OK, so neither candidate is on my personal top-ten list for favorite people either—not right now. Both are casualties of extreme media over-exposure and, as such, they’ve managed to get under my skin a bit. Do you blame me?

That’s why tomorrow I’ll be casting my ballot with a big sigh of relief as I bask in that welcome, light-at-the-end-of-the-tunnel sensation.

In the meantime, there’s [at...

“That cynicism you refer to I acquired the day I discovered I was different from little boys.”

This brilliant line, scathingly delivered by Celeste Holme in the classic film, “All About Eve,” is exemplary of sharp-witted 1940’s cinema. It’s also to the point when you consider how female vets might feel when they suspect clients of rejecting their services on the basis of their gender.

Though you...

Have you ever had cause to marvel at the limited hours your vet keeps? Did you wonder if she was taking a nice nap at lunchtime? Taking in a round of golf?

Why can’t he stay open just one hour longer? You gotta wonder what’s up with a 4:30 drop-dead closing time.

Does it bug you that she closes at five sharp so she can get home to her kids? After all, doing so means she cares less about your...

The Daily Kibble comes to me...daily. It reports to me on interesting and newsworthy pet products and services available—usually nationwide—but aimed specifically (it seems) at sophisticated and well-heeled New York metro dog owners.

Though I’m not in the target market so-described, it makes me feel like I’m up-to-date on the frequent goings-on of the high-end pet trade, always a bellwether...

Some of you may know that I’ve undergone something of a conversion on the subject of raw in recent years. It’s not that I feed the BARF-style diet you may have heard about (ad nauseum in some cases). I still feed mostly home-cooked with some high-quality commercial supplementation. But I no longer fear the raw—nor the raw meaty bones the BARF diet and others employ.

Since opening my mind a bit...

You know, I’ve got no problem with someone trying to make a buck. I also don’t mind receiving an email about a new product for pets (and I get zillions). But I definitely draw the line when someone tries to sell me a product over and over again. It’s just not cool anymore—it’s spam.

You know the emails I mean…the ones about penile implants (as if I could accommodate one) or about Viagra...

My fifth-grader has an idea. He’s appalled at the practice of ear-tipping feral cats when it comes time to spaying, neutering and vaccinating them. He thinks it’s barbaric and he wants to put an end to it.

That’s what compelled him to come up with a science project-worthy idea to use ear tags to identify cats as owned, vaccinated and altered.

Granted, I’m OK with the ear-tipping thing. Sure, I...

You know that elephant quip, the one about how a pachyderm is best consumed? Well, I have the scar to prove it’s true…this time, as it applies to the Sisyphean task of treating the pets of inner-city Miami’s homeless population. Here’s the story:

Last Sunday three vets and three assistants ventured out to Camillus House, the most well-attended and centrally located homeless shelter in the Miami...

Please excuse my extremely late Saturday evening post. I was attending the Florida Veterinary Medical Association (FVMA) Conference in Orlando…just a stone’s throw away from the Mouse King’s lair.

Somehow I was able to exit the city in less than 24 hours without paying Disney dues—or the $500 conference fee, for that matter (press credentials are golden), but I did manage to spend $100 on gas,...

Not every pet plays well with others. We all know a recluse or three and more than a couple unsociable fight-pickers. While members of the latter variety are usually great one-on-one, the prospect of taking one of these canine examples to the dog park is not a sunny one—in fact, it’s fair to say they're unwelcome, banned, verboten.

But that doesn’t keep some similarly socially challenged dog...