Louise Murray - Vet Confidential: An Insiders Guide to Protecting Your Pets Health

YOU Can Help Your Pet
by Mehmet C. Oz, M.D.

To my own beautiful familyPeter, Dov, and Sienaand to all
the other families made up of both two- and four-legged beings

YOU Can Help Your Pet

Mehmet C. Oz, M.D.

My family currently shares our home with five cats, three hamsters, two angelfish, a rabbit, and a box turtle. The only thing were missing is a partridge in a pear tree. My wife and kids feel that my work as a cardiothoracic surgeon should give me deep insight when one of our cats is limping or a hamster has a runny nose, but the real truth is that when it comes to our animals, I need the help of a good vetjust like you do. Needless to say, with all these beloved critters in the house, veterinary medicine plays a continuous and valuable role in our lives. Its important to us that our menagerie has the best medical care, and were always on the lookout for ways to keep everyone healthy and happy. We also feel that the kids learn compassion and responsibility through the experience.

As a physician and an author, I always emphasize that the most important step you can take for your own health is to really understand how your body works. By taking your health into your own handsfor example, learning why diseases occur, and what causes agingyou can live longer, and look and feel your very best. Knowing your body gives you the motivation to keep it young and strong.

The same concepts hold true concerning the well-being of our pets. Just as we can control our own health destinies through knowledge, we can protect our pets by learning as much as we can. Yet reliable advice isnt always easy to come by, regarding our own health or that of our animals. With all the news stories, scientific reports, and medical recommendations that bombard us, it can seem virtually impossible to reach into the constant stream of data and grasp the most important facts. When we wrote YOU: The Owners Manual, our goal was to haul out the best catch of useful information from that stream and present it in a way that was easy to comprehend, and hopefully fun as well.

In Vet Confidential, Dr. Murray does the veterinary fishing for you, netting the essentials from a sea of confusing and sometimes contradictory information and delivering them to you in a clear and concise fashion. She also dishes out some facts you probably wont find anywhere else. By the way, did you know that high blood pressure is as dangerous for pets as it is for us, or that veterinary ophthalmologists can perform cataract surgery similar to that done for humans? Maybe this is the first time youve heard that there is even such a thing as a veterinary ophthalmologist! Vet Confidential takes you inside veterinary medicine, so you can become an educated partner in your pets medical care. What you learn may amaze you, and will certainly help you keep your pet happy and well.

If youve read any of my books, you know that Im a big fan of quizzes. Here are five questions on topics that are essential for your pets well-being. Take a few moments to see how you do.

The Pet Health Quiz:
How Much Do You Know About Veterinary Medicine?

Every dog should be vaccinated against _______.

a. The intestinal parasite Giardia.

b. Canine parvovirus.

c. Rattlesnake venom.

d. Lyme disease.

Every cat should be vaccinated against ________.

a. The feline leukemia virus.

b. Feline immunodeficiency virus.

c. Feline coronavirus.

d. Feline panleukopenia virus.

If the veterinarian hears a heart murmur during your cats physical exam, the safest plan would be to:

a. Have a chest X-ray taken; if its normal, theres nothing to worry about.

b. Have the murmur monitored yearly to make sure it doesnt get any louder.

c. Have a cardiac ultrasound performed by a veterinary cardiologist.

d. Put your cat on a low-fat diet.

Which of the following is not true regarding high blood pressure in pets?

a. High blood pressure is common in older pets, especially those with certain health conditions.

b. Untreated high blood pressure can result in sudden blindness in cats and dogs.

c. It is difficult to measure blood pressure in pets, especially those weighing less than ten pounds.

d. Some of the same medications used to treat high blood pressure in people are also used for this purpose in dogs and cats.

You move to a different city and youre looking for a new veterinary practice. Its most important to choose a veterinary practice that _________.

a. Is as close to your house as possible so your pet wont have to travel too far.

b. Uses up-to-date monitoring equipment on animals under anesthesia.

c. Has a large waiting room with separate areas for dogs and cats.

d. All your new neighbors use.

Answers to the Pet Health Quiz

1. b. Canine vaccines are considered to fall into three categories: core vaccines, which every dog should receive; noncore optional vaccines, which are used in certain dogs based on geographic location and lifestyle; and vaccines that are not generally recommended. Because canine parvovirus is widespread and highly infectious, it is recommended that all dogs be vaccinated against this disease.

2. d. Feline vaccines are also categorized as core, noncore optional, and not generally recommended. On this list, only feline panleukopenia is considered a core vaccine, and all cats should be vaccinated against this devastating infection.

3. c. While chest X-rays are useful in cats with heart murmurs, only a cardiac ultrasound can be used to accurately diagnose a cat with heart disease and ascertain whether medication is necessary. It is not possible to tell whether a cat has significant heart disease by listening to a heart murmurin fact, some cats with heart disease dont have a murmur at all. Low-fat diets are not used for cats with heart disease.

4. c. Blood pressure can easily be measured in dogs and cats. High blood pressure occurs in many middle-aged and older pets, particularly those with kidney disease or hormonal conditions. Severely elevated blood pressure that is not discovered and treated can cause blindness due to retinal damage.

5. b. Although your pet may not enjoy traveling to the veterinarian, it is much more essential for your pets safety that you use a practice that will properly monitor your pet during anesthesia.

Odds are you just realized that you didnt learn everything you needed to know about veterinary medicine in the pet store. Now is your chance to get your honorary doctorate. Just as it is true for your own health, the more you know, the better care you can take of your petso heres to a long and healthy life for both of you!