Julie Settlage, DVM, DACVS-LA, CVA

Biography

Julie’s earliest memories include wanting to be a veterinarian. In 2000, she achieved that goal with her graduation from veterinary school. Julie continued her education and became board certified in large animal surgery in 2005. Despite being a large animal, predominantly horse, surgeon, Julie has had a diverse career. She is a certified veterinary acupuncturist, has practiced small animal emergency and critical care, taught at a veterinary school and raises goats at home. Julie’s greatest joy as a veterinarian is helping people enjoy their animals by helping the animals have long and healthy lives.

Questions Answered by Julie Settlage, DVM, DACVS-LA, CVA

Mental note to wash my hands in the future so I don't freak out/have a possible future accident. But as long as the laubdry pod was not broken or punctured, and she didn't lick the actual pod. I'm asking to just be 100% sure. If I touched the pods then grabbed my cat to carry her out the laundry room. Nothing bad can happen to her if she licks herself correct?

Miracle should be absolutely fine!! As long as the pod was intact when you handled them, there is minimal risk of poisoning your cat after handling them and then handling her. I love your plan to make a habit of washing your hands after handling laundry detergent - better safe than sorry in the future, if a pod is inadvertently broken. Thank you for using Pet Coach.

I have two female rats. We just recently added a male into the cage. I intended only to get one of the females pregnant with the male. Somehow the male got to the other female and got her impregnated to ( I think) this morning I saw that she had blood coming out of her vagina. I just want to make sure she ok or if she is hurt. the females are about 4 months old and the male is a bit older.

Rats can bleed a little during pup delivery - so this could be normal. Has it been at least 21 days since the male was introduced into the cage? If not, it has not been long enough for her to be ready for delivery. In either case, keep a close eye on her - if she is delivering, pups should appear relatively quickly. If nothing happens soon, I recommend taking her to the veterinarian. Meanwhile you can support her by making sure she has some nesting material and wet food easily available- this way each bite of food provides calories and liquid. I hope she has had pups by now!! Thank you for using Pet Coach!!

I have a cat, 3 or 4 years old,no issues till now. he started peeing outside the box this week, small amounts. He also has peed on me twice this week, I think he can't control it. Today he started hunching like he was trying to pee multiple times but nothing came out, Other than that he has not been himself today, He has been hiding, won't come when I call, he seems out of it and uninterested, I suspect a uti but need a second opinion

It is so hard to see your pet feeling unwell! Unfortunately, I believe that Alucard should see a veterinarian as soon as possible (emergency if your vet is not available). The symptoms you describe could be a UTI - which can be very painful - but I also worry that he has an obstructed or partially obstructed urethra and he can’t pee. If this is the case, it is life threatening. At your vet, I would expect them to do a complete physical exam and likely do abdominal radiographs (x-rays) and blood work as well as a urinalysis. If it is only a UTI, they will get him on good antibiotics. If it is an obstruction, he would possibly need anesthesia to allow the vet to do a procedure to unblock his urethra. He would also likely need to stay for a bit to make sure he is peeing ok and returning to normal. Please see your vet today!! Thank you for using Pet Coach!

My male Australian Shepherd 12 weeks old has enlarged left side. Is it medical emergency? It’s been like this for the past two weeks and his behavior is normal. Eating, drinking, pooping, playing without problems

Thanks for using Pet Coach! I wonder what Ollie has going on! I do not believe it is an emergency since he is acting so fine and has been going on for s few weeks. You should make an appointment for him soon to have the issue checked out - make sure to point it out at his next vaccine appointment! If Ollie’s behavior changes (if he becomes lethargic, starts limping, does not want to eat) take him to your vet sooner.

I adopted a 3 year old male, neutered Yorkie a couple weeks ago. Playful, good appetite (eats canned dog food), good weight, appears healthy. The problem is he drinks A LOT of water. Urinalysis showed no infection and blood work was normal. He's having a bile acid test next week to test for liver shunt. But besides that, what else could he have? Should I be worried about kidney disease?

KG is lucky to have you!! It is wonderful that you have already taken him to your veterinarian for a check up. The urinalysis and bloodwork should have indicated if KG has any kidney failure (high creatinine or BUN or SDMA with a low urine specific gravity). If all of those were normal- it is highly unlikely that he has kidney failure!! Other things that can cause a dog to drink LOTS of water are diabetes (2 kinds) and psychogenic polydipsia (a fancy way of just saying they like to drink water) and a few others. Your vet can work through the blood work to rule many of these out as well as do a water deprivation test (this must be supervised by your vet!) to determine what is the root cause of KG’s behavior. Thank you for using Pet Coach!!