Glaucoma is a painful, blinding disease that by definition is an increase in the pressure inside the eye. It is a bummer of a disease, probably the worst one we see. Why? Because no matter what approach is taken to attack this disease, our goal is usually to delay, not prevent, vision loss. This doesn’t paint a real rosy picture. But as long as this is understood, then together we can make educated decisions on how we want to manage the problem. Let’s talk a little about this entity and see if I can make it a little easier to

Continue reading The Pressure is Rising

Email! Tweets! Snapchat! Instagram! Facebook! Yikes!!!

We have so many ways to communicate with each other and yet the art of communication seems to be getting lost in the chaos.

Multitasking, usually in the form of a downward stare at a cell phone, occurs constantly in our society even if the action is right in front of our face. We try to stay one step ahead of our day, knocking out an errand while doing another, getting a jump on the next event all while staying in time with the constant deluge of emails and texts that raid our devices. Not

Continue reading New technology, old fashioned service

I must confess, I have been remiss at updating my post here at the Animal Eye Clinic. Part of this was intentional, as the last post describes the new cataract surgery machine we purchased last year that is working like a charm. Changes in technology are fascinating and very rewarding when we, as veterinarians, find one that applies to our patients and is cost effective in this ever-changing world of health care. Part of my delay was unintentional, as changes of the kids’ school, health of relatives, staffing and life in general often reworks our life and schedule when we

Continue reading A Change in the Season

Summer is here in New England and hopefully all are out and about doing what they like to do when the weather is warm. If anyone complains of heat and humidity I am going to send them right back to February so they remember what cold feels like! I am a sun and fun lover so you won’t hear me complain…no summertime blues for me!

Blue shows up in veterinary medicine in a handful of different ways. We have blue-eyed dogs and Russian Blue cats, blue merle coloring and Blue Amazon parrots. When the eye is blue, that usually refers to

Continue reading Summertime Blues!

I am always in awe of how animals enhance and improve our daily life. Whether it is the friendly greeting every day when I come downstairs in the morning or the benefit of the evening walk that I do even if I am not in the mood, to see that unrestrained, unconditional love regardless of the day or mood is priceless. The warm body on a lap during a cold day, the cat rubbing up on your legs awaiting some attention, the look of earnest when you are feeling down, pets of all types fill a very important niche in

Continue reading ACVO Diplomates Giving Back

I frequently get asked “what is the most common problem you see?”. The long answer is “depends!” as different species get different diseases, different breeds get different problems, and some problems are seasonal and others are year round. So the allergic conjunctivitis may be absent in winter but cataracts occur at any time and at any age. But one of the problems that shows up on our doorstep on a regular basis is the non-healing corneal erosion in the dog. Your poor friend may be squinting and pawing for weeks in spite of repeated attempts to heal with various

Continue reading Those darned corneal erosions that won’t heal!

I was stunned to see the last posted picture on the front page here had snow all over the building and I was talking about our wonderful warm environment that is present year round. Now the warmth of summer is waning and we are all holding on to those last few days with green trees and sunny skies. A beautiful summer was our just reward after such a harsh winter! And September was equally nice!

Our pets have survived as well, and do through many adverse conditions and illnesses that would knock us for a loop. We can learn a lot

Continue reading Losing an eye; it is not a bad as you think…

Been cold enough for you out there? It sure has been for me. I like winter. I enjoy skiing, sledding with the kids, playing frisbee with my dog Tess after a fresh snow, the Winter Olympics this year. a warm fire, Christmas….but wait! I feel like it has been about 9 degrees all season long. Trust me, this is not a big complaint. I lived in Wisconsin for 7 years so this is nothing. And don’t get me started on snow days at school when it closes if it might snow! Alas, that’s one reason we live here is the

Continue reading A Warm Environment in the Cold Weather