It's the oddest thing. I can go 3 months without seeing a blocked cat or a glaucoma, and all of a sudden I will see three in one day. It always comes in waves. In yesterday's case, we marked the start of foxtail season. In our area, foxtails are one of the banes of a dog's existence. They aren't found everywhere, but in my neck of the woods they are ubiquitous. Foxtails are, essentially, grass awns. When they dry out, they turn into nasty little sticky bayonets that stick to a dog's fur, and ... Read more »
Archives for April 2009
Health
Waiting on pins and needles
I'm going to give you a sentence, and you have to picture it for me, OK? "Today I took Fluffy to the veterinary acupuncturist." So what are you seeing? Some frizzy haired tank top wearing hippie haphazardly sticking insulin needles in your cat while waving catnip in front of her face, right? That's what I was picturing when I heard some classmates talking about it in vet school. "Oh, you went to one of those vets," we'd snicker, then go back to studying NSAID effects on renal perfusion. I ... Read more »
Not all flea products are created equal.
In news that is not exactly news because it's not saying anything we didn't already know, the EPA is investigating whether it needs to more closely scrutinize spot-on products for flea and tick control. Unlike most veterinary drugs, which fall under the jurisdiction of the Food and Drug Administration, spot on flea and tick preventives are overseen by the Environmental Protection Agency due to their classification as pesticides (the exception being those products that also function as a ... Read more »
The cat food experiment
I was very pleased to see how many people are interested in the cat food discussion and are thinking about making a change! In the spirit of that, I spent a good hour at the local boutique pet food store collecting some different cat diets. I'm going to try giving them to my cats and tell you what sort of reaction they have to them, as well as what kind of reaction I had (being someone who is, ironically, easily grossed out). I'll also give you the lowdown about how much work went into preparing ... Read more »
Attack of the Michelin kitties
There are few things I like to do less than anesthetize an overweight angry cat. Maybe an overweight bulldog, with a heart murmur. That would be bad too. But I don't see them nearly as often. At least once a week, I arrive to find an 18 pound cat here for a dental hissing at me from the confines of his carrier, glaring from beneath his folds of chub, just daring me to try and get a pre-anesthetic blood sample. Fat cats have very little scruff. It's like trying to hold a squishy ... Read more »
Canine Cuisine, Part Three: So, what should I feed my dog?
In Part 1 of the Canine Cuisine trilogy, Name that Food, I talked about how the name of the pet food itself gave you clues as to its content. In Part 2: Name that Ingredient, I went into detail about some of those baffling ingredient names you see on the back. In the last installment, I answer the omnipresent question of, "What should I feed my dog?" This is probably one of the most frequently asked questions I get asked as a veterinarian. I wish I could make it easy for you and just say, ... Read more »