Articles with prevention

Preventive Health Screening in Dogs: Cookie’s Annual Heartworm and Tick-Borne Diseases Test

The American Heartworm Society recommends annual heartworm testing for all dogs. The recommendation makes perfect sense to me, and I would do it even without being told. When I called to make the appointment, I was surprised to be told that Cookie had the test last year, and I didn’t have to do it this year if I didn’t want…

by Jana Rade

Tick Prevention for Dogs: What Do You Use for Tick Prevention?

In Cookie’s wellness exam results report, I mentioned that ticks, which weren’t really ever a big problem for us, suddenly became one. Even more interestingly, the whole year we were doing fine until last December. Last December, out of the entire year, we suddenly started finding ticks on Cookie daily. It wasn’t really as cold as you’d expect for 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 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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