Health and Medicine | Pawcurious Vet Blog: Pet help, stories, and information with Dr. V

My name is Dr. V. Actually, it’s Jessica, followed by a long last name that no one can ever pronounce correctly, so I think it’s best that we just do what everyone at my work does and call me Dr. V. You can call me Jessica if you insist, but don’t expect me to answer any questions about your dog if you do. READ MORE >>

Some people read Rolling Stone. Others read National Geographic. On the rare occasion we have a quiet moment in the clinic, my staff likes to read Veterinary Dermatology.

Now, I know lots of veterinarians are less than excited about this particular aspect of practice. Ear infections aren’t sexy, they say, not like, say, hypertrophic cardiomyopathy or immune mediated hemolytic anemia. Bo-ring, they ho-hum over a flea allergy dermatitis while hoping a nice cranial cruciate ligament tear limps in the door next.

Pshaw, I say. Maybe there are less opportunities for invasive surgical interventions or emergency critical care hospitalizations, but if you’re looking for the WOW factor it’s hard to beat toxic epidermal necrolysis (google it, if you dare.)

So my staff has learned, while paging through my color atlas oohing and aahing over the close-ups of papillomas, mycosis fungoides, and assorted erosive lesions. They can be dramatic. They can be fascinating. They can be flat out hideous.

I left the book open to the page on Transmissible Venereal Tumors today, which triggered an impromptu sex ed lesson in the treatment area.

“Wait a minute,” said one tech. “Are you saying there is actually a sexually transmitted disease in dogs?”

“Yes,” I replied with an ominous tone. “Several, actually. But this one is the grossest looking.”

We stared at the pictures of the angry bloody red masses hanging off the unfortunate subject’s prepuce. “I’m always looking for reasons to try and convince owners to spay and neuter,” she said in wonder. “I never knew about THIS.”

For sheer shock value, yes, it beats some of the more traditional arguments in favor of spays and neuters. We live in an increasingly blase society. We should take advantage of every opportunity we can.

HEY KIDS, SPAY AND NEUTER OR YOUR DOG COULD CATCH THE COOTCHIE CANCER. I don’t know why this hasn’t caught on.

One of the prices we pay for living in paradise (aside from traffic, cost of living, and all of that manmade stuff) is sharing the land with the lovely rattlesnake.

Generally speaking, they aren’t too difficult to deal with if you are your average suburbanite- just leave them be. It’s not like they’re Boomslangs that drop randomly out of trees onto your head (I had nightmares after learning that little factoid); they sun themselves on rocks and other exposed places trying to be left alone. They give you warning rattles. They are fairly non-confrontational.

Of course, none of this matters to an overexcitable dog. Which is why starting every spring, veterinary clinics and emergency rooms are flooded with sick, puffy faced dogs who got a little too close to a rattler. Unfortunately, some die. Treatment, even if it works, is very expensive. The rattlesnake vaccine may confer some protection, but does not eliminate the need for treatment after a snakebite. The best treatment is prevention.

A local Meetup group I belong to coordinated a Rattlesnake Avoidance clinic this weekend. I’ve heard about the classes, though I’ve never done one myself. Given my suspicion that this will be a pretty prolific snake season, in conjunction with Brody’s sincere enthusiasm for wildlife, I decided to check it out.

People ask me on a regular basis what kind of toy they should give their dog to chew on. We go through the usual: Bully sticks, rawhides, Greenies, Kongs (each with distinct advantages and disadvantages.) We eliminate the problem items I never recommend: pigs ears, cow hooves, dried femur bones. For the most part, we can find something that most dogs can use.

Sticks, by the way? I don’t recommend them. (My husband took this picture when I wasn’t around.)

About once a week, an owner asks about their Super Duper Nutty Chewer. The kind who eats a bully stick in 10 minutes. The kind who demolishes the heavy duty Black Kongs. And to those owners, I say: Good Luck.

There are Blue Kongs- they’re like the secret menu item at In N Out, hardly anyone knows about them. Did you? They’re a little harder to find (some vets carry them.) They are even stronger than Black Kongs, and impregnated with barium so if Cujo manages to rip some off, you can at least see where it wound up.

I haven’t found someone who’s used one yet, though, so please let me know if you have any thoughts on them. Or if you have an insane hardcore chewer and have some other idea, let me know. I’d like to have more constructive advice for these owners than “hide your shoes and pray for the best.”

We got a visit today from one of my favorite families. They brought in their sweet kitty Boca because she had a cough. The family had recently been sick, and based on what they saw on the news with H1N1 they were concerned that Boca might have the flu.

The owners wrung their hands nervously as I opened Boca’s carrier. I was immediately assaulted with…something strong, sort of like Febreze. I sniffed the carrier. I sniffed the cat. They both smelled equally strong.

Boca did indeed have an irritated trachea, but fortunately she seemed to be in good health otherwise.

“When did this start?” I asked.

“About 3 days ago,” they replied.

“Do you use air fresheners?” I asked.

“Oh yes,” they said proudly. “We had the house closed up when we were sick last week so we wanted to make sure everything smelled good.”

“What about disinfectants, Lysol or anything like that?” I followed.

“Oh!” they said, alarmed. “We haven’t been doing that! Oh no! We’ll get right on it!”

Before they could rush out the door and add more fumes to the mix, we talked about pets and their sensitive upper airways. Hopefully some fresh air and rest will improve Boca’s breathing!

Do you know Batman the cancer dog? I didn’t either, until today, when I read that he died. This is sad news, but also one that represents a great victory.

By Richard Sennott, Star Tribune

Batman was diagnosed with an incurable brain tumor in 2008; according to the news article, the same type as that which took Senator Ted Kennedy- a glioblastoma. Average survival time for a human: about one year. The senator survived 15 months.

Batman survived 19 months.

Needless to say, most pets with a diagnosis of cancer live for far shorter periods than their human counterparts. This is for a variety of reasons, as you can imagine. So why did Batman make it so long?

He took part in a federally funded cancer research trial in the field of comparative oncology. It’s without a doubt a win-win; Batman’s parents were spared the enormous bill they were not able to afford otherwise, and the researchers are able to move forward with much less red tape than had they been working with human participants.

There are clinical trials in veterinary medicine designed for veterinary patients, but it’s reality that research money for diseases affecting humans with always be in greater supply. While the trials are ostensibly for the benefit of us humans, who can argue with the nice side effect of maybe finding something our pets can use as well? We’ll take what we can get, right?

Without the study, Batman’s owners would probably not have sought treatment. In those cases, median survival time is about 3 months. He survived 19. That is a lot of extra trips to the park, lots of tummy rubs, lots and lots of added memories.

So yes, this is a victory, for Batman, and for all of us who may benefit from the research he took part in.

RIP little guy. You did great.

Fleas stink. No doubt about it. They make your pet miserable, you miserable, they carry parasites, and they’re gross. Worse still, once they take up residence in your home, they can be very difficult to get rid of.

Why is that?