Pandemic stress talk time! While I could go on about human stress for a long time, I won’t because that’s not my area of expertise (well, at least not giving advice on it.) A lot of people got new pets during the pandemic. A lot of schedules changed during the pandemic. Many schedules aren’t…

Heart disease is checked off for this month of hearts, but now we will move on to my other heart favorite-heartworm. Those of you who are less veterinary inclined probably don’t automatically associate heart holidays with heartworms as I do, but since this is my article you still have to joi…

What does a picture of a heart bring to mind to you? Love? Chocolate? Heart disease? Heartworms? I think it is clear by now that my mind travels to strange places, and for the next two weeks while others think of loving hearts I will talk about issues with pet hearts. I swear I did get invit…

I am once again starting my article by telling you a personal story. If we aren’t careful, 2021 will reveal more about my life than you ever wanted to know! So I got up to pee in the middle of the night a few weeks ago. I’m shuffling along, only 10% awake, in my bare feet, and WHAM! I step i…

I am going to start this article with a personal story. So if you’re not ready to learn more about my personal life you should probably skip it. But if you alternately want to know more about cat bathroom habits — read on.

So let’s say you read my resolution article. You’re thinking I’m being unrealistic right? You’re feeling a little bit salty because let’s face it, 2021 also is sort of terrible. Then I start talking about making your pet lose weight like you don’t have anything else to worry about. It’s icy …

So everyone knows by now that I love to talk about pet weight loss. I do know that your eyes probably glaze over as you stroke your adorable fat cat and lament that I just don’t get how cute they are fat. I do. Trust me. But they will be cute thin too, and most importantly...healthier.

So what better way to work off those Christmas cookies and Thanksgiving gravy than delightful walking with the dog? Great idea, and then we get two feet of snow! For those who don’t love snowshoeing and cross country skiing, this can definitely throw a wrench in the plans. Never fear though,…

We are now officially down to the gift buying wire. Maybe you started early because we’re shipping things more. Maybe you’re giving up because we want this year to be a distant memory. Maybe you’re trying to think of the perfect gift to try and salvage some 2020 joy. Some people thrive on la…

Time to talk teeth! Teeth are integral to overall health and are often overlooked. I’m going to talk about dental cleanings, the anesthesia that is associated with, and everything else. I will walk you through a dental at our clinic and explain why being under anesthesia is in the best inter…

As the days get darker and colder, and more people move to work from home again our cats have a big change. Did you know that even indoor cats are affected by daylight changes? Did you know that even cats who want their owners home all the time can stress with stay-at-home changes? I have al…

Spays and neuters are one of our most common surgeries, but also one of the things that people have the most questions about. They are also one of the things with the most grey areas. We do support sterilizing our non-breeding pets for many reasons, but your veterinarian can discuss all opti…

The theme for 2020 seems to be “I’m not sure how this is going to go” (that is if you rule out obscenities.) Thanksgiving is coming up, and of course, I’m not sure how this is going to go. I know that gatherings outside your bubble aren’t going to be popular, but inside my bubble, I’ll still…

I was gazing at my dog this weekend, thinking of all we have gone through together and how she has cute grey hairs in her eyelashes. Then I realized that my cat is 15 and my dog is 12. They are not just into senior years, but bordering on geriatric. They are both at the age where we lose pet…

This time of year seems to bring out the aches and pains — in us and our dogs. The rapid swings in temperature and humidity can be tough on joints. The (usually) beautiful weather means we are doing more; both for fun and prepping for the winter. Nobody likes pain, but I appreciate pain in p…

OFF THE LEASH

While 2020 has been a big mess, one of my achievements is that I’ve been successful in slowing down my refined sugar intake. I finally followed the advice I give to pet owners and just don’t buy anything I shouldn’t be eating. This is easier since I cut out a drastic amount of grocery trips.…

We have been booked with a lot of surgeries and dental cleanings lately, so it seemed like the perfect time to revisit anesthesia. Anesthesia and surgery can be a scary thing for pet owners. One of the most common fears that I hear about procedures is putting pets under anesthesia. I think t…

No doubt about it, it is dark. I now feed the horses in the dark and have to scramble to get all of my creatures exercised before dark. My dogs get extra stir crazy when they don’t get long walks in the woods or fields during the week, so when they get room to run they make the most of it.

So I’ve talked about fall allergies, fleas, and ticks. You might be wondering why I’m so enamored with fall at this point! The truth is that I love outdoor time. I could spend all day every day outside and be happy. I don’t enjoy sweating and I hate bugs, I sunburn easily and I adore foliage…

Some of you may know this about me, but I love fall and I hate ticks. Unfortunately, fall brings a whole new vigor to ticks. I can balance these two things out because I love being in nature without sweating and bugs that much. However, I am very vigilant about preventing ticks on my dogs an…

I think the most common question I’m getting lately is about itching dogs, which typically takes the form of licking. I understand because I am starting to get sneezy in the morning. Of course in the time of COVID that induces a little bit of panic. However, the same thing is happening to me…

It may be fleeting, but we have had a few mornings where I threw on my sweatshirt and pulled out my fleece slippers. Wood is getting stacked, my horses are getting fuzzy and I joyfully do.

Cats in general come into the vet less than dogs. I think there are several factors behind this. First, very few cats respond well to “do you want to go for a ride?” They do not want to go for a ride, they don’t want to get in the carrier, they don’t want to leave that delicious sunspot that…

Work from home and partial schooling from home is here semi-permanently for many people, which gives families extra time at home together. While spending so much time together, you may be realizing how much a pet is missing, or how much a fun break would help everyone. We are seeing lots of …

When I recommend acupuncture to people, they often look at me, a little funny. We love to buy organic foods, we aim for all-natural pet products. In fact, clients often put off starting medications for non-life-threatening issues. Holistic medicine is the perfect way to bridge this gap. Whil…

Today I am going to start with a story. One of my dogs had been acting a little off lately, so I brought him to work to look at. (I will come back to this story in an article soon for different reasons.) This dog can’t stay at home alone, so he often comes to work with me. He hung out happil…

Many people have had more time out with their dogs this Spring. This is great because quality time counts no matter why. However, it brings two things up. First, we notice a little bad manners more. Second, now that we are returning to work/school/play our dogs have gone from lots of attenti…

If there is one thing I hate its change. As you can imagine, I’ve been having to adjust on the fly a lot lately. As you can also imagine, I’m not loving it. However, I have the benefit of being able to conceptualize change. Our pets don’t have this luxury. This makes some things easier and s…

Well, I feel like I have been gone from writing forever. I’m sure that everyone missed me talking about weight for the summer and ticks, but the good news is that I have been storing up a lot of thoughts and tips to share with everyone.

I know that COVID-19 is everywhere you turn, and everything you read. If we address pet care seriously on the front end we might reduce the time and impact in the long run. We are currently doing curbside service so that people aren’t coming into our building. However, depending on how thing…

I often wait on this article, but have had many muddy, sunny dog walks by now. The days are longer, the sun is brighter and the rain is happening. Sure, we might get more snow, but I think it’s time to talk spring!

I have been lucky enough to be seeing a lot of little adorable smoosh-faced puppies lately, which led me to think about some cosmetic surgery. Not for me, I’m a lost cause! For the dogs. Did you know that vets do “cosmetic” surgery on pets? These don’t involve tummy tucks or enhancing any bo…

Your dog vomits all night, your cat is hobbling on three legs — we know your call will be to the vet. But what about when that pesky annual exam is due and they are healthy? Clients bring their pets in when they are sick, hurt or need vaccines. While almost all veterinarians send out reminde…

So, we can’t escape the month of hearts without talking about heart disease. We all want and hope for healthy hearts in our pets. They give their hearts to us fully and quickly, and it is our job to take care of them. The problem with heart disease in our animals is that it often goes undete…

Somehow I let Valentine’s Day pass without talking about heartworms! This was a big lapse on my part that I will try to make up for now. Those of you who are less veterinary-inclined probably don’t automatically associate the two as I do, but you still have to come on this journey with me! H…

I walk my dog outside most days, but when it is very cold she cannot tolerate it well. What other types of things can I do for exercise?

Although the weather doesn’t agree, spring is in the air. I heard bird calls again when I was out last week! As days get (slightly) longer and (slightly) warmer, we start to think of spring. While we often spread vaccines out over the year, spring means pet vaccines to most people. It also m…

Anyone who has owned pets knows that they can convey a lot with their eyes. I can tell if my dog is worried, excited or happy by looking at her eyes. More often we can tell if they are just so, so hungry for our steak or other things. Eyes are very important to our pets, but often unless the…

We are right on the brink of kitten season! I love kittens for about a thousand reasons. They’re adorable, feisty, zoom around the house, climb things and make me laugh. Do you know who doesn’t laugh at these shenanigans? Existing older cats. They often view these kittens as troublesome room…

My vet hasn’t mentioned that my dog needs to lose weight, but I think she does. How do I know?

No surprise, we’re going to deep dive into resolutions this week. Truth be told, I loved 2019. I’m not trying to jet off and leave it in the past as with some other years here and there. Second truth? I don’t love resolutions. I feel like it puts a lot of pressure on us for a while, then the…

I am throwing out articles about euthanasia, and now pain in December? What kind of holiday spirit is this? The truth is that talking about pain warms my heart for one reason — I can do a lot to help it. Pain is sorely (see what I did there?) underdiagnosed in our pets because they aren’t wh…

I have great news for all inquiring minds: my tree is up, and so far two dogs, a cat, AND a human baby haven’t conspired to knock it over, eat it or pull the lights down. Let’s not underestimate how happy I am not to have had to cage my tree.

So, I am going to introduce a topic that isn’t very uplifting, but for some reason always comes up around the holidays — end of life. We often have very specific and concrete memories and traditions around the holidays. In contrast to the very slow changes we see daily, sometimes these tradi…

So, right as you were about to start walking seriously to offset the gravy and upcoming cookies, we got a bunch of snow. I know how disappointed you are! Dr. Anna is here to rescue you though, I have lots of winter walking tips to keep you out and about in the dark, cold, deep snow.

No doubt about it, it is dark. My dogs get extra stir crazy when they don’t get long walks in the woods or fields during the week, so when they get room to run they make the most of it. We are now firmly in the middle of hunting season though, so some precautions should be taken.

Since we talked about diabetes last week, what better to talk about now than Thanksgiving?! Yes, we have an entire week left, but we all know it takes a week to prepare for this holiday. I love Thanksgiving. I love baking, eating, walking, and football. Is there anything better than waking u…

So, we’re stuck in between Veteran’s Day and Thanksgiving, it’s cold, and lots of people are starting to get grumpy about it being dark as soon as our day starts (it feels like.) This is the perfect time to let you know that although vets may be knowledgeable about something, they may not li…