Blood work

Canine Blood Tests: What’s In The Blood—Blood Testing And Interpretation

Blood work is a standard, non-invasive evaluation tool in veterinary medicine. The results can shed light on your dog’s general health and organ function. Blood testing is used for the following: wellness evaluation pre-surgical screening illness diagnosis Introduction Every day, all day, cells within the body are being constantly replaced. You lose a layer of skin, and a new layer…

by Dr. Lorie Huston

Pre-Anesthetic Blood Tests: Jack’s Test Reveals Kidney Failure

Many illnesses can go from undetectable to potentially deadly (particularly when combined with surgery and/or anesthesia) over the course of just a few weeks. Having fresh blood work provides insight into your dog’s overall health making sure that they can handle anesthesia safely. It is important to adjust the treatment plan if the blood test reveals any abnormalities. Knowing is…

by Jana Rade

SDMA Kidney Function Test: Veterinarian Share Opinions and Experience With The New Way Of Monitoring Kidney Health In Dogs

SDMA kidney function test is the newest test for evaluating kidney health in dogs. It has been around for a while now so I figured it’s time to ask veterinarians how they feel about it. Have you been using the new kidney function blood test [SDMA]? How would you rate its usefulness? Chronic kidney disease (CKD) is one of the…

by Jana Rade

Canine Kidney Function Screening: Checking Your Dog’s Kidney Function

Everything in your dog’s body has a distinct job. The kidneys perform several vital tasks, including filtration of waste and toxins and essential regulatory functions. Kidney function is assessed based on values that reflect how the kidneys are able to do their job. Measuring blood levels of nitrogenous wastes and compounds (azotemia) The two familiar values that belong in this…

by Jana Rade edited by Dr. Joanna Paul BSc BVSc

Making the Best of Wellness Exams: Cookie’s Latest Check-Up

How do you spoil your dog? Do you think that regular wellness exams qualify? Most people love to spoil their dogs. If you want to spoil your dog in a meaningful way, don’t forget the things they can appreciate, and don’t forget wellness exams. There are few things you can do for your dog to increase their chances of a…

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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