Vetgirl Veterinary Continuing Education Podcasts

Questions? You can always contact us via our Contact Us page.

Did your in-house hematology analyzer just go down? Have to do a blood smear? In this VetGirl veterinary CE podcast, Dr. Ashleigh Newman (our clinical pathology guru, who is a resident at Cornell) gives us some tips on interpreting your blood smear accurately and appropriately. As in vitro, artifactual changes can occur in hematology samples, make sure to perform a fresh blood smear (at the time of blood collection) to submit with your hematology sample and to look at it in-house!

Questions? You can always contact us via our Contact Us page.

Questions? You can always contact us via our Contact Us page.

In this VetGirl podcast, Dr. Marie Holowaychuk reviews the use of intramuscular (IM) glargine insulin in cats for the treatment of diabetic ketoacidosis (DKA). While we were always taught that you should only ever use regular insulin IM, this study may prove otherwise! So before you refer all your DKA cases away, pay heed to this VetGirl podcast!

Questions? You can always contact us via our Contact Us page.

Questions? You can always contact us via our Contact Us page.

Questions? You can always contact us via our Contact Us page.

Questions? You can always contact us via our Contact Us page.

Urinary tract infections (UTIs) are common in our veterinary patients, and can sometimes be tricky to diagnose and treat appropriately. An aerobic urine culture is the gold standard, allowing identification of the infectious agent and a sensitivity profile to direct treatment; however, this test takes several days to get back, and treatment (in other words, appropriate use of antibiotics!) is often required in the meantime. This veterinary podcast reviews the importance of Gram staining urine versus evaluating an unstained urine sediment exam for the detection of bacteriuria in dogs with suspected UTI. Stain your urine!

The use of colloids is more commonly utilized in veterinary medicine as a means of increasing colloid osmotic pressure (COP). Rarely, there are complications associated with the use of colloids, including volume overload and effects on coagulation (hypocoagulability). This veterinary podcast reviews the effects of the synthetic colloid hydroxyethyl starch 130/0.4 (Voluven) on coagulation and reiterates how clinical patients receiving synthetic colloids should be monitored for changes in their coagulation profiles and treated accordingly.

In this VetGirl podcast, Heidi Brenegan, Director of Marketing at Animal Emergency & Referral Center of Minnesota discusses different payment plan options available for pet owners and for your clinic. Need more than just Care Credit out there? Learn about a new payment system called PaymentBanc that allows draft payments from your pet owner's banking account without it affecting (or costing) your clinic anything!

Feline cardiac disease and secondary congestive heart failure (CHF) is a common presenting complaint to the ER or ICU. Treatment often includes diuretics (e.g., furosemide), oxygen therapy, calcium channel blockers, and other cardiac medications. Recently, the use of pimobendan has been evaluated to treat cats with heart failure. Should we wait to get our echocardiogram results before starting pimobendan? Is HCM a contraindication for giving pimobendan? This veterinary podcast reviews whether the use of oral pimobedan is beneficial, and what contraindications exist.

Questions? You can always contact us via our Contact Us page.

Gastric-dilatation volvulus (GDV) is a life-threatening emergency seen in large and giant breed dogs. Immediate stabilization includes IV access, aggressive fluid resuscitation, and gastric decompression. The question is, what's the best way to decompress the stomach? This veterinary podcast weighs the pros and cons of trocharization versus orogastric tube placement. After all, trocharization is way easier... but does it work?

Cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) is an important technique to master in veterinary medicine. After all, none of us like having our patients undergo cardiopulmonary arrest (CPA). While the prognosis for survival from CPA is guarded even with CPR, it's important to be aware of the new updates in CPR (e.g., AHA guidelines, RECOVER) as it has some potential applications to veterinary species and might contribute to improved outcomes. Check out our 7 podcasts on RECOVER for additional information on CPR also.

Questions? You can always contact us via our Contact Us page.

Questions? You can always contact us via our Contact Us page.

Have a patient that just ate some baby diaper rash cream? (VetGirl's personal fav? Boudreaux's Baby Butt Paste). How worried should you be? This VetGirl podcast reviews zinc oxide toxicosis, and whether it's going to result in heavy metal toxicosis or not.

Have an aggressive dog that you can't get near? Need to sedate it but don't know what's the most effective sedative? Have a C-section and not sure what to anesthetize the dog with? Today's VETgirl podcast interviews Dr. Jane Quandt, DVM, DACVA, DACVECC for some fantastic anesthesia and pre-medication hints for dogs!