If you want to start a discussion among people who care for horses, one surefire way is to bring up horse hoof care. Should horses be barefoot or shod? How about boots? And what about glued-on shoes? How often should hooves be maintained? What’s the ideal hoof?

Cats with diabetes have too much glucose (sugar) circulating in their bloodstream because their bodies aren't able to make insulin (Type 1 diabetes) or their cells don't respond to insulin (Type 2 diabetes). Type 2 diabetes is the most common form of cat diabetes.

Insulin is a hormone that allows glucose to be taken up by cells from the bloodstream and allows it to be stored in various forms. When there isn't enough insulin or the body doesn't respond to insulin, too much glucose remains in the bloodstream. 

Foster homes help homeless pets by decreasing their stress and limiting their exposure to infectious diseases, which can occur when many animals are housed together (such as in a shelter). Of course, most people who foster pets do so because of their love for animals, and that means they usually have their own pets at home. So how do you keep your own pets safe and healthy when you foster an animal?

If you have cats, you’ve probably seen them throw up at one time or another. A cat vomiting is common, but it's never normal for healthy cats to do so. With that said, it's also not always something that has to be treated, nor do cats need to be rushed to a veterinarian every time they vomit. Get the scoop on when to take a vomiting cat to the vet, why cats vomit, and what treatments are available to help cats who are throwing up feel better.

Ask any young child what a cat says and they'll tell you confidently, "Meow!" But is meowing all that cats say? Vocalizations are just a small part of cat communication. All felines use cat body language to share their emotions with us and other animals. Everything from their ears, eyes, and whiskers to their toes and the tips of their tails give us clues as to what our cats think of us and the world around them. Use the following guide to help you decipher what your cat is trying to say with their body language. 

Cataracts in dogs occur when the lens of the eye clouds due to either changes in the water balance in the lens or changes to the proteins within the lens. This causes blindness because light can’t reach the retina through the cloudy lens. A mature cataract looks like a white disk behind a dog’s iris. The part of the eye that usually looks black instead looks white.

Do you have a dog who's itching excessively? The itchy dog is one of the most difficult problems to assess in veterinary medicine. It is often hard to find the underlying cause, and even when found it often involves lifelong therapy for dog itch relief. If you're just starting to scratch the surface of your dog's itch issue, here are some potential causes and treatments to know.

This resource explains how shelters can work with rescue groups to save shelter animals. It includes information on locating and assessing rescue groups, evaluating shelter animals, screening transport volunteers and more.