While they're a lot of fun for people, barbecues can cause many problems in pets. Lighter fluid is toxic to them, trimmings can cause pancreatitis (inflammation of the pancreas), and bones are potential foreign bodies. A number of dishes can worsen your pet's skin allergies.

As a reminder, corn cob fed to a dog can get stuck in the small intestine. This is a serious (and potentially deadly) condition. It has a specific pattern on X-rays, but it may be barely visible and therefore very difficult to diagnose. You can try to spot the corn cob on the X-ray.

In addition, corn cobs usually stays in the GI for days before a diagnosis is made, which often means that part of the intestine may need to be removed during surgery.  

By the way, we did recently remove a piece of intestine in 2 patients who had eaten a foreign body.  Both Newman, an 18 month old Bulldog and Eve, a 9 month old Shih Tzu, had swallowed a piece of toy that got stuck in their small intestine.

There are many other dangers that can threaten our pets' health in the summer time.  As always, prevention is the best medicine.

Phil Zeltzman, DVM, DACVS
Pet surgeon and author of a free, weekly newsletter for true pet lovers, available at DrPhilZeltzman.com

VPI, the insurance company, recently released the top 10 list of wild animals which most frequently attacked and injured companion pets in 2008.  Bites led to over 500 laceration/bite wound claims.

And the culprits are...

1. Snake
2. Coyote
3. Raccoon
4. Squirrel
5. Scorpion
6. Javelina
7. Porcupine
8. Ground hog
9. Skunk
10. Rat

Not sure what a javelina is? It's the same as a peccary, which of course is a "wild pig with a rudimentary tail and small tusks, native to the southwestern United States (Arizona)."

There are many other dangers out there.  I wonder, what other "animal dangers" are there is your area?

Phil Zeltzman, DVM, DACVS
www.DrPhilZeltzman.com

The summer heat can lead to countless outdoor & indoor dangers.  In my next news letter, we talk about how to help pets terrified of thunderstorms, about the dangers of antifreeze, and about heatstroke and several related problems.

Today, I'd like to go over some vital information on antifreeze.

The green fluid contains ethylene glycol, which has a sweet taste and is appealing to pets. It is extremely toxic (read: deadly), even in very small amounts.

Call your vet or the local emergency clinic immediately if you suspect your pet may have licked some antifreeze.

A safe alternative to ethylene glycol antifreeze is actually available: propylene glycol. Even though it costs a little bit more than "regular" antifreeze, it is worth the price, since it could save lives.

Many people, including vets & emergency staff members who desperately try to save pets who licked the deadly fluid from kidney failure, wish ethylene glycol would be banned and propylene glycol would become mandatory.

If you would like to read some more important information, you can by subscribing to my free news letter. It will be emailed on Friday at 5 am EST...

Phil Zeltzman, DVM, DACVS
www.drphilzeltzman.com

Tom Dock wrote a blog about declaws in cats.  I thought I would paste my comments to his blog here, in case you missed it.

"I (a board-certified surgeon) just would like to comment on one specific point: the pain cats endure after a declaw.

Comparing declaw to amputating fingers in people is simply ridiculous. It's an old, classic, overused scare-tactic.

Would you compare abdominal surgey in a cat or dog and a human? Of course not.  Dogs often jump in the car a fwe hours after they've had abdominal surgery. People are probably in pain in a bed for several days, and can barely walk.

Would you compare knee or hip surgey in a cat or dog and a human? Of course not.  Pets often start to use the leg hours to days after surgery.  People are probably in pain in a bed for several days, and can barely walk.

Similarly, we don't cut babies hands off (see comment above) and we don't cut people fingers off (see comment above), if anything because kids don't end up abandoned if they steal a cookie. And last time I checked, cats don't use a cell phone all that often, and they don't spend they days typing in chat rooms.  They can live a perfectly happy, comfortable, indoor life after a declaw.

We perform surgeries that should be far more traumatic and painful that a declaw.

So again, I just would like to comment on one specific point: the pain cats endure after a declaw.

I don't think that declawing a cat is inhumane in some very specific, well chosen cases.

However, I firmly believe that improper pain management is inhumane. After all, we manage far worst cases successfully (fractures, leg amputations, spinal surgery...) from a pain management standpoint, so one would believe that pain management wouldn't be any more difficult for a declaw procedure.

A reasonable protocol could include:
1. application of a "pain patch" the night before
2. before surgery, local anesthesia around the foot (similar to the local injection you get at the dentist)
3. before surgery, an injectable anti-inflammatory drug
4. before surgery, injectable "kitty morphine"
5. after surgery, the injectable anti-inflammatory drug and the "kitty morphine" are continued every 6-8 hours.
6. To go home, the anti-inflammatory drug and "kitty morphine" are continued by mouth for 7-10 days.

We have made immense progress in pain management. There are profesionnal journals, seminars, associations dedicated to that sole purpose. Well, let's use these drugs and techniques!

If such a protocol is not offered (which I would suspect it is not commonly), or if the client can't afford the added cost, then we are dealing with a different issue, -not whether declawing is humane or not. I have witnessed many cats managed this way, including my own, and they seemed pretty content and had a good appetite. If anything, they were "high" on morphine...

I recently read an article written by a general vet about this topic. It was so well written, that I thought I would quote a few sentences:

* "(...) More than 30 years later, I have declawed thousands of cats and I am still waiting for a pet owner to tell me that he or she regretted having it done."

* Some say that "declawing is unnecessary and if the cat had a choice, it would not want its nails removed. (...) I'm sure that if cats had a choice, they wouldn't want their sex organs removed either."

* "I also suspect that they would rather be outdoors hunting than confined in a small apartment or home all day."

* "When done correctly, declawing results in few complications and minor, very temporary discomfort and is much less painful than many other common procedures."

Ditto.

Signed: Phil Zeltzman, DVM, DACVS
A board-certified surgeon who does NOT perform declaws.
www.DrPhilZeltzman.com "