Newsworthy

Newsworthy

New Colorado Vaccination Rules and Fallout from Rescue Group Rabies Scandal

A while back I wrote a Q & A about that puppy rabies case in Colorado. The Pet Animal Care and Facilities Act Program (PACFA) , which handles licensing, inspections, and enforcement of animal care facilities in the state, as an offshoot of the state’s Department of Agriculture, established new Colorado vaccination rules for the facilities here and for rescue groups and shelters bringing in animals from other states. There’s going to be some fallout.

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How Much Do Dogs Cost Over a Lifetime ?

Some new data from Synchrony / Care Credit sheds light on how much dogs cost over a lifetime. The survey also summarizes where people now cut back due to the rising costs for everything dogs need. I always think these estimates are way, WAY low, but let’s take a look at the results of the 2025 Pet Lifetime of Care Study (with 1,541 dog owners responding to the online survey).

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Hypothyroidism in Dogs and False-Positive Tests

A study published in 2024 set up blind, independent case reviews with 3 different board-certified veterinary internal medicine specialists to gauge the likelihood of dogs actually being hypothyroid based on routine blood test results that found low total T4. The premise is that overdiagnosis of hypothyroidism in dogs is possible. Here’s what those specialists thought.

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Study into Common Tummy Meds for Puppies

A study published in the Journal of the American Veterinary Medical Association in June 2025 looked at the effects of giving healthy puppies a combination of metronidazole-sulfadimethoxine. This study into common tummy meds for puppies found some not great outcomes in markers of intestinal health.

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Dog Urinalysis

Especially as dogs get older, I’ve always been in the camp that says, “Why not run routine tests, just to see?” Asking for a dog urinalysis is a good example. Why not check? Way better to catch anything early. Yet, with veterinary costs rising and other financial challenges for many people, including me, I (unfortunately) now take a harder look at my budget than I did earlier. I dug around in my dog files to remind myself how much a canine urinalysis test costs now versus then. Spoiler alert, the cost has nearly doubled. Honestly, it’s tempting to scale back, and I still might, but let’s look at some of the things we might miss if we skip doing urinalysis on a dog, of any age.

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5 New Breeds Added to When to Spay or Neuter Research

The research I first wrote about in 2021 that offered recommendations on when to spay or neuter 35 dog breeds has expanded to include recommendations for 5 more breeds — German Short/Wirehaired Pointer, Mastiff, Newfoundland, Rhodesian Ridgeback, and Siberian Husky. Let’s take a look at the details for these new breeds.

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License for Rattlesnake Vaccine for Dogs Yanked

So, this is interesting. It turns out that the USDA pulled the license for the rattlesnake vaccine for dogs. That means it will soon no longer be available to veterinarians, just as rattlesnake season ramps up this spring (2025). Here’s what we know.

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AI Helps Find Lost Pets

I learned about how AI helps find lost pets while working on what turned out to be my last-ever article for one of my longtime, national pet magazine clients. Yes, I know about many of the ethical (and environmental) issues around AI. Still, this actually seems like a useful application of it. I included a couple of action items for you.

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5 Signs of Pain in Dogs You Might Miss

Pain often causes dogs to change their behavior in unexpected ways. A recent study found that people who better understand signs of pain in dogs are more likely to seek appropriate veterinary care (and sooner). Let’s look at 5 signs of pain in dogs you might miss. (Let me know what you would add to the list!) Also a real-life example at the bottom of the page.

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Updated Thoughts on Colorado VPA Ballot Measure

I unpublished and updated this post about the VPA ballot measure in Colorado after reading additional input from the veterinary world and seeing DVMs on Twitter, in particular, calling BS on the ballot measure’s purported goals. So, here we go again. Jump down to the section called Other Reasons to Oppose It to catch up, if you read the earlier version!

Read More Updated Thoughts on Colorado VPA Ballot Measure

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