24/7 Emergency Care or Specialty Referral
Veterinary medicine lags behind human medicine by 15-20 years in terms of treatments, diagnostic tools, medications and specialists. Some pet owners aren’t aware that there are veterinary internists, cardiologists, radiologists, neurologists, surgeons, oncologists, behaviorists, criticalists and more. A good general practitioner is similar to a human GP (general practitioner) but to a certain extent, has […]
Ehrlichia Infection in Dogs
What are Ehrlichia? Ehrlichia, named for the Dr. Ehrlich who first described them, are a type of bacteria that infect and live within the white blood cells of their hosts. Different types of Ehrlichia live in different types of white blood cells. Hosts can be human, pet, or wild animals. Ehrlichiaare spread from host to host by tick bites and […]
Disseminated Intravascular Coagulation (DIC) in Dogs and Cats
Disseminated intravascular coagulation (DIC) is an extreme complication of numerous already life-threatening conditions leading to the deregulation of the body’s natural mechanisms of blood clotting and blood clot dissolving. In other words, a very sick patient begins both bleeding and clotting abnormally at the same time, leading to disaster and frequently to death. DIC is […]
Hyperesthesia in Cats
The word hyperesthesia means an increase in sensitivity. If you have a cat with this syndrome you probably know exactly what is meant by this. These cats act as though they have pain from simply being touched; most commonly in the region of the lower back. These cats have skin that twitches at the slightest […]
Degenerative Myelopathy And Progressive Paralysis of Dog’s Hindquarters
Degenerative myelopathy (also known as DM, German shepherd degenerative myelopathy, or chronic degenerative radiculomyelopathy) is a slowly progressive disease that affects the spinal cord and a dog’s ability to walk. DM results in lost coordination of the hind legs, which progresses to weakness and then to paralysis of the hindquarters. What happens is that the […]
What Does it Mean When Your Dog Tremors?
Aside from panting, one of the biggest concerns an owner might mention is that their dog is shaking. For the veterinarian, it’s important to know are the tremors continuous, episodic, repeatable, whole body, just one region and so on. Finding the reason behind tremors is tricky as tremoring occurs for many reasons. The first step […]
Insulin Administration in Dogs
The following article is from VeterinaryPartner by Wendy Brooks, DVM, DAVP Insulin is the injectable medication you use to control your diabetic dog’s blood sugar. When insulin therapy is started, the optimal dose for your pet is unknown and will have to be determined by trial and error. Most dogs will need insulin injections twice […]
Heart Disease and Possible Association with Grain-Free Foods
Over the last several years, as people have been trying carbohydrate-restricted diets, grain-free foods have become increasingly popular with dog owners. In part, this may be due to human experience on diets such as the Akins diet as well as the newer Keto-diet. Also, people are concerned that their dogs may be allergic to grains. […]
Pilling a Cat
Wendy Brooks, DVM, DABVP Date Published: 01/01/2001 Date Reviewed/Revised: 08/28/2018 This is Sammie, our model for today. He has volunteered to take an amoxicillin tablet for our demonstration. Our technician Mo will be assisting and she will use a “kitty burrito.” These directions are for a right handed person, so reverse them if you are left handed. The […]
Food Allergy Trials in Dogs
Donna Raditic, DVM Date Published: 02/13/2007 Date Reviewed/Revised: 06/15/2016 Food Allergy Trial Objectives What are some of the signs of a food allergy? How does your veterinarian select a diet for a food allergy trial? What diets are currently available for a food allergy trial? What pitfalls can occur during a food allergy trial? What […]