Ask The Vet - Dr. Anne Pierce, DVM

Vestibular Attacks

Mrs. Stenner woke up in the morning to the sound of something crashing around in the dining room. When she got up to investigate she saw her 12 year old lab mix, Jordie, stumbling around under the table, seemingly unable to get himself untangled from the chairs. After she helped him out into the living room she could see that he was still having trouble. He kept tipping to one side and falling over and his eyes looked like they were rolling around in his head. Just yesterday evening everything had been completely normal with Jordie. He had dinner, went for his usual walk, and even played a little fetch with a stick they had found on the way. Now it looked like he was having a stroke, and Mrs. Stenner was worried sick about her pet.

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What To Expect When Your Dog is Expecting

The Smiths were in with Harriet and Bosco, their two new puppies from the neighbor who had a surprise litter. They looked good and we talked about their health maintenance needs for the next year. I asked them if they were planning on spaying and neutering. “Oh, no, we won’t need to do that.” was the response. I asked them if they were intending to breed the dogs. “No, but they are brother and sister, so they won’t do THAT. Besides she doesn’t really even like him.”

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Whipworms

A sign has recently appeared at a local park that warns visitors that whipworm contamination has been determined to be a problem there. In spite of the fact that the sign is present in only one place, it really could be applicable to any location where lots of dogs congregate, so it is worth knowing something about whipworms in general if you take your dog out in public at all.

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Basic husbandry for Rabbits

Rabbits are quite popular as pets. After all, who can resist those fuzzy bundles of cuteness that baby bunnies are. They all have unique personalities and they make great indoor pets. My rabbit owners are every bit as attached to their pets as my dog and cat owners are. There are some things about rabbits, however, that are quite different from dogs and cats, so if you are considering a rabbit as a pet--or if you already have one-- here are some things to keep in mind.

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Chinchilla Basics

It seems we are having a bit of a chinchilla epidemic sweeping through the employees at our hospital. We started with one employee that raised them, but now we have three addicted to the furry little beasts. Once you touch one it isn’t hard to tell why these gentle rodents are such good pets.

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Ask Dr. Anne Pierce, DVM