DOG HEALTH AND MEDICINE

If you’ve recently had your dog spayed or neutered and it looks like your pet has put on a few, you’re probably not imagining it. Spaying and neutering don’t cause weight gain, but they do create physiological changes that predispose a dog to packing on extra pounds. The risk for weight gain is highest during […]

Back in December 2019, before anyone had ever heard the term “social distancing,” telemedicine remained largely at the margins of veterinary care. The concept...

It is well known that depression is a hallmark of arthritis. Pain leads to a chemical stress response in the brain, and over time, that response — an ongoing imbalance in neurotransmitters — is what leads to the mood disorder. Add to that the sleep deprivation and loss of mobility that comes with arthritis, and […]

The color of discharge coming out of your dog’s eye can tell you a lot about whether something is wrong or if the “gook” is normal. The color key below will help you determine whether a vet visit is in order. White. White discharge that’s not excessive, especially if it’s in the inner corner of […]

Q. My dog is supposed to undergo abdominal surgery, but I am worried about putting him through it. When my husband had abdominal surgery, he was so tender at the incision site that it took a month and a half before he was able to walk without pain. I know my dog needs the operation, […]

Perhaps you have heard of athletes who tore their ACL — the acronym for a ligament in the knee called the anterior cruciate ligament....

During a regular sneeze, air is rapidly pushed out through the nose. But during a reverse sneeze, which sounds like loud snorting, air is...

Veterinarians in the Phoenix area are reporting a rise in canine cases of Valley Fever, a potentially deadly fungal disease. As many as 10 percent of dogs living there will contract it. But it’s also a threat throughout the hot, dry climate of the desert Southwest, including Southern California, southwest Texas, New Mexico, Nevada, and […]

The risk for bone cancer is at least ten times higher for large breeds like Rottweilers, Great Danes, and Rhodesian ridgebacks than for mixed breeds. Researchers made the finding when combing through the medical records of more than 900,000 dogs. At the same time, they found, the risk is particularly low for a number of […]

If your dog is experiencing pain, a very important step for relieving it is to keep a pain diary once your veterinarian has put a treatment plan in place. It can be as simple as jotting down a few words on a calendar each day (“stiff upon rising,” “lameness,” “doesn’t want to play”). Once you […]

There’s no effective treatment for a common form of blindness called inherited retinal dystrophy that affects millions of people worldwide. It’s going to take gene therapy. We’ve now gotten one step closer with research on blind dogs that has identified a gene responsible for a significant proportion of all canine cases of the disease. It’s […]

People often wonder which makes a better pet — a male or a female dog. Part of it is that different personality traits are ascribed to a dog depending on its sex. Male dogs are often called goofy and playful, while female dogs are often considered more “mature” and demure. Is it true? Do male […]