2. MEDICAL RESOURCES FOR PET HEALTH Mary L. Westermann April 5, 2011 RASD/NCLA

3. HOW MANY PETS DO WE OWN? 77.5 million dogs are owned in the U.S 39% of U.S. households own at least 1 dog 93.6 million cats are owned in the U.S. 33% of U.S. households own at least 1 cat Source: Humane Society of the United States. www.humanesociety.orgwww.humanesociety.org

4. How much to we spend on vet visits? Surgical vet visits: $532 for dogs; $278 for cats Routine Vet care: $225 for dogs; $203 for cats Source: American Pet Products Association. www.americanpetproducts.orgwww.americanpetproducts.org

5. What are your most frequent reasons for visiting a vet? Routine check-ups Vaccinations Health/Disease concern Drug Information Neutering/spaying Chronic condition Surgery Accident

6. What are some of the major diseases/disorders our pets face? Diabetes Cancer Allergies Thyroid disease Fractures AIDS/HIV Communicable diseases Infections

7. Where do you go for Information? Books The Internet Vet Friends/Family

8. How do you evaluate how good that information is? Source Authorship/Authority Up-to-date? Audience Internet:.edu.org.com?

9. What Types of Web Sites are there? Professional sites, geared for the veterinarian Hospital sites, maintained by large teaching veterinary hospitals Individual animal hospitals, especially those with specialized treatments or facilities Commercial sites mounted by pet food companies or pharmaceutical firms Personal web pages of pet owners who have brought together information on a particular disease or disorder Veterinary associations and specialty societies Libraries and library associations Federal, state and local government agencies

10. To Get Started…. Veterinary Medical Libraries Section/Medical Library Association www.vmls.mlanet.org

11. Veterinary Libraries Webster Library – Tufts University www.library.tufts.edu/vet

12. Universities Cornell University College of Veterinary Medicine www.vet.cornell.edu College of Veterinary Medicine – Washington State University www.vetmed.wsu.edu/cliented/ University of Illinois Veterinary Teaching Hospital www.vetmed.illinois.edu/vth/resources.html

13. Professional Veterinary Associations American Veterinary Medical Association www.avma.org/careforanimals/default.asp Association of Veterinary Medical Colleges www.aavmc.org American Animal Hospital Association www.healthypet.com

14. Other Associations American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (ASPCA) www.aspca.org American Kennel Club (AKC) www.akc.org

15. Government Websites U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) Animal and Veterinary Information www.fda.gov/AnimalVeterinary/default.htm National Agricultural Library www.nal.usda.gov MedlinePlus: Pet Health www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/pethealth.html

16. Alternative Medicine American Holistic Veterinary Medical Association www.ahvma.org Alt Vet Med www.altvetmed.org

17. Commercial Web sites Veterinary Medical Information for Dogs and Cats (vetinfo.com) www.vetinfo.com WebMD Pet Health Community www.exchanges.webmd.com/pet-health-exchange Drugs.com – Veterinary Product Database www.drugs.com/vet

18. Commercial Web Sites (con’t) PetMD www.petmd.com The Pet Health Care Library at VeterinaryPartner www.veterinarypartner.com

19. My Favorite Merck Veterinary Manual www.merckvetmanual.com

20. Other Examples Thyro-Cat www.thyrocat.com Pet Diabetes Reference List and Support Group www.petdiabetes.com

21. Remember…. Always check with your veterinarian before making healthcare decisions for your pets. Do your research so you are prepared to ask the right questions!! Love, cherish, and take care of your pets!