Tami Shearer, DVM

We are reminded daily of the obesity problems facing Americans and we see how these issues are mirrored by the percentage of pets that are overweight.

As veterinarians, we are asked by pet owners to assess the quality of life of a pet each time we do an examination.

In the veterinary profession we are confronted with a number of factors that affect the treatment outcome of our patients.

Over the past 10 years, the veterinary community has talked about hospice care but few tools were available to facilitate the efficient application of the philosophy for the veterinary practice.

A number of therapy lasers are available to the veterinary practitioner.

Low-level laser therapy is emerging as a new treatment option with a variety of applications in the veterinary field.

As the human population ages and has more personal exposure to palliative and hospice care, pet owners are aware that there are benefits to having those services available for pets too.

A 5-step Hospice care plan was developed by Dr. Tami Shearer to act a template so no part of pet's care would get overlooked.

In veterinary practice, therapy lasers can be used alone or in combination with other pain management tools to decrease recovery time, help manage pain, and treat other conditions.