Is this the end of the world as we know it?

Flying pigs might be something of a concern but despite what Facebook says, I haven't seen any. Grass eating dogs on the other hand, are more common than fake news.

Now some people might think the reason I see a lot of grass eating dogs is that I see a lot of sick dogs - which is true, BUT, I also see a lot of healthy dogs that also eat grass.

“Why is it so?”

said a famous TV science guy and the truth is: we don’t know!

Food is something we think about a lot. TV shows, books and blogs all cover it from every angle and every celebrity has their own version of the optimum diet. So it should be no surprise that there are trends in pet food also...

These days there are multiple pet diets all spruiking their benefits because they are lower, higher, newer, older, rarer or more or less refined. It's hard to get a handle on!

Even when you start to get your head around it, a new diet comes up and it all starts all over again.

What's the pancreas?

The pancreas is an internal organ that lies near the stomach and has a number of functions to do with food digestions and metabolism. When food arrives in the stomach the acid there starts to break it down into small pieces. Once small enough it moves into the small intestine where the pancreas releases digestive enzymes to further process the food into useful components.

This isn't an article on rats, at least not directly, we will have to cover those little critters in another post. It's is about a parasite that they harbour called Angiostrongylus cantonensis - the rat lungworm - and it's effects on pets and people.

People have communicated with dogs for thousands of years. Recent studies have shown that even puppies are better able than adult wolves, to follow human hand gestures. Indeed, dogs are thought to be the most sensitive species to human communication. This trait is possibly why dogs were domesticated in the first place and also why they have integrated into our societies so well. Despite this rich history of interspecies to and fro, people and dogs still often run into issues trying to get their messages across.

It was mentioned in a previous post about poisoning, that Easter is often associated with lilies. Really though, aside from being a significant celebration on the christian calendar, Easter has become synonymous with one thing - chocolate, lots of chocolate.  

Why there are no healthy vego cats out there

As a vet I see and hear a lot of opinions on how to care for animals. I hear from breeders, owners, lecturers, food reps and veterinary specialist among others. Often there is no ‘Best Way’ and what works in one situation or for one animal, might not work for an other. Rarely though, there are some instances where the answer is black and white and one of those is that cats need meat!

I know it's stating the obvious but it has been very wet in the Illawarra lately. There are some great things about rain, like green grass, wet dog smell.... and green grass.

The downside of all this water includes traffic issues, inundations, mould and run-ins with wildlife. The change in weather can cause native animals to alter their behaviour: moving to new areas for safety, food or breeding opportunities and this can bring them into increased conflict with humans.

(Not like Sushi and Wasabi or Lamb and Rosemary either)

Cats, as a general rule, are not Hoovers (in the classic labrador-style sense) but some cats will eat random things and sometimes those things are bad things- Lilies are one of those bad things.

‘Lilies’ actually refers to a number of plants of a number of species, some of which are very harmful and others are not.