#veternarian

Three main types of allergies plague our feline friends - food allergies, skin allergies (from flea bites, for example), and environmental allergies.

Environmental allergies can refer to anything in a cat's environment, such as dust, pollen, or humans. Dogs can be allergic to humans as well.

According to Raelynn Farnsworth of Washington State University's College of Veterinary Medicine, "It's rare, but dogs can be allergic to cat dander and people dander and vice versa. For everything."

In cats, the allergy shows up as miliary dermatitis, which results in tiny scabs, usually around their head and neck. It can also result in missing spots of hair.

Cats can also develop asthma if exposed to allergens for too long. So if your cat is sneezing or coughing, it's essential to see a vet. And you probably shouldn't worry too much since they're likely allergic to something else in their environment besides you.

People don't have as much dander as animals since we frequently bathe. Our pets are more likely to be allergic to something like perfume or beauty/skincare products we use, especially if they contain preservatives (as most do).

– WTF Fun Facts

British Columbia is doubling the number of seats it will subsidize for first-year veterinary college to address a shortage of animal doctors.

Anne Kang, the minister of advanced education and skills training, says the province will provide $10.68 million to support 40 students entering the Western College of Veterinary Medicine this fall.

She says demand for subsidized seats at the Saskatchewan-based college has been high and tuition fees have been a barrier for aspiring veterinarians.

Continue Reading.

Ambassador Animal Hospital

Note, Sarah does mention sending dogs to heaven, but I don’t think it takes away from her overall message, so I’m posting it here. 

I had to put a pet down on January 30th. There will be more about Alice, and that process, next week. More of the grief I poured out into words, and found the time to schedule it here. 

I’ve never had to euthanize a pet before. I knew some of what to expect, but not everything. Seeing the vet with tears in her eyes, confirms that we all know what it is, even when it is a mercy. 

I never thought I could make the decision. Never thought I would, with how I feel about death -- but my dad and I made that decision, rather than leave Alice to die in misery. There was no saving her. 

This is a Ted Talk that explains why euthanasia feels the way it does. Because it feels different for me, than just losing my pets. My cat Mash died in my lap, naturally, as they say. I grieved for her, it’s true, but the pain was different. Not less, but somehow not as sharp. The difference between blunt trauma and a knife. 

Euthanasia means good death. I feel like I knew this before, but I had forgotten. 

“If it is a kindness, why doesn’t it always feel like one?”

Because there is the hindsight fee. There is the guilt of “what could I have done” or “I know I could have done”, but it’s too late. 

There is the question of “Did I do the right thing?”, looking back, wondering if other things could have been done instead. 

There is the crystal ball fee, similar, where one regrets actions taken to prolong life that didn’t go the way they planned. Where, if you had a crystal ball and could have foreseen the outcome, you wouldn’t have done it. 

Then there is the betrayal fee, which I believe is more what my dad and I are suffering, because it feels like ending her life prematurely is a betrayal to her, to all her love, to everything she was. Because I can only imagine being in her shoes. Being in her pain. Coughing up blood, being able to only whisper...and I think I’d still want to hang on. Did she? Would it have been kinder to let her go naturally, in her own time?  

Of course, here is where she mentions heaven -- but I can overlook that. The message is simple: ending their pain, when they can’t move, when they are just like Alice, is a kindness, not a betrayal. 

And perhaps, if I experienced Alice’s pain (I don’t want to), I would also think the same. A kindness, not a betrayal, no matter my desire for life. 

Sarah goes on to talk about her own experience with euthanizing her beagle, Cooper. He had terminal cancer that had spread throughout his body. The Beagle was able to enjoy a last sundae as she made the decision. She told him how much she loved him, and wished him on to the rainbow bridge. Joked about his color blindness, and sent him on. 

She thought that on the end -- but she was bothered by a voice that questioned the decision, the way that I am, even though she is a vet. Even though she’s done this for others, countless time, and has a better understanding than most of us. 

It wasn’t logic asking her. 

It was her emotions. Her heart. Her connection. And they did, what they do best -- they question. 

These costs can’t be separated from euthanasia...but they’re normal. And hearing that is helpful. 

It also impacts those performing the act. The suicide rate of vets is 2x above the national average. Sarah goes through the techniques she’s learned to deal with it. 

1. She will not do convenience or revenge euthanasia. 

2. She gives herself permission to feel everything in the moment, which I think our vet did, even if she only knew Alice for those few minutes. She was there grieving. Her eyes were red. “My grief vault is intentionally kept empty.”