Vet Times

Tag: Cats

  • Good mental health – not just for humans

    Good mental health – not just for humans

    —

    by

    Hollie has had a big month. She’s had surgery and now we’ve started behavioural therapy. To be fair, she’s generally a bit anxious as she hadn’t really been socialised at all until we got her at six years old – so she’s always been a bit behind the usual socialisation time frame. We cope with…

  • Anti-science

    Anti-science

    —

    by

    I gently squeeze the cat’s abdomen. There isn’t much to feel, but the muscles tense and the cat looks at me reproachfully. A tiny bead of bloody urine appears at its vulva and drips on to the consult table. “I think we’re dealing with cystitis here,” I said. Of course, technically it’s probably feline lower…

  • New year, new us

    New year, new us

    —

    by

    With the Christmas festivities over and 2017 already upon us, many of you will have taken the time to make a new year’s resolution you won’t keep. It is estimated only 8% of people succeed in achieving or keeping their new year’s resolution (so the odds are against you), but if you feel this is…

  • Cat-proofing the Christmas tree

    Cat-proofing the Christmas tree

    —

    by

    Having acquired two new bundles of fluffy joy this year, our Christmas tree is looking a little worse for wear. Now six months old, our kittens’ new favourite game is trying to de-decorate said tree at lightning speed. Many clients are aware of the edible dangers to pets at Christmas time, but the tree itself,…

  • Borrowed time

    Borrowed time

    —

    by

    I’m hoping to get through writing this without crying. Our beloved Little Blue (or “LB”) is entering the stage beyond the twilight years – she’s firmly in borrowed time territory. Although G (the husband) thinks she’s been on borrowed time for the last five years, she’s really just been a bit more aged-looking than usual.…

  • Don’t you miss them?

    Don’t you miss them?

    —

    by

    Odd spot of locum work aside, I have been out of general practice for a few months now, and a number of people have asked the same thing: “Don’t you miss the patients?” That’s a tricky one – simply because the gut reaction of “of course I do” gets complicated when I start to think…

  • Alternative therapies for pain

    Alternative therapies for pain

    —

    by

    In a previous blog I showed options for nursing care at home for patients in pain. Some clients may wish to do more and some cases may require it. But where can clients go for a holistic approach to their pets’ pain? We must always remember that any referral must abide by RCVS guidelines –…

  • It’s all about the litter

    It’s all about the litter

    —

    by

    I’ve had a bad week. I ordered a food delivery; it arrived, but not all of it – they forgot the prosecco. The horror! To make it worse there seemed to be no way of rectifying the issue, leading me to try to find a new supermarket to deliver – but which one? And why is…

  • Because you’re worth it

    Because you’re worth it

    —

    by

    In my last blog, I talked about my lack of salesmanship skills with veterinary products. Today, I’m going to talk about something else I’m not very good at selling – myself. After we graduate, when we worry about how good we’re going to be at the job, it’s usually questions like: “Will I be able…

  • How to anaesthetise a reindeer

    How to anaesthetise a reindeer

    —

    by

    I’ve written before about omnicompetency, but the word is mostly used in the sense of vets being able to work in mixed practice and tackle the veterinary care of horses, dogs, cats and farm animals in the same day – certainly, the first thing to come to mind would not be a reindeer. However, on…