It’s been scorching here in Gloucestershire recently, and while the hot weather has been enjoyed by most of the population, it has not been so welcome for all, particularly for pets who find it difficult to cope with such extremes of temperature. In the surgery recently I’ve seen a few pets suffering from the effects of too much sun – a dog with mild heatstroke, a cat with sunburnt ear tips, and then there was Harry the bunny who was brought in last Friday in a real state…….

A few weeks ago I was asked by a close friend to put her dog to sleep at home. Timmy was a farm dog really, who slept in a stable, but just as much of a family member as any house-dog and much loved. I trusted Timmy’s owners’ judgement completely as to when the “right time” came to part with Timmy, and I was already familiar with his medical history.

I was glad to be able to carry out the euthanasia in the way in which his owners wanted. Timmy was in familiar surroundings, greeted me like an old friend and showed no distress at all.With his owners beside him, I clipped some hair from his front leg and injected a strong solution of anaesthetic into his vein. He went so peacefully that there were only a few tears, mixed with feelings of relief. Timmy was buried on the farm.

This week my colleagues and I treated a lovely beagle called Emily, who was rushed to the surgery in a state called “status epilepticus”. This means that she was not just having an epileptic seizure, but was having continuous repeated seizures with no real recovery in between. This is an emergency situation, and fortunately Emily’s owners knew exactly what to do: they phoned the surgery first to let us know, so that we could be ready for her arrival, and then they brought her straight in. This is not something that can be treated in the home, so although it was a bit frightening for them to have to move her, they knew that it was in her best interests…

Lilies are beautiful flowers, exotic in appearance and heavily scented. They are often included in bouquets and floral arrangements, but cat owners need to know that they are extremely poisonous if eaten, or even if pollen is accidentally swallowed whilst grooming after brushing against a lily.

It is thought that all parts of the lily flower and plant are poisonous to cats if eaten, and the effects are very serious and very fast. Only a very small amount needs to be eaten to cause devastating effects. Unfortunately kittens are most susceptible…………

“Oh by the way, my husband thinks we should let him outside but I’d feel safer if he stayed in, what do you think?” This was the question posed to me at the end of my first consultation with a newly acquired little ginger kitten named Harry. The client had already started to pack up her things and head for the door, but she didn’t get very far as there was no simple answer to such a seemingly simple question.

It’s a question that I get asked a lot, and I must admit it was one that took me a while to learn how to answer. Growing up in New York and practicing in Chicago, such a question from an American client would have seemed silly. Of course the cat should stay inside, it would be cruel to let him out into the big bad scary world full of cars and poisons and little children that like to pull tails! But then I moved to England and was suddenly forced to develop a real and educated opinion on the subject. Over here, most people consider it cruel to keep a cat entirely indoors…….

When most people consider getting a new pet, their thoughts turn to a cute bundle of fluff; a baby to join the family and grow up as part of it. Certainly a puppy or kitten will provide hours of entertainment but they can also be a lot of hard work. Just like a human baby they don’t come fully house trained and many won’t sleep through the night for some time! Many people underestimate the amount of attention and time a young animal needs and so they are not ideal for everyone. However, this doesn’t mean you can’t have a pet, with rescue centres over-flowing with ready trained and healthy adult animals, you could just find your perfect companion!

The first problem when you want a new, young animal is where to get one from. There are loads of ways people advertise new litters………….

Most people are aware of tetanus (“lockjaw”) either through having vaccinations at the health centre or perhaps if they own a horse which has to be vaccinated against the disease.

Both humans and horses are genetically susceptible to tetanus and a particularly risky combination of events is when a gardener receives a wound whilst handling horse dung. The tetanus-producing organism (Clostridium tetani) is found naturally in soil and horse manure and can exist as spores for many years.

Dogs and cats only rarely get tetanus. In fact most vets will only see one or two cases in their professional lifetime but once seen, never forgotten….

One of the most common causes of sudden blindness in an elderly cat is due to high blood pressure (hypertension). The increased pressure pushes the light sensitive layer (retina) away from the back of the eye and this can happen literally overnight.

The affected cat will have very widely dilated pupils even in bright sunlight and there might be some blood visible when looking into the eyes. They will appear to be disorientated, bump into things and might vocalise excessively……

I walked into the house after a particularly long day at work and was greeted by the shredded roll of toilet paper that lay strewn across my living room floor like some sort of white paper carpet laid out to welcome me. I followed the bits through the house and into the bathroom, where my kitten was proudly finishing off the cardboard roll. Right then and there I swore I would never get a kitten again. But then she looked up from her kill and gave me the most loveable little meow with a face that just oozed how happy she was to see me. I was almost fooled but quickly regained my senses as I remembered that that was my last roll of toilet paper….

At this time of year many people are planning their summer holidays, and so need to make arrangements for their pets too. Some people use their family, friends or pet-sitters to care for their pets in their own home; others prefer to use a boarding service, either in a home setting or a kennels or cattery. The choice is a personal one and depends on the services available in the area. As pets are members of the family, it is important to make arrangements that you are happy with.

Whichever type of service you decide to use, there are several ways in which you can help to make it a happy experience for your dog or cat: