Baking for the holidays? Unbaked dough is poisonous to dogs! | Dr. Justine Lee, DACVECC, DABT, Board-Certified Veterinary Specialist
As the holidays rapidly approach, please aware of the dangers of baking near your pets! (Not THAT kind of “baking,” but I’ll talk about marijuana poisoning in a future blog!). As families get together for the holidays, the food and festivities start. If you’re having your family over for a holiday meal and making pastries or bread, please read on about how to keep your dog safe (or you can listen here on my radio show, Pet Life Radio ER VET). That’s because unbaked...
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Dog Illnesses (Liver Failure) Associated with Dark False Mussel Ingestion | Dr. Justine Lee, DACVECC, DABT, Board-Certified Veterinary Specialist
If you live in the Maryland area and have a dog who loves to go boating with you, please make sure you are aware of a recent notification from the Maryland Department of Agriculture. There have been recent dog illnesses – specifically liver failure – from dogs ingesting Dark False Mussel. For dog owners, boat owners, marina operators, please make sure that if you are removing mussels from boats, please make sure to dispose of them properly. Signs of liver failure in dogs...
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Petco’s new stance on standards of nutrition | Dr. Justine Lee, DACVECC, DABT, Board-Certified Veterinary Specialist
PetCo recently announced that they are introducing “new standards for nutrition at PetCo.” The CEO announced on November 13, 2018 that the giant pet store will no longer sell dog and cat food and treats with artificial colors, flavors or preservatives in both their online store or approximately 1,500 stores in the US and Puerto Rico. While they boast on being the first and only major retailer of pet food to take a stand against such ingredients (effective January 2019), is it really...
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What’s a veterinary specialist? | Dr. Justine Lee, DACVECC, DABT, Board-certified Veterinary Specialist
I often get asked what that “alphabet soup” behind my name is. More importantly, as a pet owner, why should you care? Those extra letters behind a veterinarian’s name means that they are a veterinary specialist (e.g., Justine Lee, DVM, DACVECC, DABT). These letters stand for something – for me, it’s “Diplomate of the American College of Veterinary Emergency Critical Care” (DACVECC) and “Diplomate of the American Board of Toxicology” (DABT). So, what does that mean? It means we...
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How to feed your cat | Dr. Justine Lee, DVM, DACVECC, DABT, Board-Certified Veterinary Specialist
Are you feeding your cat correctly? Believe it or not, there are specific ways you are supposed to be feeding your cat. A recent Consensus Statement, “Feline Feeding Programs: Addressing Behavioral Needs to Improve Feline Health and Wellbeing” just came out from the American Association of Feline Practitioners (AAFP). In this statement, the authors focuses on “how to feed” while addressing behavioral needs. This statement was written by the experts in the feline world:...
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Why does cat pee stink worse than dog pee? | Dr. Justine Lee, DACVECC, DABT, Board-certified Veterinary Specialist
For those of you who have ever fostered a tomcat or had an alley cat in your backyard, you can attest to the fact that cat pee reeks way more than dog pee! But why? Cats have much stronger concentrated urine than dogs. The normal concentration of urine is based on specific gravity (often abbreviated “sp. gr.” or “spgr,” for those really lazy vets, such as myself), which measures the density of a liquid (i.e., how concentrated that liquid is). Using a simple tool called a refractometer,...
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