Dr. Phil Zeltzman’s Blog
Real stories about actual HRVSS patients.

Why Would a Pet Need a Toe Amputation?
We amputate a significant number of toes in our patients. Did that ever cross your mind? We’ve performed a huge number of toe amputation, aka digit amputation, both in cats and dogs, and for a variety of reasons. When is a toe amputation needed? There are several...

Oscar, From Miserable to Full of Energy (A Screw Tail Story)
“Oscar was miserable, depressed and uncomfortable. He hesitated to go outside to poop…”Oscar, a 10 year old Olde English Bulldog, had an itchy problem.And his owner drove 3 hours, all the way from Southern Maryland, to find a solution at Harrisburg Regional.A...

5 Ways We Decrease Stress in Our Patients
It’s hard to deny that anesthesia and surgery are stressful. So we take it very seriously, and we do everything we can to decrease stress in our patients. Here are 5 ways we reduce stress. 1. We recommend preop medications Our canine patients receive a pain...

Miracle Link, or Christmas in July
Link, an 8 year old Doxie, was in trouble. Externally, he was bright yellow (jaundiced), had been vomiting, and hadn’t eaten for a few days. Fortunately, instead of procrastinating, Link’s owner took him to his family vet, who ran blood work. It showed elevated liver...

10 Ways We Keep Patients Comfortable Around Surgery
At Harrisburg Regional, we spend an insane amount of time and effort to prevent and treat pain in our patients. Let’s take the example of Tucker, a 9-year-old Lab, who had major knee surgery today – a TPLO - to address a torn ACL. And let’s count the ways we used to...

Is My Pet Too Old for Surgery?
One very common question I hear from clients is "Is (s)he too old for this surgery?" or "Do you think surgery is worth it in a pet that old?" Mind you, the dog could be a 6-year-old Great Dane or a 10-year-old kitty. Invariably, and with a smile, my answer is "Age is...

When Everybody is Convinced it’s Cancer (part 1)
At HRVSS, we certainly remove many masses. Often, patients are referred by their family vet to remove a “cancerous” mass, in the belly, under the skin, or in a number of other areas. Unless a biopsy has been performed, I always call these “masses” more objectively:...

Double Whammy and Double Success for Majic
Majic, a 9 year old Beagle, had a very swollen and firm right thigh. Long story short, this was a classic case of an unusual type of fatty tumor, aka lipoma. It’s called an inter-muscular lipoma, which means that it lives under a muscle, or between muscles. In Majic’s...

Stanley: From Out of Breath to Running Top Speed
Stanley, a 9 month old Pug, was struggling to breathe.Because of his flat face, he had all the signs of dogs (and cats) with “brachycephalic syndrome,” such as bulldogs, Pekingese, and Boston terriers: difficulty breathing or catching his breath by day. some snoring...

A Look Back at 2021 at HRVSS…
The beginning of a new year is a great time to think about all the patients we helped, and which surgeries they required to get better.This will give you a feel for which surgeries are most common.So here are the top 10 surgeries at Harrisburg Regional...