Last November, Lexi Parrish greeted Tyler, her 3-year-old mixed-breed rabbit, one morning and knew immediately that something was not right with him. Parrish had owned rabbits before Tyler, so she had the experience and knowledge to recognize that he was in pain and needed medical attention, and she called her primary veterinarian.

Tyler, a 3-year-old mixed breed rabbit, recovering from surgery at the UC Davis veterinary hospital. (Image courtesy of UC Davis School of Veterinary Medicine) 

After speaking with Tyler’s veterinarian, Parrish took him to the University of California, Davis (UC Davis) right away, and he was seen by the Companion Exotic Animal Medicine and Surgery Service team. At UC Davis, Tyler was uncomfortable to the touch with no gut sounds, and an ultrasound showed his caudate liver lobe to be dark and enlarged. Additionally, a color doppler showed the team there was no blood flow in that caudate lobe.

 The team also discovered a small amount of free fluid in the abdomen, which could be a sign of internal bleeding. Tyler’s blood tests also revealed elevated liver values and low protein markers.

Tyler’s team at UC Davis diagnosed him with a caudate liver lobe torsion based on his diagnostic tests and clinical signs. According to UC Davis, the twisting of the liver cuts off the blood supply and, as a result, causes intense pain, liver damage, internal bleeding, and anemia.

 This is relatively common in rabbits but rare for other species and requires prompt veterinary attention.

“Fascinatingly enough, within the past…decade, but I would say even the past 5 years, us as an exotic animal community, we've been diagnosing these high percentages of liver lobe torsions in rabbits. Basically…one of the lobes—there's many lobes in the rabbit's liver—but…usually the caudate twists on itself. And you can imagine what happens if an organ torses in your abdomen; it causes a lot of pain, and sometimes it even bleeds…. These liver lobe torsions usually require surgery or very aggressive medical management,” Lauren Thielen, DVM, DABVP (Avian Practice), said in an interview with 

The team at UC Davis took Tyler into surgery and successfully removed the torsed liver lobe, and he was hospitalized for 4 days following the surgery for monitoring. During the 4 days, Tyler also received fluid therapy as well as antibiotic and anti-inflammatory medications for pain management. Parrish shared that while Tyler was in the hospital, the UC Davis team sent her daily updates to let her know his progress and how he was doing. 

“By combining advanced imaging, surgical expertise, and attentive postoperative care, we’re able to give patients like Tyler the best chance at recovery—even in life-threatening emergencies,” said David Guzman, LV, MS, DECZM (Avian, Small Mammal), DACZM, chief of the Companion Exotic Animal Medicine and Surgery Service at UC Davis.

Tyler needed a follow-up appointment to monitor his progress, and now 2 months after the surgery, Parrish reported that Tyler is back to normal, being his sweet but bossy self.

“The caudate lobe is the most common lobe to become twisted. But most rabbits, including Tyler, do well after it is removed,” said Ariella Darvish, DVM, a third-year resident with the exotics service.

 “We’re happy he’s recovering nicely with no complications.”

Warren R. Emergency surgery saves rabbit with liver lobe torsion. UC Davis Weill School of Veterinary Medicine. January 27, 2026. Accessed February 2, 2026. https://www.vetmed.ucdavis.edu/news/emergency-surgery-saves-rabbit-liver-lobe-torsion

Bautista-Alejandre A. The potential risks of diagnosing rabbits with GI stasis. 

. October 4, 2024. Accessed February 2, 2026. 

https://www.dvm360.com/view/the-potential-risks-of-diagnosing-rabbits-with-gi-stasis

Articles

Quick owner recognition and specialized surgical intervention at UC Davis led to a successful outcome for Tyler, a 3-year-old mixed-breed rabbit.

Surgery saves rabbit with caudate liver lobe torsion

An 8-month puppy recheck lets veterinarians normalize adolescent behavior, set expectations, and support clients before challenging teenage behaviors lead to frustration or repair work

Early conversations about canine adolescence can prevent future repair work for owners and veterinarians

 impulsivity, emotional volatility, and hormonally driven behaviors, much like in humans. Christopher Pachel, DVM, DACVB, CABC (IAABC), explains how an 8-month recheck allows veterinarians to monitor development, normalize adolescent behavior, and guide clients through this challenging stage before frustration sets in.

Training the adolescent dog: Consistency over correction

The following is a transcript of the video, lightly edited for clarity and cohesion:

I like to have them before they’re necessary, truthfully. One of the things that I used to do when I was in a general practice, primary caregiver role is that as I was working with those clients through their puppyhood vaccination or wellness series—whatever you call that in your clinic—is that, as we were wrapping that up somewhere in that 4-to-6-month time period, there was often going to be an extended period of time that we weren't going to see those puppies or teenagers again unless something went wrong. You know, meaning they have a medical concern, they have an ear infection, they have a bladder infection, or they injure themselves somehow.

There's often a time period of up to a year before they're "due" to come back in for a booster, for a vaccination, or for some other diagnostic testing. And unfortunately, by the time that puppy gets to be 14, 16, or 18 months of age, they are all very, very much in that teenager phase, and we may now be trying to do repair work on that relationship, rather than being proactively in the driver's seat to help guide and support our clients.

So, what I used to do at that point were two things. One of them was to say, "I would love to see your puppy back for a quick recheck somewhere around 8 months of age." That gives us an opportunity to make sure that physically, they're maturing the way they're supposed to and that they've lost all their baby teeth the way they're supposed to. Let's take a look at those things.

Secretly, then, what I was able to do in that 8-month appointment was say, "Hey, everything looks great." Hopefully it does. "Everything looks great, and you may not know this already, but your dog is about to become a teenager. Things could go off the rails in a way that feels really frustrating or problematic. If that happens—even though I know your dog, your puppy, is an angel and would probably never do these things I'm about to share with you—if they do, please know that a lot of this is actually normal. It's something that we can work with, and I can help match you with a positive reinforcement trainer who can help guide you through that process."

So for me, the answer to the question is proactive expectation setting: letting folks know that that is, in fact, something they're likely to experience, normalizing it as part of that caregiver journey, and making sure that they understand how I, or my team, or the trainers in our community, can be a viable resource for them to help them through it.

Videos

An 8-month puppy recheck gives veterinarians a chance to set expectations, normalize adolescent behavior, and guide clients before challenging teenage behaviors lead to frustration or repair work.

Good morning and happy Monday dvm360 readers! Earlier this morning, the news broke that Punxsutawney Phil saw his shadow, which means we are in for 6 more weeks of winter. Each year, thousands of people gather in a small town in Western Pennsylvania to see whether there will be an early spring or a longer winter, and this year Phil predicted the latter. If you want to read more about the history of Punxsutawney Phil and where this tradition came from, you can check out 

While we brace ourselves for 6 more weeks of winter, here is what you can find this week on dvm360.com:

Part 2 of the Pet Smart Charities – Gallup Study revealed gaps between pet owners and veterinary professionals on flexible care options amid shared financial strain, and showed cost is a reason clients decline treatment, and is more than twice as often as any other factor.

In his latest installment of Vet Scene Down Under, Phil Tucak, BSc, BVMS, shares the latest on the 24/7 telephone mentoring service available to Australian veterinarians, plus the launch of the Australian Veterinary Innovation Council.

On this week’s episode of The Vet Blast Podcast presented by dvm360, our host Adam Christman, DVM, MBA, welcomes Clare Walker, DVM, to the show to talk about what it is like to be a thriller author and a veterinary professional.

During an interview with dvm360, Phil Bergman, DVM, MS, DACVIM (Oncology), shares insights into the data, and misunderstandings about it, on spay and neuter and the role it may have on certain types of cancers in patients.

UC Davis School of Veterinary Medicine shared the story of Tyler, a 3-year-old mixed-breed rabbit, who was brought to its veterinary hospital for emergency surgery after it was discovered that part of his liver became twisted.

Veterinary professionals are uniquely positioned to provide guidance to clients about the true correlation between the climate and pets, so having a conversation about it with clients is crucial. Ajay Sawant, a veterinary intern at Apollo College of Veterinary Medicine, takes a deep dive into this topic in his first article as a dvm360 student ambassador.

McCafferty C. Punxsutawney Phil officially makes his 2024 prediction. 

. February 2, 2024. Accessed February 2, 2026. 

https://www.dvm360.com/view/punxsutawney-phil-officially-makes-his-2024-prediction

Check out a sneak peek at this week’s headlines 

Sneak peek: Study results show gaps between clients and veterinarians on flexible options for care amid financial strain, and other news

During his lecture at the 2026 Veterinary Meeting and Expo, Jan Bellows, DVM, DAVDC, DABVP, FAVD, educated attendees on the critical role that comprehensive oral prevention assessment and treatment (COPAT) plays in maintaining optimal oral health for canine and feline patients. His lecture, “Unmasking the Mystery: Why COPAT Is Essential for Oral Health,” was sponsored by Dechra.

But what exactly is COPAT? In this Q&A with 

, Bellows shares more about his background, explains how COPAT differs from comprehensive oral health assessment and treatment (COHAT), and discusses why he considers it the gold standard of care in veterinary dentistry.

dvm360: Can you tell us a little bit about yourself?

: I’ve been a veterinarian for 50 years now. I probably started my veterinary career at about 7 years old, when I decided I wanted to become a veterinarian. Everything I did in middle school and high school was geared toward that goal.

I attended the University of Florida for 3 years and then Auburn University for 4 years to earn my veterinary degree. After graduation, I completed an internship at the Schwarzman Animal Medical Center in New York City in 1976.

From there, I opened a practice in Pembroke Pines, Florida, where I practiced for 20 years. I then opened another practice in western Florida, where I have practiced for the past 25 years. I became a board-certified veterinary practitioner in 1986 and a board-certified veterinary dentist in 1990. Over time, I became active in organized veterinary dentistry, eventually serving as president of the American Veterinary Dental College and president of the Foundation for Veterinary Dentistry. I truly love being a veterinarian.

: The main takeaway is that most people refer to this procedure as a COHAT. I don’t know if you’ve heard that term before.

: When you visit your human dentist, you might say, “My teeth need to be cleaned.” They’ll respond, “OK, we’ll schedule a prophylaxis with our hygienist next month.” Essentially, they’re cleaning teeth that are already relatively healthy.

When a client calls a veterinary office, they often say, “My dog’s or cat’s breath smells,” and the response is, “OK, we’ll schedule a dental.” But the term “dental” means different things to different people.

Most veterinary professionals use the term COHAT, which stands for comprehensive oral health assessment and treatment. I’ve changed that to COPAT—comprehensive oral prevention assessment and treatment—because COHAT does not explicitly include prevention. If prevention is emphasized early, both clients and veterinarians can dramatically reduce the number of animals requiring extractions due to periodontal disease.

Tooth brushing is a great idea in theory, but in reality, very few pet owners do it consistently. Imagine if you didn’t brush your own teeth for six months—you would likely need extractions as well. Much of this disease can be prevented with simple, practical measures, such as wiping the teeth instead of brushing or using Veterinary Oral Health Council (VOHC)–accepted products.

dvm360: You call COPAT the gold standard of care in veterinary dentistry, why is that?

: In some practices, “doing a dental” simply means placing the animal under anesthesia, cleaning the teeth, and sending the patient home. COPAT, however, consists of three essential components: prevention, assessment, and treatment.

The prevention phase includes educating clients on ways to prevent periodontal disease and tooth fractures—for example, avoiding antlers, bones, and nylon toys.

The assessment phase is critical. It includes a thorough visual examination, periodontal probing of every tooth in at least six areas, and full-mouth intraoral radiographs. Intraoral radiographs are far superior to skull radiographs, which some practices still use. While the patient is under anesthesia, all findings are carefully evaluated. The client is then contacted and informed of any problems that have been discovered.

Treatment options may include injecting hyaluronic acid into affected areas to reduce pocket depth and inflammation and support healing, locally instilled antibiotics, deep cleaning, extractions, root canal therapy, or referral to a specialist. There are many possible approaches, depending on the findings.

Finally, there is the treatment phase. In many practices, time and space constraints limit the number of cases that can be completed in a single day. When treatment is postponed or not performed, everyone loses—the patient, the client, and the practice. However, when procedures are appropriately scheduled—whether completed the same day or at a follow-up appointment—everyone benefits.

That is why COPAT represents the gold standard: it fully integrates prevention, comprehensive assessment, and appropriate treatment, ensuring complete and optimal patient care.

All dental content for the month of February is sponsored by C.E.T. 

What is COPAT, and how can it help dentistry patients in your clinic?

Q&A with Jan Bellows, DVM, DAVDC, DABVP, FAVD

Virginia Tech’s Marion duPont Scott Equine Medical Center now offers H-FIRE, a nonthermal tumor ablation procedure developed through collaboration between Virginia Tech’s veterinary medicine and engineering programs.

According to the release, equine patients battling stubborn sarcoids and melanomas can now use this new “tumor-destroying” technology, which allows most horses to remain standing during treatment. Because they can stand during treatment, it eliminates the violent muscle contractions induced by other treatments that previously required general anesthesia.

Elsa Ludwig, DVM, MS, CVA, PhD, DACVS-LA, clinical assistant professor of equine surgery at the center, worked with clinical researchers to treat cases of sarcoidosis, melanomas, squamous cell carcinomas, and rare skin tumors such as myxoma, describing the work as a success.

H-FIRE uses electrical pulses to enhance chemotherapy uptake, creating holes in tumor cell walls. This then allows more chemotherapeutic drugs to enter and destroy the cells, resulting in the least amount of medication needed and making it safer for horses and those who handle and care for them after treatment.

The electrical pulses are delivered in quick, intermittent bursts rather than sustained charges, eliminating the need for anesthesia to prevent the patient’s muscles from contracting.

 The biomedical engineers at Virginia Tech created the technology in 2011, and clinical trials began with veterinary researchers in 2013.

Now, most horses can be treated with local anesthesia at the treatment site while standing and sedated. In some cases, general anesthesia may be necessary based on the horse’s temperament or tumor location.

Emerging evidence suggests that H-FIRE could boost the horse’s natural immune system and help the body recognize and attack tumors if they develop elsewhere in the body.

Following the surgical excision and initial treatment, H-FIRE patients typically return monthly for 2 to 3 additional treatments that combine H-FIRE and chemotherapy. Horses receiving the treatment experienced minimal complications and were not out of work for long, especially after their follow-up visits. This then resulted in fewer emergency stall rest situations and faster returns to regular activity, racing, and competition. Besides reducing the amount of needed veterinary visits and lowering chemotherapy drug usage, this treatment can also help keep treatment costs down for clients.

“Sarcoids and other tumors are unpredictable and frustrating to treat,” said Ludwig, who formerly worked at North Carolina State University, the second place in the US to offer this treatment.

 “There is every chance that the tumor may recur or be particularly aggressive in the future.”

Peart S. Virginia Tech-developed H-FIRE treatment now offered at Equine Medical Center. Virginia Tech News. January 29, 2026. Accessed January 30, 2026. 

https://news.vt.edu/articles/2026/01/vetmed-emc-hfire.html

The Marion duPont Scott Equine Medical Center is 1 of 2 facilities in the US offering this treatment.

Virginia Tech now offering H-FIRE treatment 

Once thought to affect only dogs with specific, identifiable risk factors, leptospirosis is increasingly being diagnosed in a broader range of patients. In this Q&A adapted from a 2026 Veterinary Meeting & Expo lecture, Jane Sykes, BVSc, DACVIM (SAIM), PhD, MPH, MBA, FNAP, traces the convergence of urban wildlife, social factors, and missed vaccinations driving the disease’s spread. She also explains why diagnosis can be deceptively difficult, outlining how veterinarians can avoid common pitfalls, and discusses what researchers still don’t fully understand.

Jane Sykes, BVSc, DACVIM (SAIM), PhD, MPH, MBA, FNAP

Sykes is the lead author of the 2023 American College of Veterinary Internal Medicine consensus statement on leptospirosis in dogs. Currently, she is a professor of medicine and epidemiology at the University of California, Davis School of Veterinary Medicine. 

: Cases of leptospirosis are appearing in otherwise healthy dogs, including puppies. What factors are contributing to these cases in the US?

 That's a really great question and something that we're actively involved in researching. It does seem like it’s multifactorial. In big cities, it’s likely associated with population growth and rodent proliferation. New evidence suggests rodents might be an important source of infection for dogs.

We also studied an outbreak in West Los Angeles [LA], which was driven, in part, by overcrowding at boarding facilities. We don't know for sure whether dog-to-dog transmission occurred in those doggy day care–type environments, but we do know that the boarding itself was a risk factor. It might have been due to rodent problems in those facilities, or it might have just been the result of overcrowding, with many dogs in close contact with one another.

We’re also studying an outbreak associated with homelessness and the dogs of the homeless. We know that dogs that are in homeless encampments are also at risk for leptospirosis.

Most importantly, however, not being vaccinated is the biggest risk factor. In the LA outbreak, affected dogs were either completely unvaccinated or they had only received 1 dose without the follow-up booster 3 to 4 weeks later. Many vets didn't even carry leptospirosis vaccines.

Some dogs began getting vaccinated when they started developing leptospirosis. Owners rushed their dogs in for vaccines after hearing about outbreaks in the region, but it was too late. Other dogs acquired the infection before the second dose was administered—before they were able to get protection from a second vaccine.

Again, the disease in puppies is related to the fact that it's difficult to vaccinate a dog by the time they’re 3 months of age. You can start vaccination at around 8 to 9 weeks of age, depending on the vaccine label, with a second dose 3 to 4 weeks later, plus an additional week needed for adequate immunity. It's difficult to get puppies vaccinated in time, and it probably explains some of the cases in this group.

Geriatric and small-breed dogs are also at risk because owners often assume older or small dogs don’t need vaccination.

There’s good, new evidence that the current leptospirosis vaccines are very safe. Studies show adverse reaction rates in small breeds are comparable to those for distemper, hepatitis, and parvovirus vaccines. [Although] we don’t know all circulating serovars nationwide, in the LA outbreak, we identified [

through culture. The available 4-serovar vaccines do seem to be preventing leptospirosis, because we’re pretty much only seeing it in dogs that were not properly vaccinated.

: What are some common pitfalls you see in leptospirosis diagnosis in clinical practice?

 This is a great question and is one of the reasons why [leptospirosis] is such a good disease to talk about to vets. It's really about understanding infectious disease diagnostic testing.

The traditional gold standard is the microscopic agglutination test [MAT], which measures antibodies to various serovars. But because leptospirosis is an acute disease, dogs often haven’t had time to mount an antibody response when they first present. Early serologic tests, including MAT, are often negative or show very low titers. A common mistake is to rule out leptospirosis based on a single early test. You should follow up with a convalescent titer 1 to 2 weeks later to document seroconversion. In practice, many vets wait too long, or owners don’t return once the dog improves, which can complicate diagnosis.

Another challenge is subclinical exposure. Many dogs are exposed but never get sick, yet they develop positive antibody titers. For example, a dog with acute kidney injury from ibuprofen toxicity might have a positive [leptospirosis] titer from prior exposure, and you might be inclined to say that the dog has leptospirosis, when, in fact, it just was previously exposed subclinically, and now it has ibuprofen toxicity. Point-of-care tests can make this more complicated. A rapid test might be negative early in illness or positive due to previous exposure, leading to over- or underdiagnosis.

Regarding commercial rapid tests, the Zoetis WITNESS detects immunoglobulin M, indicating recent exposure, [whereas] the IDEXX SNAP Lepto Test detects immunoglobulin G, which can reflect past exposure. Dogs can test negative early on with the WITNESS test and then convert to positive a week later, so timing is critical.

The other group of tests is the PCR [polymerase chain reaction]-based assays, which a number of different laboratories offer. It’s recommended to test both blood and urine because early in infection, organisms are present in the blood, and later they are shed in urine. When a dog presents, it’s often unclear which stage of illness it’s in, so both samples should be submitted.

Urine PCR is generally more sensitive than blood, but antibiotics can quickly produce false negatives. Some healthy dogs may shed leptospira DNA without clinical disease. There was a study looking at healthy shelter dogs in Tennessee, Virginia, and Kentucky, and over 10% of those healthy shelter dogs were shedding [leptospirosis] DNA in their urine.

So dogs can act as carriers, and we've seen some dogs come in that probably had other causes of kidney disease, because the pattern of their abnormalities did not align with [leptospirosis], but we detected [leptospirosis] DNA in their urine. So, on blood, you can trust it, but on urine, you need to be cautious in interpreting it and make sure that the clinical signs are consistent with [leptospirosis].

PCR, in general, is often not that sensitive, so if you get a negative urine PCR, it certainly does not rule out leptospirosis.

: Are there any gaps in leptospirosis research that you believe still need to be addressed, and are there any developments that you anticipate in the next few years?

 Yes—still don’t fully understand transmission cycles in dogs, which is the focus of our current research. We’re trying to figure out which serovars are circulating among different animal species and in the environment, and what the risks are to humans. Studying this is tricky. The best approach is whole genome sequencing on isolates from urine. In the West [LA] outbreak, we found that post peak, organisms from different dogs were slightly different, suggesting little dog-to-dog transmission during that period, though it could have occurred at the peak.

We need more studies like this to clarify the role of rodents and urban wildlife in transmitting infection to dogs and to map what’s circulating in the environment. It’s really a One Health problem.

We also need broader vaccines that aren’t serovar-specific. Right now, understanding serovars is essential because vaccines are serovar-specific. But once we have nonserovar-specific vaccines, knowing the exact serovars won’t be as critical.

Jane Sykes, BVSc, DACVIM (SAIM), PhD, MPH, MBA, FNAP, discusses how urban environment, social conditions, and vaccination gaps have been reshaping how and where veterinarians encounter leptospirosis. 