Every single day I get a comment how "I wanted to be a veterinarian", or " I wish I could do what you do".....and it makes me feel very satisfied and glad I chose the profession. I have immense pride in what I do and how I do it....treating people's pets like I treat mine makes my job a little easier. Don't get me wrong...I still get stumped, but I take satisfaction I am not doing something I shouldn't be doing....OR not doing something I should be doing.

If you are looking for great grammar.....you might want to skip these posts.....it will be me just typing about what I see on a random basis with the hope someone may gain some laughter, share our sorrows, and become a little more educated about animal health care.

1. Here in Central Kentucky I am seeing A LOT of allergies in our dogs. Here is what you look for......licking feet/paws and scratching at ears. Now, those aren't terrible things...but they can lead to the following: dermatitis/skin infection of the feet and ear infections. OMG I see so many ear infections SECONDARY to allergies. See, inhalant allergies cause a dog's feet to itch and their ears too. So, they scratch their nice clean UNINFECTED ears with their DIRTY paws.......and .......give themselves an ear infection....OUCH! So....stop the allergies...stop the ear itching...stop the ear infections. Work on A to prevent Z. There is a prescription medication I love called APOQUEL....it is stronger than OTC antihistamines but not as strong as steroids with all of those side effects!

2. If your pet has a small mass.....get it to the vet! I can remove a lot of those under local anesthesia---ya' know....numb it up and cut it out BEFORE it becomes a bigger mass that requires general anesthesia and a much bigger surgery. A $80 procedure turns into a $500 procedure in a lot of cases by the "wait and see approach." AND.....I can also tell you....don't worry about that mass---it is fatty and won't cause any harm......a great piece of news that I LOVE to give. So, please don't wait......for your pet and your wallet.

3. I am known for loving my blood work. Why? Well I see pets all the time that look normal one day and dying the next. Why? Survival of the fittest in the animal kingdom....and despite us putting sweaters on our dogs and cats....they still are animals! And trust me, they don't tell me they are sick or what is wrong with them....I've tried, but they look at me as my 6 year old does when I ask him why he left his shoes on the steps for the 8th time! Doing routine bloodwork on pets over 7 years of age allows us to evaluate organ function as the pet ages and determine...."hey, their kidney function was great for the past 3 years, but now we are seeing some early kidney issues----we need to look into this". Not only does it help me determine what to do for them (diet change, medications, etc)....BUT it helps me give you timelines to expect.

I always use the analogy...."it is like flipping the lights on in a dark room---you can see if there is a scary clown standing in the corner or not". If there is a scary clown.....ok...now ya' know and we can ask him to leave because he is freaking us out. However, if you don't turn on the light....you don't know a weird clown is standing there....and he will continue to stand there...and he might invite other friends (problems).....and by the time you turn on the light....well, now you have a kitchen full of freaky clowns.