How to support companion animals with special needs

At the 2021 Atlantic Coast Veterinary Conference (ACVC), Melissa Shapiro, DVM, shared with dvm360^® how veterinary professionals can help pets with special needs by extending support, listening, and providing resources to their caregivers.

View the video below for the entire discussion. The following is a partial transcript:

Melissa Shapiro, DVM: When veterinarians come to the table and see a blind and deaf dog, they may not have experience with blind and deaf dogs in a household, [and] maybe this is the first one they are seeing. [Veterinarians] need to listen to the people, they need to hear what is going on in this house with this dog, and what the concerns are. But in addition, veterinarians I think have a big responsibility to have some understanding of all of these disabilities.