Diseases

  • Laryngeal Paralysis in Dogs – A Common Voice Box Problem

    Last week you learned from Dr. Odunayo some wonderfully helpful tips to keep your pets safe in the summer months. You may remember her comments about taking steps to help animals, particularly dogs, acclimatize effectively to warmer weather. Some dogs have more trouble than others adjusting to increased heat and humidity because…

  • Chronic Kidney Disease in Dogs & Cats

    For the past several weeks, I’ve had a survey on Because Pets Can Have Specialists Too asking about what you want to know more. Well you requested and I’ve responded! You wanted to know more about kidney diseases in dogs and cats so this week I’m giving you a post about…

  • Heart Murmur – Should You Be Worried About Your Pet?

    For many families the mere mention of a murmur or heart disease instills fear, a sincere concern about an illness that could negatively affect their fur baby’s quality of life. In an effort to provide useful information, I’m pleased to welcome another guest blogger, Dr. Kacie Schmitt, a board-certified veterinary cardiologist who…

  • Canine Influenza – What You Need To Know!

    If you live in the United States, you probably know about the ongoing epidemic of canine influenza (sometimes called dog flu) in the Midwest. Veterinarians at the University of Wisconsin-Madison’s School of Veterinary Medicine have reported the virus has affected more than 1,000 dogs in Illinois, Wisconsin, Ohio and Indiana,…

  • Diabetes Mellitus: Part II – Dogs

    This week’s post is the second in a three-part series covering the topic of diabetes mellitus, and for this contribution I discuss this disease as it relates to dogs. In last week’s post, I reviewed diabetes in cats, and next week I will review insulin handling and how to perform at-home…

  • Diabetes Mellitus: Part I – Cats

    This week’s post is the first in a three-part series about diabetes mellitus. In this first week, I discuss diabetes mellitus in cats. Next week I will review this disease as it pertains to our canine friends, and in the third and final week of the series, I will provide…

  • Gastric Dilatation-Volvulus (GDV) – The Dreaded Bloat in Dogs  

    Gastric dilatation-volvulus or GDV is a life threatening and rapidly progressive condition in dogs. Other common terms for GDV include: Bloat Gastric torsion Stomach torsion Twisted stomach If not recognized and treated appropriately and immediately, affected dogs can painfully die. In this week’s blog post, I review the causes, clinical…

  • Obesity in Pets – Common Causes & Consequences  

    The population of overweight and obese pets continues to expand in the United States and around the world. As in people, excess weight is associated with several potential serious and even life-threatening health conditions. In this week’s post, I explore the various causes and consequences of pets being over or…

  • Chronic Nasal Disease – Snuffing Out The Snuffles, Part II

    In last week’s blog post, I introduced you to the causes and common clinical signs of, as well as diagnostic tests for chronic nasal disease in dogs and cats. To continue our discussion of this topic, this week I review various potential treatments for some frequently encountered chronic nasal diseases. Nasal infectious…