The Savvy VetTech

A 9 yo MN mixed breed dog, weighing 72 pounds (32.7 kg), presented for a recent onset of panting, shortness of breath, weakness, and episodes of syncope. On physical examination, the dog’s heart rate was 160 bpm, his mucous membranes were pale, and his pulses were weak and thready. An ECG was immediately performed. On the ECG, the veterinarian noted an absence of P waves accompanied by wide and bizarre QRS complexes. Based on the ECG findings, the dog was diagnosed with ventricular tachycardia.

You are working a busy day as a vet tech in small animal general practice when a receptionist pages back to the treatment area.

Mrs. Jones, a longtime client, is on the phone. She is concerned because her dog, Maximus, may have just eaten several grapes out of the trash can. Maximus is a 6 yo Miniature Pinscher and, according to your medical records, he weighs about 13 lbs.

How concerned should Mrs. Jones be? What should you tell her to do? 

It’s a summer afternoon and you’re working as a vet tech in a busy general practice, shortly after receiving your license. The day is fully booked, with multiple doctors on duty, back-to-back appointments, and several walk-in patients that need to be worked into the schedule.

The Scenario: You’re working a quiet day shift at a small animal general practice. One of your coworkers comments that it is a slow day, prompting you to joke that they just jinxed the afternoon. Sure enough, the phone rings a few minutes later! It’s Mrs. Smith, a longtime client.

Mrs. Smith tells the receptionist that she saw her cat, Rudy, chewing some tinsel from the Christmas Tree a few days ago, but didn’t think much of it at the time.

I had just started my internship after finishing veterinary school. I was on my emergency overnight rotation, and I was the only one on duty.

One of the veterinary technicians took a phone call from a frantic client that stated her dog had been impaled by a stick through its chest. The owner was obviously told to bring the dog in immediately.

Anesthesia is routine in practice. However, it is important not to become complacent. All patients tolerate and react to anesthesia differently, and monitoring every patient closely is extremely critical.

This is Spunky. He is a 6-month old stray kitten that was brought in for a neuter and first FVRCP vaccination. He did well under anesthesia during his neuter and upon recovering was given his vaccine. A few minutes after receiving his vaccination, he acutely stopped breathing. Luckily the technician who was closely monitoring him was astute enough to recognize something was wrong. The doctor in charge immediately began chest compressions and ventilations as his heart had stopped and he was in cardiac arrest. Please take a moment to review CPCR technique. Review on CPCR Technique

A 10-year old Golden Retriever presents with a history of unsteady gait. The owner reports she is walking like she is drunk and she has vomited a few times. You are taking a history in the room and notice her tilting her head to the left. Upon closer look at her face you see that her eyes are moving side to side rapidly. The veterinarian asks you to perform a blood pressure. The blood pressure is 200/120 mmHg. Answer the quiz questions, then scroll to the bottom for the answer explanations.

1) What medication may help to treat hypertension (high blood pressure) in this dog?

a) Benazepril
b) Prednisone
c) Phenobarbital
d) Furosemide

Recently, a feline "Cyrano," a 9-year old male neutered cat developed bone cancer in his left hind leg. He had radiation therapy and the cancer was cured. However, due to the radiation the bone deteriorated.

Because Cyrano was a large cat at 26 pounds, amputation for him was not a great option.

Dr. Denis Marcellin-Little at North Carolina State University w

ho has had more than 10 years of experience with 3D printing (also called additive manufacturing) took on the challenge of creating an implant for Cyrano. This is a way of making a 3-dimensional object from a digital model.

They chose to manufacture a cobalt chromium knee implant for Cyrano. This was a cutting edge option, as this type of implant or surgery had never been done before.

Retrospective studies have been helpful for bringing to light information about animal health that may have not otherwise been noticed. In the past few years, there have been many research articles that have focused on spaying and neutering health risks versus benefits. A recent study from U.C. Davis found a greater occurrence of hip dysplasia, cranial cruciate ligament tears and certain types of cancer in spayed or neutered golden retrievers as compared to intact counterparts. The research suggests that health risks are generally greater for dogs that were sterilized less than a year of age. Golden Retriever Study

After reviewing heat stroke in the last blog, here is a real case study about a dog that actually survived a severe case of heat stroke. It is a good example of how intensive these cases can be and what is involved in treatment.