Foothills Animal Hospital

05/25/2026

Remember and Honor.

05/21/2026

This little man got a lot of love from staff this week.

05/21/2026

Blast from the past! We recently got to see this McDowell News clipping from the early 1990s highlighting the origin of our practice. Dr. Jeff Schutz is such a gem of a human and veterinarian and a life-shaping mentor and friend to Dr. Jornigan. We'll find a place to frame this one in the lobby over the next few weeks as the renovation comes to an end.

05/16/2026

🐷 Anesthesia & Your Pet Pig: What Every Owner Should Know 🐷

When your pig needs a procedure, anesthesia is carefully planned to keep them comfortable, pain-free, and safe. Unlike dogs and cats, pigs have some unique challenges that make anesthesia a bit more complex—and understanding these can help you feel more confident in their care.

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💡 What is the goal of anesthesia?

The goal is a balanced (multi-modal) approach that:
• Controls anxiety - keeping the pig and staff safe
• Provides a depth of anesthesia so procedures are pain-free throughout
• Keeps vital functions stable (heart rate, blood pressure, breathing, temperature)

Veterinarians use multiple types of drugs that work in different ways. This allows for lower doses of each drug, making anesthesia safer overall.

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⚠️ Why are pigs different?

One of the biggest challenges with pigs is their body composition.

🐖 Pigs tend to have thick fat stores
💊 Many anesthetic drugs are fat-soluble (lipophilic)

This combination creates some important considerations:

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💉 Injection technique REALLY matters

For injectable sedation to work properly:

✔️ Medications must be given into muscle (IM), or intravenous (IV)
❌ NOT into fat

In adult pigs, this often requires a longer needle (1.5”–3.5”) to reach the muscle layer.

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🐢 What happens if drugs go into fat?

If anesthetic drugs are accidentally injected into fat:

• Absorption is very slow
• Sedation may take much longer than expected
• It may seem like the pig “needs more drugs” (which can be dangerous)
• Recovery can be prolonged and unpredictable

This happens because fat has less blood supply, so drugs enter and leave the system much more slowly.

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🏥 How we manage this in the clinic

Our goal is to safely guide your pig through each stage:

1. Sedation (properly administered into muscle, or even intranasal for some drugs)
2. Placement of an IV catheter when possible
3. Transition to inhaled anesthesia (like isoflurane or sevoflurane)

These inhaled gases allow us to fine-tune anesthesia in real time.

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❤️ Why monitoring is critical

Gas anesthesia can cause:
• Lower blood pressure (vasodilation)
• Changes in breathing
• Temperature fluctuations

That’s why your pig is closely monitored throughout the entire procedure.

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🧠 The big picture

The safest anesthesia plans for pigs use:
✔️ Proper drug selection for the individual pig
✔️ Accurate dosing based on weight
✔️ Correct injection technique (into muscle, not fat)
✔️ A multi-modal approach to reduce side effects
✔️ Careful monitoring from start to recovery

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🐷 Bottom line:
Pigs can be safely anesthetized—but it requires experience, proper technique, and careful monitoring. If your pig ever needs a procedure, don’t hesitate to ask your veterinarian how they plan to manage anesthesia safely.

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05/11/2026

So excited to hang these paintings in the clinic! Check out more of Tegan’s amazing work on her watercolor page!

04/27/2026

Sweet Pea is a proud Momma.

04/23/2026

Sweet yin and yang snugglebugs. ☯️🐷

04/06/2026

April is National Heartworm Awareness Month. The southeast is a hotbed for this mosquito-transmitted disease in dogs and cats. There have been a number of generic topicals and a few oral products approved in recent years that carry a lower cost to prevent the disease. This is one of those diseases that can cost several hundred dollars to treat and can cause permanent and even fatal damage to a dog’s heart and lungs. Ask your veterinarian about options for prevention.

04/06/2026

Good news for owners of horses who battle gastric ulcers!

FDA has approved Gastrobim (omeprazole) oral paste for the treatment and prevention of recurrence of gastric ulcers in horses.

04/04/2026

Dogfennel showing up in your pasture? 🌱 It may be telling you something about your pasture management.

Dogfennel commonly appears in overgrazed or thin pastures, where desirable grasses are not thick enough to compete with weeds. If left unmanaged, it can grow tall and woody, reducing available forage for livestock.

To help manage dogfennel:
• Maintain thick, healthy forage stands
• Avoid overgrazing
• Mow before plants become mature
• Consider herbicide applications when plants are small

Seeing dogfennel can be a sign it’s time to evaluate grazing pressure and pasture health. If you have questions about identification or control, contact your local Extension office. 🌾