All Quiet at the Vets’ Office

The Vets’ Office at Pier 92 is exactly what you’d want a dog show vets’ office to be–quiet.  Dr. Jeffrey Levy and Dr. Mari Morimoto are ready and waiting to help any dog needing medical attention, but just at the moment there are no takers.  Both vets are members of New York City’s Veterinary Medical Association, which has provided care at the Westminster Dog Show for more than a decade.  Members of the Association take turns staffing the office in four hour shifts, beginning on Sunday, as the dogs arrive, and continuing on through Best in Show on Tuesday night.

     Dr. Levy is  with the spacious new benching accommodations at the Piers.  Far less crowded and much cooler than the Garden, the new venue means fewer patients for the vets. “The most common problems we see at Westminster,” says Levy, are “heat exhaustion, anxiety, and stress. The new venue is a big benefit for dogs.” Adding to the veterinary attractions of the Piers, according to Levy, is a 24 hour emergency animal hospital just two avenues away.

     Dr. Marimoto concurs that stress and anxiety are the biggest hurdles facing dogs who show at Wetsminster, causing problems such as colitis and nervous stomach, but she says, “we see far fewer behavioral problems than you would think. Dogs that show at this level are real professionals.”  Other common problems are sprains and other injuries from jumping off hotel beds and grooming tables. New York City’s insistence that all dogs have a health certificate issued seven days before the show has greatly cut down on the occurrence of infectious disease.

     Levy and Marimoto are ready for anything with remedies from ointments to emergency hospital referrals. But their favorite recommendation works well for Type A handlers as well as show dogs–take a little break and try to relax.

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Posted by JoanHarrigan on Feb 11 2013. Filed under Current Articles. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0. Both comments and pings are currently closed.