Page 12 - Palm City Spotlight - August '23

Page 12, Palm City Spotlight

tip oF tHe taiL

Heatstroke In Pets: Heatstroke is a serious emergency that requires • Vomiting and diarrhea
veterinary care. If you suspect your pet is experiencing
• Dark red, purple or blue gums
Recognizing It, Preventing It, heatstroke, bring them indoors or under shade quickly, • Weakness, staggering and/or seizures
Treating It apply cool, wet towels to body, their armpits, and inner • Unresponsiveness or coma
thighs then transport them to your vet.
Preventing Heatstroke
The immediate signs of heatstroke include restlessness, • Keep your pet inside during peak temperature times.
panting, increased heart rate and drooling. As signs • Exercise your pet when it is cool (early morning and
progress your pet may vomit or have diarrhea, the gums late evening).
may become dark red or purple or your pet may become • Provide shade for your pet when outside, even if it
weak, stagger, have seizures or become unresponsive. doesn’t seem very hot.
Heatstroke can result in a very serious condition called • Bring fresh water with you if you take your pet to a
systemic inflammatory response syndrome (SIRS) which park or to the beach.
can lead to multi-organ failure and even death. It is critical • Do not leave your pet in the car at any time, even on
that animals with heatstroke be seen by a veterinarian as cool days.
soon as signs are recognized so that aggressive treatment Treating Heatstroke
can be initiated. • Move them inside or under shade.
The easiest way to avoid heatstroke is to keep your • Apply cool, wet towels to the body, armpits, and inside
pet indoors when it is hot and to avoid overexercising thighs.
them, particularly during peak temperature times. If your • Point a fan at them, if available.
Heatstroke occurs when an animal’s body overheats pet does experience heatstroke, recognizing the signs, • Seek veterinary care immediately. Heatstroke is a life-
due to hot, humid weather conditions (environmental initiating cooling, then getting them to your vet quickly, threatening emergency.
heatstroke) or due to strenuous physical activity will give them the best chance for survival and complete Established in 1981, Palm City Animal Medical
(exertional heatstroke). recovery. Center is dedicated to providing the best possible care
Florida’s high summer temperatures and high humidity A brief summary of the important points discussed in for your pets. With focuses on compassionate care in
are the biggest risk factors for heatstroke in our area, this article can be found below, or for more information surgery, physical therapy and rehabilitation, preventative
but certain activities such as exercising your pet when about heatstroke or any other pet-related topic, contact medicine, extensive diagnostics, and emergency service,
it is hot, leaving them in the car (even on cool days) or Palm City Animal Medical Center at (772) 283-0920. Palm City Animal Medical Center combines exceptional
providing inadequate shade when outdoors can increase Recognizing Heatstroke medical care with a caring philosophy for pets and their
that risk further. Animals that are overweight and those • Restlessness owners. For more information, call (772) 283-0920, visit
with short noses (brachycephalic breeds such as the • Excessive panting and increased heart rate www.palmcityanimalmedicalcenter.com or find us on
pug, Shih Tzu, bulldog, Pekingese, Lhasa apso, Boston • Excessive drooling Facebook at www.facebook.com/PalmCityAnimalClinic.
terrier, etc.) are at particular risk for heatstroke because
excess weight and brachycephalic conformation can make
panting less effective which reduces an animal’s ability Kids corner
to cool themselves.

Identify Dyslexia Early Our thorough testing confirmed this mom’s intuition
and provided her with the paperwork needed to obtain
By Jim Forgan, Ph.D., school help through an Individualized Education Plan
School Psychologist (IEP) as well as apply for and receive the Florida Family
Dyslexia can be Empowerment Scholarship. The scholarship money
identified in a child who helped mom pay for one-to-one private tutoring using
is at least halfway through the gold standard Orton-Gillingham multisensory reading
kindergarten and age 5½ instruction. This approach has decades of research
or older. There are always backing its effectiveness in helping people with dyslexia
early warning signs like become strong and proficient readers.
those in Chris that point Once your child is officially diagnosed with dyslexia
to reading difficulty. there are five ingredients for helping your child overcome
Chris’ mom explained dyslexia. You must have the right curriculum, use it at
it this way. In Pre-K Chris least twice a week one-to-one, keep at it for over a year,
had difficulty identifying letters and the sounds they work with a trained reading specialist, and keep your child
made as well as rhyming. In kindergarten she still had engaged and incentivized. We’ve seen this recipe work
trouble rhyming. She had trouble sounding out words for children time and time again.
when reading. Her reading was labored, not quick or I co-authored the book Parent’s Quick Start Guide to
fluent. She guessed words by their first letter. She mixed Dyslexia which provides a quick, but deep dive into what
up letter sound sequences in a word or forgot the same to immediately do when your child is diagnosed with
word she just read on the previous page again and again. dyslexia. When it comes to helping your young child,
She seemed to learn best memorizing flash cards. She time is too precious to squander.
can somewhat read but it has taken way more amounts Call to discuss your child as we test for autism,
of flash cards and assistance than should be required. I dyslexia, dysgraphia, ADHD, depression, and anxiety.
think she has dyslexia. Visit JimForgan.com or call (561) 625-4125.

reaL estate

Answer for Treasure Coast Real Estate homes for sale. This low inventory, plus high demand for

Crossword Puzzle Report homes, is causing home prices in Florida to continue to rise.
Those buyers waiting for interest rates or prices to go down
are simply getting further behind.
Near 7 Percent Mortgage Rates Will Likely Other buyers are buying now, even if their mortgage is close
Be Around For Awhile to 7 percent. It is likely that these buyers will see the value of
their new home go up. It is also very likely that mortgage rates
By Jim Weix will go down in the future. When that happens, these buyers
When I bought my first can re-finance their mortgage at a lower rate. However, you
house in 1971, I had a fixed can’t do anything but watch if you don’t own a home.
rate 30-year mortgage at 7 Granted, higher mortgage rates may prevent you from
percent. My friends laughed buying your dream home. But rather than sit on the sidelines
at me and told me about their and lose, adjust your view of your dream home.
4.75 percent adjustable-rate Buy something that you can afford. At least you are in the
mortgages. About 10 years game.
later, when mortgages were Feel free to call me if you would like to discuss your
at 18 percent, my friends options. I can be reached at (772) 341-2941 or jimweix@
were losing their homes, but jimweix.com.
my payment stayed the same. Jim Weix is a broker associate with The Keyes Company.
Now we have a different situation. Presently 61 percent of Jim has 25 years of experience selling real estate full time.
mortgages are below 4 percent. A lot of these homeowners If you have questions or want the services of an experienced
aren’t willing to sell, and buy another home with a higher expert, you can reach Jim at (772) 341-2941 or jimweix@
mortgage rate. This is contributing to a low inventory of jimweix.com.