Animals Unfolded

As someone who cares for other people's pets on a daily basis, I can tell you that my smartphone is an invaluable tool and I am never without it. I can stay in touch with my clients easily, make last-minute changes to my schedule on the fly — or even check the ever-changing weather forecast. It is an essential tool in the direct care of my charges. One example is simple but helps me stay on track: if I have a suddenly finicky eater (whether it is behavioral or health related, many pets tend to eat a bit less when their people are away), I can take a photo of their feeding bowl in the evening to see how much food they might have consumed overnight. When I can return early in the morning, I can look in their bowl and compare. Caring for pets effectively is all in the details, whether you are a pet owner, a veterinarian or a caregiver. Any change that one sees with their pet is important, but there is one that can cause considerable concern: skin masses. Some are benign, other...

There's a population of cats whose immune systems are so profoundly affected by a virus that it puts them at risk of developing other diseases like blood cancers, anemia and fatal infections — usually upper respiratory — and because of that, it greatly shortens their lifespan. Feline Leukemia , a retrovirus, abbreviated as FeLV (and referred to as "fee loo") is highly contagious among felines, though it's important to note that it's not transmissible to other animals nor humans. FeLV is also preventable. Why it is then that the virus continues to infect cats? That's actually a complex question to answer, but really, it boils down to human responsibility. Cats can be vaccinated for FeLV (dependent on individual risk and exposure), but for many reasons, that doesn't happen, whether it's because cat owners are lax about having their pet's vaccinations completed or kept up to date — if they're are done at all. Failure to sterilize pet cat...

A new study reveals that obesity in humans and canines share similarities, including one that's unexpected. In the latest issue of the Journal of Veterinary Internal Medicine, an abstract fleshes out the study. 14 beagles were included — seven of them fed a commercial food to increase their weight (which happened, they gained about 11 lbs. each), while seven other beagles were fed a restricted amount of the same food to maintain their optimal weight. After six months, researchers tested the fecal samples of all of the dogs. Those who were at an optimal weight had higher amounts of desirable microbes called Firmicutes in the gut, while dogs in the other group harbored more Proteobacteria, a less-favorable Gram-negative bacteria. The obese dogs also had a less diverse level of intestinal microflora than their thin counterparts, which is also been demonstrated in humans. It's thought that Proteobacteria may lead to an increase in lipopolysaccharides (which form a prot...