Category Archives: Dogs

AMC’s Usdan Institute for Animal Health Education recently hosted a Concert for Canines and Their Companions to celebrate the Human-Animal Bond. This en plein air concert with the Highline String Quartet was held in the 25th Street Plaza and attracted people and dogs for a musical respite from a damp and dreary afternoon. This concert gives me an opportunity to talk about how music impacts dogs.

On September 28th, we celebrate the 102nd birthday of Louis Pasteur by honoring his pioneering work in developing a vaccine against rabies. The anniversary of his birth has been designated World Rabies Day in remembrance of Dr. Pasteur and the millions of lives he continues to save with the rabies vaccine.

The US Open Tennis Tournament is in full swing at the Arthur Ashe Stadium in Flushing, Queens and, over the next two weeks, New York City will be all about tennis. For some dogs, every day is about tennis—tennis balls, more specifically. What is it about tennis balls that makes them so popular with dogs? Their yellow-green color might help answer that question.

Last year, just before Christmas, there were nationwide reports of an uptick in dogs with coughing, runny eyes and nose. It was a highly contagious case of canine infectious respiratory disease complex (CIRDC), also known as kennel cough, and as quickly as it came, the outbreak disappeared. But now it’s back. The Delaware state veterinarian just announced a CIRDC outbreak in the state. Because of the outbreak, all Delaware animal shelters and rescues have been ordered to suspend out-of-state transports, as well as out-of-state intakes or adoptions for 30 days. In neighboring Maryland, the Carroll County Humane Society, west of Baltimore, also had to suspend operations temporarily due to a CIRDC outbreak. Kennel cough can be caused by a host of infectious agents, including bacteria and viruses, and we’ll look at how you can protect your pet in today’s blogpost.

In both humans and pets, weight gain occurs when too many calories are consumed and/or not enough are burned. This sounds simple, but the equation gets complicated by factors intrinsic to the pet, owner feeding practices, and/or a lack of exercise. This blogpost will focus on some of the drivers of canine obesity with a focus on new information on obesity in Labrador retrievers.