Dog Owner's Home Veterinary Handbook

This book is proud of its cross-referencing, and rightly so; it has a general index and also a list of signs and symptoms, which would allow one to quickly find relevant information. The signs and symptoms section has a note, that page numbers shown in boldface contain detailed coverage of the subject. But the kindle edition does not show any page numbers, nor location, nor is it clickable to link to the appropriate place (which is what I'd expect). I found no way to navigate through the book for specific signs and symptoms, which makes such a handbook useless for me. I would hope that I am wrong, and that there is some way to navigate the kindle book, which I have missed. Have I missed something?

I have 4 rescued border collies of various ages and backgrounds, who like many of you, couldn't imagine life without them. They are all on a health plan with a local vet, and receive the best of care and nutrition.I am here to share a recent experience with you to illustrate how crucial this book is for any dog owner!!One of my dogs, a 5 year old, was gaining weight, changing in his demeanor and becoming lazy and passive. Just not himself for the last 6-9 months or so. He had his yearly exam and blood work done in Dec. Nothing remarkable, Vet noted his weight gain.A few months back I noticed also that his tail fur appeared to be thinning. Nothing obvious like patches, etc, I chalked it up to his weight gain and thought to myself it just looks smaller due to his weight gain.Over the past few weeks I had noted even further thinning of the tail fur and was now convinced that he was losing tail fur. So, I did a Google search on thinning tail fur, and through some forum threads and blogs, had narrowed it down to Cushings Syndrome or hypothyroidism.I then pulled this book from the book shelf to learn about both. First checked Cushings...seemed far fetched, not real applicable.Turned back one page and there was Hypothyroidism. It clearly and concisely gave me exactly what the symptoms are, what the vet would do to check it, and treatment.Just what you would expect from a book of this sort...BUT...HERE is where the REAL story begins, read on dear reader. :)So, reading the book, I was convinced my dog should be tested for hypothyroidism.In the book, one of the possible precursors to HT (hypothyroidism) is a high cholesterol reading.Also in the book, it says the test for HT is the Total T4. If this comes back low, the results must be narrowed with an FT4, or there are other blood tests which can also more accurately detect the thyroid condition. The book details these.My wife usually deals with the vet, so I asked my wife to call the vet and ask what the cholesterol reading was from his Dec blood work. Vet said it was normal, and asked why. Wife said "K is concerned about Fido, and wanted to know if it was high as a possible indicator of HT, concerned about his weight gain, his tail fur loss, etc"Vet says "cholesterol has nothing to do with HT, don't know what book HE'S reading..."Wife says "Well, he wants you to run a Total T4 immediately, when can we bring him in?"We bring him in, blood is drawnI receive voicemail from Vet 3 days later: "Hello, this is Dr Anonymous calling back about your dog Fido. Yes...and to let you know, uh...er that yes, we...the test is true...Fido does have hypothyroidism...this explains a lot about his weight gain an lethargy. I'm going to prescribe a treatment...he should lose that weight soon, his fur will come back full, and he will regain his energy, etc"Umm...yeah.....that BOOK you asked about earlier...DOC...?? THIS is THAT book.So, I know, long story...but I thought the irony of a Dr snarkily asking my wife what book *I* was reading from...and the days later fumbling over his words to leave the message that, basically...I was right, and he would begin treatment.That feels great, but it's NOT about this guy's abilities as a vet, or me being right.What it IS about is pointing out that, even with a health plan, and everything you all do for your dogs, at the end of the day, it is really up to YOU, their guardian, bestest friend, and the head of their forever family, to make sure they get the care they deserve.I don't know why the vet missed it, or didn't diagnose it himself in Dec. I'm not casting judgment on him. I can only say that because.of the information in this amazing book, I was able to proceed with an appropriate course of action, in conjunction with my vet, to get my dog fixed.Fido, in one month of treatment, has lost much of the weight he put on, his tail is filling back out, his eyes sparkle with youth again, and he is like a whole new dog again!I use this book for all sorts of things big and small. The information is laid out perfectly, as you'd expect with a reference book of this nature. It is both very technical and easy to read. It is very well presented, and the indexes are very thorough and complete.If you are hesitating on this book, don't! Your 4 legged buddies really depend on you, and this book really delivers both peace of mind for you, as we l as knowing when, and how, to act when needed. You can speak knowledgeably to your Vet on any issue with this book in your library.Thanks for reading, I hope it was beneficial, particularly for those on the fence about buying this brilliant book.

I love this! Couple of things:1- this can be read cover to cover or else as needed. Pretty well indexed and cross referenced. I've read it both ways. Very helpful.2- consult your vet before administering some of these meds, as some are known to be toxic to dogs in certain amounts! However it is a great rule.of thumb guide. There are also newer drugs not in it, like Apoquel.3- my brother's dog saw 3 vets who all failed to diagnose him properly... just the chapter on skin helped me to say, "canine atopy." My brother came in to see my boss (a vet) and I only told her the dog had a pyoderma, but from all the other signs she said, "canine atopy!" (All previous vets insisted fleas, thyroid, mites... always tested negative...). This book did what 3 other vets failed to do, and said what 1 vet who has now successfully treated said dog said too! Helps a lot to be able to tell your vet in vet speak what I going on.Highly recommended, and I also bought the cat version since this one was so helpful. I haven't gotten through that one yet but this is definitely a great reference for everything from emergencies and seemingly impossible to diagnose or treat problems, to managing general wellness and little oddities you may not want to pay 45 dollars for a vet to tell you it's just something small like give the dog some fish oil.

Purchased this book new... came with dents on the bottom of the spine and an imprint on the front cover as if something heavy had fallen on it... while I’d usually chalk this stuff up to “less than delicate” shipping, it’s pretty obvious that UPS is not the cause. The spine was misaligned during the printing process, leading to it running into the back cover (see photos).As far as content, it’s decent. Easy to read, however it does not meet the requirements I was looking for, and hoped to find based on the description and reviews. As a clinician, I have a number of medications at home that cross over to K9 from humans - for obvious anatomical and physiological reasons, dosing can vary slightly on one med, and significantly on the next.All of the seemingly basic ones such as anaphylactic shock say ‘your vet should administer steroids and epinephrine’.... I purchased this book to have essentially a field guide to veterinary medicine when a vet is anywhere from hours to days away.

As a veterinary technician...I found this book very informational and on point with what owners should know in regards to taking proper care of their dog and supplying what they need to live a happy life such as the right nutrition, vaccinations, dental work, and so on. It also presents a lot of medical issues and emergencies that occur and how to pinpoint them along with what interventions to take if any. This book is a great buy for dog owners because it will give them peace of mind when a real problem does show up. You can keep this on your shelf and reference it when you want to or just read it cover to cover. You can even do both. I loved this book and I know you will to.

I found a typo in the dosages for one of the OTC meds. Can’t trust it for any dosages now... good info in it otherwise.

The book was very informative and helpful. Accuracy was spot on. Very helpful to identify diseases and remedies prior to contacting your vet.Very good identifying the treatment given by your vet to your dog.An essential book for every dog owner.

Overall this is a very good book and covers most things an owner needs to know about veterinary treatment for their dogs. The level of detail is generally good and presents the subject matter clearly and concisely although it does have its drawbacks. The book is poor at quickly narrowing specific symptoms down to a likely cause with the reader often having to comb through any number of potential causes. It is also tends to lack detail when dealing with the potential treatments that may be undertaken. Given the relative expense of this handbook I would have expected a little more as the potential purchaser of such a handbook is likely to be a more experienced owner, dog show exhibitor or breeder rather than the average family pet owner. (No snub intended) Such owners generally have a fair working knowledge of basic injuries / illnesses and their treatment. If each main chapter were to include a basic diagnosis algorithm cross refenced against likely causes then this would be a wothwhile update.

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not quite as detailed as I would have liked for first aid

A great stand by for any dog owner.I love my dogs so I love this book.Good service and excellent quality book.