Dear Readers: 

I have been writing daily posts on Dolittler for three-plus years. I stay awake late every night researching new topics and I wake up early every morning to click them into my computer. I know you value this because about 2,000 of you keep coming back day after day to see what’s new. 

I write 500 to 1,000 words on Dolittler every single day (mostly without fail) while...

Every year I attend “the world’s largest veterinary convention” in Orlando Florida. So known for its typically teeming attendance, this year’s version of the North American Veterinary Conference (NAVC) seemed a tad subdued, population-wise…and I think I know why.

Attending a conference is practically a mandated thing according to our professional requirements for continuing education (CE). It...

Has your veterinarian ever graced you with his or her phone number? Was it by way of offering her best clients a chance to call her in the event of a serious emergency? Or does he give it away indiscriminately?...just in case.

I practice in the middle of a triangle of emergency hospitals. None is further than a mile or two away. Furthermore, my preferred place happens to be right across the...

After you’ve rescued a puppy from a nasty foreign body to the tune of an easy-handed bill for $800 the owner claims he left his wallet in the car. He then tucks Fluffy under his arm and skedaddles, never to be heard from again. That was a couple of years back. (This, after I did him a “favor” on the bill as those of you whose pets have had foreign body surgery can attest.)

This scenario has...

Can you guess how many animals I euthanized last year?

Sadly, this morbid mental exercise is kind of like guessing how many jellybeans are in a jar. But it’s undertaken less as a senseless descent into morbidity than by way of reaching into my profession’s heart of darkness…and attempting an exorcism of the demons that live there.

That’s what whatikilledtoday is all about. In case you’ve...

Until last week, my air conditioner had been broken for a month. No big deal this time of year in Miami. I just opened the windows. But the cause of the malfunction and the effect of a return in central air circulation have been eye-opening—in a way that, strangely, involves my pets.

Turns out the goats love following an amused meter man as he makes the rounds of my house. They love poking...

I imagine most of you won’t find this topic amusing but I can’t help presenting it here by way of soliciting your impressions. Here’s the deal: Over on VIN (mostly for vets only), there’s a thread about a vet who “spayed” her first male cat.

Well, not exactly…she just started to, making an abdominal incision and seeking out a set of tubes that weren’t there…before realizing it was a boy cat...

I hate people sometimes. Strong words for a peaceful Sunday morning, right? There I was, sitting at Starbucks, recovering from catering my mother’s lavish annual holiday party (75 peeps!), just cooling my toes in a cappuccino…when the phone rings:

Unknown number. S---! Should I answer it?...why not?

Is this Dr. Khuly?! Dr. Khuly my cat is dead. Dead! This is the third cat I’ve taken to your...

When it’s time for your pet’s euthanasia most of you want a veterinarian who will show the right degree of compassion, know just what to say, give you a big hug or the room you need, and treat your pet with reverence and humanity—almost as if he were her own.

That’s hard to do. But most of us try hard to do it right—to the best of our abilities.

When you’re trying to make decisions on the...

Your older cat’s sudden bout of vomiting led your vet to tentatively conclude that his kidneys were failing. Indeed, his renal values were significantly elevated and abdominal X-rays were fairly normal. He was hospitalized. Your regular vet goes out of town and leaves the case to her associate.

When significant hydration failed to resolve the vomiting your vet’s associate solved the case by...