Mike Fietz

ALL ARTICLES

Sowing trouble

With an overdue spring finally coming into its own, it’s time for many of us to start spending some time in the...

Heat of the moment

Charlottesville has no shortage of things to do outdoors in the summer, and we’re lucky to live somewhere that pets...

The diagnosis that wasn’t

I’ve completely lost track of how many coughing dogs I’ve seen in the last month or two. They come in honking like...

Will you still feed me? Facing the challenges of an aging...

It can feel so unnatural to watch our pets grow old. It’s just not what we imagine when they first come into our...

Enough is enough

“So, is it really necessary to… you know?” asks the anxious new puppy owner as he unwittingly extends two fingers of...

When less is more

As we roll toward the end of January, I gather a lot of us have New Year’s resolutions that are already unraveling...

Thinking inside the box

Question: My cat can’t seem to figure out how to use her litterbox. She pees in it just fine, but poops on the floor...

Animal enamel

Think of the worst toothache you ever had. Try to remember how it drove you nuts until you finally got the problem...

Ach-tongue, baby

One of the joys of having pets is sharing. We share our homes, our families—our entire lives—with them. And sometimes...

Teaching pets the difference between your home and a toilet

Watching a happy puppy or kitten bounce around the living room, it’s hard to imagine anything that isn’t perfectly...