Favored Pets: Veterinary Books Every Pet Owner Should Have

Everything You Need to Know for Pet Care

When I was a child I didn’t really have “pets” so to speak, at least not for long. Except for ponies which my Dad looked after, the only pets I had were a garter snake (without my parents knowledge) and a kitten for a short time. My sister was allergic to it so that didn’t last long.

It was my husband who really introduced me to pets, especially dogs and cats. When we began working with rescue animals some of the things we added to the needs list were veterinary books.

Taking in animals that need care can be expensive, so it was an investment to purchase books that could aid us in non-life threatening treatments.

So many times these animals were in need of emergency medical treatment and on weekends a vet isn’t readily available. It became necessary that we learn to handle as many things as possible if we could with the guidance of a vet.

I can’t tell you how valuable these books have been to us in saving the life of an animal and with hospital costs. Having the books on hand is not a replacement for good veterinary health care, but it does help in a pinch.

These are the books that we own and highly recommend that every pet owner have in their home. They cover basic treatments including diagrams, charts and illustrations for care and giving injections.

The Illustrated Veterinary Guide has over 900 pages with charts, diagrams and illustrations.

Part 1 Deals with Dogs & Part 2 Deals with Cats

Chapters include:

Choosing the Right Dog/Cat

Training your Dog/Cat

Preventative Health Care

Breeding Your Dog/Cat

Elective Surgeries

Infectious Diseases

Parasitic Diseases

Immune System

Cardiovascular and Hemolymphatic Systems

Respiratory System

The Digestive System

The Urinary System

The Reproductive System

Skin and Haircoat

They Eyes and Ears

The Musculoskeletal System

The Nervous System

The Endocrine System

Part 3 Deals with Birds

Chapters include:

Choosing the Right Bird

Avian Anatomy and Physiology

Preventive Health Care

Avian Reproduction

Avian Diseases and Disorders

General Treatment of Sick Birds

Part 4 Deals with Exotic Pets

Chapters include:

Rabbits

Guinea Pigs

Hamsters and Gerbils

Mice and Rats

Chinchillas

Prairie Dogs

Hedgehogs

Ferrets

Miniature Pot-Bellied Pigs

Reptiles

Amphibians

Invertebrates

Tropical Fish

Part 5 Other Pet Topics

Chapters include:

Holistic Pet Care

Reducing Pet Costs

Zoonotic Diseases

Cancer

First Aid and CPR

Helpful Veterinary Books

Good resource tools for the home on pet care.

Buy Now

The Illustrated Veterinary Guide – by Chris C. Pinney

Buy Now

Dr. Pitcairn's Complete Guide to Natural Health forDogs & Cats

I love this book that a friend of mine gave to us. It gave good advice on medical treatment as well as maintaining good overall health for your pet naturally.

Buy Now

The Illustrated Veterinary Guide for Dogs, Cats,Birds, & Exotic Pets

This is the first edition of the book that we use at home. It is great.

Buy Now

The Merck/Merial Manual for Pet Health:

The complete pet health resource for your dog, cat, horse or other pets - in everyday language. (Merck/Merial Manual for Pet Health (Home Edition))

Authored by over 200 veterinary experts, on topics that cover advice for dogs, cats, horses, birds, reptiles, fish and other exotic pets. 1,300 pages.

Another Helpful Tip ...

Keep track of pet appointments, injections and other information by placing "paw" stickers on your calendar. We use stickers every time we put flea and tick medication on our pets as well.