Before you go in for your pet’s next veterinary appointment, check out these terms that a veterinary professional might use and what they mean.
Anatomy
- Brachycephalic — Greek for “short head”, refers to dogs with a “smooshed” face, such as pugs, Shih Tzus, or bulldogs
- Carpus —wrist
- Dewclaw — the extra digit on the upper, inner part of a paw
- Hock —ankles
- Pinna — external flap of the ear
- Stifle — knees
- Thorax — chest
Conditions
- Acute — an illness or condition that lasts for a short period of time
- Ataxia — abnormal gait while running or walking
- Benign — a condition or tumor/growth that is not cancerous
- Cestodes — tapeworms
- Chronic — an illness that is persisting for a long time
- Congenital — a disease or condition that has been present since birth
- Gestation — period of time an animal is pregnant (from conception to birth)
- Incontinence — inability to control urination or defecation
- Lethargy — unusual lack of energy (acting tired)
- Malignant — cancerous tumors that tend to grow rapidly and can also spread to other parts of the body
- Neoplasm — an abnormal growth of cells or tissues that can be benign or malignant
- Pathogen — a bacteria or virus that can cause disease
- Pica — an appetite for non-nutritional substances like paper, hair, or dirt
- Septic, sepsis — refers to the body’s extreme response to an infection
- Zoonoses, zoonotic — diseases that animals can pass to humans
Treatments
- Antiseptic — a substance applied to get rid of germs such as bacteria
- dDx — differential diagnosis, which is a list of potential diagnoses that your pet may have, which are then narrowed down to determine the diagnosis
- Dx — diagnosis, which is what the doctor thinks is going on with your pet
- qX — every X amount of hours, for example “q8” is every 8 hours
- Radiograph — X-ray image
- Rx — prescriptions
- SID/BID/TID/QID: once/twice/three times/four times a day
- Sx — surgery
- Tx — treatment or therapy, the recommended plan to heal your pet or maintain your pet’s health
- UA — urinalysis, a laboratory test that uses a urine sample
Now that you’re familiar with these veterinary terms, you’ll be more prepared to communicate with veterinarians and better understand your pet’s health.
