pet connection

I suppose this sort of thing is going to get worse, now that we have two veterinarians on our blogging team here (”Good Morning America” veterinarian Dr. Marty Becker, and behavior specialist Dr. Rolan Tripp). But my holiday morning started this morning as most seem to, with someone asking for veterinary advice.

The dog is throwing up! The veterinarian’s office is closed for Thanksgiving! Help me!

Since the Beckers are in Key West escaping the Idaho snow and the Tripps are in Indiana visiting grandkids (yeah, I know you’re jealous — Indiana!) I’ll handle this:

Call your veterinarian! Sure, the office is closed, but chances are the answering machine has a taped referral to an emergency clinic, or a veterinarian who’s covering emergency calls for his or her colleagues. When a dog is vomiting so much that your worry drives you to write an e-mail, he’s vomiting enough to see a veterinarian. Especially on a holiday like this one, when all the food a dog can accidentally get into — especially of the fatty variety — can trigger a painful and life-threatening bout of pancreatitis.

I know, I know: You don’t have time. You have people coming over for dinner. You don’t have money. Do I know what emergency veterinary care costs?

Oh yes, oh yes, I know, I know, on both counts. It doesn’t matter: Call your veterinarian!

Because here at the Pet Connection blog, we care about you and your pets, but we’re flat out of fairy dust for our long-distance pet-curing magic wands.