Pet Health Articles from Noah's Ark in Williamsburg
Straightforward, vet-written guides on the questions dog and cat owners ask us most — what to watch for, how things are diagnosed, and how we help.
Behavior & Training Bones, Joints & Mobility Cancer Care Dental Care Digestive Health Emergencies & Injuries Eye Care Heart & Lungs Internal Medicine Nutrition & Weight Senior & End-of-Life Care Skin & Allergies Wellness & Preventive Care
Is Prescription Dog Food Worth the Cost, or Just Marketing?
A prescription diet is doing something the cheaper bag beside it cannot, but only when it was matched to a diagnosis. Therapeutic foods are …
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Could Constant Hunger and Weight Loss Mean EPI in Dogs?
Constant hunger paired with ongoing weight loss is one of the clearest signs of exocrine pancreatic insufficiency, or EPI, a condition where the pancreas …
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How Does a Vet Decide Which Imaging Test Your Pet Needs?
Plenty of families want to know why one pet is sent for an X-ray while another needs an ultrasound, and the reason is that …
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Which Test Will Tell You If Your Pet's Lump Is Cancer?
Finding out whether your pet's lump is cancer means sampling it, and there are two ways to do that. A fine needle aspirate collects …
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Is Your Small Dog's Honking Cough a Collapsed Trachea?
If your small dog has started making a dry, honking cough that stops the whole room, a collapsing trachea is one of the first …
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What Should Your Pet's Home Rehabilitation Plan Include?
A home rehabilitation plan is more than a list of exercises. It sets out what your pet is cleared to do each day, how …
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What Are the Signs of Dry Eye in Pets, and How Is It Managed?
Dry eye announces itself with thick discharge, redness, and squinting, and once it is diagnosed it becomes a condition you manage for life rather …
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Is Your Cat Off Their Food? Feline Pancreatitis Signs and Care
A cat who quietly stops eating is rarely just being fussy, and pancreatitis is one of the more common reasons behind it. The pancreas …
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My Pet Is Going Blind or Deaf: What Do I Do Now?
Watching your dog bump a doorframe, or calling a cat who no longer turns toward your voice, is a quietly heartbreaking moment, and the …
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Why Can't One Test Explain My Pet's Chronic Vomiting?
Chronic vomiting in dogs and cats has too many possible causes for any single test to cover, so veterinarians work through a ladder of …
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Cooperative Care for Dogs and Cats: How to Make Vet Visits Less Stressful
Fear of the veterinarian is more than an inconvenience: a pet who panics during handling or hides at the sight of a carrier can …
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Why Do Dogs With Hemangiosarcoma Seem Fine Until They Collapse?
A dog can carry hemangiosarcoma for months while acting completely normal, because this cancer grows where no one can see or feel it. Hemangiosarcoma …
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Is My Dog's Growling Aggression, Fear, or Pain?
A growl is communication before it is anything else, and it points to fear or pain far more often than to true aggression. Dogs …
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Is That Bald Patch on My Dog Ringworm, and Can I Catch It?
A round, scaly patch of hair loss on your dog can indeed be ringworm, a skin infection caused by a fungus rather than any …
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Is Your Dog Reactive on the Leash or Actually Aggressive?
A dog who lunges, barks, and pulls at the sight of another dog is usually reactive, not aggressive, and that difference matters for how …
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When Is a Cat's Sneezing or Coughing Something to Worry About?
An occasional sneeze or a single throat-clearing cough from a cat is usually harmless, but repeated sneezing, ongoing coughing, or either symptom paired with …
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Can You Really Get Toxoplasmosis From Your Cat While Pregnant?
Toxoplasmosis can technically pass from cats to people, but the actual risk of catching it from your own indoor cat is much smaller than …
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Which Dog Breeds Are Most Prone to Serious Dental Problems?
Certain dog breeds carry traits that put them at much higher risk for painful dental disease, tooth loss, and infection that can spread to …
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Can a Cat with Lymphoma Still Live a Good Life?
A cat diagnosed with lymphoma can absolutely live a good life, and many do, especially cats with the low-grade small-cell form that responds well …
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How Serious Is a Bite Wound on My Dog or Cat?
A bite wound that looks minor on the outside is often much worse underneath, which is why even a small puncture on a dog …
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Conservative or Surgical? Treating Your Dog's Torn Cruciate Ligament
Choosing between conservative care and surgery for a torn cranial cruciate ligament comes down to a handful of factors: your dog's size and weight, …
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How Serious Is a Mast Cell Tumor in Dogs?
A mast cell tumor diagnosis is hard to hear, and the honest answer to how serious it is depends on the tumor: its grade, …
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UTI in Dogs: Symptoms, Diagnosis, Treatment, and How to Prevent Recurrence
A urinary tract infection in a dog is usually very treatable with the right antibiotics, and for dogs prone to repeat infections, the work …
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Why Is My Dog Coughing? Causes, Symptoms, and When to See a Vet
A cough in a dog can mean almost anything, from a passing throat tickle to a respiratory infection, a heart condition, lungworms, or something …
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Heart Disease in Dogs: Mitral Valve Disease, Cardiomyopathy, and Breeds at Risk
Heart disease in dogs is more common than many families realize, particularly in middle-aged and senior dogs and in breeds with known cardiac predispositions. …
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Which Toys and Chews Are Actually Dangerous for Pets?
The toys and chews that send dogs and cats to the dentist are, frustratingly, some of the most popular products on the shelf. Antlers, …
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Patellar Luxation in Dogs: Surgical Treatment and Arthritis Prevention
You're watching your small dog trot across the yard and her back leg suddenly pops up. She hops on three legs for two or …
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Pyometra in Dogs: The Life-Threatening Uterine Infection Every Intact Female Owner Should Know
Your intact female dog had a heat cycle six weeks ago and seemed fine. Now she's a little off. Maybe she's drinking more water …
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Glaucoma in Dogs and Cats: Symptoms, Treatment, and Protecting Your Pet's Vision
Your dog wakes up squinting. One eye is red, slightly cloudy, and clearly bothering him. By afternoon the eye looks bigger than the other …
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Hypertrophic Cardiomyopathy in Cats: The Most Common Feline Heart Disease
Your cat went to his wellness exam last year and everything was fine. Then one morning he's breathing strangely from across the room, mouth …
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MRI for Dogs: What It Diagnoses and What the Procedure Involves
An MRI for your dog is recommended when other diagnostics (physical exam, bloodwork, X-rays) have narrowed the problem to something inside the brain, spinal …
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Pancreatitis in Dogs: Causes, Symptoms, Treatment, and Recovery
Pancreatitis is inflammation of the pancreas in which the organ's own digestive enzymes activate prematurely and start damaging surrounding tissue. It ranges from a …
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