VetBoards, One Shields, Davis, CA (2026)

08/28/2026

The goal is to stop the heat exposure, begin active cooling, and get the animal to veterinary care.

𝗥𝗘𝗖𝗢𝗚𝗡𝗜𝗭𝗘

Watch for:

• Panting
• Stopping activity, playing, or lying down
• Stumbling or disorientation
• A warm ambient environment
• Take a temperature if possible

𝗔𝗖𝗧

• Stop activity
• Move the animal to a cool location
• Call for help — including a nearby veterinary facility and assistance with transportation

𝗔𝗖𝗧𝗜𝗩𝗘𝗟𝗬 𝗖𝗢𝗢𝗟 𝗧𝗛𝗘 𝗔𝗡𝗜𝗠𝗔𝗟

• Apply cool running water over the body, emphasizing areas with less fur and soaking through to the skin.
• Avoid applying water directly to the head and neck because of drowning risk.
• Continue cooling for at least 15 minutes, or until the re**al temperature reaches approximately 40°C (104°F).*
• The animal should become calmer and panting should improve.
• Pat the animal dry with a towel afterward.

𝗧𝗥𝗔𝗡𝗦𝗣𝗢𝗥𝗧

After initial cooling:

• Transport safely to the nearest open veterinary hospital.
• Keep the animal in a cool environment during transport, using air conditioning or a fan when available.

𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝗸𝗲𝘆 𝗺𝗲𝘀𝘀𝗮𝗴𝗲:

𝗗𝗼𝗻’𝘁 𝘄𝗮𝗶𝘁 𝘂𝗻𝘁𝗶𝗹 𝘆𝗼𝘂 𝗿𝗲𝗮𝗰𝗵 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗰𝗹𝗶𝗻𝗶𝗰 𝘁𝗼 𝘀𝘁𝗮𝗿𝘁 𝗰𝗼𝗼𝗹𝗶𝗻𝗴.

For a dog or cat with suspected heat stroke, stop the activity, move them somewhere cool, begin active cooling, and arrange immediate veterinary care.

* If the animal has stertor or stridor, you can continue cooling until panting clearly improves or the temperature reaches 38.6°C (101.5°F), whichever comes first. In all cases, stop active cooling once 38.6°C is reached.

These recommendations are from the 2026 RECOVER First Aid Guidelines for Dogs and Cats.

08/10/2026

Does it matter whether the eyelids are open or closed during a Schirmer tear test (STT-1)?

A recent study evaluated STT-1 measurements in 30 healthy dogs—15 Shih Tzus and 15 Labrador Retrievers—and found that eyelid position significantly affected tear production measurements.

𝗖𝗹𝗼𝘀𝗲𝗱 𝗲𝘆𝗲𝗹𝗶𝗱𝘀 𝗿𝗲𝘀𝘂𝗹𝘁𝗲𝗱 𝗶𝗻 𝗵𝗶𝗴𝗵𝗲𝗿 𝗦𝗧𝗧-𝟭 𝘃𝗮𝗹𝘂𝗲𝘀 𝘁𝗵𝗮𝗻 𝗼𝗽𝗲𝗻 𝗲𝘆𝗲𝗹𝗶𝗱𝘀 𝗶𝗻 𝗯𝗼𝘁𝗵 𝗯𝗿𝗲𝗲𝗱𝘀:

Labrador Retrievers: 21.6 ± 2.9 vs. 17.8 ± 3.2 mm/min
Shih Tzus: 18.6 ± 2.7 vs. 16.3 ± 2.5 mm/min

The difference was significant throughout the 60-second test and was detectable as early as 10 seconds.

Interestingly, Schirmer strips also dislodged more frequently when the eyes were open, occurring in 6 of the 30 dogs, compared with none when the eyelids were closed.

So, should we always perform STT-1 with the eyelids closed? Not necessarily. The authors consider either technique appropriate—the important point is consistency. Using different eyelid positions between visits could introduce a difference in STT-1 readings that may be mistaken for a change in tear production.

The study also highlights an important practical point: over one-third of surveyed veterinary ophthalmology professionals reported that they sometimes performed STT-1 with the eyelids open and sometimes closed.

Study cited in the comments:

08/07/2026

Muscle condition in dogs score is assessed by visualization and palpation of the spine, scapulae, skull, and wings of the ilia.

Muscle loss is typically first noted in the epaxial muscles on each side of the spine; muscle loss at other sites can be more variable.

Muscle condition score is graded as normal, mild loss, moderate loss, or severe loss.

Note that animals can have significant muscle loss even if they are overweight (body condition score > 5/9). Conversely, animals can have a low body condition score (< 4/9) but have minimal muscle loss. Therefore, assessing both body condition score and muscle condition score on every animal at every visit is important.

Palpation is especially important with mild muscle loss and in animals that are overweight.

PDF version is linked in the comments

08/05/2026

Muscle condition score in cats is assessed by visualization and palpation of the spine, scapulae, skull, and wings of the ilia.

Muscle loss is typically first noted in the epaxial muscles on each side of the spine; muscle loss at other sites can be more variable.

Muscle condition score is graded as normal, mild loss, moderate loss, or severe loss.

Note that animals can have significant muscle loss even if they are overweight (body condition score > 5/9). Conversely, animals can have a low body condition score (< 4/9) but have minimal muscle loss. Therefore, assessing both body condition score and muscle condition score on every animal at every visit is important.

Palpation is especially important with mild muscle loss and in animals that are overweight.

PDF version is linked in the comments

08/02/2026

Hyperkalaemia is the most life-threatening metabolic abnormality in cats with urethral obstruction due to its effects on cardiac conduction. Treatment is indicated if ECG abnormalities or bradycardia are present, or if serum potassium exceeds 7.0 mmol/L.

Intravenous fluids should be started immediately, with calcium gluconate administered to stabilise the myocardium. If urinary outflow cannot be rapidly restored, insulin with glucose can be used to temporarily lower serum potassium by shifting it intracellularly.

β₂-adrenergic agonists may be considered for persistent hyperkalaemia, although evidence in obstructed cats is limited. Prompt relief of the obstruction remains the definitive treatment.

Want to learn more about the pathophysiology of hyperkalemia? Comment "Hyperkalemia" and we’ll send you a paper that explains it in detail.

07/29/2026

𝗗𝗶𝗽𝗵𝗲𝗻𝗵𝘆𝗱𝗿𝗮𝗺𝗶𝗻𝗲 𝗳𝗮𝗶𝗹𝗲𝗱 𝘁𝗼 𝗶𝗻𝗵𝗶𝗯𝗶𝘁 𝗲𝘅𝗽𝗲𝗿𝗶𝗺𝗲𝗻𝘁𝗮𝗹𝗹𝘆 𝗶𝗻𝗱𝘂𝗰𝗲𝗱 𝗰𝘂𝘁𝗮𝗻𝗲𝗼𝘂𝘀 𝗮𝗹𝗹𝗲𝗿𝗴𝗶𝗰 𝗿𝗲𝗮𝗰𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻𝘀 𝗶𝗻 𝗵𝗲𝗮𝗹𝘁𝗵𝘆 𝗱𝗼𝗴𝘀, 𝘄𝗵𝗲𝗿𝗲𝗮𝘀 𝗰𝗲𝘁𝗶𝗿𝗶𝘇𝗶𝗻𝗲 𝘀𝗶𝗴𝗻𝗶𝗳𝗶𝗰𝗮𝗻𝘁𝗹𝘆 𝗿𝗲𝗱𝘂𝗰𝗲𝗱 𝗯𝗼𝘁𝗵 𝗶𝗺𝗺𝗲𝗱𝗶𝗮𝘁𝗲 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗹𝗮𝘁𝗲-𝗽𝗵𝗮𝘀𝗲 𝗿𝗲𝘀𝗽𝗼𝗻𝘀𝗲𝘀.

A randomized, double-blinded crossover study evaluated the pharmacodynamic effects of oral diphenhydramine and cetirizine on experimentally induced immediate- and late-phase cutaneous hypersensitivity reactions in healthy dogs.

Twelve healthy Beagle dogs were enrolled in a randomized, double-blinded crossover trial in which each dog served as its own control.

Dogs received:
• Diphenhydramine 2.2 mg/kg PO every 12 hours for six days
• Cetirizine 2 mg/kg PO every 12 hours for six days
with a two-week washout period between treatments.

Following treatment, intradermal injections of histamine and Compound 48/80 (a mast cell secretagogue) were administered. Immediate wheal-and-flare responses were assessed at 20 minutes, while late-phase inflammatory reactions were evaluated six hours after injection. Plasma antihistamine concentrations were also measured to confirm systemic drug exposure.

Results

Compared with baseline, cetirizine administration resulted in statistically significant reductions in:
• Histamine-induced wheal-and-flare reactions
• Compound 48/80-induced wheal responses
• Late-phase inflammatory reactions following both stimuli

In contrast, diphenhydramine did not significantly reduce either immediate or late-phase cutaneous responses despite achieving plasma concentrations considered therapeutically effective in human medicine.

Importantly, neither treatment produced clinically significant adverse effects or observable sedation during the study period.

These findings suggest that cetirizine provides substantially greater inhibition of experimentally induced histamine-mediated cutaneous reactions than oral diphenhydramine in healthy dogs.

Given that diphenhydramine is frequently administered to reduce histamine release associated with mast cell tumor manipulation, these results raise questions regarding its pharmacodynamic efficacy for this specific indication.

The authors conclude that, under the conditions evaluated, cetirizine should be preferred over oral diphenhydramine when suppression of histamine-mediated cutaneous reactions is the therapeutic objective.

Limitations
The study was performed in healthy laboratory dogs using an experimental intradermal challenge model. Consequently, these findings should not be directly extrapolated to dogs with naturally occurring allergic disease, urticaria, mast cell tumors, or anaphylaxis. Clinical efficacy in those patient populations remains to be established through appropriately designed clinical trials.

Study cited in the comments:

07/27/2026

Should you vaccinate a cat with chronic kidney disease? What about one receiving prednisolone, cyclosporine, or chemotherapy?

The answer isn't always "yes" or "no."

This table provides a practical overview of how vaccination recommendations change depending on the underlying condition. In many cases, measuring feline panleukopenia virus (FPV) antibody titres before revaccination can help avoid unnecessary vaccines while ensuring adequate protection.

Some cats should be vaccinated as usual, others should have vaccination postponed, and for certain patients, the decision should be based on an individual risk-benefit assessment.

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Notes:

* To avoid unnecessary vaccination against feline panleukopenia virus (FPV) in case antibody levels are adequate
** Vaccination should be avoided even if no antibodies are present; therefore measuring FPV antibodies is not useful in this situation.
*** Depending on the situation, antibody measurement might be useful in adult cats that have to be vaccinated in this situation to avoid unnecessary vaccinations

07/19/2026

Forgotten Facts About Medications #1: Clindamycin

As new evidence emerges and prescribing habits evolve, it's easy to overlook important pharmacologic details that can influence everyday clinical decision-making.

💡 Did you know?

Clindamycin accumulates within polymorphonuclear leukocytes (PMNs) and alveolar macrophages, where intracellular concentrations may exceed plasma concentrations by up to 50-fold.

It also penetrates the glycocalyx, including that associated with dental plaque and tartar, making it particularly useful in the management of many odontogenic infections.

What medication would you like us to cover next?

07/14/2026

Not all pleural effusions are created equal. So we made a cheat sheet.

Distinguishing between a transudate, modified transudate, exudate, chylous effusion, and hemothorax can quickly narrow your differential diagnoses.

We turned the key diagnostic features into a one-page reference you can keep on your phone or print for your clinic.

Comment "Effusion" and we'll send you the PDF.

07/13/2026

Some vaccines are not recommended for pet dogs because current evidence does not support their routine use.

These include:
• Canine enteric coronavirus (CCoV)
• Giardia duodenalis
• Microsporum canis (dermatophytosis)
• Killed (parenteral) canine parvovirus-2 vaccines where modified-live (MLV) vaccines are available

For example, CCoV is generally associated with mild disease in puppies, evidence that it causes significant intestinal disease in adult dogs is weak, and currently available vaccines have not been shown to protect against emerging pantropic strains. In addition, parenteral vaccination does not induce the intestinal IgA response needed for optimal protection.

Similarly, Giardia infection is typically treatable, rarely transmitted from dogs to humans, and current vaccines have not been shown to prevent infection or shedding. Vaccinated dogs may still develop clinical disease.

Although several of these vaccines are no longer widely available, they remain available in some countries. Veterinarians should be aware that current evidence does not support their routine use in pet dogs.

These recommendations are based on the 2024 World Small Animal Veterinary Association (WSAVA) Vaccination Guidelines developed by the Vaccination Guidelines Group (VGG) (Squires et al., 2024).

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