Health

Red noses probably aren't all that common in reindeer. There are more serious problems. I received a call from my neighbors who were raising a reindeer calf they had named Cocoa. Cocoa weighed just 20 pounds and was dehydrating from diarrhea since his mother had neglected him. Fortunately for Cocoa, I had some experience with reindeer and realized he had not received any antibodies from his mother's milk, a condition called "failure of passive transfer of immunity." This condition also occurs in humans, horses, dogs, cats and many other species as well. Cocoa needed a transfusion to survive. Otherwise, he could [...]

It was just another Wednesday when the door to my clinic first opened and a man and his son ran in carrying a black and white limp dog. The dog looks like it had sustained some trauma so we rushed him right into an exam room and began asking questions and giving her physical. It turns out that this dog just ran out in front of him on the road and though he tried to avoid it he actually ran the dog over. This man nor his son knew the dog. It was obvious in the eyes of his 10-year-old [...]

In 1997, Studs Terkel wrote "Working," a book describing what people did while at work. I love my work. So, I thought it might be fun to go over a day in the life of a veterinarian. I picked a day from last week. Here's the play by play, leaving out the routine, but necessary vaccination appointments: I arrive at the practice much later than usual - 10 a.m. It's Thursday, my usual day off, but I'm working because I'm needed. I see that three "pocket pets" from a pet shop have been dropped off - a very tiny hamster [...]

Maria and Brutus walked into my office with Brutus stopping periodically to scratch on his way in. I saw the look of dismay on Maria's face as she approached the front desk. I overheard her discussion with Jean Ann desk how Brutus has had a skin problem for so long and she's tried everything. She doesn't think I'll be able to help, but she's here anyway. Brutus sat patiently by her side periodically scratching at his underarms. Brutus was an older dog Mastiff mix, he'd around and seen some things, so not much got him excited. Brutus and Maria went [...]

Matt brought Almond to my clinic because of some crusty skin on the bridge of her nose. She also seemed a bit quieter than usual. Almond is a five-year-old golden retriever, who loves to play ball. She usually has an energy level than I am envious of but today she seemed rather tired. Some crusty skin on the face might make a human a bit down, but Almond didn't look in the mirror often. Skin problems are one of the most common reasons a dog goes to the veterinarian. Upon closer examination of Almond, she had a fever and the skin around her [...]

My grandmother used to say "an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure." Those words have been so true this week. I have seen several, very similar cases. "How could she have parvo? She's had a parvo shot." This was the question asked by Josh and his wife Crystal who brought Velvet to my office. Velvet is one of the most beautiful 8-month-old chocolate labs I have ever seen. To top it off she has had tons of training and can find antlers that deer have dropped in the woods. Parvo is a disease of canines that causes extreme [...]