We are all familiar with the life stages of cats…kittens – frenzied bundles of fur and fun and rare medical problems, adult – sometimes playful, usually sleeps a lot and no health issues. And then we have our seniors – sleep, more sleep, eat, poop and sleep some more. Health concerns tend to erupt overnight without warning. But on closer examination, the life stages for our felines are much more complex and with a healthy dose of proactive veterinary care your cat can live a longer health filled life and you can have reduced veterinary bills. My guest is Dr. Jessica Quimby. She is board certi ..read more

Were you one of those folks that resisted getting a pandemic pet? Thought there was enough craziness in this world and adding a pet to the mixture was more than you could handle? But recently you have been toying with the idea of having a baby in the house? Dog…might take too much time and not sure if you have the room. Cat…you’ve had them in the past, they are pretty easy…litter box, food, water, occasional trip to the vet. Yeah, easy peasy. Maybe not. My guest is Dr. Ellen Lindell. As a board certified veterinary behaviorist, she is a firm believer that when a pet owner understands how kitt ..read more

Wooohoooo…it is finally winter. Hot sticky weather is behind us. Winter sports and cozy days wrapped in layers of fuzzy warm clothing and snuggling with our pets. And finally an end to having to worry about all those pesky parasites that our veterinarians continue to nag us about…fleas, ticks, internal and external parasites. What a pain in our budgets having to give those preventives. Besides, you haven’t noticed any issues and are beginning to feel as though your vet is just trying to sell you medications you and your pet don’t really need. My guest is Dr. Craig Prior. He is veterinarian an ..read more

GI issues are one of the most common reasons why pets are presented to veterinarians. Dogs love to eat first and think later…one of the reasons why our canine companions are prone to the heartbreak of diarrhea. Cats however are more prone to becoming constipated. Occasional slow down of our bowels happens to all of us but chronic constipation can be life threatening. How do you know if your cat is constipated? What can you do to prevent it? How do you treat a cat that is full of it? My guest is Dr. Anthony Carr, Board Certified in Small Animal Internal Medicine and Professor of Small Animal C ..read more

According the Nationwide Pet Insurance claims data for 2019, the most common reason why dogs were taken to the veterinarians was for allergic dermatitis with ear infections coming in a very close second place. I reality the allergic dermatitis probably led to many of the ear issues. Why do dogs get these pesky, painful and pricey problems? And why do they seem to keep coming back? What can you do at home to decrease the likelihood that your dog will be affected? My guest is Dr. Darren Berger. His a board certified veterinary dermatologist and Associate Professor of Dermatology at Iowa State U ..read more

To let your cat outside or not, that is one of those vexing questions that cat owners wrestle with… the pros and cons are almost limitless. Pros: Envision your cat scampering up trees, stalking butterflies in the tall grass or lazily basking in the sun…what an idyllic life for a cat. Cons: the cat fight on your back fence that results in a deep bite wound and the subsequent deadly Feline Immunodeficiency Virus (FIV) infection it contracts, or the encounter with a speeding car as it attempts to cross the street and let’s not forget about the mauling on your own property by a free roaming dog ..read more

It wakes you up in the middle of the night. That noise…where is it coming from? Did you really even hear it? You strain to listen not wanting to get out of bed…there it is…is it a cough, a gag, your cat hacking up a hair ball? In the morning this feline sleep wrecker seems just fine, eating and purring like normal. But there it is again…the cat looks like it is trying to clear its throat? Should you worry? Is it worth a trip to the vet? Cats can be a mystery. And like your car, you may get it to the veterinarian’s only to find that it doesn’t make the noise. My guest, Dr. Lynelle Johnson is c ..read more

Diversity in veterinary medicine has traditionally been viewed as the inclusion of more women in the profession. The first woman, graduated from McKillip Veterinary College in Chicago in 1903. Very slowly more women entered this field of medicine. 1970-89% of veterinary college enrollment was held by men. 2007, only 37 years later was dubbed ‘the year of the female veterinarian’ with 75 percent of that year’s graduates being women. 2009 was the tipping point for the profession with 55% of the licensed DVMs being female. As of 2017, 80% of all veterinary students were women, and currently 64% o ..read more

You have likely heard of the medical condition know as diabetes. There are actually 2 forms of this condition, diabetes mellitus and insipidus. The most common type is also known as sugar diabetes. It was first documented in 1552 BC in an Egyptian papyrus. It was diagnosed by the sweet taste of the urine. Glad that we now have more scientific ways to determine if there is sugar in the pee. According to the CDC, it is estimated that it affects more than 100 million US adults. Veterinary data has shown that 1 in every 300 dogs and 1 in 230 cats will develop diabetes during their lifetime and th ..read more

We all have a bucket list. Those things you want to own, see, do, eat, drink, experience before we kick the bucket. What’s on my bucket list? There’s really isn’t anything I want to own but there are so many things I want to see and experience. High on my list is an African safari. The only trophies I want to bring home are memories and photos. But I am afraid that my window for seeing the Africa I envision…. free roaming animals, a delicately balanced eco-system, local populations who have tasted “modern society and advances” but are still practicing traditions that are centuries old. Sadly ..read more