Certain dog breeds are recognized as being prone to certain diseases, and many are well-known in the veterinary world. Here Mark Lowrie describes an unusual condition that has been recently reported in Border Terriers with an unknown etiology but which appears to respond to a gluten-free diet.

Clinicians will be all-too-familiar with the cat that has recurrent diarrhea; dealing with these patients can be frustrating for both the veterinarian and the owner, but Craig Webb offers his thoughts on how best to approach these cats with a case-based article that illustrates the key pointers for a successful outcome.

Simple to use and remarkably effective, feeding a sick dog via an intra-nasal tube can be an invaluable adjunct in a variety of clinical situations and is often a decisive factor in ensuring a positive outcome in many cases; in this paper Joris Robben and Chiara Valtolina highlight the practicalities involved for optimal results.

Endoscopy is now widely available for the investigation of gastrointestinal disease in dogs; Franck Jolivet and Olivier Dossin present a practical, case-based paper that illustrates the versatility of the endoscope, along with some useful tips on how to best use this diagnostic option in practice.

There are a variety of disorders that can cause dogs to lose protein through their gastrointestinal tract. Overall, they are classified as “protein-losing enteropathies”, but there are a bewildering number of potential causes; Rance Sellon offers an overview of the condition, including a review of the signs, the diagnostic options and the potential treatments for the most common diseases.

One of the most frequent reasons for cats to be presented to a veterinarian is because of vomiting and/or diarrhea; in this short paper the authors offer some basic statistics on cats that present with typical gastrointestinal signs.  

Inflammation of the feline esophagus is an underdiagnosed condition, yet it can have potentially severe consequences; Toshihiro Watari discusses the predisposing factors, the clinical signs, the imaging modalities required for diagnosis, and the options available to both treat the disease and minimize its recurrence.

Pancreatitis in dogs is a common and debilitating disease that may be acute or chronic in nature; Craig Datz and Melinda Wood review various aspects of the condition, including the etiology, the preferred diagnostic tests, and the options for treatment.