Top Veterinary Articles of the Week: Puppy Proofing a House, Things Animals Eat, and more ...

How to puppy proof your house
Dr. Justine Lee/LinkedIn

There is nothing as adorable as a puppy. There is nothing as naturally curious as a puppy. But curiosity could kill a pup. A typical household can be full of dangers, starting from electrical cords and ending with human medications, cleaning products and toxic food stuffs.

It's important to take the time, put on a detective hat and sweep your house for hidden dangers. Keep your pup away from dangerous things or keep dangerous things away from your pup.


Animals Eat the Craziest Things!
Dr. Nancy Kay/Spot Speaks

Puppies are not the only offenders when it comes to eating things there were not meant to be eaten. Every year Veterinary Practice News (VPN) holds a contest where veterinarians send in the most eye-popping x-rays of what their patients have eaten. Some of those things really are crazy.

This years content winner was a Doberman Pinscher who ate 26 golf balls! But I've seen x-rays of dogs having eaten serrated knives and other really wild stuff.

This is what swollen 26 golf balls look like on x-ray. Image Veterinary Practice News

I'm so thankful that the worst thing any of our guys ever ate was an accidentally eaten sock, which came out on its own.

The simple rule of thumb is: if they can't get into it, they won't eat it.


Spondylosis Deformans vs Discospondylitis
Dr. Daniel Beatty/Dog Kinetics

These two diagnoses can be easily confused one for another but they are different. One is a painful condition which can cause neurological issues, while the other is painless and conventional veterinarians consider it incidental finding which doesn't require any treatment. Can you guess which one is which? Watch Dr. Beatty's video and find out.


Urinary Bladder Cancer in Dogs
Dr. Christopher G. Byers/CriticalCareDVM

Urinary bladder cancer is relatively uncommon but can have significant impact on quality of life.


The definitive cause  is typically not known, and is generally considered to arise from a combination of genetic predisposition and environmental factors. Scottish Terriers, Shetland Sheepdogs, Beagles, West Highland White Terriers and Wire Hair Fox Terriers are particularly predisposed breeds.

Exposure to pesticides and insecticides were documented to be strong environmental risk factors.

Symptoms resemble those of urinary tract infections (UTI). Frequent urination of small volume of urine, blood in urine, painful urination and straining to urinate ...

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