Resources: Pet Safety

Chocolate Poisoning Requires Immediate Attention

Easter morning was a bit of disaster at my house. Jester, our black lab mix, helped himself to two 16-ounce milk chocolate bunnies from stocked baskets the Easter Bunny had mistakenly left on the couch, within easy reach of a dog nose. Fortunately, Jester is a large dog and it was milk chocolate. Other than [...]

National Prescription Drug Take-Back Day this Saturday, April 28th

Every year, thousands of pets and children accidentally ingest medications that were not intended for them, often making them very ill or even killing them. Finally, there’s a better way to dispose of expired or unused drugs than flushing them down the toilet (where they contaminate our water supply), tossing them in the trash, or [...]

How to Keep Outdoor Cats Warm in Winter

I found the neatest websites with great ideas for keeping outdoor cats (owned and feral) cozy in winter. Although I’d prefer your cats are curled up at your feet on a cold winter night, not all cats want to or are able to live indoors. Clever Outdoor Housing Ideas Check out these ideas from the [...]

Why Indoor Cats Should Be Vaccinated for Rabies

Officials in North Carolina recently confirmed rabies in a woman likely bitten by a bat found in her home a few months ago. “There are only one-to-three cases of human rabies each year in this country,” said Dr. Eric Brenner, a medical epidemiologist, in a newspaper story about the incident. “Tragically, rabies almost always ends [...]

Of Cats and Christmas Trees

When I was 10 years old, our new kitten decided to conquer her personal Mount Everest, otherwise known as our Christmas tree. When she made it to the summit, however, our shouts of alarm caused her to unbalance the tree, which she rode to the floor in style as we ran, in slow motion, towards [...]

Fall Weather Brings Increased Risk of Leptospirosis

With the return of wet weather in the Fall, the risk of leptospirosis increases for our dog patients. The corkscrew-shaped bacteria can affect people as well as many wild and domestic animals, including dogs. Found worldwide, it thrives in damp soils and water, and can be spread through the urine of infected animals. How dogs [...]

The Hobo Spider: He Ain’t No Charlotte

October is high time for spiders searching for warmer breeding grounds, and your home will do quite nicely for the randy Hobo Spider. Chances are, right now a male Hobo Spider is singing his own version of Barry White’s “Let’s Get in On” while making his way into your home in hot pursuit of a [...]

How to Keep Your Cat Safe Outdoors

Did you know that domestic cats roam an average territory of 5 acres? That’s considerably larger than most people’s backyards (feral cats have even larger territories). Beyond appropriate vaccinations, parasite prevention medications, a microchip, safety collar, and ID tag, what can be done to keep outdoor kitties safe and healthy? On the one hand, outdoor [...]