What to do if your dog eats ibuprofen (e.g., Advil) | Dr. Justine Lee, DACVECC, DABT, Board-certified Veterinary Specialist
In the past few weeks, I’ve had multiple dog owners bring in their dog for Advil (e.g., ibuprofen) poisoning. While this is “treatable,” the past few cases have been frustrating to treat. Want to know why? Because the pet owners brought their dogs in too late… The last two pet owners waited 4-12 hours to bring their dogs in. They tried to induce vomiting at home, and while they dogs vomited, they didn’t seek further care until hours later, when their dog continued...
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My cat has squamous cell carcinoma | Dr. Justine Lee, DACVECC, DABT, Board-Certified Veterinary Specialist
If your cat was just diagnosed with squamous cell carcinoma (commonly abbreviated “SCC”), I can whole-heartedly empathize. In this blog, I share my own story, along with some important information for cat owners to know if their cat was just diagnosed with this horrible cancer. My own 19-year-old cat, Seamus, was just recently diagnosed with SCC last month, and I’m heartbroken. Seamus was previously diagnosed with chronic kidney failure (CKF) and so I weighed him once a month...
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Why do dogs shed? | Dr. Justine Lee, DACVECC, DAVT, Board-certified Veterinary Specialist
If you have a dog —no matter what kind of a dog— you’re probably going to encounter hair. And if you encounter dog hair, you’re going to encounter shedding. Most of the time, shedding is an annoyance that you just have to learn to live with — because there’s nothing a dog can do about it. It’s biological, and actually a way for a dog to maintain good skin health. Some dogs do so in a twice-a-year process called blowing their coat, but most of the time shedding is fairly uniform....
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My dog has an ear infection: How do I clean my dog’s ears? | Dr. Justine Lee, DACVECC, DABT, Board-certified Veterinary Specialist
If you own a Labrador, Cocker spaniel, Basset hound, or pretty much any dog with long, floppy ears or a dog who likes to swim, you’re probably an expert at cleaning your dog’s ears, right? Having to battle with chronic ear infections in dogs can be frustrating. As my own dog has chronic ear infections (as he loves to swim and has mild seasonal allergies), it means I’m one of almost 86% of other pet owners who have to deal with ongoing ear issues that have to be chronically...
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The growing problem of obesity in pets | Dr. Justine Lee, DACVECC, DABT, Board-Certified Veterinary Specialist
A recent article in the Washington Post summarized recent data from Banfield Pet Hospital, we now know which states have the most obese pets. And I’m embarrassed to say it’s my home state, MINNESOTA for the win! People often think that the states with the highest prevalence of obese people have the highest percentages of obese pets, but not so! A new report from Banfield found that over 2.5 million dogs and 500,000 cats in the United States are obese. While the top states for obese...
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Using the Colorado protocol for canine parvovirus | Dr. Justine Lee, DACVECC, DABT, Board-Certified Veterinary Specialist
Having practiced veterinary medicine in several urban environments (e.g., Boston, Philly, Minneapolis-St. Paul), I’ve learned how to practice street medicine. What does that mean? It means that, as a veterinary specialist in emergency critical care, I always try to work with pet owners as best I can when they have financial limitations. While the ideal treatment – or what I call the “Gold standard” – is often best and results in the quickest return to normal health, this isn’t...
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