Top Veterinary Articles of the Week: Traditional Chinese Veterinary Medicine, Thoughts on Cranberries for Urinary Health, and more

Chinese Medicine Primer for the Uninitiated

Dr. Narda Rominson, Veterinary Practice News

I wrote about Traditional Chinese Veterinary Medicine (TCVM) a number of times. We decided to explore it when conventional medicine failed to provide neither answers or solutions to some of Jasmine's chronic issues. Since then, we use an integrative approach to maintaining our dogs' health. Some believe that an integrative vet is not genuine but I like the idea of being able to take advantage both modern science and technology as well as ancient wisdom.

It's been working well for us.

This article outlines the basic principles behind the TCVM approach.

Cranberry & Your Pet's Urinary Health—Miracle Berry or Just a Fad?

Dr. Jason Nicholas/Preventive Vet

Depending on who you ask how to treat your dog's urinary tract infection (UTI), many of those who answer will recommend cranberry juice. Is it a miracle cure? Spoiler alert - there is no such thing as a miracle cure, at least not yet.

We did, however, use a cranberry supplement when Jasmine started getting UTIs as a result of a combination of her mobility issues and being on steroids toward the end. We did so after consulting with her vet. As much as I might argue with my vet, I never do anything without their blessing. We did so as a supportive treatment, not as a sole cure. It's hard to tell whether it helped or not but it didn't do any harm.

Dr. Nicholas wrote a thoughtful article about the potential benefits and problems with treating UTI's with cranberries.

Do Dogs Get Colds? Everything You Need to Know

Dr. Jennifer Coates, DVM

Even though other viruses can be to blame, common cold is typically caused by a rhinovirus. Most viruses are picky about their species and rhinoviruses are one of those. Which means that the same virus that can cause common cold in me is not going to infect my dog. There are, however, viruses that can cause sneezing, congestion, coughing, runny nose and other cold-like symptoms in your dog. So, dogs can get what looks a lot like common cold but technically is not.

To learn more about whether or not dogs get colds and what to do about it, read Dr. Coates' article.

Don't Let Your Dog Suffer From Motion Sickness

Dr. Andy Roark/vetstreet

Dr. Andy Roark's videos are always priceless! You want to watch every one of them. Learn something and have a laugh.