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Hospice Care for Pets
Photo Credit: © Tonya Perme Over the years I’ve counseled many thousands of clients as they’ve struggled with end-of-life decision making for their pets. For many of those years, clients who expressed...
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Cataracts in Dogs and Cats
While cataracts are less common in dogs and cats than in people, they do occur with relative frequency and are one of the most common causes of blindness. Normally, the pupil of the eye appears black...
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Leaky Dogs: A Primer on Urinary Incontinence
Photo Credit: © Susannah Kay Does your dog awake from her sleep in a puddle of urine? Does she dribble urine when she stands up or is walking about? If so, she has involuntary urine leakage, known as...
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The Most Important Thing a Client Ever Taught Me
When I met Martha in 1985 I was an internal medicine resident at the University of California, Davis Veterinary Teaching Hospital. Right from the get-go, Martha impressed me as a kind, soft-spoken,...
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What Would You Do?
I recently came across a paper titled “Internet users’ perception of importance of clinical signs commonly seen in old animals with age-related diseases”. The study concluded that many people have...
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Got a Fever?
Just like us, dogs and cats can spike fevers in response to infectious diseases, inflammatory disorders, and heatstroke. How can you tell if your pet’s temperature is on the rise? The notion that a...
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Sudden Acquired Retinal Degeneration Syndrome (SARDS)
Muffin- the inspiration for Muffin’s Halo Over the years I’ve developed a top ten list of my most despised diseases. Those that make it to this list tend to be diseases that are untreatable, leaving me...
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Canine Bladder Infections: Part I
“Rocky” – Photo Credit: Shirley Zindler If you’ve lived your life with dogs, chances are you’ve cared for one with a bladder infection. The normal urinary bladder is sterile, meaning devoid of...
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Canine Bladder Infections: Part II
In the first article of this series you were introduced to the causes of canine bladder infections and their associated symptoms. This article will help you understand how canine bladder infections are...
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Canine Bladder Infections: Part III
Photo Credit: Susannah Kay Part I of this series provided you with information about causes and symptoms of bladder infections. Part II addressed how to diagnose this common canine malady. This segment...
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Caring for Our Pets and Ourselves at the End of Their Lives
Photo credit: Blair O’Neil If ever you’ve lost a beloved pet, or you are close to losing one, I think this piece will resonate with you. My friend, Susan Shannon, who lives and works in California, is...
View ArticleWhen is Panting Abnormal?
When we observe a dog who is panting, we tend to take it for granted because this behavior is so darned normal. But, is it always normal? While most panting occurs as a means of counteracting...
View ArticleTen Tips for Managing Your Senior Pet’s Medications
Has your tabby transitioned into his teens? Is the hair on your retriever’s muzzle now a lovely shade of gray? If so, it’s likely that some medical issues have accompanied your pet’s aging process....
View ArticleEight Tips for Coping With Your Dog’s Age-Related Hearing Loss
The most common form of deafness in dogs is age-related hearing loss (ARHL). Most dogs experience some degree of ARHL, beginning sometime during their “third trimester” of life. ARHL begins by...
View ArticleObesity and Diabetes: An Epidemic Amongst People and Pets
If you’re like me, you’ve become used to hearing about theastronomical incidence of obesity and diabetes within the United States. And, predictions of how many of our children will ultimately...
View ArticleIs the Flu Vaccine a Smart Choice For Your Dog?
News articles about the expanding canine flu “epidemic” are popping up everywhere, and they seem intent on creating fear and worry. Rest assured, there is no need for panic. The better response is to...
View ArticleDogs and the Aging Process
Just like us, our dogs transition through a number of physical and functional changes as they age. This aging process is physiologic in nature, meaning alterations happening at the cellular level are...
View ArticleSeven Things You Can Do to Enhance Your Dog’s Longevity
I recently addressed common age-related changes in dogs. Thinking about such changes begs the question, what can we do enhance the longevity of our canine companions. Here is a list of my top seven...
View ArticleNellie Appears to Be Older Than We Thought
I recently published information about the changes that occur as our dogs age and what we can do to enhance their longevity. As of late, I’ve unexpectedly discovered that this information has become...
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