My clinic received a big reminder why people should never share their meals with their pets. Here in the US last Thursday was Thanksgiving. To you non-Americans, this is an annual holiday in memory of one of the first colonies in the US after they survived a hard winter and gave thanks. It's a time for getting together with family, being thankful for what we have, and eating lots of food. Traditionally, the staple of the Thanksgiving meal is turkey, though lots of other things are also served.Last week a client gave her seven pound yorkie a turkey leg and gravy. Over the weekend she developed acute pancreatitis and has been in the clinic for the last couple of days. She's stable, but is in serious condition and is very painful. Pancreatitis is a common...
Where Does Obligation End? Part 1
Recently we had a client visit one of our clinics (we're a multi-location practice) because she believed her dog had eaten some rat poison. The doctor worked up a treatment plan and it was presented to the owner. She said that she could not pay for the services. She was offered Care Credit (a medical credit card here in the US), but said she wouldn't qualify. She didn't have any other credit cards, and said that her check would bounce. Basically she was offered every payment option we have (we don't do in-house billing and payment plans), but couldn't do any of them. So treatment was not performed and she was referred to a local emergency clinic in hopes that they might be able to work out payment with her. Her visit there ended up the same way, with...
Pain In The Neck
Back in September I saw a dog for a swelling on the neck. Apparently the dog had fallen while running back in the Spring, and had landed on a sharp rock. Since then she .had a bloody swelling on the left side of her neck where she hit the rock. A previous veterinarian had thought this was a hematoma (blood swelling or clot under the skin) and various treatments hadn't helped. So she came to me for a second opinion.I noticed that there was a slight draining tract and some inflamed tissue that was potentially preventing it from closing. Whatever the cause, we needed to do surgery to try and resolve the issue. The owner agreed to the procedure, and a couple of weeks later one of my associates performed the surgery. Now keep in mind that this was about four...
No Blame In Cancer
Here's a question from Stefanie...I just recently found out that my 14 year old Queensland Heeler/Australian Shepherd dog has a squamous cell carcinoma in her throat. It is attached to her soft palate and left tonsil and is quite large. (I was shown a picture of it) To quote the biopsy results "poorly differentiated, aggressive, locally invasive". Since she is 14 - after discussing options with the vet (her recommendations were referral to an oncologist, "debulking" the tumor which would buy some time but not necessarily prevent it from growing back, or just keeping her happy and comfortable for as long as possible). I was told she has 3-6 months and the tumor will likely eventually cut off her airway. I chose option three - keeping her happy and comfortable and will put her down when...
Pica
Pica is a medical condition veterinarians sometimes encounter in practice. Pica comes from the latin word for magpie, a bird with a reputation for eating almost anything. Pica is considered a symptom of disease (like vomiting or fever, for example), not a disease per se. Pica can be exhibited by dogs and cats suffering from a plethora of medical conditions, from gastrointestinal parasites, to anemia, to liver disease, to cancer. While most humans who exhibit pica have serious mental illness (OCD, schizophrenia, etc), dog and cats almost invariably have a physical condition, often a lack of a dietary requirement or nutrient of some kind, or...
Heartworm Resistance?
There is a potentially emerging problem here in the US....potential resistance of heartworms to current preventative medicines. While it's not time to panic, there is reason for concern.One of the worst areas in the US for heartworm disease is the lower Mississippi River region. The presence of water as well as high temperatures and humidity throughout the year make it an excellent breeding ground for the mosquitoes that carry heartworm disease. In the last few years there have been several cases reported of dogs who had been consistently on prevention yet still developed heartworm disease. It's gone beyond a couple of questionable cases to the point that top parasitologists are investigating the possibility of resistance.All of this fear is currently speculation and...
Sick Feral Kittens
Here's a question from Patti....Back in August I spotted a tiny kitten lounging on my driveway. I felt sorry for it because of the heat and decided to give it water and a bit of food. (I know not to, but it was a kitten!) Anyway I set it out there, the kitten ran off, then I saw what turned out to be mama cat and another kitten. I opted to continue feeding all three of them. Mama seemed to bail after about a month or so. It was getting colder outside, so I fashioned an old cat carrier into a shelter with a blanket. They use it too. So here is the problem. The kittens both have been sneezing and the smallest one is really congested. They are so skittish, so I can't grab them up to take them to the vet. I talk to them to try to put them at ease. They will allow me to play with...
Post-Bone Problems
Donna sent this in... I am writing in reference to my 7 mo. old English Mastiff. I recently gave him a large raw cow bone on Monday afternoon and the following Wed. he became ill. I fed him his kibble which he started hacking and proceeded to throw all that up. He started to shiver, hack just general not feeling well. I took him to our new vet and my pup did have an elevated temp. 103. the vet said he had a bacterial infection poss. e-coli, salmonella. He kept him overnight and I picked him up the next morning with the only instructions to give him his antibiotics and pain meds, Tramadol 2 50mg every 12 hrs. There was no bloodwork or x-rays taken. I got my pup to eat some boiled chicken and rice shortly after I got him home (about noonish)" then later that...
Normal Play?
Yesterday I had a client that was worried about her seven month old puppy being aggressive. In the exam room the dog was energetic and sweet with no signs of behavioral problems. As I questioned the owner and delved into the behaviors I realized that the owner was describing normal play behaviors. It's actually not uncommon for an average pet owner to be confused, as some play behaviors in dogs can appear aggressive. And since animal behavior is a strong interest of mine, that's today's blog topic.Here is a recent picture of my two dogs: Inara on the left and Yvaine on the right.Looks pretty fearsome, right? ...
You've Worked Too Long As A Vet When....
Part of my goal for this blog is to peel back the curtain of veterinary medicine and let people see what the life of an average vet is like. For those outside of the profession this may be a bit of an eye-opener at times as you see things that you never realized. This may be another of those times.A friend of mine who is also a vet comes up with some great humorous lists that always have surprising truth in them. I saw him post this list a few days ago and really laughed at it. There are many things here that non-veterinarians (or their staff) simply won't understand or find funny. But those of you who have been in the profession for any length of time will likely laugh out loud. One of the most amusing thing about this list is that it is completely and utterly true...and to those of...
Cancerous Eye
Good week for reader questions! Here's one from Darlene.Our cat, Tig, is a 13 year old (indoor only) domestic short haired cat. She has been in very good health until the last month or so. We began to notice the color of her iris began to get darker. In addition, sometimes her pupil began to stay open wider than the other pupil in the other eye. She has not shown any signs of pain. She does not wash that eye anymore and will let you pet her face near that eye. We recently took her to the vet to be examined. They informed us she likely has an iris melanoma with glaucoma in that eye. They have recommended she have an enucleation procedure performed. They would have the eye sent to UGA to see if the tumors in the eye were Cancerous. We have become more comfortable with the removal...
Painful Swallowing
Here's a case sent in by Kristin...I have an 8 month old Maltipoo that I rescued 4 months ago. He was late getting his shots because the previous owners did not give him his shots. He has had his 6 in 1 shots but has not received Bordatella because I thought it was included in the 6 in 1. Recently he has been sick. Slight cough, slight fever so I took him to the vet and he has been on antibiotics for approximately a week. Nothing too abnormal about this scenario so far right? Well, here is where it gets interesting. I told the vet the first thing I noticed about him being sick was an unusual behavior. When he would attempt to eat he would extend his front left leg out in front of him and whine in pain. He went off his feed entirely just prior to me taking him to the vet for about 3...
