Cat scan

This is a shout out to my dear friend Steve at the Ark Animal Hospital. Steve's cat Poppy had been sleeping on the work scanner (cats and electronic devices, I hear you - its hard to keep them apart. If it is warm and it hums, your cat wants to warm his or her derriere on it).

Anyway, whether deliberately or not we can never know, Poppy kept pressing the "scan" button, and somehow managed to save these extremely artistic pictures of her toasty bum on Steve's computer. Its the kind of hijinks one might expect from inebriated staff at the work xmas party, not the practice cat!

Needless to say, Steve got a pleasant (?) surprise when he downloaded the scans, any of which could easily be enlarged, framed and sold to any number of museums around the world. 

I am sure there is some sort of legitimate veterinary application of this imaging technique, apart from creating wall-art for the waiting room, I just haven't discovered it yet.

Three things I learned: Peritonitis in cats and dogs

Dorsoventral radiograph of a shih tzu with a radioopaque gastric foreign body (in this case, a beer bottle top). This was an incidental finding in a dog which had been hit by a car (hence the thoracic imaging!). Foreign bodies can cause GIT obstruction, perforation and peritonitis.

The University of Sydney Veterinary Centre hosted a continuing education evening on the topic of peritonitis in the dog and cat. The presentations by Drs Alastair Franklin, Mark Newman, Heide Kloeppel and Chris Tan were fantastic.

So what did I learn?

·         The peritoneum is equivalent to 150 per cent of the body surface area, and the hypovolaemia and hypoproteinaemia that occur with peritonitis are similar to losses which occur with third degree burns.

·         Secondary peritonitis is the most common form, with 50 to 75 per cent of cases occurring due to loss of GIT integrity (and around 15 % of GIT resection and anastomoses break down – even those performed in referral facilities).

·         Aseptic peritonitis can be caused by endogenous chemicals (bile and urine – which I knew) but also exogenous chemicals (iodine and saline – yet we are required to flush with the latter! It does raise the question, in what circumstances is saline likely to cause peritonitis? I would expect it would be failure to suction all lavage fluid prior to wound closure, which might turn it into a medium for bacteria?)

·         It’s simple, but worth remembering: take rads before you perform your abdominocentesis, as even with careful technique you can introduce gas into the abdomen which complicates radiograph interpretation.

 The talk covered everything from abdominocentesis fluid analysis to anaesthetic considerations and ex-lap technique, emphasising the need for a multidisciplinary approach to a challenging problem.

In celebration of cats and boxes. Well, one cat, two boxes and a hamper.

A cat hamper. What more do you want in a wicker basket?

In your box. Killing you dudes with cuteness.

Taking the box thing just a little bit too seriously...

Crashing through wall of box with one's rear end whilst burning your soul with my eyes...

Is your animal welfare account in the black?

Hundreds of thousands of native animals (like this joey's mother) are killed by cars every year on Australian roads. Should all motorists be paying a small annual fee to fund the care of injured and orphaned animals?

In his recent book, AnimalWelfare in Veterinary Practice, James Yeates uses the metaphor of an animal welfare account.

“Every person in the world has a direct effect on animal welfare. How they treat animals they own or meet; what food and clothes they buy; which charities they give money to; what they enjoy as entertainment and their environmental impact can have an effect on the lives of many animals.

Each person probably effects a combination of harm and benefit (even the kindest people do some harm and even the most evil people may help animals by accident and has an overall impact on animals’ welfare. Each person has an animal welfare account, based on all their welfare impacts. If a person does more good than harm, this is to their credit. (Yeates, 2013, p1)

This is a great concept as it recognises that every intervention – no matter the intent – has an impact, but it also suggests that we can mitigate harm by taking steps to impact animals in a positive fashion. i.e. making a deposit into the animal welfare account. Kind of like paying for carbon off-setting when you purchase an airfare.

According to Yeates, veterinarians must be particularly mindful of their animal welfare accounts because, while we have the same general responsibilities and obligations to animals as everyone else, we have (by virtue of our proximity to animals, our ability to intervene when health problems arise etc) more opportunity to cause greater harm and fewer excuses because of our greater knowledge.

So how do we offset our negative welfare impacts? In his book, Yeates provides some great suggestions:

1)   Develop the skills to accurately assess the welfare of animals (so that we can recognise when there is a deficit and correct it)
2)   Engage in reflective practice: be aware of our strengths and weaknesses and work on these
3)   Consider the bigger picture: we can think of imaginative ways of welfare-offsetting
4)   Get involved with our professional bodies such as the AVA as well as organisations that promote animal welfare
5)   Give pro-bono time, money or fundraising efforts to welfare or charities
6)   Make good consumer choices when shopping or eating out – “embody the welfare standards we want others to emulate

I would love to hear ideas from others. Do you agree that vets have a greater responsibility when it comes to animal welfare? How do we offset harms?

Crocodile prints in the sand

This is the silhouette of a saltwater crocodile on the beach on Melville Island. Our team of veterinarians had been walking along the beach the evening before - not realising we were metres from a saltwater crocodile who left this amazing print in the sand. The tail print was particularly prominent.

How prehistoric does this footprint look?

Pound puppy - four years on

Enjoying the beach, April 2013.

Remember Mr B, the Rhodesian Ridgeback-cross adopted back in 2009 into a loving family? This former shelter dog is living it up on the Central Coast of New South Wales.

But it may not have been. His current owners, having spotted his profile online, travelled interstate to meet him – only to meet the wrong dog. Mr B had a doppelganger who was too boisterous for the would-be owners.

As they left the shelter, disappointed, a staff member asked who they had come to see.

“Mr B,” they replied.

“Oh, he’s out on a walk,” she said. Then entered Mr B – calm, collected, gorgeous...and they never looked back. A few minutes and it might not have been.

Instead, he’s enjoyed four wonderful years in a loving home – and counting. If you're thinking about it, just remember that adopting a shelter animal can make untold difference to someone.

Does your personality influence the relationship you have with your dog?

If you’ve ever wondered how your personality influences the relationship you have with your dog, or how your dog’s appearance and personality influences the relationship you have with your dog, you’re not alone.

The Australian Anthrozoology Research Foundation is supporting La Trobe University researcher Cynthia Brown in a project looking at the role of human and dog characteristics in quality of the the human-dog relationship.

Why does it matter? Well, mismatches in these kinds of relationships can have really serious implications for dogs – eg, being deemed incompatible and surrendered to a shelter, where it becomes a life or death issue.

On the flip side, the better we can match dogs with owners, the fewer surrenders occur.

If you are:

a)   A dog owner
b)   Over 18
c)   Have a spare fifteen to twenty minutes
d)   Have or can take a photo of your dog

You can do the survey online and contribute to important anthrozoology research.

World’s cutest python

World's cutest hair accessory?

I used to be frightened of snakes...but now I’ve grown up I count many herpetologists among my best friends and I have found them one of the most fascinating species to interact with. This baby green tree python, being cared for at the Ark Animal Hospital, made its way into my hair and acted like an impromptu hair tie. Eat your heart out scrunchies!

Extreme close up: note the elegant sheets of skin this little dude has been shedding, just hanging from the branch like a cardigan.

Interview with Sarah Von Bargen (blogger extraordinaire) and Putin (chief keyboard warmer)

1. Who are you - what do you do, where do you live and what makes you tick.

Hi guys!  My name is Sarah Von Bargen.  I'm a blogger, writer, world traveler andinternet awesome-i-fier. I'm fueled by wanderlust, cheese, and the belief that everyone and everything is interesting.  I usually live in St. Paul, Minnesota but I travel three months out the year.

2. Tell us about Putin - breed, age, size

Putin is your garden variety Farm Cat.  I think he might be part Maine Coon because he's quite big and long-haired and friendly with people he knows.  He's 10 years old, 32 inches from nose to tail, and about 13 pounds.  (I just measured him with a metal measuring tape which he was, surprisingly, not into.)

3. How did you two meet?

When I was 22, my then-boyfriend's family cat had a litter of kittens.  Obviously, I needed that tiny little black guy in my life!  I decided this on a whim and had to transport him back to my apartment in a pink wicker laundry hamper. 

4. How do you kill time together?

We enjoy rousing games of 'Catch the Laser Pointer,' watching Parks and Rec, and trying on different outfits.  Putin also enjoys knocking mugs off my desk, sitting behind me on my desk chair, licking the blinds, unplugging the computer, and galloping around the apartment at 10 pm.  We like to call this "Thunder Cat Hour."

5. How has owning a cat improved you as a person?

I'm probably (slightly) more patient and (slightly) more loving.  I spend a lot of time asking Putin questions like "Why do you love me so much?" "Why are you so obsessed with me?" and "Why do you need to be near me at all times?"

6. Has Putin had any major health scares or accidents? Tell us what happened. If not, tell us about the last time you took Putin to see a veterinarian.

I have been extremely fortunate with Putin's health.  He's never, ever had any health issues and the only time he's ever been to a vet was when he got neutered and got his first shots as a teenager cat.  I chalk up his good health to the fact that he's an indoor cat in a one-cat household.

7. What three traits do you believe define a good veterinarian and why?

Patience

We're pet owners, not vets.  So a lot of animal medicine jargon might go over our heads.  But that doesn't mean we're not interested or we won't understand if you explain it a bit more.

Sympathy

We probably view our pets are 'fur children' and if we're seeing you, we're probably in a pretty tough spot emotionally.  Thanks for being gentle with us.

Pragmatism

I appreciate it when my doctor says things like "I can prescribe this sleeping aid to you, or you could just do more cardio and lay off the coffee."  I want the same thing in a vet. 

8. What are your favourite veterinary or pet-related websites and what is special about these?

Drjustinelee.com!  Not only is Justine a close friend, she's an amazing vet and I've seen first hand how much she loves her own pets.  Whenever Putin is doing something weird ("HE WON'T STOP LICKING THE DESK, JUSTINE!") she'll calm me down and tell me what to do.

9. Is there anything you'd like to share with veterinarians and future veterinarians?

Have patience and be kind :)