Monday - Saturday 7:30 a.m. to 6:30 p.m. | Closed Sunday
Monday - Saturday 7:30 a.m. to 6:30 p.m.
Closed Sunday
Call (719) 219-8569
Call (719) 219-8569
Every now and then I have a client come to me in distress because she is pregnant and she has heard that somewhat persistent myth that having a cat will cause you to lose a pregnancy. Now her mother is insisting that she has to get rid of the cat or she will lose the baby.
Mindy the cat sat sluggishly on the end of the exam table. A few days ago she had seemed to just have a bit of a cold, but now she wasn’t eating or drinking, and she was just hiding under the bed all day. Coincidentally, Mrs. Green’s one year old son had had similar symptoms around the same time. One dose of children’s Tylenol had made him feel so much better so quickly that it seemed logical to Mrs. Green to see if it might help Mindy too. So far it didn’t seem to be working.
There is nothing like lying on the couch on a cold winter day and watching TV with your new kitten sitting on you chest and purring. She gets up to rub her head on your chin, then she pauses for a dramatic moment, looks you right in the eye, and lets fly with a great big juicy sneeze all over your face. The sneezes continue and for the next few days it seems like every time you see her she is having a sneezing fit.
Frankie, a two year old West Highland White Terrier, stood on the exam table shaking, head down, and looking miserable. The reason for his visit was listed as the dreaded ADR (for “Ain’t Doin’ Right”) Normally he would be racing around the room with terrier level intensity, and at the moment it was clear that ADR was a good description. He had been eating and drinking, with no vomiting, diarrhea, coughing, or sneezing, but clearly he felt rotten. His physical exam showed no fever, pain, or other abnormalities outside of fairly significant dehydration, but in spite of the lack of obvious findings it was clear that this dog was in trouble.
Jingle, jingle, jingle. Jingle, jingle, jingle. No, Santa and his eight tiny reindeer are not visiting the dog at the side of the bed, it just seems you forgot to take his collar off before turning off the lights for the night and he is scratching again and keeping everybody up. This time of year many dog owners learn the importance of undressing the dog before going to bed. But why all this scratching? And why at this time of year in particular?