Conditions

Canine Hip Dysplasia and Prolotherapy: From The Case Files—Hunter’s Hip Dysplasia Was Nearly A Death Sentence

Sometimes you hear a word so often that it loses its meaning. Hip dysplasia is a common orthopedic issue in dogs. That doesn’t mean that it cannot be debilitating. There are still dogs who are euthanized because of the severe effects of hip dysplasia. Thank you, Dr. Mark D Newkirk, for sharing Hunter’s story. Hunter’s story Hunter, a one-year-old yellow…

by Jana Rade

Acute Front Leg Lameness: Jasmine’s Sore Leg

Front lameness can be challenging to diagnose and treat. There are straightforward causes and daunting ones too. The causes of front leg lameness include anything from: nail injuries paw injuries and foreign bodies insect bites and stings snake bites infections elbow injuries, arthritis or elbow dysplasia carpal injuries shoulder injuries neck and spinal injuries Lyme disease (shifting lameness) Shoulder injuries…

by Jana Rade

Lacking Diagnosis Frustration: What Doesn’t Kill Her Will Make Her Stronger? Koda’s Story

If you need a quick second opinion, start with VetLive. JJ is my dear friend. Her dog, Koda, is almost two years old, adorable Australian Shepherd girl. Koda has already had more struggles with her health than most old dogs ever will. Since a very young age, Koda had pee problems. Koda’s story When trying to get to the bottom…

by Jana Rade

Wound Care Mismanagement in a Dog: From A Swelling To Necrosis In Days

Mismanaged wounds can get unimaginably bad very fast if infiltrated by bacteria. The biggest risk is improper bandaging, wet bandaging, not changing bandages frequently enough and not monitoring the would. When we used a bandage on Cookie’s cut, I was changing her bandage three times a day. Brutus’ story When Brutus, a 22-month-old Great Dane, arrived as an emergency patient…

by Jana Rade

Fur Analysis for Dogs: Toxins? What Toxins? Jasmine’s Results

Fur analysis is an underappreciated way of learning things about your dog’s health. Can fur analysis uncover quiet problems such as mineral deficiencies and toxicities, presence of heavy metals, and even state of your dog’s metabolism? Toxins? Toxins. Fascinating topic. On one hand, we have holistic vets talking about the toxic load our dogs have to bear, and on the…

by Jana Rade

Jana Rade

I am a graphic designer by day, dog health advocate, dog writer, member of the Dog Writers Association of America, and an award-winning author in my spare time. 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 into 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 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 use 20 years of hard-earned experience to save others from the steep curve of having to learn things the hard way, as I did.

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