduce from the diagnostic evidence at hand that there is reason to be hopeful but the case plays out nonetheless in a...

Top Pet New Year Resolutions 2017

It is time for my yearly pet New Year resolutions that I suggest to all pet owners for the coming year! Walk Your Dog For 20 Minutes Every Evening Exercise outside in the back yard is great and any dog is lucky to live in a home with a yard where he is free to run and play.  But…nothing compares to the walk on the leash outside of the confines of the home that give the dog...

Hypertension, aka, High Blood Pressure: A Silent Killer Of Cats

Hypertension, aka high blood pressure, in cats is a very serious and common health concern.  Like in people, it often goes undetected and untreated until serious health complications arise.  Hypertension can be a secondary consequence of underlying disease, the most common of which is heart disease, hyperthyroidism, diabetes, and chronic kidney disease, all of which are...

Why Is Corn So Bad As An Ingredient In Pet Food?

Grains in general have gotten bad wrap in the past several years among some pet enthusiasts, groomers, and breeders.  In particular, corn as an ingredient in pet food had gotten a particularly poor reputation, a narrative that is pushed most vociferously via the internet. Case in point, at the site dogbreedinfo.com, this is what they have to say about corn: A dog’s body...

Beware of Holistic Veterinarians That Do Not Use Diagnostics

I had a disappointing experience with local holistic practitioner some years ago who practiced only traditional Chinese Veterinary Medicine who – thank goodness as far as I am concerned – has been retired for a few years.  I am both supportive of, and am fully on board with, the benefits of Chinese herbal medicine and acupuncture…but not the way this guy did it. My...