Saga of an Educational Burnout

                    

                       I was the valedictorian of my high school class.  I bring this up not for belated ovation, but because I had a chance to reflect on my speech a few weeks ago.  It provided me one of those “looking in the mirror” moments, and I didn’t like what I saw.

                        By all accounts of my relatives, it was a good speech, maybe even my finest five minutes.  The topic was the importance of education.  I quoted the favorite saying of a juvenile delinquent friend of my brother:  “Everybody has their smarts, and everybody has their dumbs.”  Therefore, something can be learned from everyone encountered in life.  And no matter what career path is chosen, your education must never end. Ever. Yada, yada, yada.

                        In April, Jolene noticed that her nine year old goat, Toggie, was not quite right.  Her appetite was off and her usual, steadfast milk production was down.  A treatment of vitamin B helped, but Toggie’s symptoms soon returned.  Over the next four months, her condition waxed and waned.  Various medications were tried---antibiotics, probiotics, more vitamins, and anti-inflammatories.  All gave relief, but only for a short while.  Blood tests showed no sign of infection or organ failure.

                        Toggie sometimes had difficulty swallowing, and a couple times choked when she did feel like eating.  Could this be related to a previous dog attack injury to her throat and neck?  She was an old goat. Could it be cancer?  I wanted to know, but I knew Jolene wanted to know more.  On at least two occasions, I heard her say,” I just want to know what’s wrong.”

                        During a visit in August, Jolene and I were in Toggie’s small pasture looking for clues.  “Could she have liver flukes?” Jolene queried.  Liver flukes, an internal parasite, were not likely to be found in rural Elida, but how did Jolene even know about them?

                        Back in the barn, I noticed three or four Mason jars on a table next to Toggie’s pen.  Each contained a milkweed branch with a different stage of the Monarch butterfly life cycle.  I watched with fascination, a newly emerged butterfly with still glistening wings, flutter them for the first time. Jolene and her sister, June, explained the whole process, and it seemed they knew almost down to the hour, everything that happens inside the chrysalis. Greatly impressed, I finally had to ask, “How do you know all this stuff?”

                        I’m not sure which sister answered, and it may have been in unison, but the response was: “We read!!!”  That simple statement was said with an enthusiasm I don’t think I ever had, at least not for a very long time, and I felt pretty humbled.

                        Previously, I have written about the students who “shadow” in our office.  Many of them ask about the importance of high school grades.  I tell the kids their grades need to be good enough to be accepted into college; and, of course, if they want to try for scholarships, the better the grades, the better.  But whether they get an “A” or “C” in a particular class is irrelevant.  The important thing is to “learn how to learn.”  Until that moment with the sisters, I thought that was a good answer.

                        Now, I realize that something was missing from my mantra.  A “C” in fifth grade science class spurred me to become a little study geek, and I studied way too much.  By the time I was a freshman undergraduate, I knew I was burned out.  The road to becoming a veterinarian was still a long one, however, and I plodded forward, begrudgingly.  Oh, I learned how to learn---to study and take tests, but I didn’t learn how to learn with joy.  Learning is such a great opportunity, enjoyment has to play a role.  The sisters “got” that.  I did not.

                        I wish I could tell you that Toggie’s story had a happy ending, but she continued to fail.  Two weeks later, there was a message on my desk from Jolene regarding euthanasia.  She didn’t want to just put Toggie to sleep, though, she wanted to take her somewhere to find out exactly what was wrong.

                        A phone call later, Jolene and Toggie had an appointment at the Ohio Department of Agriculture Diagnostic Laboratory.  The diagnostician had never seen a goat with anything like this in his 20 year career.  Toggie had an aneurysm, a ballooning of the aorta, that put pressure on her trachea and esophagus, causing her symptoms.  Nothing could have been done to help her, but Jolene had her answer and some closure for her fine goat.

                        I thanked Jolene for her quest for knowledge.  Those two ladies should be teachers.  Heck, they already are.

Author:  Dr. John Jones

A dog gone tale

It happened to my family. It could happen to yours, too.

One morning, some years ago, my dad let our pack of six dogs out for their morning business. I grew up in a house that always had two things — lots of dogs and a fenced-in backyard to contain them all. Well, that memorable morning the thing that none of us thought would be an issue became one. As Dad went to get the dogs in from their morning constitutions, instead of six pack members greeting him at the door, there was only one. This caused some confusion initially, and then panic ensued, as he discovered that the backyard gate which was constantly closed was, in fact, swinging wide open. The latch hadn’t broken. There was no burglar. There was no massive storm the night before. No, instead it was the day that the meter reader had come to do his work in the backyard. And he had managed to forget to pull the gate closed behind him.

Luckily, after several minutes of frenzied searching, Dad had single-handedly wrangled three more of the six dogs to safety. Oberle, the Mastiff, had only made it as far as the next door neighbors’ backyard. BeBe, the beagle, had gone chasing rabbits but was caught with her nose to the ground and miraculously had only made it to the other side of the fence. Horton, the Newfoundland, came traipsing home all by himself after a quick trip to the end of the block and back. While Gracie, another Mastiff, was the lone “goody two shoes” who had stayed faithfully on our porch. The adrenaline rush that came with that frantic search must have put my father’s health through the ringer that day.

Buck, the mutt, had hitched a ride with a kindly lady who was on the way to drop him at an animal shelter when Dad passed her on the street and recognized the escapee in the back seat. By the time Dad had finally left for work (late and all in a tizzy,) Irwin, the dachshund, was the only one still missing. As Dad informed everyone else in the family of the excitement of the morning — we all experienced varying degrees of high anxiety and concern for Irwin’s whereabouts and safety. Had he been hit by a car? Had he managed to find some kindly soul to take him in? Would we ever see him again?

Mom had done her due diligence and had visited our small town police department, and she had called the local vet offices and shelters to inform them we were missing a wiener dog. Around 3 in the afternoon we got a knock on our door from a policeman who had an unusual prisoner in the back of his patrol car. It was Irwin. A dog who a few hours before had never been in trouble with the law in his life had managed to make himself a felon by biting the hand of the policeman that had reached under the parked car to retrieve him. Because the little stinker had bitten the nice officer, the policeman was not willing to let him out of the patrol car until we showed proof of current rabies vaccination and a valid license. Thankfully, Mom had both. Irwin got off with a warning instead of doing hard time.

Keeping our dogs up to date with rabies vaccinations and fully licensed is not only a legal concern on our part, as dog owners, but can help keep them out of real trouble. If Irwin had had his rabies tag and his license on his collar he wouldn’t have had to be held prisoner until the officer verified his legal status. Identification is vital in getting our dogs home quickly should they fly the coop. If Buck had had our address and contact number on his tag he wouldn’t have had to risk a stay in the pound.

Another wonderful way of getting our runaway pets home safely is having them microchipped. A microchip is placed under the skin using a large-bore needle and will register a specific number for that pet when scanned by a microchip reader. The facilities people turn to when they have found a pet (such as veterinary offices, shelters and dog wardens) will generally use universal microchip readers.

You can never anticipate every situation in life. Sometimes, meter readers and visitors don’t close the door all the way. Most dogs when given the chance, and an unattended open door, will take it and run. It’s our job to help them find their way home any way that we can.

Author:  Dr. Marisa Tong
Image courtesy of patrisyu at FreeDigitalPhotos.net

Call Your Veterinarian to Manage “Leaky Plumbing?”

                      A recent visit with my sister and her nearly 16 year old Pembroke Welsh Corgi, “Penny,” reminded me of the importance of healthy “plumbing” for pets.  In her golden period, Penny developed spinal degeneration that has compromised her ability to walk and contributed to her urinary incontinence.  Penny’s longevity is a tribute to the loving and constant care provided by my sister and her husband as they clean up puddles and wash throw rugs daily. 

                        Penny’s story is just one example of the multiple causes of canine urinary incontinence.  I am reminded also of Roxie, the spayed, female Boxer that began to leak small amounts of urine by two years of age.  The cause of her incontinence is likely associated with her breed, as well as being spayed.  Dobermans, Giant Schnauzers and Boxers all have a greater incidence of “Primary Sphincter Mechanism Incompetence,” whereby the sphincter or “valve” connecting the urinary bladder to the opening of the urethra does not always stop urine from flowing between urinations. 

                        Evidently, this sphincter also needs some input from sex hormones like estrogen and testosterone because sterilized female and male dogs are over-represented with urinary incontinence.  In fact, urinary incontinence is most likely to occur in spayed females and is sometimes referred to as “estrogen deficient urinary incontinence.”  Roxy was just lucky enough to be a Boxer and be spayed.

                        Then there is “Stella,” the female Giant Schnauzer puppy, whose owner has shown remarkable tolerance as Stella has been more than a challenge to housebreak.  Stella would urinate hourly while indoors or outside, could not consistently hold her urine for a period of even a few hours, and commonly “leaked” small amounts of urine when lying down.  Stella would even urinate during car rides.  She just wasn’t progressing with her bladder retention abilities like every properly housetrained puppy. 

                        At four months of age, Stella had not even approached puberty, nor been spayed, but she has been diagnosed with Primary Sphincter Mechanism Incompetence and has been started on incontinence medication.  We are expecting that the dose of her medication will need upward adjustment as she grows and that spaying her will result in the need for hormone replacement therapy to maintain control of her “plumbing.”

                        Finally, yet another patient, “Gracie,” the Labrador Retriever, was unfortunate enough to be born with her ureters (the tubes that transport urine from the kidneys to the bladder) connected to her lower urinary tract at inappropriate locations beyond her sphincter. As early as two months of age, it was evident that Gracie probably had an “ectopic” or misplaced ureter as she continuously leaked urine on herself, whether standing or lying down.

                        Gracie’s diagnosis was confirmed by excretory urography, a procedure that involves the injection of dye intravenously to highlight the entrance points of the ureters into the bladder on x-rays.  Ectopic ureters require surgical correction to transplant the ureter to its proper location.  More recently, veterinary specialists are also implanting devices to help the ureters and sphincter do their jobs more efficiently.

                        The common thread for all of these dogs is that they need to urinate more frequently and they leak urine, which results in unpleasant odors, urine scalding around the urethra and vulva, and the strong possibility of secondary skin and urinary tract infections.  Their owners are burdened with extra labor and expense to keep these pets and their homes socially acceptable.   

                        Treatment for urinary incontinence may be as simple as oral administration of a drug called phenylpropanolamine (PPA) or low doses of estrogen.  Some incontinent dogs require a combination of both drugs. The doses of these drugs may be gradually decreased once the incontinence appears controlled, but lifelong therapy is usually required.  Many incontinent dogs experience frequent urinary tract infections, making it important to have your incontinent pet’s urine periodically analyzed by your veterinarian.

                        Incontinence is more likely to occur in obese pets so prevention and treatment should also include maintenance of proper body weight.  More frequent trips outdoors to eliminate, especially at bed time and prior to being left alone, are very helpful, too, as it is difficult for incontinent pets to endure long time periods between urinations.

                        You and your pet do not need to suffer the consequences of urinary incontinence.  If your pet leaks even a small amount of urine (especially when lying down), dribbles urine while walking, persistently licks its urethral area, smells like urine, or has frequent urinary tract infections, ask your veterinarian if your pet could be incontinent.  With proper diagnosis and treatment, your dog’s incontinence can be managed for many years to come.

Author:  Dr. Bonnie Jones
Image courtesy of vectorolie at FreeDigitalPhotos.net

Dawn of a New Egg

                    

 

                        Many of you, I’m sure, already know this, but in case you don’t, I am pleased to announce that we are in the midst of a new revolution, one so powerful that it may change the way we eat and the way we live.  And I shall sound the alarm:  “The chickens are coming! The chickens are coming!”

 

                        Chickens?  Really? Am I crazy? Well, maybe, but the evidence is overwhelming.  On a recent trip to a local farm supply store, I found myself surrounded by a plethora of poultry equipment, including feeders, waterers, and “how-to” books.  It was more chicken paraphernalia in one location than I had ever encountered before.

                        And, last October, our wonderful employees treated Bonnie and me to a weekend getaway in Holmes County.  There, amongst all the beautiful furniture and other wood creations made by the Amish, were many finely crafted, portable chicken coops.  Apparently, there is a good demand for this type of product.

                        Probably the most compelling evidence of this poultry revolution, however, has been my brother-in-law, Gary.  Having known him for over 30 years, I can safely say, and I mean no disrespect by this, that he is one of the least agriculturally-minded people I have ever met.  Early on, Gary was “a car guy.”  Then, when the technology revolution dawned, Gary became “a computer guy.”  Now, he is called “Grandpa Chicken” by many of his favorite loved ones.

                        Two years ago, Gary and his wife, Cindy, were stricken with “chicken fever.”  They purchased seven chicks from Meyer’s Hatchery here in Ohio, and ordered one of those posh poultry palaces.

                         Before Gary and Cindy began their venture, I gave them some old issues of “Backyard Poultry” and a Murray McMurray catalogue.  Many hatcheries offer nice catalogues, but the Iowa-based Murray McMurray is the gold standard.  With hundreds of pictures of birds of various sizes, shapes, and colors, there literally is a chicken for everyone.

                        For their flock, Gary and Cindy selected two Buff Orpingtons, “Jody” and “Buffy,” two Americanas, “Nuggets” and “Matilda,” and three Welsummers, “Mary,” “Cathy,” and “Pastey- Butt.”  The last had a bit of a diarrhea problem when she first arrived.  Fortunately, she recovered quickly, but the name stuck.

                        Buff Orpingtons are large, gentle chickens that lay brown-shelled eggs.  Known as a dual-purpose breed, they make a nice stewing hen once their egg laying days are past.  Since Jody and Buffy enjoy being held and petted, that, of course, is a moot point.  The Americanas produce green eggs, making every day seem like Easter, and the Welsummers have very attractive brown eggs with dark spots.

                        It is obvious when visiting with them that Gary and Cindy really enjoy their hens.  From the quiet, contented demeanor of those hens, I’m quite certain the feelings are mutual.  The human-animal bond is not reserved solely for the so-called companion animals.  Chickens can bond, too. 

                        What has triggered this revolution?  The main spark, I believe, has been the media coverage of the many E.coli and Salmonella food contamination scares the past few years.  People now have a real desire to know the source of their food and be assured that it is safe.

                        This is also why backyard vegetable gardening has increased in popularity.  And, what better complement to a garden than chickens.  Garden waste can be fed to the hens and waste from the hens in turn can feed the garden.  Composted chicken manure is one of the best fertilizers available.  Forget that old adage “a chicken in every pot.”  The new mantra should be “six hens in every backyard.”

                        If you have children, chickens are an excellent way to not only expose them to agriculture, but also teach them the responsibility that goes with keeping and caring for other living things.  Chickens make great 4-H projects if the kids are old enough.  There really is no project that can be more profitable than a pen of meat chickens.  The investment is small, the project lasts seven weeks, and the financial gains can be amazing.

                        But, what if you don’t live in the country?  Don’t despair.  Many cities do allow the keeping of chickens.  In Delphos, for example, there is no prohibition for a family’s own use of the eggs and meat.  These products cannot be sold for commercial gain, though.  Good neighbor rules also apply---the birds cannot wander about loose, the pens must be kept clean, and the hens humanely housed.  Roosters are not banned, per se, but their crowing must not disturb the neighbors.

                        So, if you don’t already have those six hens in the backyard, I urge you to get some.  Raising chickens can be a rewarding and nutritious experience for you and your family.  Join the revolution!

Author:  Dr. John Jones
Image courtesy of Simon Howden at FreeDigitalPhotos.net

Feline Cardiomyopathy Breaks More Hearts Than One

                       Because our veterinary hospital provides after hours emergency care for our clients, our cell phone is monitored 24 hours daily.  We are occasionally awakened at night by concerned pet parents or livestock owners whose animals don’t know the time of day.  Some of these phone calls consist of giving advice and providing reassurance.  Others require immediate instruction and attention.

 

                        When our emergency phone rang in the wee hours of the morning recently, I was not surprised, but my heart sank when it was my sister Cindy, a registered veterinary technician who lives near Columbus.  She tearfully described how her husband had been awakened by their Border Collie alerting him that something was wrong with their cat, “Timmy.”

                        This lovable, large, orange, longhaired cat adopted from the Humane Society of Allen County, was a birthday gift to Cindy from my husband and me.  Because we are firm believers that cats do better in pairs, we adopted a second orange and white female cat at the same time that Cindy named “Squeak” to be Timmy’s companion. 

                        Did I mention how perturbed Cindy’s husband, Gary, was that we enabled Cindy’s pet addiction by growing their four dog family by not one, but two cats?

                        As all good cats do, Timmy quickly realized Gary was the master of the house and possibly not as in love with him as Cindy.  Timmy knew his first mission in his new home needed to be to align his “staff.”  As such, he quickly chose Gary to be “his person.”  In short order, Timmy had Gary “hook, line, and sinker” and the two were fast friends.

                        Cindy’s emergency phone call was to get reassurance that the decision they were about to make was correct. When awakened by their dog, Gary readily discerned that Timmy was lying in an odd location and was in obvious distress.  They quickly scooped him up and drove directly to nearby MedVet, a 24 hour emergency care facility, where Timmy was diagnosed with an aortic thromboembolism (ATE) or “saddle thrombus.”

                        This painful, acute condition occurs when a clot that has formed in the left upper heart (atrium) gets dislodged and enters the aorta.  Unfortunately, in cats this clot usually makes its way to the area where the aorta splits to supply blood to the rear legs.  The clot sits at this “saddle-shaped” area of the aorta and blocks most, if not all, of the blood supply to the rear legs.

                        Without proper blood circulation, the back limbs quickly become agonizingly painful, then cold and extremely weak or paralyzed.  In cats, ATE is usually a manifestation of underlying heart muscle disease or hypertrophic cardiomyopathy (HCM) that is characterized by thickened, stiff heart walls. Cats can also get dilated cardiomyopathy (DCM) that occurred more frequently in the past due to previously inadequate taurine supplementation of cat foods.

                        Today, the primary cause of ATE in cats is HCM and this disease is genetic in many purebred cats including Maine Coon, American Shorthairs, and Persians. Cats that are not purebred, but share these breeds’ genetics, are definitely more at risk.  Such was the case for Timmy as he appeared to have his fair share of Maine Coon breeding.

                        Once cats are afflicted with ATE, their cardiomyopathy has usually been longstanding, and their prognosis is poor.  The majority of cats die or do not respond to treatment, therefore, pet owners will often choose humane euthanasia for this devastating condition.  Recovery, when it occurs, can take days to weeks, but there is a very high likelihood of recurrence of ATE or sudden death. Expected lifespan after an ATE is quite short due to difficulties in managing the underlying HCM or recurrent ATE.

                        Out of deep devotion and concern for their beloved cat, Cindy and Gary elected to terminate Timmy’s suffering by having him humanely euthanized.  Timmy’s heart was not the only one broken, as the emptiness the couple experienced in the weeks that followed was immeasurable.  While pet loss is always difficult, the unexpected losses are, without question, the worst.

                        Timmy’s tragedy reminds me to remind you to know your veterinarian’s after hours policy as not all veterinarians provide emergency services.  In Timmy’s case, and that of many others, time is of the essence to limit pain and suffering.  Know who to call and where to go when your pet experiences an emergency as it can be the difference between life and death.

Author:  Dr. Bonnie Jones
This column is a tribute to “Sally Soo,” our Siamese mix, that also lost her life to ATE.
Image courtesy of winnond at FreeDigitalPhotos.net

The Circle of Life at the Vets

We have a new picture in our waiting room. A Norman Rockwell print, “At the Vets” depicts a young boy holding a Beagle puppy with a make-shift bandage around its head. Surrounding the pair is a colorful bunch of clients and pets only Mr. Rockwell could create.

              This picture was the first thing I saw when I entered the office of Dr. E. F. Laman on a cold Saturday morning in December nearly thirty years ago. I was a twenty- four year old senior veterinary student who made the trek from Columbus to Delphos to ask him about a job. Edward Franklin Laman was a big man then, a rather imposing figure to this nervous, skinny kid. He proved to be as warm and friendly as they come, though, and made me feel very welcome.

Although I didn’t get the job that day, I didn’t give up. The reason for that was simple. There was no place else I wanted to be.

              Last Friday was a complex day for me. To borrow from Dickens, it was the best of days; it was the worst of days. In the morning, I was given a message to call a young man named Cory who had a problem with some sheep. Two of his ewe lambs had died suddenly, and he was quite concerned.
    
              His last name was Eickholt. Heck, half the population of Putnam County are Eickholts. To which clan he belonged, I hadn’t a clue- until he gave me directions to the farm.

It was his late grandpa Orval’s place, and now the house and buildings belonged to Cory. I hadn’t been there in years. His dad and uncles used to raise hogs together and were known as the Eickholt Pork Producers. They didn’t have a lot of hogs, but they took good care of them and were proud of what they raised. 

             Cory’s dad, Tim, was there when I arrived, and I joked with him how glad I was that one of them finally had the sense to raise sheep. With the history Cory gave me- the lambs had been on pasture until a couple of weeks ago, and hadn’t been de-wormed for two to three months, I suspected a parasite problem.

When Tim showed me the lambs, that assumption was quickly borne out. When I pulled down their lower eyelids, the inner conjunctival tissues of both lambs were as white as a sheet. This was the work of a nasty parasite known as Hemonchus contortus, the barber pole worm, a voracious blood-sucker and the killer of many sheep in this part of the world. I gave Cory instructions on what products to use and how to strategically de-worm the flock to keep this from happening again.

             It was great to be back there, and even greater to see a new generation take interest in agriculture, especially sheep production, as Cory had done. As I drove out the driveway, I waved to Tim as he was climbing aboard the old Farmall tractor, a déjà vu moment from twenty years before when I’d wave to Orval.

            Sadly, my euphoria didn’t last long. A few hours later we received a call that Dr. Laman, now a resident at Vancrest in Delphos, was nearing the end of his well-lived life. The Rockwell print, of course, resided there, too, not far from his bed.

Ed’s wife, Anne, was by his side when Bonnie and I arrived, and we had a heartfelt visit with her as we celebrated his life. Ed loved being a veterinarian. He loved caring for animals in need, but he loved helping their people even more. That was the most important thing he taught me, and the boy with the puppy perfectly defined his life’s work.

             Before we left, Anne told me to take the picture. “Ed wanted you to have it,” she said. Walking down the long hallway with the treasured print, I was overcome with a sense of loss I hadn’t felt since the death of my own mother.

 Ed, also, gave me my life. Not the heartbeat, breathing kind my parents provided, but the life I have now- my career, my farm, even all of those darn sheep. If he hadn’t given me the job or sold his practice to us so Bonnie could join me, none of that would have been possible. To say “thank you” for all that he did for us doesn’t seem adequate.

               After the picture was hung in its new location, I stepped back for a better look, and for some reason my mind drifted to the climactic battle scene from the movie, “Saving Private Ryan,” where the gravely wounded Capt. Miller gives his final order to the young Ryan: “Earn this!”

I hope I can.

Written by Dr. John Jones in Memory of Dr. Ed ‘Doc’ Laman

 

 

Golden Oldies: Even Pets Have Senior Moments

          It’s no secret.  I love senior pets.  From the subtle whitening of a black Labrador’s smiling face, to the eternal lounging of a teen-aged barn cat,  I truly appreciate the character, and more importantly, the needs of “golden oldies.”  Even more captivating for me is the devotion of pet owners to their elderly, four-legged family members.  If you have ever owned a geriatric pet, one that has been given the gift of living well into its teens, you know what I mean.                          

           When working with pet owners, I always emphasize that senior pets need you more than ever.  Many age-related ailments begin as “silent” diseases with no symptoms at all, chronic kidney disease being a perfect example.  Elevated kidney values on blood testing and abnormalities in urine often occur before a pet shows decreased appetite and increased urinations associated with this disease.   Once kidney values increase, we know that the pet has already lost at least 75% of its kidney function.  As veterinarians, we now begin playing “catch up” instead of being given the opportunity to prevent this common, age-related cause of death.

           Pets age more rapidly than humans, and a fair assumption is that one year in a pet’s senior period is like two to four in ours.  If your veterinarian is only seeing your older pet once a year, you might be missing an important opportunity to diagnose and treat chronic, life-threatening diseases early, when they are most treatable.  My favorite adages still apply…have your pet examined and tested “twice a year for life” because “an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure.”

          In addition, I am repeatedly saddened by the many senior pets that suffer quietly from the pain of osteoarthritis because we assume that their “slowing down” is just “getting older.” The reality is that it hurts for them to get up or move a lot, so they just choose not to.  They then get stiffer and more painful from inactivity.  During an examination, your veterinarian should ask questions like “Is your dog having difficulty rising?”  Or, “Is your cat still making jumps to high perches or having any difficulty using the litter box?”

          Supplementation of the aging pet’s diet with glucosamine chondroitin can make a significant impact on mobility and quality of life.  For senior cats, there are sprinkle capsules or flavored pastes that can return them to climbing and pouncing again. If your pet does not benefit from supplements alone, your veterinarian may prescribe a non-steroidal anti-inflammatory medication to be used as needed or routinely.

         Like their human counterparts, older pets develop senile deafness and compromised vision.  Pet owners often tell me that their senior pet has “selective deafness,” when in actuality, the pet is hearing some tones, but not all.  In your family, that could mean the pet hears deep voices, but not soft, high voices.  While you are feeling frustrated that your pet is “ignoring” you, consider the pet’s frustration when it can’t hear or understand its familiar commands that give it direction and security.

          Visual deficits of a senior pet are due to compaction of the aging fibers in the lenses (lenticular sclerosis).  Light rays can no longer be transmitted efficiently through the lenses to the brain. You can assist your elderly pet by turning on more lights and using outdoor lighting at night.  For dogs, consider getting your aging pet a “seeing eye dog,” a.k.a. “a puppy!”

          Think about it…not only would your aging pet take action cues from a younger, vivacious one, but that “golden oldie” also will be rejuvenated by the addition of youthful energy to the household.  I know what you are thinking: “I’m not sure I can go there, for me or my senior pet.” However, what I have seen time and again (even in my own home!) is the initial turmoil from the introduction of a new pet turns into return of vigor, mental and physical stimulation, and human interaction for the senior pet.

          The greatest benefit of adding a new pet to your elderly pet’s life is actually for you.  I have observed and understand the endearing forces of the senior pet and the need to guarantee quality of life for them, perhaps more than others.  I also have experienced and know the infinite hole that the loss of a beloved, older pet creates.  But, what I can tell you with absolute certainty is that painful void can be successfully filled by the addition of a new paw print on your heart.

 This column is dedicated to “Vivian Lee” Friedhoff and in memory of Princess “Bunny” Jones.

Author:  Dr. Bonnie Jones