Butter: A Story Of Compassion And HealingNovember 19, 2010 For many, the spiritual aspect of the bond spins a vibrant web that catches us and holds us together, at least for the pet’s lifetime and often longer. Pawspice, my name for pet hospice, is a bigger part of our practice as the recession deepens and families can’t afford first-line care for their pets. Is Pawspice a containing structure for witnessing this thread more often? Is it the loom that holds the elements, emotions and threads of the human-animal bond? A Spiritual Bond As a beloved pet nears the end of life, pet owners often tell me about the transcendent elements in their relationship. The spiritual threads in their bond spin into a very meaningful realm that may extend after the pet has passed. This was the case for Carole Kammen and her beloved yellow Labrador retriever, Butter. A friend told Carole to call me for advice after Butter’s cutaneous lymphoma became resistant to the best of care at the University of California, Davis. Butter “found” Carole only four years previously, as a 9-year-old retired service dog. Butter became so attached to Carole that it became obvious to Carole and Butter’s owner that Butter …
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Cost Issues Plague Recession-Battered Clients, DVMsOctober 21, 2010 The human-animal bond does not weaken during recessions, but many caregivers feel more financial and emotional stress when their pets are sick. These days, we might see three or four clients in a row who have serious financial concerns. Some of us recall previous recessions and felt more prepared to deal with this one. But few of us were prepared to endure and share the burdens of a prolonged economic downturn. This recession continues to batter our clientele with job cutbacks, unemployment, falling property values, foreclosures, maxed-out credit cards, health care issues, etc. This unrelenting pressure pushes a big percentage of our clientele deeper into debt and desperation and causes anxiety and heartbreak on both sides of the veterinary exam table when their pets are sick. During my first recession, many of our well-intended clients requested payment plans. Our facility became burdened with accounts receivable that climbed as high as $250,000. Our well-intended clients “slow paid” or “no paid.” Dr. Villalobos Shares Her Thoughts on Each Scenario Example 1: Five thousand dollars is a lot of money. It is tempting to take this case to small claims court because the veterinarian did everything correctly, but …
Cellular Care Begins With AutophagySeptember 2, 2010 Autophagy was the subject of a State of the Art presentation given by James Bradner, M.D., Ph.D., at the 2010 American College of Veterinary Internal Medicine Forum in Anaheim. Literally, “autophagy” means “self-cleaning.” Bodies can’t live without their autophagy systems in place. Autophagy encompasses the automatic disposal systems of the cell. Interestingly, when autophagy adapts to starvation, certain mechanisms are activated that also have anti-aging and anti-cancer effects. We learned that our cells void metabolic waste and the kidneys extract it from serum and eliminate the waste through the urine. However, there was no clear understanding of autophagy or how the cellular cleansing phenomenon operates on a molecular level until recently. Read on and be amazed at the basic miraculous efficiency with which our bodies function every second of every day. Where It Begins The flesh of our cells is called cytoplasm. It contains all the microproteins and chemicals and structures needed to operate. Waste products are created in the cytoplasm and that waste must be digested and transported outside the cell. How does this happen? Scientists have observed that cell debris—proteins and organelles—gets encapsulated by tiny rearrangements of membranes and moved …
Man Just An Oddity To Some AnimalsAugust 9, 2010 Our Seminars in the Sun group experienced a rare aspect of the human-animal bond as we walked and swam past wildlife that had no fear. Every veterinarian is really an environmentalist and a naturalist and would revel in this feeling. Experiencing animals without fear is a big treat awaiting those who venture to the Galapagos Islands. Having no fear is an interesting behavioral trait. It is almost magical yet is natural for the animals living in Ecuador’s Galapagos Islands to lack the flight reaction when they see humans. What is this behavior all about? Is it genetic? Is it cultural or instinct or learned? Do the endemic species not know danger? Did the animals learn they are safe and hand that information down for generations? The sea lions and marine iguanas resting on land don’t move out of the way as people walk past them. In fact, some of the land iguanas approach people and seem to pose for pictures. The blue-footed and red-footed boobies (Spanish for “clowns”) are content to stand on rocks and preen and socialize and not fly away as boats approach their rocky dwellings. On the Water …
Bonding With Patients, VeterinariansJuly 8, 2010 Ten years ago, the American Association of Human-Animal Bond Veterinarians (AAH-ABV) introduced or refreshed the concept of pet hospice to the veterinary profession. Dr. Caroline Schaffer of Tuskegee veterinary college was president of the AAH-ABV at the time. She wanted to provide a platform for pet hospice. She asked me to present an oncologist’s version of pet hospice at AVMA 2000. Dr. Short asked me to give the profession my energy and perspective on end-of-life care. The first thing that came to mind was to give it a new name. Instead of hospice, I came up with “Pawspice” (rhymes with hospice) because there is a big difference between human and pet hospice. Pet owners and their attending veterinarians are the decision makers at every step of the way, especially when it is the right time to end the hospice and use humane euthanasia. Sadly, at the time of this writing, my husband and I are participating in hospice care for our dear friend Tony Soich. Tony is dying of tongue cancer associated with chewing tobacco and smoking cigarettes since he was a teenager. He has been battling tongue cancer and unable to eat for over a …
Genetics Tell An ‘Out Of Africa’ StoryJune 2, 2010 How did Charles Darwin buck the accepted theory of creation during the 1800s without the help of genetics? He was the ultimate zoologist, observer and collector. Darwin had experts analyze hundreds of fossils and thousands of animals collected during his five-year trip to South America and the Galapagos Islands aboard the Beagle (1831-36). The ship was commissioned to map the harbors and coastline of South America. Darwin spent 30 years working on his theory before publishing his revolutionary book “The Origin of the Species.” His theory challenged the world to think of evolution by natural selection over the millennia. It was widely debated before being accepted during his lifetime. This is the 150th anniversary of Darwin’s book, and this year also marks the seventh anniversary since the human genome was completed. The cat, dog and horse genomes are now also completed. These achievements allow genomic scientists to track the true “origin of the species” by probing for shared ancestral mitochondrial DNA found in ancient bones from archaeological sites around the world. The Molecular Clock It is hard to believe, as we look at today’s genetic diversity, that humans, house cats, dogs and some horses shared …
50 Years Of Collegiality On And Off SlopesMay 5, 2010 Do you have a group of friends in the profession who mentor you and whom you enjoy being with? Ever since joining one special professional group, I have not missed one winter meeting. In fact, I have scheduled my life to spend time with this group as much as possible, with perfect attendance at the winter meetings for the past 38 years. Fifty years ago, Robert M. Miller, our profession’s famous veterinary cartoonist RMM and the author of “Mind Over Miller,” organized an association for veterinarians who love to ski and learn. The first four winter meetings were held at Mammoth Lakes, Calif. The founders were Dr. Miller and the late Drs. Mil Custer, John Puckett and Robert Stansbury. The group grew every year and evolved into the Sierra Veterinary Medical Association. The SVMA has forged a colorful history of collegiality, friendship, recreation, travel and professional enrichment. Dr. Miller retired more than 20 years ago from his Conejo Valley Veterinary Hospital in Thousand Oaks, Calif. Since then, Bob and his wife, Debby, have traveled the globe, working hard with the mission to liberate horses from slavery through “Natural Horsemanship.” Go to his website, RobertMMiller.com, for details. …
We’ve Come A Long Way In 40 YearsMay 4, 2010 Back in the late 1960s, I applied for a job at three veterinary clinics, wanting to be a veterinarian. I got head shakes that said “no” and looks of pity. Once I was in veterinary school, it was obvious that women were not entirely welcome by some staff and classmates. I was the only student who was overtly upset when our pharmacology professor demonstrated seizure activity by administering a drug to a dog. After class, I approached our professor. “This is 1968,” I told him. “We have TV and film. I’d rather watch seizure activity on the screen so that only one dog would have to be subjected to this. Here we are in vet school to save animals and we feel horrible to see this type of unnecessary live demonstration.” The professor replied that he hated that particular class and that it was getting more difficult for him every year. He said he would film the next case so future classes would not feel so badly. Was I one of the first animal welfarists back then? Now, women are the majority in every U.S. veterinary school and ethical concern for animal welfare is standard procedure. …
Sometimes The Human-Animal Bond Transcends DeathMarch 2, 2010 Rescue, guide and other service and assistance dogs have a growing role in helping people. When these highly valued pets get sick or die, it is amazing how much their family and friends want to help. I’d like to introduce you to two special human-animal bonds that have transcended death. The participants in these bonds are as different as night and day. Former Constable James Symington was a strong young Canadian police officer with a big German shepherd search and rescue dog, Trakr. Disabled former truck driver Joe Martinez was always seen in the company his little Chihuahua-min pin mix assistance dog, Killer. Little Killer’s job was to dial 911 if Joe had trouble breathing through his tracheotomy tube or if he had another stroke or heart attack. Killer also picked up things for Joe and helped with daily routines as Joe made his way around town via the bus system and his motorized wheelchair. Everyone who saw Killer on Joe’s lap or behind his back on the wheelchair fell in love with him. Joe was happy to share his amazing service dog with friends and passers-by. Killer wore sunglasses and a little hat …
Dilemmas For A New DecadeFebruary 7, 2010 2010 starts a decade of demands and dilemmas. Each of us needs to gain tolerance for listening and understanding, especially for other people who may not see things the very same way we do. Every day we are challenged to make wise decisions for patient care that rely on our personal ethics. The human-animal bond is a powerful force that drives our profession. Every moment that society beneficially interacts with animals for work, hobby, play, sport, companionship or nature affirms life enrichment and the value of our profession. Our professional responsibility is to serve society and relieve animal suffering. Mankind’s relationship with animals and the environment is important. Society is inclined to extend an attitude of gratitude to all the creatures and the lands and oceans of the earth. Organized professions will be challenged with questions and dilemmas such as: • Can mankind and Big Agriculture restore the stewardship role with animals and the environment yet still feasibly feed the world? • Will the amazing biodiversity discovered in the oceans by genomic researcher Craig Venter and his floating genomic laboratory generate volumes of nutritious food and clean fuel for the future? • Will the emerging ocean harvests …
