There’s nothing like a few days with your colleagues to reinforce your passion for your work. And while it was a little difficult to leave sunny Florida (where I attended the North American Veterinary Conference) to land in snow flurries at our home airport in Spokane, it’s always good to be back home in Idaho) Love the reception we get!

Without further ado, here’s what I covered last week on Vetstreet:

What to do when the veterinarian says, ‘feed this’: Therapeutic diets, available only on the order of a veterinarian, have been formulated to target specific metabolic processes to help prevent, reverse or manage an illness. I recommend them in practice — and so do other veterinarians — because they’ve been clinically proven to be effective. So when your veterinarian recommends that you switch your dog or cat to one of these diets, it’s because they’ll help the condition. That’s worth every penny, in my book.

Dental care prevents feline suffering: Over the years, I’ve seen countless feline patients with severe and painful mouth conditions, and let me tell you, they are a sorry lot. Some drool constantly. Some can barely manage to eat. Most suffer from mouth pain all the time. Think of yourself. Have you ever had a cold sore in your mouth or an infected tooth? Did you think to yourself, “This is nothing to worry about; it’s no big deal”? Of course not! Dental disease is incredibly painful, as well as detrimental to overall health and happiness. In my opinion, this is the one area of home care in which pet owners fail their pets than any other. Do you know what to do with your cat’s teeth?

How to help a fearful dog: To me, preventing suffering is not just about treating disease of the body. Helping animals to live happily has always been important to me, not only because I love animals, but because I know the health benefits people get from being with animals. I don’t like seeing animals in fear, and I don’t like the worry I see on the faces of the families of those pets. That’s why I reached out to a colleague to offer some suggestions on easing fear for dogs.

Why dogs love stink: On a lighter note, I fondly remember some dogs we had, in particularly a black Labrador named Sirloin who once tried to share a dead skunk with us. Why are some smells that are digusting to us so divine to our dogs? It’s like perfume for the furry set, and they love to share the smells that make them happy. With bonus skunk-smell cure at the end.

Pet poisons, how to protect, react: Do you know all the products in your home that can make a pet sick? And even if you do, are you careful to store them in a pet-safe way? Countless pets are accidentally killed by ingesting poison every year, and so many of these deaths could have been prevented. I share what you need to know on this extremely important topic.

While it’s great to be home, I won’t be here for long. I’m on “Good Morning America”  Wednesday the 25th, so please tune in. The topic: De-stressing your pet.