Frankie’s Friends recently received a donation in honor of BluePearl Veterinary Partners surgeon Andrew Jackson, DVM, DACVS, and the staff of BluePearl’s  Blaine, MN, facility. The gift also honored Sassy Bunch, an English setter seriously harmed in a lawn tractor accident. Donor Rhonda Ganske, DVM, of Elm Creek Animal Hospital in Champlin, MN, was inspired by the care provided at BluePearl in August 2011 for Sassy, who was trapped under a lawn tractor for several minutes. Sassy suffered severe burns and trauma to her face, neck and shoulder. Sassy’s family [...]

Tampa, FL, Tuesday, Sept. 13, 2011 ­–  More than 225 pet lovers went back in time to create a brighter future for Tampa Bay families whose cherished pets need life-saving veterinary care. Rock Around for Pets, a 1950s-themed charity event, raised a net total of about $55,000 to benefit Frankie’s Friends. A nonprofit foundation, Frankie’s Friends was founded in Tampa in 1998 to assist financially strapped families with veterinary bills for emergency and specialty treatments. “The evening was a wonderful success,” says Bonni Voiland, Frankie’s Friends executive director.  “For our [...]

By Amy Lieberman March 28, 2011 Frankie’s Friends helps pets receive lifesaving treatment. When Jeanine Russo and Jason Mays learned their nine-year-old cat, Avery Mays, had lymphoma, they feared that the worst – not only for their beloved cat’s prognosis, but also for their ability to cover the costs of her treatment. But soon after, Avery Mays was referred by her regular veterinarian to NYC Veterinary Specialists, a BluePearl Veterinary Partners hospital, they realized they had options they never thought existed. A nurse told them about a financial grant through [...]

By:  David Wohlstadter, DVM Senior Emergency Clinician NYC Veterinary Specialists Anyone who has owned a dog, is familiar with an unfortunate side effect of that ownership, gas, that in some cases, can clear a room. But what causes it, can you do anything to prevent it and is it dangerous? Flatulence is defined as the excessive formation of gas in the stomach or intestine. It is a word that is often used incorrectly. Flatus is defined as gas expelled through the anus. 99 percent of the gas contained in flatus [...]

You can help your own pets by being alert for these 10 common warning signs of pet cancer! 1. Abnormal swellings that persist or continue to grow 2. Sores that do not heal 3. Weight loss 4. Loss of appetite 5. Bleeding or discharge from any body opening 6. Offensive odor 7. Difficulty eating or swallowing 8. Hesitation to exercise or loss of stamina 9. Persistent lameness or stiffness 10. Difficulty breathing, urinating or defecating * American Veterinary Medical Association, www.avma.org

Did you know February is Pet Dental Month? It is! And there are many reasons why pet dental health is important. To help get the word out to families about the importance of basic pet dental care, February was designated National Pet Dental Month by the American Veterinary Medical Society, the American Veterinary Dental Society and Hill’s Pet Nutrition. Bad breath in a dog is often dismissed simply as “doggy breath.” In fact, it may signal periodontal disease, which is the most common ailment suffered by dogs and cats over [...]

Giving thanks,  sharing a great meal with family, and having a costly visit to the 24-hour emergency veterinary hospital with your beloved pet? To keep the last item off of your Thanksgiving to-do list, follow this advice from the specialists at Florida Veterinary Specialists, a BluePearl Veterinary Partners Hospital, in Tampa, Fl: The start of the holidays can lead to emergency room visits for our four-legged pals due to a conflux of situations that are unique to the season. This is the time of year where there are usually a [...]