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There are so many parasites out there than can affect your dog and your cat.  When you visit the vet they rattle off all these names and it is truly confusing.  I wanted to refresh your memory about one parasite in particular – heartworms.  Yup – they live in the heart.  Technically, the adult worms live in the heart and the “babies†swim around in the blood stream.  The heartworm is given to your dog or cat through an infective mosquito.  The heartworm has to be transmitted through the mosquito, but the bad news is that lots of mosquitoes carry heartworms.  Yes, people can get them, too, but it only happens in immunocompromised individuals.  Humans are not the natural host for these worms.  We test your dog for heartworms by taking a sample of blood.  This test looks for adult worms that have established themselves in your dog’s heart.  These are the trouble-makers.  We also recommend you give your pet monthly heartworm preventative.  This monthly pill kills any new baby worms the mosquito may have given your dog or cat before they can grow up into dangerous adults. Protect your pet from heartworms – they are highly prevalent in our […]

Yesterday I saw the worst mouth in a dog that I have ever seen.  I have truly seen some rotten teeth in my practice.  I won’t describe how nasty some dog and cat mouths can get and I will attempt to provide an adequate description here without completely grossing you out…  This dog had it all – loose teeth, recessed gums, inflamed gums, tartar galore, halitosis to beat the band, obvious abscessed tooth roots, food stuck in places it shouldn’t be due to pocket formation in the gums, and caked on plaque.  When I looked at the upper canine tooth (the fang) – I knew I had seen it all.  There was a HOLE in the dog’s gum.  This hole was above the gum line and exposed the side of the tooth root (if it hadn’t been packed full of food, pus, hair, and whatever else you can imagine).  You see, this dog had an untreated tooth root abscess that had progressed so far that the only outlet for the abscess was through the side of the gum.  Painful does not describe it.  My heart went out to this dog.Why am I telling you this?  Sometimes we all need to […]

Being able to do treatments and care for our pets at home is a wonderful way to save money!  It also really gives us the feeling that we are making a difference in our pet’s life.  Whenever possible, I do encourage my clients to take on treatments that they can do at home.  One example is with fluid therapy.  We often give fluids to our pets repeatedly when they are in renal (kidney) failure.  We can teach owners to perform this task in a matter of minutes and then the pet’s care can come more under the control of you, the owner.  Ask me more about home care for your pet the next time you are in.

We are always happy when it is time to get the Christmas tree set up and start our holiday baking.  However these two activities can potentially be harmful to your dogs and there are some things to think about while preparing for these activities. The Christmas tree should be well-secured.  It can easily be toppled by a happy puppy and could hurt the dog (or person) who may be standing in the wrong place at the wrong time!  Also remember to watch your dog for the first few days after your tree is up to be sure they are not showing interest in eating the tree or its decorations!  Pine needles can irritate the throat if the dog eats them and lead to subsequent problems.  Christmas ornaments – especially home-made ones that are baked or made from dried pasta – are notorious for getting eaten!   Put them high on the tree or keep them off the tree until your puppy grows up and has been trained to leave the tree and its decorations alone! Most of us know that chocolate is also harmful to dogs.  The primary substance of concern is called theobromine and it is toxic to dogs in […]

National Poison Prevention Week is March 17-23.  In an effort to raise awareness of common household items that can poison your pets, I have decided to share some of the ASPCA (the American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals) guidelines. *Keep all drugs out of your pets’ reach in closed cabinets. Painkillers, cold medicines, antidepressants, vitamins and diet pills can be lethal to animals, even in small doses. *Never give your pets medication unless you are directed to do so by a veterinarian. Human medicine is not for pets. *Always read the label before dispensing medication. Some flea products for dogs can be deadly if given to cats.  Thousands of cats and dogs needlessly suffer and many die each year by accidental ingestion of household poisons, including popular houseplants and common foods. “Most pet owners simply do not know that small amounts of chocolate, onions, macadamia nuts and bread dough can be dangerous,” comments Dr. Steve Hansen, Senior Vice President of the ASPCA Animal Poison Control Center. “Many cats are poisoned in the spring from plants including daffodils and lilies. A cat that eats an Easter lily will die unless it receives prompt medical attention,” says Hansen. The […]

I used to have a dog that would chew his own nails so that we wouldn’t have to cut them!  He hated having his nails cut!  Sometimes, though, we had to help him keep up with the job.  We can all benefit from knowing how to properly cut our pet’s nails.  We have added a video to our website that shows how to trim a dog’s nails and it can also be found on YouTube.  YouTube video  A cat’s nail trimming is essentially the same.  It is actually easier, if you can get your kitty to hold still and cooperate!  But that’s another story.  Keep in mind that as you get near the “quick” (the blood vessel) the nerve sensitivity increases and there is a pinching sensation that some pets anticipate will be worse than it actually is.  Be sure to go slow and try not to cut the nails back too far.  This will help your pet build trust in your ability and minimize fear of the procedure.

I have attended several CE courses in the past month.  The most recent was a discussion hosted by a laser manufacturer about the benefits of laser therapy.  Of course this leads to immediate skepticism: a lecture hosted by a company that wants me to purchase their product… Nonetheless, I found the lecture intriguing and have continued to ponder the pros and cons.  Here is some basic information for you.  Class IV lasers are simply those lasers in a category that indicates the level of harm they can do.  These lasers, when used in practice, require that we wear a special type of eye protection.  They also have healing effects.  The therapy is supposed to reduce pain, reduce inflammation, and speed up the healing process.  It can be used on wounds, fractures, abscesses, sprains, and dermatitis, just to name a few modalities.  The therapy is the result of energy interacting chemically and biologically with tissue.  This causes “photobiostimulation”.  Lasers produce a single wavelength beam of light that is uniform (in “phase”).  It penetrates deeply into tissue to produce changes at the cellular level.  The lecture stated that pain is reduced through affecting stimulation thresholds and essentially reducing pain perception.  Inflammation is […]

I so often hear stories about people’s cats urinating outside their litter boxes.  This happens not only in my practice, but when I travel or meet people who discover that I am a vet.  There are some basic “rules” to follow when you are personally faced with this problem, and I will mention a few here.  Cats have not evolved over years and years to know house rules when it comes to going potty.  We are lucky that cats are generally fastidious and we take advantage of that.  However, a clean litter box is a must.  The cat will find a different place to go if the litter box only gets cleaned once a week.  Some cats refuse to use the box after only a day or two of non-cleaning.  The litter box has to be in the realm of the cats natural territory in the house.  Putting the box in the farthest back corner of the basement does not promote use.  Having one box for two or more cats to share is not enough.  Having two boxes side by side equates to one box in the cat’s mind.  The box can’t be too close to the food and water.  […]

I wanted to share some information with you about Intervertebral Disk Disease in dogs.  The disease can occur in cats, but it is more common in dogs.  I recently attended a lecture on this topic and wanted to summarize some key points for you.  First, this disease is most common in dog breeds that have long backs.  Namely, Daschshunds but also Beagles, Corgis, Basset Hounds, Cocker Spaniels, and others.  These breeds have a genetic predisposition to developing disk herniation, but it can also occur after trauma such as a car accident.  Disk herniation is literally movement of the intervertebral disk into the space normally occupied by the spinal cord.  The disk normally serves as a  cushion between the vertebrae, but it can move upwards and impinge on the spinal cord with this disease.  When the disk herniates in the mid to lower back it can cause paralysis and/or the inability to properly urinate and defecate.  If the disk herniates in the neck, it can cause neck pain, lameness in a front leg, or even paralysis of all four limbs.  The herniation can occur suddenly, or can happen slowly over a long period of time.  Definitive diagnosis frequently requires specialized imaging. […]

Not all flea preventatives are created equal.  There are quite a few flea prevention products that we see on the shelves of pet stores and advertised through on-line pharmacies.  Some cost more than others and some require a veterinary prescription.  In my opinion, the primary and important difference in flea prevention is in “speed of kill†– allow me to explain what that means.  The various topical flea preventatives that are commercially available all have different time frames in which they are anticipated to kill the fleas that jump on the treated pet.  This is important because when we take into account the flea’s life cycle, we can understand that we want to kill that flea before it has the chance to lay eggs that will further contaminate the environment.  A topical flea preventative that kills the flea faster will act as a treatment for fleas (the flea is dead) as well as a preventative for fleas (the fleas are not laying eggs that will contaminate the home/yard and serve as a source for further infestation).  This combination of action gives us the best possible prevention and treatment for fleas.  There are some other variations between the products.  Safety for […]

Many dog owners and some non-dog owners know what bloat is.  The movie “Marley and Me†brought the issue to the surface for a while, though now many who saw the film still don’t know how that dog died.  I never saw the movie, but I do know about bloat and I feel it nearly unforgivable to happen to a vet’s dog.  Here is what happened: my dog Emma is a lab/springer mix.  She usually gets a burst of energy in the evening after I get home from work.  On this particular day, she had just finished eating her dinner, then goaded me into throwing her Frisbee for her.  We went into the back yard and I tossed the Frisbee.  The first chase and catch was mild, the second throw produced a nice chase and she nearly caught that one, the third throw included a high catch with a tail flip – it was beautiful.  The fourth throw never happened.  She came back and dropped the Frisbee, was panting as expected, but didn’t want to go again.  She paced a bit, then ran off to go pee.  After that, she returned to the porch, but didn’t want to play.  Shortly […]

“Come” is one of the most important commands we teach our dogs.  It is a potentially life-saving word, too.  If your dog is running toward the road for example… Dogs learn that they can ignore our commands at times.  They learn this because when we tell/ask them to do something and they don’t do it, there may be no consequences at all.  It is imperative that this is not true when your dog hears, “come.”  Here are some rules that need to apply to that word. 1. In teaching it: never say “come” unless the dog is already coming toward you or you have them on a leash or rope of some kind.  When you say the word, there must be no alternative but to comply. 2. Always make it very worthwhile for the dog to come.  When they obey, there must be a super fantastic reward awaiting them.  They must immediately get the reward.  There can never ever be any punishment after complying.  It no longer matters what they did that made you say the word, if they come, they must not be punished.  If you are trying to teach them not to do something, go and get them […]

If your dog is acting quite normally and suddenly develops diarrhea, the first question in your mind should be: What caused this?  Often dogs get sudden diarrhea from eating inappropriate things such as greasy foods, bark or mulch from outside, items from the garbage can or compost pile, people food, etc.  Sometimes diarrhea develops from stressful situations.  They can also develop diarrhea from eating plants, getting into chemicals, or eating their toys.  If you fear one of the latter – call your veterinarian immediately.  If you suspect your dog was given barbeque by your neighbor last night, then there are some first steps you can take to try to alleviate the situation.  I always recommend an immediate fast.  No food for either 12 or 24 hours, depending on the severity of the diarrhea.  Please keep in mind that we are talking about a dog that is acting 100% normal in every other way.  Fasting the dog will allow the contents of the stomach and intestines to clear out and hopefully begin the healing process.  Break the fast with a BLAND diet.  Yes, there are diets that are more bland than over-the-counter dog food!  Veterinarians have diets that are manufactured to […]

Holiday Pet Hazards It seems that every year we hear about seasonal dangers that could affect our pets.  At the risk of being redundant, I will review them again for you.  A refresher is always nice to have and some “dangers†are more serious than others.  That being said, if your pet is acting unusual, it is best to get the advice of your veterinarian because it is always better to be safe than sorry. Toxic plantsPoinsettias, Mistletoe, Holly, Amaryllis, and Christmas trees.  These plants cause GI upset (vomiting, diarrhea, lethargy, nausea).  Many times our pets only get small amounts of them and because they are irritating or taste bad, our dogs and cats leave them alone.  There are some exceptions where these plants can be bad for our pets – namely if they ingest large quantities or certain parts (like the bulb of the amaryllis).The toxic plant to be very aware of is the Lily – it causes renal failure in cats.  Namely Lilium and Hemerocallis genera (Easter lilies, tiger lilies, day lilies, etc.) are the dangerous ones.  Any ingestion of a lily in a cat is a medical emergency and your cat should be admitted to the hospital.  […]

Did you know that dogs and cats can develop behaviors in their old age that are the same as dementia in humans?  We know that we (humans) are prone to cognitive impairment as we age and that it affects our memory, attention, problem solving, and language.  We also can suffer from disorientation as the condition progresses.  Alzheimer’s disease is one form of dementia in people and some of the brain lesions that are found in human Alzheimer’s patients are the same type as we see in our pets. Behaviors that you may see with CDS: Inappropriate elimination Memory loss (forgetting commands) Irritability Sleep disturbances Restlessness Barking/crying Separation anxiety Panting Drooling Obsessive licking or decreased grooming Neediness or aggression Changes in activity Altered interest in food Staring Going to the wrong side of doors Getting stuck in corners Wandering Forgetting they just ate There are a few things we can do to help our pets maintain their cognitive function for longer.  Supplements such as SAM-e and Omega 3 Fatty Acids have been proven to diminish clinical signs of this syndrome or to improve performance in cognitive tasks.  There is a medication called L-Deprenyl that is used to treat CDS – it […]