Companion collection - How to...

 Sarah Collins works at the International Cat Care charity and is the ISFM Nursing Manager overseeing the Cat-Friendly Clinic and webinar programmes. In this article, Sarah explores the positive interactions we can have with cats to help reduce the stress they may experience during a visit to your vet practice.

  The decision-making process when faced with oropharyngeal stick injuries can be challenging. This article by Will Robinson, Head of Soft Tissue Surgery at Willows Referral Service in Solihull, aims to provide an update on how to manage these unique injuries.

 Lucia Sanchini offers advice on identifying and avoiding clump formation when running an in-house haematology report.

  Natasha Wayne-Wynne and Sid Sudunagunta, from Willows Referral Hospital, provide information on pericardial effusion and how to approach the condition in practice.

 Professor Silke Salavati, Head of the Small Animal Internal Medicine Service at the Royal (Dick) School of Veterinary Studies takes us on a journey through the world of microbiota.

Corrected February 2024

  In the July edition of Companion, Erika Villedieu, of Willows Referral Centre in Solihull, focused on the basics of wound healing, dressing types, composition and indications. In this second article in the two-part series she focuses on the step-by-step management of traumatic open wounds.

  This is the first article in a two-part series from Erika Villedieu of Willows Referral Centre in Solihull and focuses on the basics of wound healing, dressing types, composition and indications.

 Maria Chie Niimura del Barrio of Lumbry Park Veterinary Specialists discusses how to prevent and manage this anaesthetic complication.

 Fergus Allerton, of Willows Veterinary Centre and Referral Service, explains the challenges of selecting an appropriate drug for patients with immune-mediated disease.

  Hypercalcaemia is not uncommon in sick dogs and may result in life-threatening complications. Emi Barker, from Langford Vets, Bristol, takes a look at the degree of intervention required depending on the outcome of diagnostic procedures.

 Elodie Roels, Senior Clinician in small animal internal medicine at the University of Liège, Belgium, summarizes the most common respiratory conditions associated with the presence of crackles in dogs.

  This is the third article in a three-part histopathology series by Melanie Dobromylskyj, of Finn Pathologists, and covers margin assessment, why it is important, and how the surgeon and pathologist can work together to achieve the most useful information. It looks at different forms of margin assessment for surgical samples, and their pros and cons, as well as some of the issues pathologists face when trying to assess margins from certain tumour types.

  Branching out from last month’s mental health and wellbeing article, which looked at the ways in which we can protect our own mental wellbeing at work, Emma Stansfield, from VDS Training, explores how team health and wellbeing should, and can, be supported in the workplace.

 Emma Stansfield, from VDS Training, explores how mental health and wellbeing can be maintained at work. This is the first part in a series of mental health and wellbeing articles and will focus on how individuals can help manage their own wellbeing. Read on to find out what we can, and should, do to stand the best chance of having a fulfilling and enjoyable career, where our performance and wellbeing are optimal and sustained even in the presence of challenges.

  Primary author, Henrietta Kodilinye-Sims, at the University of Surrey School of Veterinary Medicine, discusses common coelomic disorders, which can cause significant chronic pain in poultry.

 Emi Barker, from Langford Vets, Bristol, discusses a systematic approach to the investigation of hyperglobulinaemia and potential differential diagnoses.

  Carla Asorey Blazquez and Ferran Valls Sanchez of Dick White Referrals explain the causes of anaemia in this, the first part of a two-part series.

  In this first part of a two-part series, Mellora Sharman of VetCT, describes a pragmatic approach to the common problem of chronic diarrhoea.

   With the incidence of travelled dogs continuing to increase, Josh Kennils and Emi Barker, from Langford Vets, Bristol, offer guidance on which diseases to test for and how best to test for them.

    Toxoplasmosis is a disease of worldwide importance because it has zoonotic potential; it can also cause a spectrum of disease in cats. In this article, Stephanie Sorrell, Marina Domingues and Professor Danièlle Gunn-Moore look at the pathogenesis, clinical signs, diagnosis and treatment of toxoplasmosis in cats.

  This month, Highcroft Veterinary Referrals oncology specialist Owen Davies continues his advice on how to deal with a canine mast cell tumour, beginning with how to stage mast cell tumours.

  Based on common questions from referring vets, oncology specialist Owen Davies, from Highcroft Veterinary Referrals, presents his view on dealing with a canine mast cell tumour in this, the first part of a two-part series.

 Claire Hargrave, an ASAB certificated clinical animal behaviourist and a member of, and honorary secretary to, the Fellowship of Animal Behaviour Clinicians, explains how puppy and kitten breeders can best prepare their young charges for their new forever homes.

 Christine Magrath of the Veterinary Defence Society offers advice on dealing with these sensitive situations.

 Linda Ryan, a Veterinary Technician Specialist in Behaviour, and in Oncology, and a Certified Clinical Animal Behaviourist, offers advice on making your clinic ‘dog-friendly’, highlighting in-clinic considerations to help reduce the stress canine patients experience when visiting your practice.

   Arterial thromboembolism in cats is a distressing presentation. In this article Leo Packham and Kieran Borgeat of Langford Veterinary Services discuss the causes and treatment of this difficult condition.

 Isuru Gajanayake of Willows Veterinary Centre and Referral Service discusses nutritional management of this common condition.

  Fear of fireworks is a common behavioural presentation in dogs and one that is frequently presented in general veterinary practice. Sarah Heath, RCVS and European Veterinary Specialist in Behavioural Medicine, talks us through the challenges of fear anxiety.

  VDS Training advisor, Kirsty Sturman, offers advice on how to get the quiet clients to open up and how to conclude the consultation without appearing rude.

  Mark Westman of Sydney University has written a two-part series on feline leukaemia virus. In this first article, Mark discusses when to test cats for FeLV, options for follow-up FeLV testing, and current terminology used to describe the different categories of FeLV infection, with the aim of making the next step in this clinical scenario a little easier for veterinarians working in private practices and shelters.

   Through the Small Animal Medicine Society (SAMSoc) Fergus Allerton and Andrew Kent of Willows Veterinary Centre and Referral Service in Solihull are launching a collaborative study comparing different durations of antibiotic (amoxicillin-clavulanate) in the management of presumed urinary tract infections in female dogs. This study is aimed at veterinarians working in primary practice and it is hoped that it will provide a large number of vets with the opportunity to participate in clinical research.

 Christine Magrath of the Veterinary Defence Society takes a closer look at why clients refuse to pay and how best to diffuse and resolve the situation.

  Giulia Marchionne and Enzo Vettorato of Dick White Referrals explain how to apply principles of pain management to cats in the perioperative period.

  Conflict at work can be upsetting for all staff involved. In this article Carolyne Crowe from VDS Training takes us through the steps to manage conflict in your clinic.

    Andrew Wales, Joanna Lawes and Robert Davies recently reviewed raw diets for canine and feline patients focusing on microbiological hazards for the Journal of Small Animal Practice,1 here they summarize their findings including information to pass to clients when discussing this type of diet.

 Dimitra Katsaouni, of the Summerhill Veterinary Practice in Newport, helps us tackle this frustrating problem…

  This month Simon Tappin, Editor of Companion, discusses how to approach the patient with abnormalities in these important electrolytes.

   This month Valentina Campoli and Enzo Vettorato of Dick White Referrals help us assess if our feline patients are uncomfortable.

   In the first of two articles, Simon Cook and Laura Cole of the Emergency and Critical Care Department at the Royal Veterinary College, discuss how point-of-care ultrasonography (POCUS) can be used to evaluate thoracic emergencies.

   This month Mălina Filipas and Enzo Vettorato of Dick White Referrals look at the causes of anaesthesia induced hypotension and a practical approach to managing it.

 This month Simon Tappin, Editor of Companion, discusses how to approach liver disease in cats and dogs.

Ann Jagoe, Veterinary CT and MRI Clinical Manager for MIUS and Andrew Jagoe, an experienced internal medicine clinician, work through the options to making the right choice in the advanced imaging techniques available for small animal patients.

Sezan Ozgunay of Dogs Trust looks at what makes the perfect puppy party.

   Iago Asorey Blazquez and Enzo Vettorato of Dick White Referrals, help work through how to anaesthetize these tricky patients.

 Simon Tappin, of Dick White Referrals, talks us through endoscopic evaluation of the colon.

 Steven De Decker, Head of Neurology and Neurosurgery at the Royal Veterinary College and BVNS President, helps us logically assess the dog with hindlimb paralysis.

 Jenny Ellis of Dick White Referrals discusses the approach and treatment of patients with too many red cells.

 Christopher Scudder, Stijn Niessen, Ruth Gostelow and Katarina Hazuchova of the Diabetic Remission Clinic at the Royal Veterinary College discuss the management of feline diabetes

  This month Andrew Denning RCVS Recognized Specialist in Veterinary Diagnostic Imaging talks us through the best ways to obtain cytology and histopathology samples using image-guided techniques

Marianne Lomberg, UK Marketing Director for Henry Schein Animal Health, gives us some invaluable pointers