Happy Easter! Are you ready to make sure everyone survives the weekend? We have the usual dangers of course, the ham that sends the dog to the ER with pancreatitis, the Easter basket grass that winds up tangled in the small intestine, the Cadbury overload, all the good stuff. But the Big Daddy of Easter dangers, as more and more people are realizing, is the dreaded Easter lily. Lilies will kill your cat. No mercy and no quarter- the leaves, petals, stems, even the little bit of pollen that ... Read more »
How TSA Turned Me into a Hardened Criminal
You ever have one of those moments where the stars align just so and you say, “I’ve poured my heart and soul into this thing and I just know there’s no way it will live up to my expectations” and yet it does and you’re left in shock? That was my weekend at Uncharted Veterinary Conference, and I’m not saying that just because I helped plan it. It was that good. As good as the conference was, the travel sitch getting to and from was equally bad. It brought balance to the force with extreme ... Read more »
The Reason I’m Glad I Stopped to Smell the Flowers
My routine was off today. I got distracted with work and emails and life, and before I knew it, it was 11 am. I like to walk Brody in the morning while it's still cool out, so we rarely find ourselves out in the midday sun where it gets really hot, really fast. I debated whether I should still go. Brody solemnly sat on my shoes and breathed on me until I decided that the decision wasn't really up to me- this was a dog who wanted some air. He gets so excited when he sees the leash, like he's ... Read more »
Mars Bought a Bunch More Vet Clinics- Now What?
We welcome our veterinary overlords! Well, kind of, but not really. Yesterday's announcement that Mars PetCare acquired VCA for 7.7 billion was a shocker to everyone I know in the pet care industry, which just goes to show you us peons are always the last to know. Disclosure: I am speaking only for myself here and from my own experiences. I spent part of my career at Banfield, which is part of the growing Mars empire. That wasn't the case when I joined, when veterinary clinics were almost ... Read more »
Giving Tuesday- I’m Giving to You!
Hey guys- long time no talk, right? I miss you all. I'm here, though as you probably noticed less so than I used to be. It's by design- lots of stuff in the works as always, and figuring out how this little blog fits in to all of it is always something I think about. People are reading fewer words these days, looking at more pictures, listening to more podcasts. How do we continue to stay in touch in a world whose canvas is ever-changing? Do I even want to try? (Yes. You should always try.) ... Read more »
An ER Euthanizes a Beloved Pet. This is What You Should Know:
There are certain calls to news editors that prove irresistible. I imagine in this day and age of ratings and clicks mattering more than actual investigative reporting, nothing makes editors salivate more than the tale of a devastated family and the greedy, lazy, and/or incompetent veterinarian responsible for the death of a pet. It neatly checks all the boxes modern day news websites are looking for: sad family. Adorable pet. Terrible situation. Having fulfilled these requirements, the ... Read more »
Want to Be a Good Dog Neighbor? Throw a Bark Party!
This post is sponsored by State Farm®. Having good neighbors, as we all know, can be a roll of the dice. Our first week in our new home, we waved to people passing by, but no one said much. I wondered how we were ever going to get to know anyone. Later that week, my often-shy daughter barreled out the front door and down the driveway when she spotted a girl about her age walking her Golden Retriever down the street. “I have a Golden too!” my daughter said, and it was the start of a ... Read more »
The Dying Pet’s Bill of Rights
As I prepare for my third year at IAAHPC, the veterinary hospice conference, I've taken pause to reflect on this journey and how it affects the way I view veterinary medicine. Personally, I have only euthanized a personal pet in a clinic (versus at home) one time. It was Nuke, my vet school coonhound, and he was diagnosed with hemangiosarcoma just a month after I graduated and came back home. The veterinarian was lovely and did as great a job as one can do in that situation, but so many ... Read more »
How To Age Like a Rock God
Last night I got to rock out at the last North American stop of the Guns n Roses "Not in This Lifetime" tour. In a moment that made me realize just how old I've gotten, I realized the last time they played San Diego- in 1992- I was also there. I was in high school, high on life (and probably a few other things unintentionally, as tended to happen at those arena shows), idealistic about the future. Guns n Roses was the biggest name in rock at the time, at the height of their fame and the zenith ... Read more »
Does Anyone Know If Elon Musk Has Pets?
Dear Elon, Hello! I would like to congratulate you on the roaring success of Tesla, in particular the Model X. I see them driving around when I'm out walking my dog and I spend a lot of time daydreaming about one day driving one of my own out to the dog park, with my dog's one ear flapping in the breeze as we race down the road. Perhaps you might be saying to yourself, "Goodness! What's keeping you from buying one, then? Aren't you a veterinarian? I hear they're rolling in dough!" ... Read more »
One Basic Household Item You Need if You Have a Pet
I've teamed up with Clorox to bring you some pet health and safety tips for the summer. Over this week and the next I'll be sharing some info on Facebook and Instagram about household germs and infectious disease prevention. Bottom line for me is, keep it simple! This post is sponsored by Clorox. “Simplify the problem of life, distinguish the necessary and the real.” – Henry David Thoreau, 1848 We spend a lot of time in our lives looking for the next biggest thing that’s going to ... Read more »
Chasing Butterflies
If you're ever in need of an escape to reset your head and find a little bit of peace in the chaos that swirls around you, I highly recommend Thailand. I have lots of stories and photos to share about the elephants I met, but today I have a different story to tell. Although not quite intentional, when I planned this trip I realized I was returning the day before my son's tenth birthday, which is also the one year anniversary of my mother's death. To spend the two weeks leading up to it in a ... Read more »
Life is Short. Buy the Boots.
If grief were a color, it would be slate. Not an angry obsidian black, or a peaceful dove grey, but that shapeshifting silver somewhere between black and white, a stormy sea that some days seems blue, others almost brackish, depthless and impossible to truly describe. If it were a shape, it would be a spiral, a shape you ride on in a neverending loop of centrifugal force splattering you against the wall whether you will it or not, bringing you back again and again to the same spot, from a ... Read more »
NatGeo Wild, Here I Come! (For real!)
Yay, big news I finally get to announce- I'm a Season 3 Expert on Nat Geo's Animals Gone Wild! I shot the episodes over several days at the end of last year, giving commentary on a bunch of wild animal videos. (None, by the way, showing people harming or doing irresponsible things, which was a condition of accepting the gig.) It airs Fridays at 9/8 C on NatGeo Wild starting this week- please tune in!! I hope you enjoy it! And for those of you who are in on the bandwagon of the Instagram ... Read more »
Misty Discovers the ‘Truth’ About Vets
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This is Why I Now Wait in the Car at School Pickup
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The Awful Case of Kristen Lindsey
In April 2015, Kristen Lindsey, DVM, shot a cat through the head with an arrow and then posted a picture on Facebook with the following caption: “My first bow kill … lol. The only good feral tomcat is one with an arrow through it's [sic] head! Vet of the year award … gladly accepted.” These facts are not in dispute. Why she did it, however, is. This is why she is currently testifying in an administrative hearing in order to try and keep her veterinary license. At its heart is the question, "Is ... Read more »
Brace Yourselves, GOT References are Coming
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