Avian and Exotic Conference in Louisville KY

I spent the last two weeks away from the practice and I am happy to say that I learned a few things while I was away.  First, I spent 4 days with two of my top notch technicians attending the International Avian and Exotic Medicine Conference in Louisville Kentucky.  The Avian and Exotic Conference is a gathering of veterinarians and technicians from all over the world that meet to discuss the most recent studies in bird, reptile and small mammal medicine.  We stayed at the Marriott in Downtown Louisville which was the conference headquarters.  We attended meetings to learn about various topics such as small mammal training and operant conditioning to administer treatments to birds and small mammal patients.   We heard about wildlife conservation studies and learned new techniques in reptile diagnostics and husbandry.  My technicians each attended hands on seminars in avian bandaging techniques and rabbit dental procedures.  We were introduced to the latest products available for treatment and surgery of our small patients. While we were there we had the opportunity to visit Churchill Downs and got a private tour of the grounds and the museum which was great fun.  We posted some pictures of our visit on our Facebook account if you want to see them.

 The second week of my time off was spent with the award winning Stevenson Titan Marching Band.  (154 high school kids and 28 adult chaperones) I have been a volunteer with the band for the past 6 years and have enjoyed attending band camp for the past 5 years. I serve as the home and away camp coordinator for the band, and spend many hours preparing for away camp and getting paperwork together for the state inspection each year.  The week at Lake Ann Camp with the kids is very enjoyable but also very tiring as they are up early and get to bed late.  The kids march and prepare their half-time show under the direction of Mr. Michael Sekich and also are treated to many fun activities such as swimming, boating, karaoke, dancing, paintball, zipline and volleyball.  The volunteers that serve as chaperones work very hard to keep the kids healthy and happy at camp.  The marching show theme this year is "Welcome to the Jungle" which is appropriate for me as I work with jungle creatures each day.   I hope that my return to Warren Woods Veterinary Hospital brings me as many challenges as my time away with the kids.   Thank you to all of my talented WWVH team for holding down the fort while I was away.  If you want to see more of the Titan Marching Band please visit the website www.shs-mucic.org.  If you want to speak to me, visit me at my website www.wwvhcares.com.

Kittens, Kittens, Kittens

Summer brings many, many stray cats and that means Kittens!!  We have rescued at least 5 litters so far this summer and I am happy to say that they are all getting good homes.  If we have the mother cat presented with the kittens , she is spayed as soon as her kittens are weaned and we will find her a good home also.  Our latest litter was picked up by animal control and brought to us last week.  The mother is a beautiful grey tabby with a sweet round face.  She was dehydrated and very hungry gobbling up loads of food as soon as it was offered.  Her kittens are 2 males and 2 females - grey and brown tabby.  They are about 3 weeks old, so will not be up for adoption for another few weeks.  Call our office if you are interested in adoption of any of our kittens or adult cats. 586-751-3350

Please, if you have cats, make sure they are spayed and neutered as this will help cut down on all the unwanted kittens.  Also, if you see stray cats near your home, please call animal control to get them picked up before they can breed and make more stray cats.  There are many charity organizations that work to spay and neuter stray cats free of charge for animal control.  Call our office and we will direct you to the appropriate organization.  Also, if you are looking to have your pet cat or dog spayed or neutered be sure to ask the veterinary hospital whether they do pre-surgical  blood panels to evaluate the surgical patient also IV catheters and fluids should be administered to your pet during the procedure. Be sure they have licensed veterinary technicians monitoring anesthesia during the surgery and a licensed veterinarian performing the surgery.  Some "low cost" veterinary clinics practice short-cut medicine so they can charge less, but this could be a danger to your pet.  If you need more information about spay and neuter surgery please call Warren Woods Veterinary Hospital at 586-751-3350.