Signalment and History open this book as this is the first thing to be addressed upon presentation. Immediately following is a chart of dog breeds and their breed-associated neurologic abnormalities of dogs, followed by a similar chart for breeds of cats. The author stresses that the clinician must avoid pre-judging a possible diagnosis based on the clients observations, and to accept only those actual signs observed by the owner.

The clinician is walked through the neurologic exam, and photos are included illustrating obvious visual signs. This is an excellent section and shows many types of neurologic issues. There is a chart format to use for evaluation and providing a differential diagnosis.

There are digital X-rays showing fine detail, and MR views of the brain to pinpoint injury or invasive growth. In some cases cadaver views of like areas of a skeleton are pictured side by side with in-vivo surgical views.

There is a Canine Brain Atlas taken from the University of Minnesota Veterinary Anatomy Web-Site. Each slice view is matched with an illustration of the orientation with the brain of that slice. The website address is also provided here. There does not seem to be a similar section for the cat.

There are numerous references to video resources in the web site for this book to illustrate specific sections. These points are marked in the text with a color “bug” to draw the reader’s attention and the related video resources are listed by number to save the reader a long search.

There is a great deal of information on rehabilitation and encouraging positive outcomes. Supportive structures are illustrated to help animals with disabilities or to assist in ambulation.

All in all, this is an excellent book and one that would be used often in the average clinic. One suggestion would be to call up the Table of Contents and read a preview of the text. This should be available on the Wiley website.

Publisher: Wiley-Blackwell, 2016

Hard cover, 672 pages. Color and black & white photos and illustrations. 

ISBN: 9781119946113