Vets to You

05/05/2026

Dr. Walker and Rhys will be away from the office in a few weeks! Please check your pets' Rx stock and request their refills now. There will be very limited deliveries of long-term, pre-approved prescriptions/preventatives and we will be unable to authorize Rxs from online pharmacies during that week.

Shyla will be available on her normal work days to schedule non-urgent appts for when we return and provide referrals for more urgent issues. We are grateful there are numerous walk-in, urgent care and ERs in our area but if there is a small issue you've been watching, let's tackle it now before it becomes a big issue then!

04/29/2026

Mama has had more energy to make biscuits (and is able to eat them) now that her bad teeth are out and her oral inflammation is reducing! She has been grooming herself and is loving being brushed and petted!

04/28/2026

We have always had a soft spot for feral/community cats and enjoy helping them lead healthier, happier lives whenever we can. Unfortunately, their medical care often ends after spay/neuter and there are few resources to help ease the financial burden on colony caretakers who already spend large amounts of their own money feeding and doing TNVR.

One of Mama's caretakers recognized she was struggling to eat, looking thin, wasn't grooming herself and reached out for help on social media. While Mama allowed gentle pets from Jessica, she had never been picked up and proved adept at avoiding a standard carrier or trap. We reached out to our client, Catherine, who is a passionate TNVR trapper and advocate and within hours of connecting them Mama was successfully drop trapped.

We examined and triaged her the next day and found this 5 year old had severe swelling under her tongue and needed most of her teeth extracted. She was also FIV+ but her super sweet purrsonality and gratitude was already shining through and she was easier to handle than many housecats!

During this time we also discovered a new local nonprofit that bridges the gaps in funding needs for community cats and the everyday heroes who love and care for them. Aunt Fluff's Fund helped with the cost of anesthesia for this extensive dental surgery and now Mama is recuperating at our office while awaiting a special adopter that will allow her to live the bougie indoor cat life she always dreamed about. Could that be you?

02/14/2026

Happy Furry Valentine's Day! Who can relate?

01/17/2026

Dr. Walker will be attending the NAVC's VMX Conference in Orlando beginning Sunday, 1/18 and won't be back in town taking appointments until Thursday, 1/22. This conference provides Continuing Education credits and keeps us up to date on the latest advances in veterinary medicine so we can take the best care of your furry family members!

While Dr. Walker will not be available for appointments during this time, clients are welcome to contact our office during normal business hours to communicate a concern, get medication refills or schedule appts for his return! Rhys and Shyla will return calls, deliver Rx's and relay messages as needed and we will have urgent care and ER vet contact information available through all of our communication channels.

01/01/2026

Paris is warm and cozy and is really starting to relax and groom herself, explore and play! She is going to be absolutely stunning once her slightly dingy coat is fully floofed.

12/28/2025

The Cat Distribution System clearly does not take a holiday break. A very sweet, friendly but fearful stray cat found Dr. Walker at the Knoxville airport parking lot adjacent to the Hilton. He spent 3 days of his family visit trying to coax her into a crate until a trap could be procured the day after Christmas. With noone claiming this beauty, what's a guy to do? A slight itinerary change and Paris took her first in-cabin flight to SRQ in search of her forever home. Ours?? Only time will tell.

07/12/2025

Another reason we utilize appointment window scheduling...you never know what you are going to encounter on the road and it allows us additional flexibility to deal with whatever is thrown at us. Today it was a piece of road hazard that gave us a tire rapidly losing air. Unfortunately the tire store did not have time to work us in on a busy Saturday so Dr. Walker put on the spare in their parking lot to get us through our day. We are still on time but feeling a bit deflated!

06/29/2025

Just a reminder that Dr. Walker will be out of town from Tuesday, July 1st - Friday, July 4th so Monday is the last day to request refills on your pet's current Rxs for the big day or get that little problem addressed before it becomes a big one! Hope you and your furries have a safe and happy 4th of July!

The fireworks are coming. Do you have a plan in place for your pets?
Credit: Red and Howling
Shared by Andy's Paw Prints

01/06/2025

I don't think any human cases have been reported in Florida, but HPAI (highly pathogenic avian influenza) has been detected since 2022 in 35 Florida counties, per FWC.
https://myfwc.com/media/fgjhguox/hpai-cases.jpg

This map is interesting, as you can watch the virus fly south in the winter. Can we call it snowbird virus? https://experience.arcgis.com/experience/77e38ab79bfe416ca6d72b796612ee83/

No cases have been reported in Sarasota County, but Charlotte and Manatee have seen cases in the past. The virus may occur in many wildlife species, so awareness is important here. If you raise birds, it's a good idea to make sure they're not coming in contact with wildlife where possible. Keeping your cats indoors is also a great idea.