Dogs tend to be good-natured and stoic, and often conceal their pain. Many times we find older patients who have really painful arthritis, and the owner describes the problem, as: “Well, he’s slowing down some. Just getting old.” A short round of anti-inflammatory pain medicine sometimes reveals that he wasn’t “just getting old” – he […]
Category Archives: Pain Control
What is a safe anesthetic? I’d have to say that it’s one you wake up from without any apparent damage. OH… you meant which anesthetic is safe for your pet? Well, that is a good question. I have heard anesthetics described as poisons, and that seems a bit extreme. On the other hand, if they […]
When one of my patients isn't using a leg, it's usually because it hurts. If something hurts, I try to stop doing it. That pain is a signal that I'm making it worse, and I'll slow down the healing (or prevent it). Hey, but what about those times when you know something is wrong, but […]
This question showed up on the Pelvic Fractures post today: > My precious Schnauzer/Yorky mix was hit by a car & broke her hip 7 years ago. She has healed and walks on her leg from time to time but I have noticed great sensitivity when I touch her leg lately.(nerve damage?)She goes under the […]
Some days I think I am a great communicator. Heaven knows, I love to listen to me talking. Then there are days like today. De-clawing is a major surgery for the cat (pretty routine for me). I don’t feel it is something to be entered into lightly, or to be considered "minor" in any way. […]
There’s an old cowboy saying: "Don’t tell people about your troubles — half of ’em don’t care and the other half are glad you’ve got ’em." If you’ve looked at my bio links and old posts, you know that I’d be interested in old cowboy sayings. Still, if someone asks "How are you?" I’m likely […]
In my last post, one might have a tendency to interpret my comments as being critical of the dog’s regular veterinarian. While I do think there is some lapse of logic in sending home a barrier collar instead of (or without) pain medicine, you have to consider this in light of the back-story. Don’t judge […]
Why not do something about it? My dentist friend tells me of patients who come to him with terribly painful dental problems, such as broken and abscessed teeth, that have gone untreated for weeks to months. When they tell him this, they add, "I just couldn’t stand the pain any longer." You might be thinking, […]
There’s an old joke about someone finding the simpleton hitting himself in the head with a hammer. When asked why he would do such a thing, he replied "It feels so good when you stop." When I was a boy, we used to camp at Alley Springs State Park for our family vacation. In those […]