Jennifer Melling, DVM

05/27/2026

Do you know the difference?

05/06/2026

I feel this 💯

Parenting has changed the way I practice veterinary medicine, and honestly, it has changed me too.

Before becoming a parent, I spent years in a version of vet med that often rewarded overwork, constant availability, and blurred boundaries. Long ICU shifts, late nights, answering messages at all hours…I thought that was just part of being a dedicated veterinarian.

But becoming a single mom by choice in 2020 forced me to ask some hard questions about what I wanted my life to look like and what truly mattered most to me.

For the first time in my career, I had non-negotiable boundaries. Daycare pickup times. School routines. Bedtime. I couldn’t stay late indefinitely or always squeeze in “just one more thing.” And while that adjustment was not always easy, it taught me something incredibly important:

Boundaries do not make us less compassionate, less committed, or less capable. In many ways, they allow us to show up more fully for the people and patients we care about.

I still experience guilt sometimes. There are moments when I’m deeply immersed in work and feel guilty for not being home. And moments when I’m fully present with my daughter and feel guilty for not doing more professionally. But over time, I’ve stopped seeing these roles as competing with each other.

I’m not either a veterinarian or a parent. I’m both.

And I know so many others in veterinary medicine are navigating similar challenges. Trying to build meaningful careers while also protecting time for family, relationships, health, and themselves.

This Friday, I’ll be speaking with Scribenote during a panel discussion about parenting and balance in veterinary medicine, and I’m really looking forward to having an honest conversation about the realities, challenges, and lessons that come with trying to hold both roles at once.

I also recently wrote a deeply personal blog on this topic: “Boundaries, Balance, and Being Both a Parent and a Veterinarian.”

🖇️ Blog link: https://marieholowaychuk.com/2026/04/15/boundaries-balance-and-being-both-a-parent-and-a-veterinarian/

🖇️ Event link: https://calendly.com/allison-scribenote/scribenote-webinar-motherhood-in-vetmed

To the veterinary professionals who are trying to care deeply for both their work and their families: I see you. And I think these conversations matter.

04/24/2026

Great example about buying medications from your vet instead of non-veterinary parties.

https://www.instagram.com/reel/DXgPiBKCcJ_/?igsh=MXRsMnl1ZmFqYXhqcw==

04/24/2026

The owners of a dog in Illinois have filed a class action lawsuit against pet food company Blue Buffalo after their dog died from congestive heart failure. The dog owners claim that the company intentionally misled consumers about the healthiness of its grain-free dog food, which lead to the death of their dog.

A family claims the company intentionally misled consumers, leading to the death of their dog.

04/19/2026

Another great reason to not smoke.

Cats are uniquely vulnerable due to their grooming behavior. To***co smoke particles accumulate on their fur and are subsequently ingested, resulting in repeated oral and systemic exposure over time.

Higher risk has been observed in cats living in smoking households, particularly those exposed for five or more years or in homes with multiple smokers, compared to cats in non-smoking environments. Cats whose owners smoked 1–19 ci******es per day demonstrated a significant fourfold increase in the risk of oral squamous cell carcinoma.

The risk is not limited to oral tumors. Cats exposed to household to***co smoke have a 2.4-fold increased risk of malignant lymphoma (95% confidence interval: 1.2–4.5), rising to 3.2-fold after five or more years of exposure (95% confidence interval: 1.5–6.9). Notably, risk increases in a dose- and duration-dependent manner.

Beyond carcinogenesis, to***co smoke exposure disrupts the balance between oxidants and antioxidants in cats. Significant increases have been reported in total oxidant levels, oxidative stress index, lipid hydroperoxides, protein carbonyls, and advanced oxidative protein products, alongside decreased total antioxidant capacity and reduced antioxidant enzyme activity.

In parallel, exposed cats exhibit elevated pro-inflammatory signaling molecules, including interferon gamma, interleukin-1 beta, interleukin-2, and interleukin-6, indicating activation of systemic inflammatory pathways.

Bertone ER, Snyder LA, Moore AS. 2003. Environmental and lifestyle risk factors for oral SCC in cats. J Vet Intern Med.
Bertone ER, Snyder LA, Moore AS. 2002. Environmental to***co smoke and lymphoma risk in cats. Am J Epidemiol.
Köseoğlu E, Yıldırım F, et al. 2023. To***co smoke induces oxidative stress in cats. Vet Res Forum.

04/14/2026

I will also add dental problems. Chronic tennis ball use is like sand paper for the teeth leading to the need for tooth extraction. 🦷

THE PHYSICAL AND EMOTIONAL COSTS OF FETCH

Dogs often exhibit a strong affinity for chasing balls due to the activation of their predatory motor pattern, which stimulates internal rewards associated with dopamine and serotonin release. In their natural environment, wild or free-roaming dogs typically hunt in short, intense bursts followed by periods of calm consumption and rest. It is rare to observe these animals engaging in prolonged, frantic running while hunting, as this behaviour can induce stress and frustration.

However, in a domestic setting, guardians frequently engage their dogs in repetitive ball-throwing and fetch activities despite the potential physical and psychological strain on the animal.

Prolonged engagement in such activities, particularly with the use of launching devices, can lead to significant joint degeneration, arthritis, and ligament injuries due to high-impact movements. Furthermore, it can result in dopamine-driven addiction, manifesting as obsessive behaviors, heightened arousal, poor impulse control, and difficulties in calming down. In dogs already prone to high arousal levels, this could potentially lead to manic behaviour.

Therefore, achieving balance is crucial; limiting fetch exercises to brief daily sessions or incorporating low-arousal, mentally stimulating activities between fetch sessions is advisable.

I'm not advocating for the stopping of playing fetch, especially if it brings your dog joy while providing quality time and bonding opportunities with you. It's more about achieving a balance between high arousal games and low arousal mental stimulation activities, while reducing the probability of physical damage to their bodies as they age.

04/14/2026

04/12/2026

This post is for every pet owner who has ever typed their animal's symptoms into an AI.

Last month a woman brought in her dog convinced he had a serious liver condition. She had described his symptoms to an AI. It gave her a confident, detailed, well-structured diagnosis. And it was also wrong. Her dog had a simple dietary intolerance. Three days on a bland diet and he was back to normal. But she had spent a week convinced she was losing him.

I am not telling you to stop using AI. I use it myself every day in my clinical practice and research. But I need you to understand something important.

AI is only as good as the information you give it: Garbage in. Garbage out.

And here is what most pet owners do not realise. Describing clinical symptoms accurately is a skill. It takes years of training to develop. Knowing the difference between lethargy and depression. Between reduced appetite and complete anorexia. Between a soft swelling and a hard mass. Between a cough and a retch. These distinctions are not obvious. They are not Google-able. They are learned through thousands of clinical encounters.

When you type "my dog seems off and is not eating" into an AI — you are giving it almost nothing to work with. The AI will fill the gaps with its best statistical guess, one that may have nothing to do with your animal.

AI does not know your animal.
It has never examined him.
It cannot smell infection, feel a lump, hear an abnormal heartbeat or look into frightened eyes and know something is wrong.
AI works from words. Your vet works from the whole animal.

When your pet is unwell — use AI to understand, not to diagnose. Use it to prepare better questions for your vet. Use it to understand what your vet tells you. But please — do not let a chatbot replace the clinical judgment of someone who has spent decades learning to read animals.

Your pet cannot tell you when the AI got it wrong. Your vet can.

04/11/2026

Vaccinating our pets isn’t just about protecting them its about protecting the wildlife around us too.

When cats and dogs are not vaccinated they can carry and spread these viruses into the environment through saliva, urine, f***s and shared spaces. Wildlife, especially young, vulnerable animals are then exposed without any protection.

This red fox kit in the photo is one of those victims. He didn’t get a second chance. Distemper is a devastating virus that is always fatal in wild animals like foxes, raccoons and skunks.

All it takes is one unvaccinated pet interacting with the environment - walking through a yard, visiting a park or encountering wildlife to start a chain reaction. Our domestic animals can act as a bridge carrying deadly diseases straight into wild populations that have no defense.

Vaccinating your cats and dogs is one of the simplest and most impactful ways to protect not only them but the native wildlife we share this world with

I met the finders of this fox kit at our vet clinic yesterday afternoon. Unfortunately when the kit was found it was having a seizure. By the time we met at the clinic it had already passed. The vet strongly felt this was distemper.