Carl came to SouthCare as a stray in early January 2012.  During his short stay at the hospital, I absolutely fell in love with him and his laid-back temperament. After losing one of our cats the week prior, we easily decided to have Carl become a member of our family. Carl enjoys spending time snoozing on tables and strolling on countertops (while taking sips of water from faucets) and  never hesitates to let us know when he’s hungry (which seems to be ALL the time).  He’s extremely vocal (the Siamese in him) and affectionate… Carl is either weaving between our legs as we walk or is on our laps once we sit down. He’s also VERY patient with our daughter Luci!  Carl has been the best addition to our family and we’re all so willing to share and return all the love he gives to us.  Carl is one-of-a-kind!!

While in San Juan Del Sur, Dr. Coulson and Noelle helped with the spay & neuter campaign and provided animal health consultations and zoonotic disease prevention. Aside from direct veterinary assistance, they also provided training for Nicaraguan veterinarians and veterinary students in spay and neuter techniques and small animal medicine. World Vets is currently working on developing a surgical training facility in Granada, Nicaragua, which will provide free instruction to Latin American veterinary professionals.

Dr. Coulson and Noelle where also able to take some free time to enjoy excursions offered around the city! (All work and no play…) These included a day-long sailing trip to a private beach where they were able to swim, walk the beach and see wild monkeys lounging in the tree tops. They also were able to take surfing lessons, go zip-lining high through the tree tops, horseback riding on the beach, and snorkeling to see sting rays and an array of beautiful tropical fish.

World Vets was also recently featured in the Spokesman-Review!

Did someone say treat?

Honey is finally feeling better after her surgery!  She was perky today, though she still tires easily.  She really appreciated all your well-wishing (and all the extra T-R-E-A-T-S she’s been getting!).

Unfortunately, the news on her mass was not good.  It is a hemangiosarcoma, which has a poor prognosis.  We’re staying optimistic, though!  She has the best care she can possibly get and lots of friends and family to help her through it all.

Honey was feeling a bit down in the dumps on Tuesday, didn’t really feel much like playing with her cohort (9-month old Gooch).  When she vomited at lunch, Dr. Benoit immediately had us take some x-rays of her abdomen.  In those pictures, there was a suspicious area near her spleen.  Dr. B took her down to the radiologist yesterday for an ultrasound, where the splenic mass was verified.  She went right into surgery yesterday afternoon and had her spleen (with the mass) removed.  We are waiting to hear the results of the biopsy of the mass from the pathologist (and keeping our fingers crossed that it’s not malignant!).

Honey has had several visitors and well-wishers!  Thank you!

Honey & Daniel in recovery

Warning!  Yucky picture ahead…  (Honey’s spleen after removal–mass is the large red swelling on the left end)

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Honey's mass and spleen

We have been seeing an unusually large number of these lesions this year.  You will see a central spot, with a clear zone, then another circle of red.  There will be no other inflammation, discharge, crusts, or skin/hair loss associated with these particular lesions.  (There can be other lesions somewhat similar, but with completely different causes, such as staph infection or fungal infection).

These lesions are most likely caused by an insect bite, which we strongly suspect to be black fly (buffalo fly) bites.  There has also been an large increase in these fly bites in people this spring, especially along the nape of the neck and along the hairline.  When they bite people, they often bleed a little after the fly leaves, leaving some dried blood.  A central spot of hemorrhage then appears just under the skin.  If a person is sensitive to the saliva of these flies, they will then get a raised welt that can be extremely itchy!

On most dogs, these lesions will usually disappear within a day or two without any swelling.  That central spot is actually where the bite occurred.  A search on target lesions on the internet will usually bring up the lesions associated with Lyme disease and the tick bite.  However, we do not have the type of tick (the black-legged tick/Ixodes spp.) that carries Lyme disease in eastern Washington.

What should you do?  The lesions should be seen by a veterinarian to verify they are just benign insect bites and not a bacterial or fungal infection or caused by another type of hemorrhaging process.  If you wish to monitor these lesions first, be sure they look exactly like the above photo, with no discomfort, swelling, discharge, foul odor, hair loss, or skin loss.  If any of these other symptoms are present, your dog should be seen right away.  If your dog did get a tick while traveling, he/she should be also examined (save the tick if you can).  Otherwise, these spots should start to fade within a day or two.

Wow!  We had two veterinarians listed in TopVets 2011!  Congratulations Drs. Benoit & Wada!   Our hospital was also featured in an article in the Spokane CDA Living magazine this June!

An article, “The Doggone Best” starts on page 105 of the June 2011 issue, while our feature (see below) is on page 109.

Lilies--toxic for cats!

It’s the time of year we see many Easter lilies in the home and cat owners should be aware of the dangers these, and other members of the lily family, can pose.  Lilies such as Tiger lily, Rubrum lily, Japanese show lily, Stargazer lily and some species of the Day lily (Hemerocallis species) can cause kidney failure in cats.  Since many cats like to investigate and chew on household plants, they can pose a serious hazard for your cat.

Unfortunately, any part of the lily plant are toxic to cats (even the pollen!) and consuming even small amounts can be life threatening, causing kidney damage & failure.  Within only a few hours of ingestion of the lily plant, a cat may vomit, become lethargic or develop a lack of appetite. These signs may continue and worsen as kidney damage progresses. Without prompt and proper treatment by your cat’s veterinarian, the cat may develop kidney failure in 36 to72 hours!   Cat owners should remove lilies from their cat’s access and are encouraged to consider safer alternatives.

Follow this link for a list of safer plants for cat households.

A vaccine is available which may help lessen the frequency and severity of the symptoms, but does not prevent infection or clinical signs associated with the virus.  The vaccine is considered non-core, which means its use is limited to animals at high risk of exposure.  Currently, the virus is considered to cause symptoms that are mild and self-limiting and since the prevalence is low in our area, we do not recommend vaccinating for this disease at this time.

We want to be sure you pet isn’t getting potentially dangerous counterfeit, improperly stored, or expired medications!

Link to Purchasing Pet Drugs Online

Link to Internet Pharmacy Use

Holiday Visitors

• Holiday parties and visiting friends and relatives can be very stressful for some pets.  Stressed animals are more likely to bite and/or scratch, even if they have never done so before.
• Exuberant large dogs may knock a guest over and cause an injury (especially dangerous with the elderly and small children).
• With many guests, there are many feet.  We frequently see injuries to small pets from being accidently stepped on or tripped over.
• Anxious pets should be given their own space to retreat to when company arrives–a place where they can be undisturbed if they wish.  Take dogs for a good walk or run before guests arrive.
• Have a pet visiting your home from another region?  Apply flea treatment (Frontline Plus) to your pets a few days before the furry visitors arrive as a precaution.

Christmas trees—the stagnant water at the base of your tree can be a ‘bacteria soup’, don’t allow your pet to drink from this water.

The ornaments on your tree can be tempting “toys” for your pet.  Ingestion of ornaments can cause GI upset and intestinal blockage, and broken glass ornaments can also cause severe lacerations.

Tinsel and curling ribbon—many cats love to play with, chew on, and even swallow these!  They can cause vomiting and intestinal blockage.  Avoid the use of tinsel if you have a pet and try using an alternative to ribbon (or use none at all) for your gift wrapping.

There can be a lot of fascinating (to a pet!), new electrical cords around the house this time of year.  Ensure a safe, hidden placement of these cords for the safety of your entire household, but also remember that some pets may feel the need to chew on these cords.  They can cause severe oral burns and death by electrocution.  You may need to restrict your pets’ access to rooms with these cords when unsupervised.

Hazardous holiday foods—while we recommend that you avoid giving your pet “people food” at any time of the year, there are some common holiday food ingestions that can be particularly dangerous:

• Chocolate.  Depending on the size of pet and the amount and type of chocolate, this human treat can be very hazardous.  Mild cases can include vomiting and diarrhea, while mores severe cases can have ataxia, seizures, coma, and even death
• Alcoholic beverages
• Foods high in fat—may cause GI upset and pancreatitis!
• Onions (including items with onion powder) and grapes (including raisins)—dogs may have a toxic reaction to these.
• Bones.  Do not feed your pet any type of bones!  See our Bones article!
• Xylitol–an artificial sweetener toxic to dogs.  Can cause blood sugar drops, tremors, and seizures.

Decorative Plants

• Mistletoe:  usually only causes GI upset, but may potentially cause cardiovascular problems.  Keep them out of reach.
• Poinsettias:  usually just irritating to the mouth and GI tract.  May cause vomiting, but is generally not toxic.
• Lilies:  any part of a lily can be highly toxic to your cat.  Ingestion of any part can lead to kidney failure.  Bring your cat in immediately if any ingestion occurs—do not wait!  If you have a cat that likes plants, avoid lilies and be aware about any potentially hazardous houseplants.