It is April, and thunderstorms are upon us here in the Midwest.  Many dogs are fearful of thunderstorms.  It is the most common subtype of noise phobias in dogs.  The behavioral response may vary from mild pacing or panting up to escape behaviors such as digging repetitively at the door,  trembling severely, or injuring teeth and nails to get out of confinement.  Triggers for the fear include falling barometric pressure, wind, rain, cloud cover,  and thunder (1) Many of these triggers are present hours before the storm develops.  When the thunder and lightening occur, often the dog escalates into full

Have you ever been in a new city or location or situation and uncertain of where to go and the person who’s supposed to be guiding you keeps getting you mixed up? “This way,” they say as they walk forward slowly but while scanning the signs to the right and left. And then, “Wait no… this way.” And then, “Oops. I meant the other way instead.” If you have, I’m sure you remember the stress and frustration. Now ask yourself, do the dogs I walk at the veterinary hospital or shelter get mixed signals, too? Am I conveying an air

At the end of July 2017, I attended the American Veterinary Medical Association Convention in Indianapolis, IN. This was pretty exciting for me as I was selected as a poster presenter for my survey “Once Bitten, Twice Shy – Bite/Near-Bite Job Stress in Veterinary Medicine.” In addition to the poster presentation, I was also selected to lead a round table discussion on the same topic. Last summer (2016), I proffered a 10-question survey to a number of veterinary groups. This was an effort to gather data on job stress due to bite and near-bite injuries in small animal practices. As

While some veterinary conditions have been helped by prescription diets, until now there has not yet been a diet specific for the epileptic patient. This diet is specifically made to be high in the medium-chain triglyceride fat which is important in brain cell function.

As we come upon the holidays, people often add a pet to their home. The arrival of a little puppy can be a wonderful gift to a home, but it can also come bundled with a lot of work and difficulties if the first few weeks are not set up to have that puppy learn about good manners and training. Dr. Yin understood the impact of getting a puppy off to a good start right from the very beginning. As a veterinarian and behaviorist, she understood well the impact of routine, socialization, and clear rewards for appropriate behaviors in the

Before dogs became pets, they were wild and lived by preying on animals big and small. Dogs would gather together to chase down an older, younger, or injured animal, grabbing the jugular vein or abdomen, resulting in a kill. So despite domestication, dogs still have an instinctive desire to chase, grab, bite and kill things that look like prey.