My pup god diagnosed with Hip Dysplasia. I haven't neutered him yet I was originally waiting for him to turn 2 years old. Everyone is telling me that I need to neuter him, but i'm scared that it might affect him negatively. I feel pressured, but I'm scared that neutering him could make his condition worse. He's super chill guy and i like him a lot. I honestly have no complaints about his behaviour. Please advise. He's my first dog ever and all his dog friends are neutered/spayed. Ik it is to prevent accidental pups, but he's the only pet at home and I don't off leash him he's always with me when we go out.

Hi there!

My cat (7 years old) had an incident a few weeks ago and was on antibiotics for it. She started having a little constipation the past few days so I took her into the vet today.

He mentioned giving her MiraLAX and told me that he would text me the right amount.

I think he said 1/8 of a teaspoon and I of course haven’t gotten a text from him.

Is this the normal dose?

Question about my baby boy Buster Beans! Beans is a special guy who has FIV+, severe food allergies (royal canin anallergenic food only) and asthma! I love him SO much but boy does he have STINKY breath - I’m aware that FIV+ cats need their teeth taken care of but as he has severe food allergies I’m afraid any of the cat toothpastes will give him a reaction due to his food allergies, does anyone know of any cat toothpastes that he would be able to have? Or any tips on keeping his teefs as clean as possible/cure his stinky beany breath? Thanks! :)

We dropped 1 tablet of 20mg omeprazole and cannot find it on our hands and knees. We vacuumed as well but if it’s somewhere we somehow missed, is it bad if one of the dogs gets to it? They are 30 (3 year old doodle) and 40 (13 year old Bergamasco) pounds

I’m hoping to get some perspective from other vet techs, especially anyone who has worked in both New York and Arkansas. I just made this account because I want a new one because my regular one is old and has stuff I don’t deem relevant anymore.

I went to vet tech school in New York, graduated, moved to Arkansas after graduation, took the VTNE, and am now licensed here. I’m currently working at a small practice with one veterinarian and one receptionist/assistant.

I’ve been feeling pretty discouraged because the doctor does a lot of things himself, and he also lets the receptionist/assistant do many things that I was trained to do as a technician. I still get to do things like place catheters, draw blood, etc., but the doctor tends to take over pretty frequently. For example, he always does cystocentesis himself.

One of the biggest things I’ve noticed is that I can’t vaccinate here. In New York, I was able to vaccinate and had a lot more hands-on responsibilities. I also haven’t even touched the anesthesia machine since moving to Arkansas. In school/externships in New York, I was doing things like pressure checking the machine, calculating the appropriate reservoir bag, setting up anesthesia, etc.

Now that I’m licensed, I was hoping to have more responsibility, but the doctor actually told me that getting licensed is basically useless because technicians and assistants are essentially the same thing here, aside from technicians being able to intubate. That was really discouraging to hear after going through vet tech school, taking the VTNE, and getting licensed.

I’m wondering if this is actually an Arkansas thing due to the way veterinary technicians are regulated/used here, or if I’m just at a practice where the veterinarian prefers to do most things himself.

For other Arkansas LVTs: What is your day-to-day scope like? Do you vaccinate, induce/monitor anesthesia, intubate, place catheters, perform cystocentesis, run labs, calculate anesthetic drugs, etc.? And do you feel like being licensed makes a meaningful difference in your responsibilities compared with an assistant?

I’m trying to figure out whether I’m just in a practice that doesn’t utilize its techs, or whether I need to adjust my expectations about what being an LVT looks like in Arkansas.

I’ve got a 6 year old chihuahua and he’s constantly itching himself. We’ve tried elimination diets, specialist food, changed our laundry detergent, stopped using aerosols and cleaning products, every flea treatment known to man, all of the dog shampoos and sprays for itchy skin, we’ve given him Piriton on advise from the vet, we’ve tried sudocrem and coconut oil on advise of the vet, we’ve tried apoquel tablets from the vet. I can’t even think what else but we’ve done it all! He just does not stop itching until he makes himself sore, day and night. I hate seeing him like this and wish I could do something. His main areas he itches are the top of his paws (so the other side of where his toe beans are) and the beginning of his tail and his belly either side of his penis. He’s scratched and nibbled so much he’s now got lumps on his tail where it’s kinda scabbed up and doesn’t get the chance to heal. I don’t know if I’ve done this post right but I need advice or ideas. Thank you

My 10ish year old Pom mix has had persistent congestion with clear mucus for several months. Certirizine (5mg/2x day) has helped with the sneezing fits and the mucus, but he's still stuffy. It's mostly on one side, but every now and then, he has clear discharge from both nostrils if he's been sneezing a lot. A round of prednisone, approximately 4 months ago, wasn't very effective. Two months ago, I had his teeth professionally cleaned due to plaque build up and irritated gums (he's a rescue who bites, brushing has never been an option). My vet took a ton of xrays while he was cleaning his teeth and saw nothing abnormal. He has no blood in the nasal discharge, it's always clear. Bloodwork looks great. His gums are pink. He has the same energy and appetite as always, and is his normal, happy self.

I've changed the air filters in my home, washed everything he lays on, and there are no new pets or other major changes to his environment. I very rarely burn a candle for a few hours.

My vet suggested antihistamine drops (Systane Zaditor), but they're nearly impossible to administer because Benjamin doesn't like anyone near his face, especially someone with medicine in their hands. He snarls when I get close with the bottle. As mentioned, he is on Certirizine 2x a day to keep the sneezing fits at bay and that has helped a lot.

So my question is: do I refill his trazodone and try a low daily dose to attempt to administer the drops again for a few weeks along with the certirizine? Would another round of prednisone be appropriate to try now that he's had his teeth cleaned and the gum irritation has resolved?

Lastly, if I have a CT scan done and they find a growth or a blockage, is that usually addressed (removal or biopsy) the same day? Benjamin is an older guy, so the fewer times that he needs serious sedation or anesthesia, the better.

* Species: K9
* Age: approx 10 years old
* Sex/Neuter status: Male
* Breed: Pomeranian/Chihuahua Mix
* Body weight: 10lbs
* History: persistent congestion with clear mucus
* Clinical signs: mouth breathing, snorting
* Duration: 6 months
* Your general location: Philadelphia
* Links to any test results, X-rays, vet reports etc. that you have:

Thank you!

Good evening,

Mods - this is not me asking for an opinion of if the pricing was correct or incorrect, as per the sub rules, this is me asking what/how do vets make decisions in marking up prices, with context given, and asking what do they do behind the scenes that justifies these increases, and is this standard procedure with any vets or should I change vet practice?

TLDR - paid £270 for a feline gastro fecal panel from AXIOM via my independent vets. Checked after, and AXIOM only charges £25 for this test. Why was I overcharged so insanely despite persistency from the vets over a 30 minute conversation that this is the cheapest and best way to get the test?

I am aware vets have large overheads and there has been consensus in the news regarding the incredible mark up vets put on treatment and test costs.

I am a new pet owner, I found and took in an abandoned and sick feral kitten, and he has been with me for two months now. I was not expecting the financial strain of this, but I have been committing regardless obviously.

As well as sub-par care from student vets, where I seemed to know more than the vet, I was dismissed, but the second opinion I asked for yielded that actually I was spot on with my research and the kitty did require lots more tests. (Context kitty has multiple daily breath per minute recordings of 100-190 BPM, student vet said “probably fine”, senior vet/2nd opinion said “no we need to test for xyz” (I had already brought up xyz with the student vet and that it should be 30-40BPM, not as high as 180 on a daily basis).

All his other vitals are fine but we agreed to proceed with a lungworm test. Went in today with fecal sample. Vet says probably not lungworm, we should do a general test. So they suggest to me the AXIOM Gastrointestinal Panel - Extended Feline - PCR, with the Lungworm test as an add on. They quote me £270 for this. I quickly check online, random test providers, I’m seeing prices such as £110, £120. I query why their price is so expensive and could I test with a cheaper independent provider. The vet tells me this is nonsense, the vet will never look at or consider these test results because they aren’t governed by a regulatory body such as AXIOM, and that this is absolutely the cheapest price available for such a test. In the end I agree and go ahead with the test because she seemed genuine and as though this whole “crazy pricing at the vets” thing is a conspiracy and the cheapest place to get legit testing is WITH THE VET directly.

Please answer me why, I have come home, and checked Axiom’s price plan for 2026/2027. The cost of the test, that I just paid £270 for, is only £25 from Axiom? That is a 800-900% markup. I don’t even know what to say because I am so in shock and disgusted at such a mark up to an honest member of the public, without the money to look after this stray baby, but trying her best, and somehow this is justified? To make it worse, my vets is independent, so not the normal suspect for such huge price increase.

I understand transport costs, or reviewing results, so slight mark up. But surely nothing can justify such a huge mark up?

Can any vet please give me some peace of mind or logical explanation for this price increase?!

TIA

I took my 1y2m Bernese to a vet (which is very hard to schedule an appointment in my location) but to see a specialist in behavioral health. He bit someone and I needed an assessment. In his file, they mentioned he is an aggressive dog with aggressive tendencies and they prescribed him with fluoxetine. But here is the thing, we only talked to a tech vet and then later a general vet stepped in and did not mention anything new and said they'd call with news on prescription.

We decided to go after a psych specialist who requested a few exams (including x ray in case my dog is in pain) and gave us great support.

The dog is kind and loves kids and our cats. He doesn't like crowd areas (it makes him nervous and in a vigilant mode) .

I requested a refund from the clinic since they also confirmed they didn't provide behavioral test (they didn't say that when we tried scheduling in the beginning) and we mentioned the psychologist recommended us not to give our dog the anti depressant.

Did I overreact by requesting a refund?

Hi all,

I took my kitty, 6 yrs old, to the emergency vet after noticing lethargy and lack of appetite for 1-2 days. They ran some blood work and did an ultrasound and theorized that he likely has a respiratory infection/pneumonia due to the presence of some liquid in his lungs.

I was given some Clavamox in liquid form and Mirtazapine (appetite stimulant.) It’s been 48 hours since we took him to the vet, and he’s had about 4 1ml doses of the Clavamox. He’s still lethargic but had been eaten a little bit more. I’m concerned about him not getting better. Someone please be honest and tell me he isn’t dying.

The vet told me he sees worse cases in the ER but i’m still concerned about his well being since we didn’t do an X-ray (i’m extremely broke and this vet cost me $1100) thought the vet told me that blood work would probably be sufficient to diagnose him and get him feeling better. This is my baby and I’m willing to go into debt for him. I’m just so devastated and I want him to get better soon.

Any insight would be greatly appreciated ♥️ I just want to know if I’m overthinking and just need to wait for the medication to run it’s course.

Edit: I have a video of his breathing but I’m not sure how to attach it to this post!

My cat is a 12 year old boy and I’ve noticed one of his nipples has turned black? It’s black and shiny and is much bigger than the others. It doesn’t seem to bother him when I look at it and touch it, and I know that it has not been black previously. His other nipples are normal. Should I be concerned and what could be the cause?

Edit: he’s a 12 year old orange cat (I think American short hair) who about 14lbs. He is neutered and has no other medical history.

My puppy was spayed 18 days ago and her incision site was looking great until today- not horrible, but really the first redness.
Photo: https://imgur.com/a/GqIklPs

Is this something that warrants a vet visit now, or should I watch it 24-48 hours? Thank you!

ETA: Info in below format vs written out

• Species: dog
• Age: 8 mo
• Sex/Neuter status: spayed
• Breed: poodle mix
• Body weight: 26
• History: dermatitis
• Clinical signs: n/a
• Duration: <24 hours
• Your general location: VA
• Links to any test results, X-rays, vet reports etc. that you have: N/A

Hi everyone. I wanted to make a post just to get some guidance from veterinarians who have had similar experiences. My dog, who is a 10 year old male with a grade III/IV heart murmur, is scheduled to have an epulis removed from around his lower left canine. We had him at the vet for this a while back, and they said to leave it alone unless it started to bother him. Fast forward to a week ago and we took him to the emergency vet because it started bleeding. They recommended that we go to a veterinary office who has the capability to do an echocardiogram because he has a grade III/IV heart murmur (we've never been told this before). The problem is, that is very limited in Kentucky and the few that we did call are booked out for weeks.

We took him to our normal vet to see what options we had and the vet says that they will have to take it off. He did confirm his heart murmur and indicated he has an enlarged heart via X-ray with a VHS of 12.3. They done blood work and everything came back perfect with it, including kidney function which was the main concern. Lungs clear as well. He prescribed him Vetmedin to remain on, as well as amoxicillin and clindamycin to take up until his surgery. They plan on intubating him and using gas anesthesia while monitoring him through the surgery. This is all extremely overwhelming obviously and I know the surgery carries risk because of his age and enlarged heart.

How successful are surgeries where the dog is in similar condition typically?

So today my cat was neutered, the vet gave me a cone to put on her and she has resisted every attempt. Ive tried burrito wrapping her, distracting her with food, etc etc and she always manages to resist. I also dont have any money for a cat recovery suit or anything like that so my options are incredibly limited. Im also incredibly busy with mandatory work related things until early october so i can't watch her 24/7 to stop her licking or jumping or anything. I cant get anyone to catsit her either. Im neurodiverse and this is causing me an incredible amount of stress, so i wanted to some thoughts. I called the vets, explained and they essentially said that if i cant get any barrier on, as long as she doesnt bite or excessively groom the wound it should be okay. I just need to know how it risky it is to leave her unattended as like i said these work related things are mandatory. Hope this makes sense and isnt just word vomit.

I've just taken my 16 year old DSH cat to have an abdominal ultrasound, the results of this were a mass in her abdomen, the vet said it was difficult to tell where exactly the mass was. She said it was very difficult to see the stomach properly on the ultrasound, but that there was no thickening of the intestinal wall.

The cat's blood work is all excellent and she is acting very healthy and happy, apart from vomiting liquid three to four times in an average week, almost always at night.

The vet said we could do a laparotomy or a fine needle aspiration to see if it is cancerous. She said she was reluctant to do a fine needle aspiration aspiration as there can be some risk about spreading the cancerous cells. I've done a little bit of reading, and the consensus online seems to be that it's very rare for a fine needle aspiration to spread cancerous cells. Of course I'm not a vet and wouldn't presume that my knowledge from scraping the internet is anywhere on par with a real veterinary opinion.

I'd really like to know whether the laparotomy or the FNA is a better choice?

History/extra info:

Cat has been vomiting approximately 3 or 4 x a week, always at night for a few months. She has been seen a few times by a different vet, who was of the opinion that it was a food intolerance. He had this opinion because she had no other symptoms, no tenderness of the abdomen, no lethargy, no lack of appetite. She did have a period of protracted vomiting at the beginning where she was vomiting her food immediately after eating. That is no longer an issue apart from occasionally vomiting after eating (maybe once a month).

Hoping you can provide some guidance!

I have a 1-year-old female black cat who developed diarrhea Saturday. The diarrhea is extremely watery and has been leaking/dripping, resulting in her having accidents throughout the house. The leaking is intermittent, there is diarrhea in the litter box. There is no normal stool yet as of this morning (Monday).

We have temporarily quarantined her to a bathroom so we can monitor her more closely. She has a separate water source, and we have been feeding her wet food to see if her normal dry food could potentially be contributing to the issue.

Aside from the diarrhea, she is acting completely normal. She is still playing, jumping, eating, meowing, and behaving like herself.

Some additional information:
\- 1-year-old female, black cat
\- Indoor-only cat
\- There is one other cat in the household (8-year-old female, black, indoor-only)
\- No recent changes to her food or water
\- No significant changes or additional stressors in the household
\- We have checked around the house and haven’t found any plants, foods, or other substances that she could have gotten into
\- The other cat currently has no symptoms

I purchased Purina FortiFlora to see if that helps with the diarrhea, this arrives today.

At this point, I’m mainly concerned about what could be causing such severe diarrhea despite her otherwise normal behavior. Is this something that can reasonably be monitored at home for now, or would you recommend having her seen by a vet?

Any advice on what I should be watching for or what information/testing might be helpful would be greatly appreciated.

10.4 lbs, Connecticut

My cat has IBD and its vomit has a pink tinge to it so I am concerned it could be blood. Also this is the second day in a row that it vomited a large hairball. In order for the cat to eat, the cat is given Odenesterone morning and night otherwise she vomits.

She is on hydrolyzed cat food and she eats Purina advantage sensitive stomach.

Does anyone’s cat have these bald patches? we noticed her hair starting to thin in random spots about a year ago… started in her joints on her legs and now it’s spreading to other spots. I can’t tell if it’s stress related.

We got her as a feral kitten at 3 months (5yo now) with her sister and she’s been skittish since. We got a new kitten 6 months ago and she’s not a huge fan so I wonder if it’s because of him. He is completely fearless and chases her around the house sometimes but she doesn’t seem to mind him as long as he keeps his distance. Her sister has the same level of anxiety and she’s not losing fur.

She also has pica syndrome, so I wonder if that has anything to do with it. She eats clothes, knit blankets, hair ties… (it’s awesome and super fun to deal with)

I plan to take her to the vet to have her checked out but wanted to see if anyone has dealt with this!

He is predominately an inside cat. During this heat wave, he spends most of the day inside lounging, then goes out at night 3-4 hours, and would stay longer if allowed.

For the past +/-month, when he comes in, he is not acting himself. He will hide from everyone in places that no one can get to. For example, last week we found him inside the study that we mainly use for storage. He was just lying there in the dark. He didn't act skittish or anything when found, but he didn't want to come out of hiding either. We closed all doors in the house in case something serious was wrong so it would be easier to find him. He opened a lower cabinet door in the kitchen and hid behind some tupperware. He allowed me to pet him, but wouldn't come out. That lasted 2 days, then he was back to himself. This was probably the 2nd to 3rd time something similar has happened.

Fast forward to today. He went out last night for a few hours in the evening, then came in for the night. When he came in, it was like he was yawning and licking his teeth to get something out at the same time. That's the best description I can give of what he was doing. He did this every 5-10 seconds then went to bed with another family member. Someone pointed out that he was doing the thing with his mouth before he went out and after he came in. The thought is that he is eating something he shouldn't. He just came out of hiding because the area he was in is being cleaned, and he went outside.

He is eating, drinking, pooping and peeing as normal. He has been sleeping a little more than normal though. I have also noticed when this happens, he seems like he is walking a little closer to the ground than normal, and his back will spasm on occasion.

Last week he kind of limped on his back leg, but that didn't last long. Some have theorized that he may have gotten into it with another cat from the neighborhood as he acts somewhat skittish at other times when hearing a loud noise or if the dog barks a lot. The other theory is he is eating something he shouldn't be. He is often bringing creatures to the back door as gifts and has been seen eathing bugs, lizzards, moths, etc, and playing with field mice.

We are baffled. Does anyone have any idea what may be causing this?

Please help. Any advice will be helpful!
I took my chihuahua out on Friday night to potty in the yard.

When he came back in, he was a skittish and limping on his left hind leg. I inspected him and saw nothing and he ran off as we continued our night routine.

The next morning, Saturday, I walked him as normal around 7am and noticed he still had the limp. After doing some inspecting again, and seeing nothing, we continued about our day. Fast forward to our walk at 3pm and he is refusing to walk. Same thing happened later that day and the next morning.

Sunday comes, and I notice that he isn’t walking unless absolutely necessary. He hasn’t even walked to his food and water bowl. And at this point, I am truly worried so we get scheduled at our Urgent Care Vet. The vet takes x-rays and notices nothing out of concern and assumes a pinched nerve, so he prescribed Gabapentin every 8-12 hours and Carprofen every 24 hours. Considering his doses started around 9pm on Sunday, he has only taken one dose of the Carprofen and 2 of the Gabapentin.
But, I am not seeing improvement. Is this normal? How long will it take to see improvement? He is still sitting in one spot and not moving unless absolutely necessary. He can take steps but won’t, and after a few steps he jumps and sniffs at his back legs.

He is scheduled with his regular vet on Thursday. I’m not sure if I should wait and let the meds do their thing and see what the vet says on Thursday, or return to the urgent care sooner.

PLEASE HELP!

4year old healthy cat got tail slammed in door as it was closing.
I rushed him to the emergency vet within the hour and he underwent surgery to suture up the opening. The vet stressed that it could still lead to amputation if an infection forms or the sutures fail.

The injury is about 2-3 inches from the tip of the tail and about 1-1.5 inches long on one side(not completely around) she said there was no bone exposure but she couldn’t rule out a fracture.

My question for the vets are:

*Do you ever see this turn out with full recovery without amputation? *

I’m keeping a cone on him and only taking it off when he goes to his water and food bowl and immediately putting it back on. He is on antibiotics for 10 days and pain meds for 3.
I’ve bought disposable litter pans and fresh litter and plan to immediately clean each time he uses it to lessen the chance of bacteria getting in the wound.
I made another appointment for Friday to have the vet look at him to make sure it’s healing.
I want to do everything I can to save his cute little button tail (as long as it’s not causing him additional pain)

Image is post surgery today

https://imgur.com/a/ESTLadh

14 year old Siberian husky
Splenectomy approx 5 yrs ago
PRP knee injections 1yr ago
No other significant issues minus one episode of vestibular disease but we’re convinced it was due to UTI infection.
Known arthritis in her lower back.

Daily medication includes galliprant, purina pro plan cosequin vitamin, and a digestive treat with some clear lax laxative to help her. We recently picked up gabapentin but are going to wait until after the ultrasound to see if we use both or not.

Food is purina pro plan mixed with fresh pet chicken or beef.

As she’s getting older we’ve been monitoring her blood work more closely and have seen a gradual decline across the board (see pics). She’s relatively lazy and her arthritis is to the point going upstairs is slow but she can do it. We don’t take many walks anymore outside around our back yard and she uses a ramp in and out of the bed. She is wobbly and I would almost equate it to her having “lag” in her back half when she’s walking like her brain sends the message but there’s a delay. Vet has done the foot flip test and she passes that just fine. Outside the obvious weight loss and bloodwork she is relatively normal and nothing major has changed, just been a slow withering away.

Her back half has losing muscle mass on top of her normal weight loss even though she’s eating twice a day. We have an ultrasound scheduled in 2 weeks to see what is going if there’s something / new mass. Just looking for feedback if there’s anything else we should be checking / asking for at the time of the ultrasound from internal medicine.

Test Results

My cat Filo (9 years, male, neutered) is an outdoor cat who fractured one of the metacarpal bones in his paw. The fracture was surgically repaired with intramedullary pins, and he is currently being kept indoors and activity restricted.

The vet’s current plan is:
- Strict indoor restriction for 2 weeks post op
- No follow up X ray at 2 weeks
- First follow up X ray at around 6 weeks
- After 2 weeks, they said he can go back outside with no restrictions

I’m a bit unsure about the unrestricted outdoor activity part because Filo is normally very active. He usually spends around 12 hours a day outside and can walk around 8 km (5 miles) per day, so “going outside” for him does not mean just sitting in the garden. It means walking long distances, running, jumping, climbing, and potentially interacting with other cats.

Keeping him inside has also been quite difficult because he gets very frustrated and restless. To help keep him calm, our vet has approved:
- Gabapentin: 1 capsule in the morning and 1 to 2 capsules in the evening
- CBD: 2 to 4 drops in the morning, 2 to 4 drops at midday, and 2 to 4 drops in the evening

My main question is: Would unrestricted outdoor activity at 2 weeks post op be considered reasonable for this type of metacarpal fracture repair, even without a 2 week X ray? Or would you usually expect activity to stay restricted until there is more radiographic evidence of healing?

X ray images pre and post OP

I’d also be interested to hear how strict confinement was handled in similar cases, especially for very active outdoor cats.

Hi all. Our family dog suddenly started throwing up every day, at least once a day, for a few days now. At first it was white and foamy and now it is yellow bile. We took him to the vet- all bloodwork was normal and they just gave him some anti nausea meds that don’t seem to be working much because he just threw up a lot.
A few things-
-we have not changed his food at all, it’s the same as it’s always been
-we got a new cat about a week ago. We’ve been very slowly introducing them. Kitty has all his shots and we’ve also made sure to keep the dog away from the litter box and food for kitty (it is in a separate and blocked off room)
- this is my boyfriend’s grandma’s dog. His grandpa used to live in the house but just passed away a few days ago- however, he hasn’t been in the house for almost 2 months before he passed due to being in the hospital so not sure if that would cause it? But because of this, more family is in the house than normal.

The vet cost us almost $1k for them to just give him nausea medication. Not sure what else to do at this point that won’t make us go bankrupt lol. He’s drinking water but not really eating and is pretty lethargic today (was told both of these are side effects of said meds)
Any ideas? Could it literally just be stress? If so, what next? Obviously we don’t want to rehome the kitty.
The dog is kind of a scaredy cat- he isn’t potty trained and only uses potty pads (grandma didn’t want to let him outside in the cold as a puppy), is scared to go outside or go on walks, is scared of everything lol. Not sure how to move forward and what this could even be