Pharmaceuticals and Nutraceuticals for Arthritis There are numerous treatments and products available to manage joint pain, and each one has proponents and detractors. One thing that experts agree on is that arthritis management should be multimodal, meaning the best results come when many different approaches are used at the same time, not just a variety of medications and … [Read more...]
UTIs in Dogs (Urinary Tract Infections in Dogs)
How Vets Diagnose UTIs in Dogs There are many ways to tell if a dog has a UTI and to investigate the underlying causes for why an infection occurred in the first place. It’s important to obtain a definitive diagnosis whenever there is evidence of urinary tract disease, or else UTIs may come back. Here are the ways that veterinarians test for UTIs in dogs. Urine Collection There … [Read more...]
Ten Threatened and Endangered Species Used in Traditional Medicine
The Chinese alligator now numbers fewer than 200 in the wild, mostly restricted to a small reserve in the Anhui province of China, along the lower Yangtze River. © CHINA PHOTOS / Reuters / Corbis Species are disappearing so quickly that scientists now debate whether the earth is going through it’s sixth mass extinction. Plants and animals go extinct for a variety of reasons, … [Read more...]
Lice
Clinical signs The first sign of lice that most people notice is the scratching. Suddenly the dog is intensely itchy. Upon close inspection, you might see some small, tan to medium brown colored critters down near the skin. You can tell lice from fleas by the color (fleas are quite dark) and the speed (lice are quite sluggish movers, while fleas usually zoom out of sight before … [Read more...]
Vetmedin ® (pimobendan) Chewable Tablets
Pre-Approval Experience: Clinical findings/adverse reactions were recorded in a 56-day field study of dogs with congestive heart failure (CHF) due to MMVD (256 dogs) or DCM (99 dogs). Dogs were treated with either VETMEDIN (175 dogs) or the active control enalapril maleate (180 dogs). Dogs in both treatment groups received additional background cardiac therapy (See … [Read more...]
Pain Management for Dogs
In recent years, veterinarians have made great progress in understanding how dogs feel pain and the best ways to manage that pain. Many dogs will instinctively hide their pain as a survival mechanism, which, in the past, led well-meaning experts to presume that dogs did not feel pain the same way humans do. We now know that dogs have a nervous system very similar to humans, and … [Read more...]
Cefpodoxime for Dogs – Here’s What You Need to Know
What is Cefpodoxime?Cefpodoxime is a type of antibiotic that belongs to the group of antimicrobials known as cephalosporins. Cephalosporins are divided into different generations, with higher generations reserved for specific uses. This helps to reduce antibiotic resistance.The Cefpodoxime drug is a third-generation cephalosporin and is available under the brand names … [Read more...]
Comments
If you love your pets and believe in the healing power of animals … if you were a child who treated your stuffed animals as sentient beings … then you won’t want to miss this interview with Julie Barton, author of Dog Medicine: How My Dog Saved Me from Myself. When I read the last chapter of Dog Medicine, my husband found me curled up on the couch sobbing. He tried to take it … [Read more...]
10 medications for dog anxiety (and some natural remedies)
If your dog suffers from frequent or severe anxiety, you and your vet may consider a variety of different medications. Some of the following are considered SSRIs and antidepressants, both of which can be used to treat different forms of anxiety (including formal anxiety disorders, social anxiety, and other mental health diagnoses): Alprazolam (Xanax). Similar to the type of … [Read more...]
How to Give Subcutaneous Fluids to Dogs and Cats
When people are dehydrated, we have only two options for treatment—drink fluids or receive intravenous (IV) fluids. But pets have another option. Many have looser skin than human beings, so they can receive hydration through subcutaneous (under the skin) fluids. This method is easier to administer and comes at a lower cost than IV fluids. It’s common for vets, especially at … [Read more...]