While humans can safely consume the sugar alcohol xylitol, ingestion of the product by dogs can be serious or even life threatening. by Brittany Carr, DVM Small Animal Rotating Intern and Emily Coddon, DVM Emergency + Critical Care Overview Chocolate, grapes, raisins, macadamia nuts, garlic and onions are all commonly recognized for being toxic to dogs. However, [...]

Uncontrollable sneezing or pawing at the face and ears may be signs that Foxtails have burrowed into your pet’s skin or body. by Andreas Andreou, DVM Emergency + Critical Care ‘Tis the season for those nasty foxtails, also known as grass awns, which are seemingly harmless seedpods that sprout up everywhere after a rainy season. It [...]

Digital Imaging (MRIs) When biopsy samples are taken, those samples are processed by a lab, and the slides are “read” by a pathologist. That pathologist has received several years of training, staring through microscopes all day. It is your veterinarian’s job to take that pathologist’s interpretation and use it to formulate a plan for your [...]

If you’ve had an MRI, you’re probably familiar with the dark side… Chances are, you’ve had a magnetic resonance imaging scan, or you know someone that has. The biggest drawback (if you have insurance) – the suffocating claustrophobia, especially when your procedure isn’t just one hour long, but sometimes several! Theoretically, “open” MRIs have relieved [...]

Mandible Tumors and Growths Tumors and growths in pets are confronted with fear and uncertainty for most pet owners. In our past article  ”Growths, Masses, Lumps + Tumors in Pets,” we focused on what causes them and what you can do when you find them. In this article we focus on the lower jaw or “mandible” [...]