Both my French bulldogs have suffered from unsightly, often-itchy and technically benign tumors we call histiocytomas.  Though histiocytomas typically resolve after two to three months, the uncertainty of this tumor’s provenance leads most vets to snip it off (or at least part of it) to ensure its benignity.

A surgical scalpeling of a “benign” mass may sound extreme to you, but since...

Not everyone takes me seriously when I tell them they need to brush their pet’s teeth. That’s when I whip out a toothbrush and pet toothpaste and get to work on a demonstration. But even that’s not always enough to convince them of my resolve on this issue.

Not surprisingly, it’s more often the long-time pet owner who gives me that “you’ve got to be kidding” look. You know the look. It’s...

CAUTION! This post contains nasty photographs and discusses pus in detail.

I confess. I love feline abscesses. Ever since I was a little girl working in a veterinary hospital setting (apparently before child labor laws were strictly enforced), I’ve adored a good cat bite abscess.

Though these usually superficial wounds may seem frustrating and scary to you (and rightfully so), to me they’re an...

One of the most frustrating ailments to afflict pets in their geriatric years is deafness. While humans can have high-tech hearing aids manufactured and even cochlear implants applied, pets are not yet offered such technological niceties.

Despite the advances we now take for granted in human medicine, treating hearing loss is astoundingly complex and, in pets, is hampered not only by the cost...

Your dog or cat’s had surgery, an IV catheter or an ultrasound and the only sign of its ever having taken place is the wide swath of hair loss the clipper blades left behind in their wake…six months ago.

Six months!

Clearly that’s not right, you say to yourself. Your vet might even shrug his or her shoulders in the way we do when more pressing cases (like the cat trying to die in the oxygen...

Despite the cheeky title, flatulence can be a serious business, indeed. You’ll agree with me if you’ve ever lived with a bulldog or boxer. And you’ll understand this perfectly if your pet suffers from certain chronic gastrointestinal disorders.

Yet in vet school I don’t recall this topic ever getting its due. The flashier subjects of diarrhea and vomiting always overshadowed “excessive...

Here's a recent Miami Herald article I wrote in response to the outcry over a dog's shooting death during a dog fight. It received lots of mail (not all supportive) from those who thought I should've mentioned neutering as a preventative measure. Here's the piece. Chime in (and remember when considering my cursory treatment that in the newspaper I'm strictly limited to 400 words).

Q: There was...

Lots of pets who would otherwise never so much as curl their lip in a human’s direction suffer the embarrassment of having their veterinary files adorned with stars, dots and “Will Bite!” invectives.

This too-common problem often arises not in the first few well-pet visits but soon after some social maturity sets in—usually between six months and two years of age. Unfortunately, this timing...

After a day of hurricane preparations and a night of intense, windy rain squalls here in South Florida, I figure it’s time to give you a download on issues to consider when a storm or natural disaster leaves you hunkering in your home with your pets.

Of course, this assumes that you’re not evacuating your abode after making a careful decision regarding the safety issues you and your pets will...

Chronic renal disease (often plainly labeled “kidney failure”) in cats is one of the most frustrating feline diseases for everyone involved. From the patient to the owner to the pet’s healthcare providers, chronic kidney disease just plain sucks.

Most commonly, as those of you reading this probably already know, the demise of the kidneys in these cases is attributable to a degeneration of the...