Category Archives: Science-Based Veterinary Medicine

Safety and Efficacy of NSAIDs for Canine Arthritis

A common justification for the use of alternative therapies, with or without evidence concerning safety and efficacy, is that they are appropriate when conventional medicine does not have an established effective treatment for the problem. This is a legitimate argument … Continue reading

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How Nutraceutical Research Should be Done: Lycopene for Osteosarcoma in Dogs

Proponents of nutraceuticals, nutritional supplements thought to have therapeutic or preventative effects, often promote the use of such products despite little or no legitimate evidence to suggest they will be safe or helpful. When skeptics challenge these unsupported claims, they … Continue reading

Posted in Herbs and Supplements, Science-Based Veterinary Medicine | 1 Comment

Encouraging studies on probiotics for canine diarrhea

I have written about probiotics previously (in general, for herpsvirus in cats, and some of the overhyping and quackery associated with them), and in general I have been cautiously optimistic about their potential, while criticizing claims that go beyond the … Continue reading

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PetDiets.Com: An excellent source for science-based pet nutrition information

I just wanted to point out a web site I found recently which offers excellent information on pet nutrition. PetDiets.com is the site of Veterinary Nutritional Consultations, Inc. (VNC). This organization is a independent consulting group that provides nutrition information … Continue reading

Posted in Nutrition, Science-Based Veterinary Medicine | 12 Comments

Does the Pheromone DAP Reduce Stress in Dogs Having Surgery?

In June I reported on a systematic review of the behavioral effects of pheromones on dogs and cats. That review examined all the studies to date on pheromone products such as Feliway and DAP (dog appeasing pheromone) and concluded that … Continue reading

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Evaluating Risks and Benefits of Neutering Dogs and Cats

In response to questions from clients, and a lot of myths embedded in them, I set about last year reviewing the literature concerning the risks and benefits of neutering dogs and cats. This led to a handout for owners, which … Continue reading

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Special Challenges of Science-Based Veterinary Medicine

The following is a post I contributed to the Science-Based Medicine blog. On this site there have been several thoughtful posts (e.g. by Dr. Atwood and by Dr. Novella), and subsequently much heated commentary, on the distinction between Evidence-Based Medicine … Continue reading

Posted in General, Science-Based Veterinary Medicine | 21 Comments

A New Tool for Evaluating the Effects of Arthritis Treatments in Dogs

There is an excellent article in the current issue of the Journal of the American Veterinary Medical Association which I wanted to draw attention to, both for its conttent and the design of the study. Brown,D.C.; Boston,R.C.; Farrar,J.T. Use of … Continue reading

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Vet Stem’s Stem Cell Therapy and Chemaphor’s Oximunol Join Forces

I recently ran across a press release which identified a business relationship I found interesting. Apparently, the Canadian company Chemaphor, maker of the nutritional supplement Oximunol which I have discussed in the past, has entered into a licensing arrangement with … Continue reading

Posted in General, Herbs and Supplements, Science-Based Veterinary Medicine | 6 Comments

Stem Cell Therapy– Still an Uncontrolled Experiment on our Pets

Dr. Steven Novella at Science-Based Medicine recently posted about a publication from the International Society for Stem Cell Research which cautions people seeking stem cell therapies that most such treatments are unproven and experimental. This is an especially compelling advisory … Continue reading

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