Dr. Valarie Tynes—Veterinary Services Specialist at CEVA Animal Health Limited, in Kansas, and a veterinarian slated to deliver two lectures at VMX, the then-forthcoming gigantic veterinary education conference held in Orlando (and virtually) June 5-9—traces the arc of her career. 
This arc includes a small animal practice for 14 years, before deciding to act on a longstanding interest in animal behavior, undertaking a three-year residency in that field. One of the lectures Tynes will be delivering at VMX involves the behavioral changes and memory loss exhibited by senior dogs, and measures that can help mitigate, or at least slow, that decline. And in this conversation, Tynes provides a sneak preview of that lecture, starting with the various ways we define “senior dog.” She outlines signs or symptoms that might help identify canine memory lapses or other cognitive difficulties, noting that veterinarians often employ an acronym, DISHA (Disorientation, changes in social Interaction, Sleep-wake cycle alterations, Housesoiling, and Activity level changes) to make those sorts of assessments. She explains how adjustments in diet, as well as adding 
certain supplements and vitamins, can help ease, slow, or even stave off these declines. Tynes also underscored the importance of having the dog examined by a veterinarian, to ensure the cause of the dog’s observed deterioration isn’t rooted in a medical malady. In addition, she agreed to provide a brief preview of her other VMX lecture, focusing on the separation anxiety that may be provoked in dogs as their humans move into a post-pandemic work schedule, returning to the office, and other activities that take them away from the house…and helping the dogs cope with these new absences. (https://navc.com/vmx/)
ALSO: I spoke briefly with Patrick Rose, executive director of the Save The Manatee Club, about the dramatic number of manatee deaths recorded at the halfway point of the year, as recently reported by CNN and other media outlets. Rose comments on this Unusual Morbidity Event, noting that some 760 manatees have died this year, owing to multiple factors, including careless regard for the way human waste, septic tank output, and fertilizers enter the waterways. This not only affects the manatees’ habitat in horrible ways, of course, but compromises their food sources. (https://www.savethemanatee.org, https://www.facebook.com/savethemanateeclub/, https://www.instagram.com/adoptamanatee/?hl=en)
COMEDY CORNER: Erin Foley’s “Dogs” (https://www.erinkfoley.com)
MUSIC: Rebekah Pulley’s “Talking Animals Theme,” instrumentals
NAME THAT ANIMAL TUNE: The Police’s “Canary In A Coalmine”
AUDIO ARCHIVE:
Part 1
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Part 2
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