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Most of you are probably aware by now of the horrifying video that surfaced a few days ago of a girl/young woman throwing several puppies in a river to drown. The release of the video sparked outrage around the globe as people reacted to seeing the puppies lobbed into the river with carefree abandon. A hunt for the culprit ensued with large rewards being offered and much speculation as to the identity of the young woman. It is being reported at this time that the girl has been identified by the Bosnian police. However, because the girl is a minor, her identity is not being released, according to a report by the New York Daily News.

Was This a Case of Animal Abuse and Cruelty?

Yes, I believe it was. Like most people who viewed the video, I was shocked to see the young woman treating the killing of six puppies so cavalierly. To me, it appeared that she was enjoying her task. I also questioned why the deed was videotaped and posted online. My first thought, like that of so many other people, was that this girl is psychologically disturbed and needs to be punished for her cruel deed.

The Internet Response: Was it Appropriate?

Frankly, in some ways, I think the answer to that question is no!

Please don’t misunderstand. I fully understand and share the outrage that has been expressed toward this act of abuse. However, I also have been troubled by some of the responses I’ve seen and read on the internet.

In addition to hateful comments calling for death, torture, dismemberment and worse, there have been numerous death theats and harrassment directed at women believed to be the girl in the video. To my knowledge, there have been at least three separate women identified as being the woman in the video. In two instances, these women were reported by individual websites, twitter accounts or facebook accounts who likely had no direct knowledge of the crime. Also, there has been a more recently released apology that was posted and allegedly written by the woman who killed the puppies. Since law enforcement agencies have not released the name of the woman they have identified, it is clear that these reports are at best unsubstantiated. At worse, they are blatantly malicious. Either way, these women have suffered the backlash, being harassed and receiving death threats, even though they may or may not be involved in the incident!

Hatred and Vigilantism Run Rampant

The internet response to this video has caused me almost as much concern as the video itself. To me, it seems that hatred has replaced common sense in some quarters. It also seems as though certain groups on the internet are taking on the role of vigilantes, determined to hunt down the guilty party (which I think is good) but not concerned at all about the innocent people that their hunt might harm (which is not so good, in my opinion).

Please believe me! I’m not excusing this girl for her actions. I believe them to be wrong, cruel and inhumane. And I agree entirely that she needs to be identified and, if not punished, then at least educated about the proper treatment of animals. However, I find calls for her to be tortured and killed to be as disturbing as her original act.

What Punishment is Proper for the Girl Who Threw the Puppies into the River?

Do I believe she should be punished? Yes, but I am also aware that her case may not be as clear cut as many of us originally believed it to be either. I admit that my first response to watching this video was “This girl is sick. She should be caught and punished to the fullest extent of the law!”

Since then, and thanks to some education from various sources, I have come to realize that this girl may live in a culture with values that are different than the one I live in. Though I still believe her behavior to be an unjustifiable act of cruelty and abuse directed at helpless puppies, I wonder if the proper response, at least in this case, might not be education instead of punishment. Although I admit, there are still things about this incident that trouble me, such as the reason it was videotaped to begin with.

I’m not sure we will ever have all the answers as to why this girl did what she did and what she was thinking when she did it. However, I’m more inclined to think that tolerance coupled with education is a more appropriate response to the crime. One thing that I know for sure: this girl, whatever her motives, does not deserve to be tortured and put to death. To do so would make us, as a society, guilty of the same crime this woman commited!

What Can We, the Internet Community, Learn from This?

What I have learned is that we, as a community, need to realize how powerful our words and images can be. We need to be careful that what we publish (even as comments, tweets or facebook posts) does not contribute to the development of an internet-based “witch hunt”. Be responsible when publishing people’s names online or accusing them of commiting crimes without substantiation. Remember that your words may motivate someone you don’t even know to take action and make sure that action is a positive one, not a hateful or even illegal one.

I’m not saying that this video should not have been published. I am saying that some (but not all, by any means) of the reactions to it were inappropriate and irresponsible.

Please Share Your Thoughts

I’m interested in hearing your thoughts. Do any of you believe that this woman deserves torture and death, tit for tat and an eye for an eye? Are you concerned about vigilante-like online groups and organizations or individuals? Please share your thoughts on this subject by leaving a comment.

Years ago, dogs and cats were routinely vaccinated against just about anything we could vaccinate them against on the off chance that the pet might be exposed to that disease, in which case the vaccine should protect the pet. Today, we recognize that vaccines can sometimes have a downside as well. There can be side effects with any medication and vaccines are no exception.

Vaccination Sarcomas and Cats

When rabies vaccination became mandatory for cats in many communities, the veterinary profession also began to recognize that we were seeing an increased incidence of a specific type of tumor called a sarcoma in cats. Research and retrospective studies over time revealed that the increase in the incidence of sarcomas was found to parallel the increase in rabies vaccines administered to cats.

Currently, it is believed that sarcomas may occur as a reaction to any feline vaccine, but rabies vaccines and feline leukemia vaccines are thought to be more likely to have an association with sarcoma formation than other feline vaccines. This discovery led to a rethinking of the previous vaccination protocols for cats.

• It is no longer recommended to vaccinate all cats for feline leukemia but rather only those that are at risk of exposure to the disease.
• Because of the threat to human health with rabies, not vaccinating cats against rabies is not an option. However, newer and safer vaccines against rabies have been developed and vaccination protocols have been changed, although the individual protocol varies depending on the vaccine.

Anaphylactic/Allergic Reactions to Feline and Canine Vaccination

By far the most common adverse reaction to vaccinations in both dogs and cats is an allergic reaction.

• A normal reaction to vaccines includes mild lethargy and soreness. A mild fever may also occur and these symptoms are generally not serious.
• Vaccine reactions in dogs and cats can occur directly after the administration of a vaccine or within 48 hours later.
• Hives, swelling of the face, muzzle and ears and sometimes nausea are symptoms seen with an allergic reaction.
• In more severe cases, the dog or cat may go into shock and may also die suddenly. Fortunately, this complication is extremely rare.

What Pets are Most Likely to Have Adverse Reactions to Vaccines?

Puppies and kittens and young cats and dogs are most likely to suffer adverse reactions to a vaccination. Small breeds of dogs are more likely to be affected than larger breeds.

Administering multiple vaccinations at the same time is more likely to elicit an adverse reaction also. However, interestingly, multi-valent vaccines (vaccines which protect against more than one disease in the same vaccine) do not appear to cause an increase in the incidence of adverse reactions.

Are Some Vaccines More Likely to Cause Allergic Responses in Pets?

Yes, some vaccinations, including leptospirosis and Lyme disease vaccines, have been found to be more reactive than other vaccines. However, at least in the case of leptospirosis, newer vaccine technology may have eliminated this risk as one study performed recently did not find an increased incidence of adverse reactions in puppies and dogs vaccinated with one of the newer leptospirosis vaccines.

Immune-Mediated Disease Linked to Vaccines in Cats and Dogs

At this time, the link between immune-mediated disease and vaccinations administered to dogs and cats is unclear. However, there is some evidence that vaccinations can at least predispose a pet to developing immune-mediated disease. More research is needed in this area but there is some concern that vaccination could have a long-term effect on the immune system, making it important to minimize unnecessary vaccinations.

Vaccine Preservatives, Mercury and Thiomerosal in Canine and Feline Vaccines

Some vaccinations contain various preservatives, including mercury and thiomerosal (a compound containing 49.6% mercury by weight). Preservatives are added to vaccines in order to reduce the potential for growth of micro-organisms such as bacteria or fungi in the event of an accidental contamination of the vaccine vial. It should be noted that not all vaccines contain mercury or thiomerosal however.

In human medicine, there have been concerns raised about the safety of mercury and thiomerosal in vaccinations and that these substances may be linked to the development of the development of autism or other neurodevelopmental disease. However, studies performed to investigate this causal relationship have failed to prove there is a positive correlation, according to the FDA publication Questions About Vaccines. Similar studies in animals have also failed to show a link between adverse reactions in pets and mercury or thiomerosal-containing vaccines to date. This continues to be a controversial and widely debated topic, however.

Adjuvants in Vaccines for Dogs and Cats

Adjuvants are substances that are added to vaccines to increase the body’s response to the vaccine and lead to better protection with smaller quantities of the biological portion of the vaccine. Adjuvants have been implicated in causing cancer in pets. This is another reason that unnecessary vaccinations should be eliminated from the vaccination protocol for individual animals. Currently, some vaccinations are manufactured that are free of adjuvants and many veterinarians consider these safer than adjuvanted vaccines.

Why Administer Vaccines to Dogs and Cats with the Risks Involved?

Despite the risks involved with vaccinating dogs and cats, vaccines still provide documented benefits which in most cases outweigh any risks involved with their administration. However, vaccines protocols for an individual animal must assess the relative risk for that animal and only vaccines which can claim the potential for more benefit than risk should be administered.

Photo Credit: suzumiyaharuka/Flickr.com

This video very clearly shows a young woman throwing living puppies into a river. Apparently, the video has been making the internet rounds since it was posted. Please be aware before you watch the video that it is extremely graphic and quite disturbing!

Video of Girl Throwing Puppies into River

From what I can gather, the video was first posted at YouTube.com but then rapidly taken down by the administration there. Before it was pulled from YouTube though, someone apparently copied it and posted it at LiveLeak.com. Allegedly, the person who posted the video on LiveLeak does not know the woman in the video.

At this point, the identity of the woman in the video is unknown. When I first saw this video, my first thought was “If I did know this woman, who would I report her to?” According to the ASPCA, she should be reported to her local authorities. Of course, the problem with that is that, unless someone is able to recognize her and identify her, we don’t know who her local authorities are.

An Internet Hoax?

The ASPCA site also mentions that there are some websites that perpetuate hoaxes that masquerade as animal abuse. Though they do not talk about this video, they do mention several sites: Bonsaikitten.com, puppyprofits.com and puppybeef.com. (I have purposely avoided including to links to these sites simply because I object to their content but you are free, of course, to visit them and form your own opinion.)

Is this video a hoax? I would like to think so. And I wouldn’t know how to go about telling whether that was the case or not. All I can say is that it certainly seems real, right down to hearing the puppies crying and hearing the girl laughing as she throws them in the water. Of course, I hope I’m wrong. I don’t understand why anyone would want to publish a hoax like this, but at least if that’s the case, no puppies were actually drowned.

You can make your own judgment about the reality of the video if you elect to watch it. Either way, it still makes me physically sick to watch the video. It also makes me very angry.

Finding Out Whether Animal Abuse Occurred and Who Committed the Act

Is there a way to at least identify the locality of video? I don’t know the answer to that. I would think that the original upload to YouTube would have been logged with an IP address that could at least identify the computer that uploaded the image. But this is way outside of my area of expertise and perhaps someone with more knowledge in this area can comment.

Will Justice Prevail and Animal Cruelty be Punished?

Again, I would like to think so but I have my doubts. Does this woman deserve to punished for this act? Yes, absolutely (assuming that the video is real). Is that likely to happen? I hope so but again, I have my doubts.

What Happens Now?

I don’t honestly know the answer to that either. However, I have several serious concerns. Number one is the fact that this woman will continue to abuse animals, especially since she appears to derive pleasure from it.

The second and even more serious concern is that this woman will gradual to “bigger and better” things. It’s no secret that there is a link between people that abuse animals and those that abuse other people. So, I wonder, are there children in this woman’s life? What about elderly parents? What other violent crimes is this woman likely to commit?

Another thing that concerns me is the fact that there is obviously a second person involved with the making of this video. What kind of person would stand by and watch an atrocity like this being committed and not intervene? Let alone actually film it while it was happening!

So, now I’d like to hear what you think. Do you think this is real? Do you think it is a hoax? What kind of punishment do you think these people deserve, should they actually be located? Do you have any ideas to help locate them? And the number one question! Do you know who the woman in the video is?

One of the most frequent questions that I am asked in my veterinary practice is “What vaccines does my kitten, puppy, dog or cat need?” Right behind that is “How often does my pet need to be vaccinated?” Thirdly, and perhaps most importantly, is the question “Are these vaccines safe for my dog or cat?”

Are Vaccines Safe for Pets?

Let’s start by answering the last question first. Both canine and feline vaccinations carry the risk of side effects, just like any other medication. There are very few, if any, medications that come with no risk.

So, the question becomes, why give vaccines to a pet if there is risk involved? The answer to that question is that there is also great benefit in vaccinating pets. In some cases, these vaccines can be life-saving.

A good example of the life-saving aspect of vaccination is in the recent of outbreak of parvovirus that my hospital and others in the area have been seeing within the last few weeks. In my hospital, we have seen literally dozens of puppies infected with parvovirus. Unfortunately, not all of these puppies have survived the infection.

What do all of these puppies have in common? None of these puppies, not a single one that I have seen, have been adequately vaccinated against this disease. For most if not all of these puppies, vaccination would have prevented the infection and kept them healthy.

Parvovirus Vaccinations for Puppies, a True Life Example

One really unfortunate case was a 5 month old puppy that was obtained from a breeder. The breeder informed the puppy’s new owner that the puppy should not receive any vaccines prior to 6 months of age because it would be unsafe for the puppy. Unfortunately, the new owner believed the breeder to be providing accurate information when in fact the information was quite incorrect. Because of the misinformation provided by an ill-informed lay person together with the innocent lack of knowledge possessed by a well-meaning pet owner, the puppy did not live to be 6 months of age. She expired a few days ago of a disease that could easily have been prevented by proper vaccination.

The Case Against Vaccination for Dogs and Cats

There are a number of people who advocate not vaccinating dogs and cats. Their fears do carry some weight. Vaccinations have been implicated in contributing to or even causing some types of cancer. Vaccines are also suspected to cause disorders of immune function as well as other medical issues.

I do not dispute these possibilities nor do I discount their importance. However, I cannot look past the fact that vaccines can protect dogs and cats (and particularly puppies and kittens) from deadly diseases. In my opinion, if a dog or cat dies of a preventable disease such as canine parvovirus or feline distemper because of a lack of proper vaccination, it really makes very little difference what types of problem that vaccine could potentially have many years from the vaccination date.

What Vaccinations are Necessary for a Dog or Cat? Or a Puppy or Kitten?

The answer to that question depends on the lifestyle and individual risks encountered by that particular pet. Vaccine schedules and protocols are not a one-size-fits-all proposal. A pet owner is best advised to discuss with their veterinarian which vaccinations are necessary for each individual pet.

How Often Should Vaccines be Administered?

Again, the answer depends on the individual pet and the type of vaccine being used. This is also a matter that a pet owner is best served discussing with their veterinarian. Some vaccines need to be given every three years, others need to be repeated yearly. Your veterinarian can determine, with your help, which vaccines your pet needs (and which he does not need) and develop a logical vaccination schedule that can help keep your pet healthy and happy.

In the coming weeks, we’ll be discussing in more depth the individual canine and feline vaccines that are available. So stay tuned. But remember that this material is meant for education purposes only and your best source of information about your pet is your own veterinarian.

Salmonella poisoning, or at least the threat of Salmonella poisoning, has been in the news a great deal in the recent past. Numerous pet food recalls, all related to possible contamination with Salmonella, have been issued within the past few weeks. Human food products have not escaped being recalled due to the threat of potential Salmonella contamination, either.

Salmonella Poisoning Outbreak in People Associated with Pet Food Contamination

To add to the fear associated with Salmonella, the journal Pediactrics (September 2010, “Human Salmonella Infections Linked to Contaminated Dry Dog and Cat Food, 2006-2008”) is now reporting a documented outbreak of salmonellosis in people that was found to be associated with contaminated pet foods.

Even more frightening is the fact that almost half of the documented cases in the salmonellosis outbreak discussed in the Pediactrics article were children under two years of age. Certainly, it has to be a parent’s nightmare to see their child suffering from an innocent exposure to a supposedly safe product.

How Pet Food Products Become Contaminated with Salmonella

Usually the cooking process heats the pet food enough to kill any Salmonella organisms. However, frequently these foods are coated with flavorings or other products after the cooking process and if these products are contaminated, the entire food lot may become contaminated.

In addition, there is evidence that pets eating a raw food diet may experience a higher incidence of infection with Salmonella than pets eating a commercially prepared diet. Although, with pet food recalls seemingly becoming more frequent, some pet owners question this statistic.

Salmonella Poisoning in Dogs and Cats

In my veterinary practice, one of the common questions I hear from my pet parents is “How likely is it that my dog or will get salmonella poisoning and what signs should I look for?” Salmonellosis: Salmonella Poisoning in Dogs and Cats is a good source to answer these questions. This article describes the factors that determine whether or not a dog or cat is likely to become ill when exposed to Salmonella and the symptoms expected.

Protecting Your Family from Salmonella Poisoning

The other concern that many pet owners are expressing is “How can I protect my family against salmonellosis?” This question is even more important to answer in light of the Salmonella outbreak detailed in the Pediatrics journal. Salmonella Poisoning, Pets and Your Family will answer this question for you. This article provides tips and suggestions that will help you protect your family from becoming exposed to Salmonella through your pet’s food supply.

Share Your Experiences with Salmonella Poisoning and Pet Food Recalls

Have you, your family or any of your pets suffered from Salmonella poisoning? Have any of you been affected by any of the pet food recalls? We are also interested in hearing what you’re doing to protect your family and your pets. Please share your experiences with us as well as your tips by leaving a comment below. Don’t by shy.

What is HRT (Hormone Replacement Therapy) and What is it Used For?

HRT stands for hormone replacement therapy and is used to treat hot flashes, mood swings, bone loss and other effects of menopause in women. HRT medications contain estrogen (a type of hormone) are available in many forms including gels, sprays, creams and transdermal patches. Women are usually advised to apply these products to the inner elbows or wrists or to the legs.

Dogs and Cats Affected by HRT Medications

Dogs and cats can be affected by ingesting the HRT medications, which often involves licking the area of skin where their owners have applied the medication. Alternatively, dogs and cats may also be exposed by chewing on or licking discarded patches. The number of pets being affected by these medications has been increasing over the past few years.

• Female dogs and cats affected by HRT medications appear to be in heat. In dogs, this appears as a swollen vulva and, possibly, swollen mammary glands.
• In cats, a species in which the vulva does not normally swell during the heat cycle under normal conditions, the symptoms are different. Cats that in heat vocalize (cry) frequently and loudly. They may also roll and exhibit other behavioral changes during the heat cycle. These are the symptoms that a cat exposed to HRT medications will exhibit.
• In both dogs and cats, female pets suffering exposure to HRT creams, sprays, gels and patches will also become attractive to male dogs and cats, respectively, and the females will often stand for mating.
• Pre-pubescent puppies may also affected if exposed to these products and will develop swollen vulvas in the same fashion as their mature counterparts, even though they may be too young to be in heat.
• In male dogs and cats, enlargement of mammary tissue may occur and affected males may have an abnormally small penis. If un-neutered, male pets may also experience atrophy of testicular tissue (shrinking of the testicles).
• Hair loss may also occur in both male and female dogs and cats exposed to HRT medications.

Long Term Effect of Exposure to HRT Medications in Dogs and Cats

At this point, we do not really know what types of long-term effects these products may have on our pets. In most cases, preventing exposure of the pet to the HRT product results in regression of the clinical symptoms, though it may take months for the signs to regress.

It is well-known that exposure to excess amounts of estrogen can cause bone marrow suppression leading to aplastic anemia, a serious blood disease seen in both dogs and cats. Estrogen exposure may also predispose pets to developing mammary tumors (breast cancer). There is concern that pets exposed to these products may suffer long-term complications such as these.

Preventing Exposure of Pets to HRT Medications

Fortunately, preventing exposure to these potentially dangerous products is relatively simple.

• Apply HRT products to areas of your body that your pet is not likely to contact.
• When applying HRT products, wear gloves. When finished, dispose of the gloves in a location inaccessible to your pet.
• When discarding used patches or similar items, be certain to place them out your pet’s reach.

A few common sense precautions can keep your pet out of danger and save you a great deal of heartache.

Do any of you have pets that have suffered from exposure to HRT medications? Do you have other ideas to help protect your pets from these products? Would you like to share your thoughts, opinions or experiences with us? Please scroll down to the comments section and leave a message. I’d love to hear what you think!

This weekend, I’d like to spotlight an exceptional organization and its blog. I don’t see this blog on the pet lover’s blog hop (as of the writing of this post). Nevertheless, I believe they deserve to be spotlighted based on the wonderful things this blog and the individuals behind it are accomplishing. In case you haven’t guessed already, I’m speaking about BlogPaws.

BlogPaws

BlogPaws was conceived and founded by “three passionate and dedicated pet lovers and bloggers – Caroline Golon of Romeothecat.com and Yvonne Divita and Tom Collins of Scratchings and Sniffings and Windsor Media Enterprises.

“BlogPaws is an online resource for pet bloggers to help you be a better blogger, whatever “being a better blogger” means to YOU.”

That’s what the BlogPaws site says about them. And they live up to that statement. For instance, their last post, Top 10 Tips: How to Get a Sponsor, describes the basic steps a blogger needs to take to attract sponsors, starting with #1: Tell the sponsor what’s in it for them. This is only the latest example and the blog is packed full of useful tips for pet bloggers. It’s also a fun blog to read, engaging and personable.

BlogPaws held their first pet blogging convention in April and it was an undeniable success. So much so that their second convention, BlogPaws West, is scheduled for September 9-11, 2010 in Denver.

Be the Change for Pets

As amazing as the BlogPaws blog is, an even more amazing development is the Be the Change for Pets movement. This challenge was issued to the attendees of the first BlogPaws convention. Those folks took the challenge to heart and have done some truly amazing things over the past months, organizing PawPawties (virtual twitter events that have raised over $37,000 for animal charities all over the world), pet food drives and more.

To get a true sampling of what Be the Change is all about, take a look at this video created by Dr. V of Pawcurious fame. I warn you, have your tissues handy when you watch it. Trust me, you’ll likely shed a few tears, if you’re like me. And I promise you, after you watch, you’re going to feel motivated to do something, anything to help Be the Change!

BlogPaws West Discount

If you’re interested in attending BlogPaws West but haven’t registered for it yet, I have a special surprise for you. Send me an email at loriehuston@pet-health-care-gazette.com and I’ll send you a special code worth 20% off the cost of registration. Don’t be shy. I’m speaking there (at the Vet Track portion of the program) and I would love to meet you there!

Of course, as always, after you’ve finished checking out BlogPaws and deciding how you’re going to Be the Change, check out some of the other wonderful blogs in our Pet Lover’s Blog Hop.

Share Your Blogs and Be the Change Accomplishments with Us

After you’ve explored the blog hop blogs, scroll down to the comment box and share your experiences with us. Do you have a website dedicated to pets you’d like to promote? Post it here for us to see! Have you done something to Be the Change for Pets? Tell us about it. As you’ve already seen, even a small action can have a big impact. Please don’t be shy. Speak up!

In the past several posts, you’ve heard the story of Jana and her very special Rottweiler, Jasmine.

• Jasmine’s Story: Can Chronic Diarrhea and Soft Tissue Injuries be Normal?
• Jasmine’s Story: An Anterior Cruciate Ligament (ACL) Injury and a Cancer Scare
• Jasmine’s Condition Deteriorates: Another ACL Injury and an Abdominal Abscess
• Jasmine Recovers from Surgery and Jana Discovers TCVM

Jana and Jasmine’s story is a great example of the reason that pet owners need to be invested in their pet’s care.

As a pet owner, you are uniquely qualified to act as your pet’s health care advocate. Nobody (including your veterinarian) knows your pet like you do. In most cases, when something goes wrong, an observant pet owner knows it almost immediately. In a lot of cases, it will not be difficult for your veterinarian to see and diagnose the problem either. However, in more subtle cases, this may not be the case.

Be an Advocate for Your Pet’s Health

Keeping your dog or cat healthy is one of the single most important things you can do for your pet. For a responsible pet owner, the health of their dog or cat is paramount. However, the subject is complicated and covers a lot of ground. It is nearly impossible for one person to know all there is to know about pet care, especially when you are not a pet care professional.

Your veterinarian is the person you should turn to first for pet care information. You shouldn’t be afraid to ask questions. In fact, you should be asking questions about everything your veterinarian is doing for your dog or cat. Is your pet being vaccinated? You should know what the vaccine is for and why it is important for your pet. Is your veterinarian treating your dog for a skin rash? What is he/she using to treat the rash? Why? Does your veterinarian recommend a specific type of food for your dog or cat? Why that food versus another? If your veterinarian doesn’t explain these things to you, ask for an explanation.

There are likely to be good solid answers to these questions, but you won’t know if you don’t ask and if you don’t know about your pet’s health care, you can’t know how to best care for him! If something doesn’t make sense to you, keep asking until it does make sense. Your veterinarian will be happy to answer any questions you ask. In fact, we love talking to pet owners. That’s why we do what we do!

Most important, know what is expected to happen with any given treatment or health care procedure. What’s normal? What’s not normal? Observe your pet carefully. Contact your veterinarian with any questions or concerns.

If a treatment or health care procedure for your pet is not going as expected, considering asking your veterinarian for a referral for a second opinion, if he/she does not suggest it first. A referral is not a failure on the part of your veterinarian and it’s not a way for your veterinarian to get rid of you and your pet. A referral is asking a trusted colleague for another opinion because different veterinarians have different areas of expertise and different methods of approaching and treating disease.

Don’t Blindly Trust Your Veterinarian

Most veterinarians make every effort to look after the health and welfare of their patients. That fact is not in question. And most of us expend great amounts of effort keeping up with current advances and new treatment options for our patients. That also is not is question. But the fact remains that no one person is capable of knowing everything and being able to do everything.

I am not saying to abandon your veterinarian or attempt to treat a sick or injured dog or cat without the aid of your veterinarian. In fact, I do not advise that under any circumstances. What I am saying is that if you are aware of a treatment option that your veterinarian does not offer as a option, ask about the treatment and whether it would be appropriate for your pet. It may be that the treatment is somehow contraindicated for your pet, in which case your veterinarian will explain why that is the case. However, it is also possible that it’s simply a treatment option your veterinarian has not considered, particularly if it is a fairly new or experimental treatment, as in the case of the regenerative stem cell therapy that Jana elected to try for Jasmine’s injured anterior cruciate ligament.

Be Wary of Online Pet Care Information

While there is a great deal of very useful information about pet care available online, there is also a lot of misinformation and even some dangerous information offered by well-meaning but less than knowledgeable people. Remember that anyone can put up a website and it doesn’t require any expertise or knowledge to talk about a subject online. When surfing the ‘net for information about your dog or cat, consider who is publishing the information. Does the author have any qualifications or credentials?

If in doubt, write down your questions and ask your veterinarian whether the information is accurate or not. Your veterinarian may even be able to direct you to trusted sites that publish accurate and up-to-date information.

In the end, even though your veterinarian will do everything in his/her power to help you in your quest to keep your dog or cat healthy, your pet’s health is ultimately in your hands. You must decide, with the advice of your veterinarian, where your pet’s best interests lie. Together, as a team, you can keep help insure a long and healthy life for your favorite dog or cat.

This week, the Pet Lover’s Blog Hop spotlight lights up the Vet Snap blog. To be quite honest, this is a blog of which I am a bit envious (well, more than just a bit, if I’m being honest). It provides a little bit of everything pet related. The “About” page of Vet Snap sums up the purpose of the blog pretty well:

“I’m a vet. I’m a pet owner. I’m your new friend! I’m dedicated to providing you with great information about your pet’s health, your pet’s disease, and other fun stuff along the way. You can count on my information being accurate, up to date, and (hopefully) interesting. We’ll be partners in keeping you (and your pet) happy, healthy, and informed.”

Vet Snap features a different theme each weekday.

• Each Monday is “Market Monday”, which features reviews of some pretty awesome pet products. The last “Market Monday” review featured the Furminator, a product that I’ve found extremely useful as well.
• Tuesdays are “Toxic Tuesdays” and common household toxins and hazards are covered. The last “Toxic Tuesday” post discussed chocolate, a potential toxin for both cats and dogs.
• “Workshop Wednesday” highlights various diseases and health issues that can affect pets. Last featured are raw meat diets and a really nice synopsis of the pros and cons of feeding raw meat is presented.
• “Thankful Thursdays” tell the stories of animals that have left a special mark in the world, those that give “us all reason to be thankful for the animals in the world”.
• “Fun Friday” offers fun pet-related facts and/or trivia, such as this review of pet-related applications available for smartphones.

Vet Snap is definitely worth a look if you’re a pet lover that wants to provide the absolute best care for their pet (and I know that describes all of us here). Once you’ve finished browsing the Vet Snap website, you should also check out some of the other great blogs in the blog hop.