#vetblr

[great-and-small]

The breed standard for modern Persian cats calls for the nose and mouth to be in “vertical alignment” with the eyes 😭

[orcinus-veterinarius]

As a veterinarian, and as a lifelong dog lover, one thing I need dog owners to understand and accept is that dogs can be extremely dangerous, especially large ones. Sometimes they don’t even mean to be, but that doesn’t change the fact that they can do serious harm to a human being. They are very powerful animals.

You should not let your dog free-roam. You should not force your dog to accept touch. You should very heavily supervise interactions with children, and with certain dogs, these interactions may never be safe. You must learn to read canine body language. And if a veterinary professional recommends a muzzle or sedatives for vet visits, take these recommendations seriously.

“But I care about my dog more than people” this is in your dog’s best interest. If they maim or kill a person, especially a child, they will be euthanized. You do not want lose them in that traumatic way, ending their life and ruining your own (and those of others) in the process. You do not want to be responsible for the loss of a human life.

Every dog, no matter how sweet, should be muzzle-trained in case they ever need to wear one. Pain and fear can make them act out of character. And if your dog has aggressive tendencies, especially with humans, seek out professional help and take measures to protect both your dog and people.

Signed,

A vet who wants people and dogs to be safe

[drferox]

I have a curious question for anyone that works with sign language.

Some of my clients use a sign language (Auslan) interpreter when they bring their pets into the clinic, usually on a video call, but sometimes in person. So we then have this three way conversation where they sign, the interpreter translates verbally for me, I talk, and the translator signs back to the client.

But we are actually having a four way conversation because I am also talking to the pet.

I will be telling the cat that it’s time to come out of the box, that he’s the bravest most handsome little man. I will thank him for letting me touch his very private tummy and tell him he’s a pretty little gentleman.

Does… does the Auslan translator tell the pet owner what I am saying? Do they use a different facial expression to convey that I am baby taking their pet? Or do they just say ‘the vet is cooing over your cat’?

I will write something nice in the history anyway, but does the client get to know that their cat was a sweet little baby?

[followthebluebell]

Dogs are coming down with an unusual respiratory illness in several US states

Veterinary laboratories in several states are investigating an unusual respiratory illness in dogs. Oregon, Colorado and New Hampshire are a

Right now the top suspects are either HPAI (highly pathogenic avian influenza) or covid. If at all possible, avoid taking your dog to dog parks and day care, especially if your dog is older or already has difficulty breathing.

[shadythetortie]

Hello everybody! Hope you are all doing well. If you arent, I hope it gets better and maybe this little mystery baby case will cheer you up a bit.

I give some of my duck eggs to schools in the area to hatch every spring for their classrooms. Last Friday, one of the teachers messaged me.

"Sooo we have a duck with an unusable 3rd leg lol"

My first reaction is of course, what the fuck. Asked for some photos and lo and behold...

Yeah that looks like 3 legs!

I looked through the forums and most of the other cases of 3 legged birds didnt seem to do very well so I said we will see how it does overnight and fingers crossed its just the leg. Also depends on where the leg is attached if it will cause issues, if anything else has malformed or doubled, etc. So I didnt get my hopes up.

However, the next morning, it is doing well!

She sent a short clip of it and it can stand up and walk, though that leg doesnt seem to move at all. She decided to hold onto it over the weekend and will give it back with the rest of the babies when she returns them next week. The schools generally keep the chicks for two weeks for the students to play with and they end up being the friendliest birds ever.

So everyone, meet Cher (Chernobyl)

Her students named it Chernobyl because of the mutations that radiation damage causes. I thought it was hilarious!

I am excited to see how it grows and what happens. We do have an avian vet a few hours away that did Daisy's phallus amputation surgery last year (Daisy did great after surgery but passed away on Apr 1 because my geese decided to martyr him. The geese are rehomed now) so if this baby needs anything we can get it fixed. Hopefully when it is bigger!

[thehappyvet]

Just a reminder if you decide to illegally take a wild animal from the wild for yourself, even if you have the best interests at heart, you could be killing it.

If you feed it the wrong diet you can cause it's bones to break or other diseases associated with mineral imbalances. If you feed it too much you could cause issues associated with obesity including excessive fat stores.

If you aren't a trained wildlife rehabilitator you won't understand the importance of preventing imprinting or humanising. So you'll cuddle it, play with it, and let your pets play with it. So it will think it can only get food from humans, and that humans and domestic pets are part of its family.

If you take it while it's still young it won't learn the necessary foraging and social skills from its parents to survive in the wild. You might joke you don't even need a cage for it, but it isn't able to go anywhere because you've made it dependant on you.

If you aren't a wildlife carer or in the animal health industry you might not realise it's injured and needs treatment. This could lead to broken bones setting in ways that the animal can't perform normal functions and suffering from a life of chronic pain. Or it could lead to it suffering a slow and agonising death.

You might also not be aware that wildlife can contain diseases that can make you sick or even kill you. You could put yourself and your loved ones at risk of serious zoonotic diseases by bringing it home.

And, if you are found to be illegally holding a wild animal without the intention of rehabilitating and releasing it, the authorities are stuck. They can't release the animal because it thinks humans and domestic pets are friends. It can't forage for itself. It can't socialise with its own kind. It could have injuries or diet associated diseases that mean it can't perform normal functions, or is suffering from chronic pain. If they released it, it would die.

Is it fair for that animal that your choices have led to it not being able to experience its life in the wild as it should?

If you take something from the wild and intend to keep it, I hope this makes you think twice.

These kinds of stories are all over social media now, but none of them tell this side. They normalise putting a wild animal though an incredibly stressful experience purely for likes and engagement.

If you want to be a hero, get accredited to be a wildlife rehabilitator. Join an amazing network of compassionate humans just like you who understand that wild things should be wild, and do everything they can to get them back there.

If you find a wild animal and you're not sure what to do, call your local veterinary clinic or wildlife rehabilitation group. Trust that we have the knowledge to make the best choices for that animal. And if you want to make those choices, join us.

[theoddvet]

Please say hi to my favourite taxidermied platypus that helps students learn at my vet school.

[horsefigureoftheday]

Edit: I talked to a vet tech and know how to proceed!

I don't happen to have any equine/hoofstock vets following me?

I have questions regarding lime sulfur treatment for mites, and also how to convince the horse's owner that she needs mite treatment, and NOT fungus treatment, and that barrier cream will absolutely not help her condition.

If she was my horse I'd call her vet, but she's not, so I have to make do. I'd prefer discussing it in private messages, so random people won't find it via google and mistakenly apply it to their own horses.

Caught her gnawing a penny-sized hole in her leg today, and even when I pinched her nose and tried to pull her head away with all my weight, she wouldn't stop. I'm fighting the stupidest uphill battle with this elephant of a horse