My Dog's Symptoms : Dog care, symptoms, health issues, and dog health advocacy from an owner's perspective. In loving memory of Jasmine.

TightRope® CCL Fixation System: Dorie’s Knee Surgery

The TightRope surgery was developed as an upgrade to the lateral suture stabilization (LSS) for cruciate injuries in dogs. Is it a better technique with better results? Both techniques have their risks to reward ratio. While stronger than surgical suture, the perception is that the patented braided TightRope material is the main reason for potential complications. It has, however, worked…

by Jana Rade

Why Is My Dog Acting Strange: Changes In Canine Behavior and Habits

Changes in behavior are one of the most misunderstood and overlooked symptoms. In fact, most of the time, behavior changes are not considered a symptom at all. If you were to remember just one thing, remember this – every change is significant. That absolutely includes any changes in the way your dog acts. Listen to what your dog is telling…

by Jana Rade

Canine Heartworm Infection: Don’t Let Heartworm Become A Heartbreak!

Keeping your dog healthy includes regular preventive health care. Timely administration of heartworm preventive medication is one of the preventive measures that all dog owners should be practicing. What are heartworms? Heartworms are mosquito-borne parasites that live in the heart and blood vessels of an infected dog. These worms cause damage, often significant, to the cardiovascular structures and can lead…

by Dr. Lorie Huston

Rat Bait Poisoning in a Dog: Penny’s Eats Rodenticide

Rodenticides are not poisonous just to rodents. There are two kinds of mouse and rat poisons: long-acting anticoagulants (LAACS) cholecalciferol (Vitamin D3) While either of them can kill your dog, anticoagulants have an antidote, while lethal levels of Vitamin D3 do not. In my opinion, poisons that don’t have antidote should not be sold in the first place. Yet, cholecalciferol…

by Jana Rade

TCVM for Dogs: Four Paws, Five Directions—The Theory Behind The Traditional Chinese Veterinary Medicine

What the heck is Traditional Chinese Veterinary Medicine (TCVM) and isn’t it obsolete? Modern veterinary medicine is making daily strides and breakthroughs. But sometimes scientists are limited by the way they know to look at things. A different point of view might offer solutions scientists didn’t dream up. An alternative approach can offer answers where they didn’t seem to be…

by Jana Rade

Jana Rade

I am a graphic designer by day, dog health advocate, dog writer, member of the Dog Writers Association of American and an award-winning author. Jasmine, the Rottweiler of my life, was the largest female from her litter. We thought we were getting a healthy dog. Getting a puppy from a backyard breeder was our first mistake. Endless veterinary visits without a diagnosis or useful treatment later, I realized that I had to take Jasmine's health care in my own hands. I learned the hard way that simply seeing a vet is not always enough. There is more to finding a good vet than finding the closest clinic down the street. And, sadly, there is more to advocating for your dog's health than visiting a veterinarian. It should be enough but it often is not. With Jasmine, it took five years to finally get a diagnosis for her initial issue. Unfortunately, other problems had snowballed for that in the meantime. Jasmine's health challenges became a crash course in understanding dog health issues and how to go about getting a proper diagnosis and treatment. I had to learn and I had to learn fast. Helping others through my challenges and experience has become my mission and Jasmine's legacy. I now try to help people how to recognize and understand signs of illness in their dogs, how to work with their veterinarian and when to seek a second opinion. My goal is to save others the steep curve of having to learn things the hard way as I did. That is the mission behind my blog and behind my writing. That is why I wrote Symptoms to Watch for in Your Dog, which has turned out being an award-winning guide to dog owners . What I'm trying to share encompasses 20 years of experience.

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