Wellness
Our youngest daughter begins her senior year of high school this year. I can hardly believe that the bald, chubby baby I brought into this world more than 17 years ago has blossomed into a beautiful young lady who will soon be exiting our nest. Being our fourth child, my husband and I recognize the inevitable change that accompanies her last year of high school as she prepares for her next season of life as a college student.
Anesthesia in cats is a serious undertaking, and veterinarians are well trained in administering a variety of products. Properly used, all modern anesthetics have a reasonable margin of safety and are efficacious. What you as a pet owner need to be aware of is that there is a significant difference between gas anesthesia compared to injectable anesthetics. Again, both are reasonably safe and efficient, but gas anesthesia enhances safety by being rapidly reversible and does not impart any hallucinogenic effect on the cat.
Contributed by Jennifer Hyde, Pharm.D.
US Compounding Pharmacy
Compounded pet medications are designed by your veterinarian in coordination with a compounding pharmacy for the purpose of dosing your specific pet. Meeting your pet’s individual needs can be important in maintaining a healthy animal.
For example, when a pet needs the combination of several medications, it is sometimes easier on the pet to have them combined into one preparation to make it more palatable or easier on the pet’s stomach.
Rick Hoyt was born a quadriplegic with cerebral palsy. His parents, Dick and Judy, were told he would be a vegetable for life and should be institutionalized. But his dad refused to believe it. Dick noticed Rick’s eyes followed him everywhere he went and was determined to find a way to communicate with him. He solicited help from Tufts University, where a skilled group of engineers built Rick an interactive computer. Rick controlled the cursor by touching a switch with the side of his head, finally able to communicate with those around him (www.teamhoyt.com).
My husband and I married in mid-October fourteen years ago, and the holidays descended upon us as we began our new life together. My expectations of a joyous holiday season quickly faded as the reality of combining two households with different traditions and outside family members settled on us. I wasn’t prepared for the chaos and heartache that accompanied our first Christmas together.
My friend, Jennifer, knows it’s a miracle she’s alive today. Thirty-three years ago, her mother learned the baby she was carrying had Down syndrome, along with other birth defects. Her doctor insisted the child be aborted. He predicted that neither she nor the baby would survive the delivery as her pregnancy carried too many complications.
My favorite time of the day actually isn’t a time of the day at all; it’s normally around 8:30 in the evening when I’m tucking my 6-year old and 2 ½-year old into their respective beds. No, it’s not because I’m snuggling them away for the night so I can get an undisturbed moment to read a book without pictures, or watch something on television that does not broadcast from the Disney Channel; though I must admit, it is prime time for sneaking a left-over M & M or two after I’ve cut the boys off from anything sugar-laced a few hours prior.
I began running track and cross-country as a teenager in high school. My older sister was an exceptional athlete and I always wanted to keep up with her. I have fond memories of running the mile relay together, passing the baton to her as she began the final lap. Running started an exercise routine for me that has continued through adulthood.