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1274 results for “blood test”
Canine Ehrlichiosis: What Owners Should Know
Ehrlichiosis is a tick-borne rickettsial disease with acute, subclinical, and chronic stages, and chronic cases can linger for years with vague signs like lethargy, fever, and low platelets that risk bleeding. Because many illnesses look similar, diagnosis leans on bloodwork, urine, imaging, and antibody or PCR tests. This guide walks through the stages and workup.
A Complete Guide to Cat Diarrhea
Diarrhea is simply stool with too much water, but its causes are many: osmotic, secretory, permeability, or motility driven. It may signal gut disease or something elsewhere like the liver, thyroid, or kidneys. This guide breaks down the types, classifications, common diseases, and a sensible first-response plan.
What to Know Before Getting Your Pet’s Teeth Cleaned
Like people, pets benefit from dental cleaning, which removes tartar and curbs bacterial growth, but they cannot understand the process, and cleaning is not as simple as it is for humans. Tartar speeds gum and bone loss and can loosen teeth early, and mouth bacteria can travel down the gut and stir up digestive trouble. Anesthesia-free cleaning cannot reach below the gum line and risks injury, while proper cleaning under general anesthesia, preceded by blood and organ checks, is safe and thorough. Daily care at home with a pet toothbrush or textured finger sleeve matters most, and human toothpaste must never be used.
Symptoms of Canine Distemper: Early, Middle, and Late Stages
Canine distemper is a highly contagious, often fatal viral disease that mainly strikes unvaccinated puppies, with death rates up to 90 percent in young dogs. The virus, which survives for weeks when frozen but breaks down at 50 to 60 C, spreads by contact and airborne droplets and appears as respiratory, digestive, neurologic, or skin forms. Early signs are lethargy, fever of 39.5 to 41 C, eye and nose discharge, sneezing, and diarrhea; the middle stage adds pus-like discharge, vomiting, and appetite loss; the late stage brings neurologic signs such as paresis, ataxia, and seizures. Diagnosis uses test kits, blood work, and PCR, and care focuses on vaccination, immune support, and symptom control.
Why Your Cat Keeps Sneezing
An occasional sneeze is nothing, but frequent sneezing with discharge, eye issues, or coughing can hide something serious. Causes span environment, infection, and even facial structure, from dust and viruses to flat-faced-breed anatomy. This guide explains the reasons, when to see a vet, and how to care for and prevent sneezing fits.
What to Know Before and After Spaying or Neutering Your Pet
Spay and neuter surgery is routine but still deserves careful preparation. Picking a trusted clinic, fasting beforehand, and running pre-op tests keep anesthesia safe, while post-op care around wounds, food, and an Elizabethan collar protects a smooth recovery. This guide walks owners through the whole journey, from booking to stitch removal.
Hookworms in Dogs: Symptoms and Deworming
Hookworms are intestinal parasites named for their hook-like mouthparts, which anchor them to the gut wall. Only about an eighth of an inch long, they are hard to see, yet they drink large amounts of blood from tiny vessels and can inflame the gut, cause anemia, and threaten life, especially in puppies. Dogs catch them by mouth, through the skin, or from mother to pup via placenta and milk. Signs include pale gums, weakness, weight loss, and bloody diarrhea. Diagnosis is a fecal float, and treatment is regular deworming plus a repeat dose to kill newly matured worms.
Diagnosing and Treating Feline Idiopathic Cystitis (FIC)
Feline idiopathic cystitis, or FIC, is a common lower-urinary-tract disease in cats whose exact cause is still unknown, yet it is the single most frequent diagnosis in young cats, affecting roughly 50 to 60 percent of cases. It is linked to a defective bladder lining, nerve-driven inflammation, and stress. Because there is no single definitive test, veterinarians diagnose it by exclusion, using the history, urinalysis, blood chemistry, and ultrasound. Most episodes ease on their own within five to seven days, but treatment focuses on pain relief, protecting the bladder lining, litter-box management, more water, prescription food, and reducing stress.
Causes and Prevention of Liver Disease in Cats
The liver is the body's largest metabolic and digestive organ, and in cats it is closely tied to the blood, digestion, tendons, and eyesight. Liver disease can arise from nutritional or endocrine disorders, infections, or poisons such as arsenic, mercury, chloroform, and aflatoxin. Early signs are usually digestive, like vomiting, poor appetite, and pale stools, while later stages bring muscle tremors and weakness. Management focuses on the right balance of energy, protein, fat, and carbohydrates, plenty of vitamins, and a light, easily digested diet or a prescription liver formula to support recovery.
5 Cat Diseases Linked to Poor Nutrition
Poor diet drives five common feline problems. Obesity brings arthritis, diabetes, and more; pancreatitis ties to fat intake; lower urinary disease links to stress, low exercise, and weight; heart disease follows excess sodium from human leftovers; and diarrhea improves with added fiber. Feed proper cat food, not table scraps.