Today in the US was the holiday of Thanksgiving. The origins are meant to celebrate how some of the original English colonists made it through a hard winter with the help of Indians and gave thanks afterwards. But nowadays it is mostly a time to get off work, eat a ton of food, hang out with family, and prepare for huge after-Thanksgiving sales in the stores.We're also supposed to reflect on the things we are thankful for. Many people find this difficult in the current economy, with job losses, lower pay, and less joy overall. But I think if anyone tries hard enough, they can find something to give thanks about.I'm thankful for God and His blessings. For my beautiful and wonderful wife, who is endlessly patient with me. For two great children who fill my life...
A Cat's Dietary Needs
Clearing out my inbox, Jodi poses this set of questions about feline nutrition.why does it seem that so few veterinarians are interested in nutrition?? I believe a cat is a carnivore .Isnt an ideal diet one that consists of high qulity meat, very little carbohydrate, and no grain? My mothers cat has struvite crystals and bladder stones......all he has eaten is good quality canned food and very little dry. the special diet the vet wants him to eat is garbage!Since when do cats eat corn? and wheat? and by prodcuts and artificial (and toxic) preservatives?Isn't there a way to feed him and acidifying diet that has good quality nutrition? Even if this diet gets rid of his problem how can it be good for him?? He'll be free of crystals but malnourished!Thank you for any help or resources you...
A Medical Mystery
Here's a truly bizarre case sent in by Erin. Okay, this is going to be kind of long so I apologize in advance. Let me just say first that we have had our 4yr old beagle, Daisy, to at least 11 different vets, including one internist in Jacksonville, FL as well as the vets at Auburn University's small animal clinic. Whew! :) Okay. After seeing all of those vets and endless tests we still do not know what's wrong with her. Here are her symptoms:About every 3-7 days she'll have what I call an "episode" where out of the blue she'll start frantically licking the floor (or anything else), and swallowing in a very exaggerated manner. She'll make this sucking noise through her nose (not reverse sneezing) and swallow more as if she can't get something down. She will also occasionally hack...
Sore Throat
Matt sends this in,The last couple of days my dog has been yelping out of nowhere, and when she barks it is a bark that quickly turns to a yelp. We removed her collars thinking it was maybe constricting her throat but in the last day she has been less active and just lays around yelping occassionally. She still has an appetite but you can tell that it is difficult for her to swallow. Is there anything we can do to cause her to expel the object and help it's way down the rest of the way if you feel it is indeed an object in her airway?If there was something truly stuck in her throat, she likely wouldn't be eating, or would have more difficulty breathing. Honestly, "stuck in the throat" is a common concern of clients but is a rare occurence. She could have laryngitis...
Reverse Sneezing
It's common for vets to get clients concerned about a strange coughing/sneezing/hacking/wheezing in their dogs. It's a scary thing to watch, as it seems like the dog can't breath, and people worry that they might die or have severe problems. Most vets, myself included, have actually gotten pretty good at duplicating the noise as we try to figure out what the problem is. But now I can go one better. Here's a video...This condition is called reverse sneezing, and it's just like the name implies. It's basically a sneeze that goes backwards in the throat rather than forward out the nose. Anything that irritates the nasal passages can potentially trigger it, such as allergies, dust, strong odors, or even rapid movement of air through the nose. As disconcerting...
The Joy Of Play
There's a video making it's rounds of the Internet that you may have seen. A lecturer at the conference I attended last week had it in his presentation, and my father sent it to me today.This is incredibly adorable and cute! But I think it reminds us how important play is. As adults we get so bogged down in our work, bills, and life troubles. We wish we could be as free as our kids, and marvel at how much they enjoy playing. Don't we forget to play enough? How many of us can just revel in the sheer joy of the moment? We forget what even animals know. As part of my degree in animal behavior I studied play behaviors. One thing that surprised me is how universal certain stances and actions are across mammals. Wide eyes, open mouth, a lowered...
Skeeter Update
Back in July, I received a question about a very strange case (you can review it here). Last week I received this update from Denise.I am sure you remember me, I have the cat 'Skeeter' and you ran a post on her and helped me when her wrists had broken down. I wanted to update you. Skeeter deserves to be on the show Medical Mysteries. When the 8 kittens went to kitten food, I had them on Purina One Chicken and Rice Kitten. At about 6 or 7 mos old I believe, could have been sooner, I switched them to Diamond Naturals Kitten food. If you recall she was about 10 mos when I noticed the wrists breaking down. ...
Oh, My Achin' Butt
It's time for continuing education again, something that most professionals have to do. Once or twice each year I go to a conference to learn about new developments or procedures in veterinary medicine, refresh my memory on things I thought I knew, and get free stuff from the various vendors. It can be very interesting and educational, but most of us run into a common problem...butt fatigue.You see, most vets are pretty active people at work. We're going from room to room and case to case. On our busiest days we may never sit down and may not even have time for a lunch break. Our minds are having to shift gears every 10-20 minutes as new patiets come in, hospitalized patients get discharged, or lab results become available. Mentally and physically we're pretty much on the go for the whole...
No Longer "Swine" Flu
The spread of the H1N1 influenza virus, commonly called swine flu, has been a bit of a panic for many people world-wide. Back in September I blogged about the flu, and said that pets couldn't get it. I made that statement because at the time there was no evidence of that. I now have to change that opinion. Here in the US it has been confirmed that at least one cat became sick with H1N1, though it survived. Several ferrets have been confirmed to contract it and died. This last fact is not surprising, as ferrets are very susceptible to human influenza viruses. But the fact that a cat contracted it is more concerning.Viruses can mutate to change and affect different species. The virus we now call parvo mutated from the feline panleukopenia virus to be...
Too Easy Tech?
My associate vet told me about a rather strange situation that happened to her. When her husband looked at their cell phone bill, apparently there was $80 in songs downloaded to her phone. She had no idea how this had happened, as she didn't do it herself. After some investigating they realized that their 16 month-old daughter had done it! Apparently if you hit the "Select" button on her phone three times in a row, you've gone through the proper menus to order a song. So their little girl was playing with the phone and by simply pressing buttons had ordered dozens of songs! Her mother didn't even know how to do it!My kids are older, 6 (almost 7) and 8, and they have been able to use the camera on our cell phones for a few years now. It took them no...
Rockwilders and Datsuns
One of the things I have to sometimes snicker and shake my head at is the way that many people butcher the names of certain breeds. It's even more amusing and pitiful if the client actually owns that breed! And having practiced in many parts of the country, I can't say that it's localized to one region. I can somewhat understand that people may have a problem with some names, as many breed names are from countries that don't have English as the primary language. But these people usually are completely confident in what they call the breed and are completely ignorant of the proper name. Let me give you some examples....Rottweiler--I commonly hear them called "rockwilders", which butchers the name in so many ways.Dachshund--I've heard both "datsun" and "dash-hound"Shih-tzu--Oh,...
Leave The Horses Alone
So this month's poll is finished, and it probably isn't too surprising.It is acceptable to slaughter horses for food: 18%It isn't acceptable: 66%Not sure: 15%As I mentioned when the poll began, eating meat has a cultural bias. What might be perfectly acceptable in one country would be completely abhorent in another. In this case, eating horse meat is considered common and even a delicacy in many parts of the world, including parts of Europe. In the US I bet there are many people who aren't even aware that this goes on, let alone that there is a controversy. Because of the bond that Americans have with horses and the importance that these animals have had in the development of our country, it would be strange for most people to consider killing them...
