As everyone has probably guessed, I like animals. Animals are pretty cool. I enjoy them and I have a lot of respect for their place in our world. That being said, I also have a pretty healthy dose of wariness when it comes to certain animals who, on occasion, present less than benevolent faces to the world. Take bees, for instance. When I was in high school, I remember talking to my father on the phone one afternoon about a strange buzzing noise that I couldn't figure out the source of. "It's ... Read more »
Daily Life
We’ve got the blues
Yesterday, we had a sick little puppy in the hospital with vomiting and diarrhea. While he was in the back, getting rehydrated and filled up with anti-nausea meds, I was putting my head on my arms thinking, oh no, I'm getting sick. We were quite the pair, the two of us. While he was improving, I was declining. I envied him his quiet cage and his IV and I wondered if I crawled into a lower cage with a blanket and a hot water bottle how long it would take anyone to notice. It's amazing how ... Read more »
Story of the day
"Room 2 is Freddie," says the tech. "He's been vomiting for a couple of days." I grab the chart of the door and take a peek as I go in the room. "Hi there, Mr....Krueger-" pause- "Freddie Krueger?" I look at the dog, a wrinkly shar pei. The owner grins proudly. "I was going to save that for my first born son, but I figured I'd use it on the dog." Good choice. ... Read more »
More news of the obvious
The CDC just released a report estimating 86,000 falls a year are caused by dogs and cats. I wonder if they do a similar report on the number of falls caused by roller skates, weak ankles, wet floors, and banana peels. The report seems to infer that the majority of injuries are to the elderly, caused by tripping over little dogs out on walks. Interesting, but I can't quite figure out what they want to happen. The benefits of having a pet are well documented. Are we going to place warning ... Read more »
True confession
I have a confession to make, and this one is hard. Skippy is no longer with me. This is painful. I feel like a failure, especially since I spend so much time talking about responsibility and how a pet is a lifetime commitment. I still believe that, which is why I also think you should be really careful about the hows and whens of bringing a new pet into the home, and that is where I really screwed up. I knew after Mulan died that I would eventually want another dog, and I had a specific kind ... Read more »
Working on the hyperlichenification process
I.e. trying to get a thicker skin. Today I went into a room to give a little dachshund puppy his vaccine boosters. This was a cute dog. Seriously cute. I had seen him once before, 3 weeks prior, for his first vaccination and he was healthy and adorable then, as he was today. I went in and gushed, trying to ignore the fact of the very stone faced owner glaring at me. Everyone has bad days and bad moods, right? She asked me a couple of questions that I started to answer, and she cut me off each ... Read more »
Yesterday sucked.
As I was leaving the house this morning on my way to work, my phone rang. "Hi, it's Carmen," said my tech. "I know you're probably just about to leave anyway, but I wanted to let you know Comet is here and he doesn't look good." I grabbed my keys and shot out the door. Comet is owned by one of my favorite clients, an extremely sweet woman who adores her cats. Not three months ago, she lost a recently adopted cat to a nasty virus that has been striking hard in the local shelters. It hit very ... Read more »
Dog Poops Money
That was the headline CNN gave this story. I admit I was a little disappointed to hear it was just a dog who just snacked on some Benjamins. Dogs eating stuff they shouldn't it as newsworthy as "cat barfs hairball in shoe, live at 10." I was hoping it was going to be a modern day Golden Goose, a dog who could miraculously generate currency in their colon. Need some gas money? Feed Fido some kibble and wait. Need a quick $100? Add in some fiber. If you're really desperate and loan sharks are ... Read more »
More reasons to be happy you went to business school instead
Vets are more likely to be boozers. Considering my vet school classmates, I shouldn't be surprised. We were all pretty happy go lucky back in those days, but I imagine close to a decade of stressors has taken its toll on more than a few of us. James Herriot sure made this profession look bright and shiny, bold and beautiful and whatever other heartwarming couplets float your boat. It is, sometimes. Other times it is all things smelly and stinky, green and abscessed, angry and litigious. Health ... Read more »
Shades of silver
I haven't euthanized a pet in a couple of weeks. That is one of the things I like about day practice, as opposed to emergency, less of that sad stuff. But for whatever reason, this sort of thing comes in waves, and the tide came rolling in today. First was a young cat who was horrifically sick. He was so jaundiced that you could see the yellow tinge from across the room. The owner had him euthanized. I never did find out what the cause was. Next was an older cat, who was also horrifically ... Read more »
You’ll just have to trust me on this one.
I saw a REALLY funny looking cocker spaniel today. He had a comb-over! He had the usual short cocker spaniel fur, save one long straight tuft that was swept back and feathered over his head Donald Trump style. "I love his little toupee!" I exclaimed to the owner, before realizing it wasn't intentional at all and the person had no idea what I was talking about. I really wanted to take a picture to put here, but based on his reaction to me I had a feeling it wasn't going to happen. Just imagine ... Read more »
On safari
Today we venture to the savannah in search of the elusive Goldenbeast. His vibrant coat is in stark contrast to the lush greenery. He is better suited for camouflage in his native environment, the leather couch. He settles down at the edge of the plains with the remains of his latest kill. But the savannah is a popular destination for wildlife viewing, and it doesn't take long for the tourists to swoop in to try and steal a hug. Uh oh. There is a whole busload of ... Read more »
Next time you donate that couch to Goodwill….
Make sure your cat isn't stuck inside of it. That is the sort of thing that would happen to me- my cats are always wiggling under the cushions, trying to spelunk into the depths. I can't imagine how that cat managed to get totally stuck inside the couch, though. Fortunately the story has a happy ending, but that poor cat! He wiggles inside his favorite hiding place and wakes up in a new house! There's no way it would have taken 10 days to find Calypso, though. If I am 10 minutes late in ... Read more »
The morning obits
Every morning when I get into work, one of the first things I do is check the fax machine. (OK, I’ll be honest, the receptionist checks it and I just ask her if anything came in. But you get the idea.) There is the usual stuff- requests from online pharmacies, continuing education announcements, Viagra ads- but there are only two things I really care about: labwork, and notes from the emergency hospital. We have a great 24 hour emergency hospital that we refer to after-hours, or even ... Read more »
Rules for a Long and Happy Life: Number Two
Never buy your dog from a breeder in Mexico. Sure, it seems like a good idea at the time. The little fluffy puppy in a super center parking lot needs a home, and what a deal! $400! The ones at the store at the mall are $1200! The dog looks cute, if a little disheveled. Happy little fluffy buddy. So, you take him home, and give him some puppy food. He eats it for a day or two, and then on the third day he vomits it up. Worms, you think. Maybe it is roundworms. You give him a dewormer. He gets ... Read more »
PSA for all the women who wanted to be vets at one point
I hope I have fulfilled my public service of convincing all of you who romanticized the life of a veterinarian that your alternate career choice was, in reality, a good one. If not let me summarize my week : Mon: Dudley won't poop. Give him an enema, and some fiber. Tues: Dudley won't poop. Give him an enema, some fiber, and a stool softener. Wed: Dudley won't poop. Give him an enema, some fiber, industrial laxative, and GI stimulant. Mission accomplished. Thrilling, isn't it? ... Read more »
Rules for a Long and Happy Life: Number One
First in a series. The most famous is: never get involved in a land war in Asia, but only slightly less well-known is this: never go in against a Sicilian when death is on the line! Oh wait, wrong topic. Rules for a Long and Happy Life of a pet. Be trite, if it makes you happy. Name your dog Fluffy or Rover or Fido. Be ironic- name your chihuahua Cujo or your bulldog Daisy Mae. Name your cat after your favorite literary character, anime cartoon, or hobbit. If and only if you are homeless, ... Read more »
An uneasy truce
I admit it. I am a bad dog mother. I did what every other person on the planet does despite swearing they won't do when they have a kid, and got lazy. Back in 2004, Emmett was a feisty 3 year old, all red and athletic and ready for anything. All of a sudden, I turn around and the kid is starting kindergarten and Emmett is going grey and all the sneaked in toddler food has given him a spare tire that I'm not walking him enough to get rid of. Consider me flogged. I feel pretty badly about it. So ... Read more »
