Today's Veterinary Practice provides comprehensive information to keep every small animal practitioner up to date on companion animal medicine and surgery as well as practice building and management.
Issue link: http://todaysveterinarypractice.epubxp.com/i/815220
75 A special section to Today's Veterinary Practice | May/June BEHAVIOR B ecause pets lack the ability to describe their clinical signs or explain how they feel, the veterinary healthcare team is at a disadvantage when it comes to successfully diagnosing and treating patients. The limited time with patients in the examination room means that diagnosis relies heavily on perceptions and observations of pet owners, who may not recognize or may misinterpret important signs. For example, clients with an overweight dog on a recommended exercise plan might think that their dog is active, but can they measure how many minutes per day the dog spends resting versus running or walking? And what about dogs with allergic skin disease or otitis that are home alone for much of the day—is it possible to know how many minutes per day they spend scratching or head shaking? Today's technology can help close this information gap, and veterinarians are taking note. "Advances in technology continue to provide veterinarians with tools to deliver higher-quality care to their patients. Remote monitoring of a dog's activity and movement can actually assist the veterinarian to fine-tune treatment choices, while at the same time providing the client with objective information about just how well their dog is responding to a care plan. This is a win–win for all involved," said Robin Downing, DVM, MS, DAAPM, DACVSMR, CVPP, CCRP, of the Downing Center for Animal Pain Management in Windsor, Colorado. Behavior Monitoring Taking Pet Healthcare to a New Level S. Dru Forrester, DVM, MS, DACVIM Technology provides actionable insights to improve patient care and enhance client communication and compliance S. Dru Forrester is director of Global Scientific Affairs for Hill's Pet Nutrition. Dr. Forrester was invited by Today's Veterinary Practice to author this column. Dr. Forrester received her DVM from Auburn University. She completed an internship and residency in internal medicine and received a Master of Science degree at Texas A&M; University. Dr. Forrester was a faculty member in the Department of Small Animal Clinical Sciences at the Virginia-Maryland Regional College of Veterinary Medicine for 13 years and a professor at the Western University College of Veterinary Medicine in southern California for 2 years. She has received many awards in recognition of teaching excellence, including the national Carl Norden/ Pfizer Distinguished Teacher Award in 2004. Dr. Forrester is also an adjunct faculty member in the Department of Clinical Sciences at Kansas State University. Her professional interests include urology and nephrology. ABOUT THE AUTHOR S. Dru Forrester, DVM, MS, DACVIM shutterstock.com/Ilike GATHERING DATA The limited time with patients in the examination room means that diagnosis relies heavily on perceptions and observations of pet owners, who may not recognize or may misinterpret important signs.