All Pet Care Articles
  • Paws-ing to consider holiday revenues in the pet retail market

    Katherine Radin Pet Care

    ​With major shopping events such as Black Friday, Cyber Monday and Boxing Day on the horizon, consumers are likely thinking about scoring the greatest deals on electronics or home appliances. Perhaps they are thinking about starting some of their holiday shopping for their friends and family.

  • Powerful gene editing could make pigs perfect organ donors

    Chelsea Adams Medical & Allied Healthcare

    By modifying 62 genes in pig embryos, scientists think they may have found a way to make pigs suitable organ donors for humans. Led by Harvard Medical School geneticist George Church, the work was presented Oct. 5 at a meeting of the U.S. National Academy of Sciences. Church and his colleagues spoke about using CRISPR/Cas9 gene-editing technology to inactivate 62 porcine endogenous retroviruses (PERVs) in pig embryos. Embedded in all pigs' genomes, the viruses cannot be treated or neutralized once present in a human.

  • 5 things to consider before starting a veterinary practice

    Shahrina Ankhi-Krol Pet Care

    ​The veterinary profession is a profession of passion. One would be hard-pressed to find a veterinarian who is not passionate about treating and saving the lives of animals. When a veterinarian starts a practice, the last thing he/she wants to think about is legal barriers that may prevent him/her from focusing on the practice. So, here are five quick and essential things to consider before starting veterinary practice.

  • 4 keys to a successful pet sitting business

    Maple Cabot Pet Care

    ​If you love animals and you spend a good portion of the time at your 9 to 5 daydreaming about starting your own business, pet sitting might be a great fit for you. According to a poll from Harris Interactive, a whopping 91 percent of pet owners think of their pets as members of the family.

  • Eliminate the pain of performance evaluations in your clinic

    Monica Maxwell Pet Care

    Performance evaluations are easily one of the most dreaded practices of management, probably right after terminations and discussions about body odor. This is no different in the veterinary clinic. They are so dreaded, in fact, I get emails at least weekly titled "Get Rid of Performance Reviews for Good!" with the same general look of the ads on the Internet that say "Earn $5,000 a Week Working Part-time from Home!"

  • Dietary options for adverse food reactions in pets

    Jennifer Adolphe, Ph.D. Pet Care

    ​Does your pet have itchy skin or experience chronic vomiting, diarrhea or paw licking? If so, your pet may be having an adverse reaction to his food. Both food allergies and food intolerances can cause adverse reactions. Food allergies occur when the immune system reacts inappropriately to a food. Food intolerances are more common and occur without immune system involvement.

  • 5 tips for honing your soft skills as a veterinary manager

    Monica Maxwell Pet Care

    ​According to Harvard Business School professors Rakesh Khurana and Nitin Nohria, being a manager in and of itself is not a profession. Why? Rakesh and Nitin argue that "true professions have codes of conduct, and the meaning and consequences of those codes are taught as part of the formal education of their members." And, they contended, "unlike doctors and lawyers," managers don't "adhere to a universal and enforceable code of conduct."

  • Animal ER highlights importance of top-notch customer service

    Brian Stief Pet Care

    In an emergency animal hospital, we live and work in a 24-hour world where clients arrive at all hours in a variety of mental and emotional states. This helps keep us on our toes, but constantly dealing with the unknown of what could walk through the door can be a huge challenge, too. Of course, even on the best-planned days, the proverbial "wrench" can alter the course and add stress to push us to our limits.

  • How legalization of marijuana impacts the veterinary world

    Kate Hessong Pet Care

    Recreational marijuana is now legal in four states and Washington, D.C., and 19 more states have legal medical access. The use of the drug is rising in the United States, and the states who have legalized it for recreational use have seen a huge amount of money come in through taxes. It is estimated that if all 50 states were to legalize, they could be making more than $3 billion a year in taxes alone.

  • 3 tips for veterinary technician hiring

    Megan Brashear Pet Care

    After eight years in veterinary technician management, I have learned a great deal about how to select the right technician candidate to work with the team. The biggest lesson — it is less medicine-centered than you might think. I like to say, "I can teach you how to be a good technician. I can’t teach you how to be a good person." Here are three of the most important tips you need to be aware of when hiring a new tech.