Dr. Rossi’s guest this week, Dr. Jeff Clark, is a veterinary neurologist. Dr. Clark describes what to look for to determine if your pet has a neurological problem. Neurological signs can include: Blindness, difficulty walking, seizures, knuckling-Over, and head tilting, among others. Common causes include: Degenerative Disc Disease; Infections, trauma, cancer, and metabolic diseases. However, Dr. Clark points out that making a definitive diagnosis can be challenging. Treatments may involve surgery, medicines or physical therapy. He encourages owners not to give up since many animals appear to undergo dramatic recovery from what appear to be serious neurological injuries.
Dr. Rossi also stressed the importance of dental care for pets, reporting that periodontal disease was the most common disease of small animals, and that regular dental cleanings and tooth brushing were critical to maintain your pets health and increase longevity. In addition, a comparison of veterinary waiting times and human waiting times is revealed in a very cheerful story, by an unknown author. A warning against the use of chicken jerky strips is repeated as several more cases of pet toxicity after their ingestion, have occurred since the initial warning.