As of today, Walkerville Vet has run out of feline vaccines completely. We expect this situation to last into 2024. Here’s what to know. Why Are Cat Vaccines In Short Supply? The official story is that supply chain disruption caused by COVID and diversion of resources into human vaccines has made feline vaccines scarce. However, this is just the last (and worst!) in a long line of shortages that have been occurring since well before COVID. The full answer must therefore also reflect the fragility of modern global supply chains. How You Can Protect Your Cat If your cat is overdue for vaccinatio ..read more

The past two weeks have seen an uptick in thunderstorms here in Adelaide. With them comes the inevitable: owners asking for help for their panicked dogs, and dogs being picked up on the streets after desperate escape attempts. What can be done for these poor suffering creatures? I’ve talked about noise phobias before, but now we have a new tool in our fight against this major welfare issue. Sileo: The New Noise Sensitivity Drug Sileo (pronounced “SEE-layo” not “si-LAY-o”) is a syringe loaded with a gel containing dexmedetomidine, an alpha-2 agonist sedative. It’s the first time that a drug of ..read more

Over the past five years, I have watched lick mats become one of the standard tools for treating anxiety and boredom in dogs and cats. That’s especially true for the branded version LickiMat®. They are a great help, and I’m not going to tell you not to use them. But I want you to be careful. What Is A Lick Mat? A lick mat is a textured flat surface made out of rubber, usually with suction cups to attach it to the floor. The pattern on the top is designed to trap food and make it hard to eat quickly. The aim is to get dogs and cats to spend their time in licking instead of other unwanted b ..read more

I want to warn you about three emerging and important toxins of cats. I also want you to see the link between these products and how they may be just the tip of the iceberg in household poisonings. Minoxidil : A Baldness Treatment Minoxidil has become extremely popular due to its ability to stimulate hair regrowth on the scalp of people. It was originally marketed as Rogaine, but is now available as an over the counter generic in liquid, foam and shampoo forms. When cats lick even a tiny amount, it causes vomiting, drooling, low blood pressure, severe illness and often death. Because the produ ..read more

Updated May 26, 2022 Right now the Australian veterinary world is going through an upheaval like I have not seen in 30 years. And into this come the new crop of veterinary graduates, straight from university. To say I’m worried would be putting it mildly. The Background For almost my whole career, there has never been an excess of vets looking for work. In fact, at times the supply has been very tight. Yet, we more or less got by. The reasons for this are up for debate but one of them is not too few veterinary students. Instead it’s that not enough of these vet students end up having long ..read more

Updated December 10, 2022 Update Dec 2022: follow Dr Andrew’s long walk on Instagram. Many of you will have noticed that my personal work schedule has changed in 2022. It’s a lot harder to see me, and there haven’t been any blogs (except this one!) The truth is that it’s both part of a longer process, and not as big a change as it might appear. First, let’s talk about the biggest effect it’s had on clients.  Help! I Can’t Get An Appointment With Andrew Like most longstanding vets, I’ve developed close working relationships which I enjoy with many people. The hardest part of the changes is ..read more

Updated April 12, 2023 If you have a small dog, there’s a good chance they’ll end up being treated with pimobendan. Often sold as Vetmedin® or Cardisure®, it’s the most common treatment for a very common condition: heart disease in dogs. One disease in particular, myxomatous mitral valve disease (MMVD) is said to account for 75% of heart disease and affects 85% of small dogs over 13 years old. Not all of these will need treatment, but many will. Later I’ll show you how to tell. There is no question that recent advances have made MMVD much less of a death sentence than it once was. So it’s good ..read more

Despite the fact that cats suffer from arthritis at least as much as dogs, they have always been the losers when it comes to having a good range of treatments. Up to now we have been forced to rely almost entirely on meloxicam. Reasons for this might be: A poorer recognition of the signs of arthritis in cats and therefore lower demand The smaller market and financial benefit to drug companies (dogs visit the vet at least twice as much as cats) The difficulty in giving medications to cats The increased risk due to the prevalence of kidney disease Now, in 2023 we are witnessing the appearance ..read more

For many years, canine arthritis has lacked major breakthroughs, despite the tremendous need for better therapies. Now, in 2023 we are witnessing the appearance of a whole new class of treatment. These are exciting times, but we also need to be cautious. No treatment will work on every dog, and after initial overexcitement, some new products end up being major disappointments. However, with Beransa there is real hope for dogs that we have a new and effective tool to improve their quality of life. What is Beransa? Beransa is a trade name for bedinvetmab, also called Librela outside of Australia ..read more

If we have to pick favourite diseases, mine is retinal detachment in cats. One day your cat goes suddenly blind, and the next they can see again. All thanks to a simple and low cost treatment. However, for this to happen, you need to know what to look for, and act quickly. How To Tell If Your Cat Has Poor Vision Here are the common signs of vision loss or blindness in cats: Bumping into things they should be able to see Dilated pupils (large black eyes) Sudden anxiety about moving around or going outside Crying or aimless wandering Blood in the eye or a cloudy eye The cat pictured above has ..read more