It never pays to rely on the internet for veterinary advice. Every animal is different, so what works for one may not do the trick for another. Online advice often veers between misleading, or over general, to downright dangerous. Also, pet parents can waste precious time trying online remedies instead of seeking veterinary care.

Recent viral clips have recommended giving dogs or cats ibuprofen for pain. In truth, ibuprofen is toxic to all dogs and cats. In fact, if your pet ingests ibuprofen, you should contact your veterinarian or an emergency veterinary clinic right away.

Be sure to run any treatment advice past your veterinarian first. Even herbal remedies can be dangerous for certain animals. Finally, animals should never be given human medications unless recommended by a veterinarian.

Bladder or urinary stones that affect people can also be a problem in some dogs, cats and other mammals, including dolphins and otters. Why some animals are prone to forming stones is often unknown, but comparing diets consumed in the wild with those of animals fed by humans can sometimes provide a clue. Dr. Richard Hill, a small animal internal medicine and veterinary nutrition specialist, joins Animal Airwaves Live to discuss how nutrition and hydration can be used to reduce the risk of urinary stones from forming. Each type of stone requires different strategies to increase water intake and modify urine acidity or alkalinity and the amount of minerals and protein breakdown products in the urine. By tailoring your pet’s diet, veterinarians can often help prevent urinary stones from forming and reduce the risk of recurrence.

Honey bees can withstand a relatively wide range of temperatures to maintain the brood nest — that is, the core of the hive that houses the queen, eggs and young bees. Honey bees generally fly at temperatures between 50 and 104 degrees Fahrenheit. When it’s hotter, they transition from nectar collection to water retrieval used to cool the hive. At about 118 degrees, they start to lose key functions. So, how can beekeepers protect their colonies in hot weather?

The first thing is to keep water sources close to the hives, starting in the spring when bees first start flying. Colonies also need plenty of space, which may mean adding boxes above the brood nest. In addition, nothing should obstruct the entrances to hives. It’s also important to read pesticide labels, noting any temperature restrictions.

Once again, the American Veterinary Medical Association is cautioning pet parents against feeding raw or undercooked animal proteins to dogs and cats. These include meat, poultry, fish, eggs and milk — except for same-species milk used to nurse puppies or kittens.

Raw or undercooked animal proteins can harbor a plethora of bacterial pathogens, as well as the notorious virus that causes bird flu.

Just like us, dogs and cats are susceptible to foodborne illness. But even healthy appearing pets can have infections that endanger humans. Just handling raw pet food can also make people sick.

For every presumed benefit of feeding raw, undercooked or unpasteurized animal proteins to pets, there are even bigger risks. It’s just not worth taking the chance.

On the second Sunday of every March at 2 in the morning, the nation’s clocks collectively jump forward an hour. It’s daylight saving time. And for many, it’s a royal pain.

We lose an hour’s sleep.

Lawmakers are always talking about eliminating the time change. Implemented to conserve energy, first during World War I and then again for the Second World War, many think it’s outlived its usefulness.

Scientists say moving the time disrupts our circadian rhythm, our internal cellular clock that keeps our bodies tuned to the planet’s rotation. That has consequences for good health.

Now, scientists say moving clocks back in March poses another hazard — it might endanger good vision.

A recent study published in Scientific Reports suggests the springtime change might trigger proliferative diabetic retinopathy and neovascular age-related macular degeneration, both of which can progress to blindness.

Researchers combed health insurance data for more than 12 million people between the ages 18 and 64. They found a significantly higher risk of the conditions in the month following the time change.

Scientists also found that gaining an hour on the first Sunday of November was associated with a lower risk of these eye problems.

Blame it on our circadian rhythm.

The body releases more stress hormones when we lose sleep. Coupled with changes in blood pressure and glucose control caused by a disrupted rhythm, this can damage the eye’s sensitive small blood vessels.

The study is another lesson in the importance of our circadian rhythm, the same phenomenon that causes jet lag. Disrupt it at your peril.

Like people, dogs can suffer from disorders of the temporomandibular joint, or TMJ, which can cause significant pain and functional problems. The canine TMJ is very narrow, so noninvasive access has been challenging. Now, veterinary surgeons are borrowing a state-of-the-art technique from human oral surgeons.

Nano-arthroscopy uses a tiny high-quality camera at the tip of a wirelike device to inspect surfaces inside the body. Use of this technology has been standard-of-care in human oral surgery for years.

For now, nano-arthroscopy can only be used as a diagnostic tool in medium- to large-breed dogs, but even smaller scopes may be coming in the future. Veterinary surgeons are also hoping to take this technology one step further and use it in treatment regimens in coming years.

Among the list of nouns no one wants to experience — food poisoning, wet socks, cancer — dementia stands on its own. The debilitating condition arrives with memory loss, confusion and trouble problem-solving. From there, it can progress to difficulty speaking and getting lost in familiar places.

It’s scary — and there’s a good chance you could do something to help prevent it.

A new study from Lund University looked at the different risk factors associated with developing the disease, like elevated blood pressure, smoking, cardiovascular disease and high amounts of lipids in the blood.

Of these, many are preventable.

Scientists followed more than 500 people who were at least 60 years old and appeared cognitively healthy. The team evaluated changes in participants’ white brain matter, which is often damaged in cases of vascular dementia, for four years.

They found that vascular risk factors, like heart disease, high blood lipids and high blood pressure, all resulted in injuries to brain blood vessels — and a build-up of shifts in the brain’s white matter.

Although these risk factors were some of the worst offenders, scientists had some good news: They were also some of the most preventable with lifestyle changes. They recommended focusing on both vascular and metabolic conditions, which, for the most part, means paying attention to movement and diet.

In this case, the takeaway is simple, albeit unsurprising: Investing in your physical health will have impacts far beyond how far you can run or how much weight you can lift.

It just might determine the course of your life.

According to owner-reported data from a large-scale study of dogs across the U.S., over 80 percent of our canine companions show mild signs of fear or anxiety in day-to-day situations.

The study excluded dogs’ learned fears, like those triggered by nail clipping and bathing. Short-term fear or anxiety — that is, the kind that people often experience, too — was most often associated with unfamiliar dogs and unfamiliar people. While this stands to reason and isn’t harmful, long-term anxiety can ultimately affect a dog’s health and quality of life.

That’s why fear-based behaviors should be recognized and monitored as part of a dog’s routine veterinary care. If signs worsen over time, they need to be addressed as soon as possible to avoid more serious consequences.

There’s been a lot of talk lately about permanent daylight savings time, but has anyone considered its possible effects on animals?

Pets need a few days — even weeks — to adjust to a time change. Animals run on circadian rhythms — that is, their internal biological clock — and changes in an imposed schedule can be temporarily confusing. Meeting them halfway — like tweaking meal times — can help soothe the transition. Depending on the pet’s needs, walk times and medication schedules may need adjusting too.

Wildlife might actually benefit from permanent daylight savings time. Take deer, which are most active just after dusk. A 2022 study estimated that thousands of deer deaths could be avoided by further separating peak commuting hours from sunset — which is precisely what happens with daylight savings time.

Considering the various injuries that can befall cattle, you might think a swollen joint is no big deal — never mind an emergency. But that’s not the case.