Visiting Vet: Mushroom mayhem
It’s been a particularly soggy July. Everything’s damp. Even the dry laundry doesn’t feel dry. And let’s not talk about my hair. Know what likes this humid weather? Mushrooms. My yard is erupting with...
Visiting Vet: Belvedere is back on his feet
“I think my dog is paralyzed,” the owner said when he called on emergency one afternoon. “He’s fourteen, a Labrador. Something’s really wrong.” I get a million of these calls. Elderly large breed dogs...
Visiting Vet: Simple treatment can work wonders
Roro, a 3-year-old cat, lives a freewheeling feline life rambling around the backwoods of West Tisbury, but coming home regularly for food and affection. When he didn’t show up for a few days, his...
Visiting Vet: A different kind of wake-up call
5:30 a.m. I am good at sensing what time it is by the way the morning light angles in through my bedroom window, by how loudly the birds sing, by how many cars rumble...
Visiting Vet: Keeping cats happy
Back in the 80s, before the Land Bank acquired the Duarte’s Pond property and removed the buildings there, I lived on the edge of the pond in a freestanding converted garage. Nestled into the...
Visiting Vet: What a day
I should have known it was too good to be true. My Thursday 24-hour shift on call had been exceptionally quiet. Friday looked to be a busy day, but mostly wellness exams, vaccinations, and...
Visiting Vet: The case of Wynken’s ear
After a visit to a local rescue operation, a couple of my clients who had lost their elderly cat in January went home with not one, not two, but three new cats: Wynken, Blynken,...
Visiting Vet: Terrier Tyson and Hounddog Holyfield
Throughout the pandemic, I have taken our dog Quinna for regular playdates with her buddy Fergus. We humans sit outside in the fenced backyard, 10 feet apart wearing masks, while our pups play. Last...
Visiting Vet: Vaccines for your cat
Like many people, I’ve been thinking a lot about vaccinations lately. When will everyone be able to get one? How to navigate the challenges of making appointments? Will they work well enough that life...
Visiting Vet: Cause and effect
The night before my father died, he had liver and onions for dinner at the Howard Johnson’s where we were staying in Milwaukee. My dad was raised poor in Brooklyn by immigrant parents, which...
Visiting Vet: Touchy toes
Sally, the Australian shepherd, was out with her owner on a nature walk when something happened. One minute she was completely fine, leaping and bounding about. The next, she was lying down, not wanting...
Visiting Vet: Southern charm
Two kittens, Hope and Joy, born down South, somehow found their way to a South Carolina branch of the Humane Society. Arriving as “strays,” no one could say exactly how old they were, or...
Visiting Vet: Baby, it’s cold outside
My weather app assures me temperatures will soon creep back into the 40s, but I suspect that will not last long. As I write this, it’s 15°F in West Tisbury. My cats steadfastly refuse...
Visiting Vet: Our aging pets
Pre-pandemic, when I got to be face-to-face with my clients, here’s what would sometimes happen. An appointment would end. The cat would be back in her carrier, the dog off the table, tugging on...
Visiting Vet: The jury is still out
One of my favorite families lost two dearly loved dogs in recent years, so I was delighted when they arrived at my door, pre-pandemic, with Joy, their new 5-month-old golden retriever. In the past,...
’Twas the Christmas of COVID
(with apologies to Clement Clarke Moore)
’Twas the Christmas of COVID, and all Island pets
Were snug in their houses, while down at the vet’s
The IVs were hung by the cages, prepared
In case curbside emergency patients...
Visiting Vet: French bulldogs
A framed photo of Lili Colette still hangs on my office wall. She was a sweet little French bulldog, one of the first of the breed I came to know well. Back in 1998,...
Visiting Vet: Slippers and gratitude
Last week Slippers, the dog, woke up with a swollen face. This time of year dogs with swollen faces are common, often caused by yellowjacket stings. In autumn, nests of these little wasps reach...
Visiting Vet: Open-and-shut case
Sundance, an 8-year-old Golden Retriever, had been increasingly lethargic over the last few days and not eating well, a dramatic change from his usual disposition and appetite. It was a Thursday, my day to...
Visiting Vet: Long distance calling
“I think my dog ate a pack of gum,” the caller said when I answered the phone at 9 pm. I had already worked a 12-hour day, but I was still the veterinarian on...