Page 10 - Palm City Spotlight - November '20

Page 10, Palm City Spotlight DOUBLE SPACE

Financial FocuS

Ideas For Thanking Your • Be generous. Do you have older children, just starting it’s essential you maintain your financial independence
out in life? If so, they could well use a financial gift to
throughout your life. You can do this in at least a couple
Family help pay off student loans, buy a car or even make a down of ways. First, consider investing regularly in your 401(k),
payment on a home. You can give up to $15,000 per year, IRA and other retirement accounts. The greater your
By Bryce Buchanan, per recipient, without incurring gift taxes. Of course, you resources during your retirement years, the less you may
Edward Jones don’t have to give cash – you might want to consider ever need to count on your family. And second, you may
It’s almost Thanksgiving. presenting your children with shares of stock in companies want to protect yourself from the devastating costs of
And although 2020 may they like. long-term care, such as an extended nursing home stay. A
have been a difficult year • Review your insurance coverage. If you weren’t financial professional can suggest a strategy to help you
for you, as it has been around, it would leave some gaping holes – financial and cope with these expenses.
for many people, you can otherwise – in the lives of your family members. That’s • Create an estate plan. To leave a legacy to your
probably still find things why it’s essential you maintain adequate life insurance. family, you don’t have to be wealthy – but you do need a
for which you can be Your employer might offer a group plan, but it may not be comprehensive estate plan. You’ll have to think through a
thankful – such as your sufficient to meet your needs. There’s no magic formula lot of questions, such as: Have I named beneficiaries for all
family. How can you show for determining the right amount of coverage, so you’ll my assets? How much do I want to leave to each person?
your appreciation for your have to consider a variety of factors: your age, spouse’s Do I need to go beyond a simple will to establish an
loved ones? income, number of children and so on. Also, you may want arrangement such as a living trust? For help in answering
Here are a few suggestions: to consider disability insurance – if you were unable to all these issues, you’ll want to work with an attorney.
• Invest in your children’s future. If you have young work for a while, it could cause a real problem for your By making these moves, you can show your loved ones,
children – or even grandchildren – one of the greatest gifts family’s finances. in a tangible way, how much you value them – and that can
you can give them is the gift of education. You may want • Preserve your financial independence. When your help you keep the spirit of Thanksgiving alive all year long.
to consider contributing to a higher education funding children are young, you take care of them. But you certainly This article was written by Edward Jones for use by
vehicle. don’t want them to have to do the same for you – so your local Edward Jones financial advisor.

tip oF the tail

The Dreaded Allergies loss and sores along the back, around the tail and back legs. cutaneously absorbed environmental allergens. The dog’s

These pets will be very itchy. Live fleas are most often seen on immune system becomes stimulated in response to the allergen
the pet but sometimes only flea feces will be visible. Treatment which leads to inflammation of the skin and ears and to itching.
includes killing the adult fleas on the pet and also eliminating The feet and ears are the common sites of the inflammation. The
them from the environment. Pets must be kept on a monthly flea normal protective defenses of the skin and ears become lost due
preventative. The best flea control would be to use a product to the inflammation. Once this occurs, the bacteria and yeast that
that sterilizes the flea eggs combined with a product that kills normally live on the skin and in ears can overgrow and cause
the adult fleas as well. This approach will eliminate fleas from infection. Canine atopy can start as a seasonal problem but over
the environment over a few months and any fleas around will time can progress into a year-round issue. Diagnosis of atopy is
die once on the pet. All pets in the environment must be on made by ruling out other allergies such as flea allergic dermatitis
flea prevention for the products to work, otherwise the fleas and food hypersensitivity. When we treat canine atopy, we are
will live on those pets. If there is a flea infestation in the area, treating both the secondary infections and the inflammation/
it may take 2 to 3 months to eliminate the fleas. allergy response. As we know allergies are not curable.
Canine food hypersensitivity is an adverse reaction to a Luckily we now have multiple medications that will treat the
food or food additive. Beef and chicken account for about inflammation and itch effectively and can be given long-term
95 percent of food allergies. It can occur at any age, from with minimal side effects. Topical treatments with medicated
There are three common allergies in dogs: flea allergy puppies to elderly dogs that have been eating the same dog shampoos weekly along with oral fatty acid supplements
dermatitis, canine food hypersensitivity and canine atopy food for years. Most dogs diagnosed with a food allergy are will also help manage atopy. It is important to remember that
(atopic dermatitis, environmental, pollen allergies). Here under 2 to 3 years old. Symptoms are nonseasonal and may there can be “flare ups” when the allergen in the environment
in Florida’s tropical climate we have near constant pollen not respond to corticosteroids as most allergies will. Pets may overwhelms the medications. It is also important to remember
production and fleas year-round. As a result, many dogs in be very itchy and develop secondary infections or they can that this is a long-term and often lifelong condition. It can be
Florida suffer from canine atopy and flea allergy dermatitis. only be itchy when secondary infections are present. The skin easy to become frustrated if this is not understood.
Food allergies are much less common and can be seen less in will be red and inflamed. Food allergies often involve the skin In general dealing with allergies in dogs can be very
younger dogs than the other allergies. in the ventral body, under the tail, and the ears. Diagnosing frustrating. There are frequent trips to the veterinarian and
Flea allergy dermatitis is the most common cause of food allergy can be difficult. The only reliable way is to costs of testing and medications. Some pets can even have all
dermatitis in dogs. Dogs that are allergic to fleas develop hair put a pet on an elimination diet trial. This involves feeding three allergies (fleas, food and atopy). It is important to work
with your veterinarian. As a team, we can get you and your pet
the pet a prescription diet created for this purpose such as a
L
L AVARGNA AW PLLC hydrolyzed diet. This type of diet is created by breaking the where you need to be with time and patience! Hang in there,
proteins down to make them unrecognizable by the body as
we are here to help!
an allergen. Prescription diets that are novel protein or contain
only vegetable protein can also be used. It is important not to Established in 1981, Palm City Animal Medical Center is
dedicated to providing the best possible care for your pets. With
. feed something the pet has had before. The pet cannot receive focuses on compassionate care in surgery, physical therapy and
rehabilitation, preventative medicine, extensive diagnostics,
any other foods or treats while on this diet. The elimination
. Wills and Trusts trial should last 8 to 12 weeks. If symptoms improve or resolve and emergency service, Palm City Animal Medical Center
. Probate then food allergy is the possible diagnosis. We then feed the combines exceptional medical care with a caring philosophy
Real Estate Closings
. Business Matters old food and if the symptoms return in a few days, we know it for pets and their owners. For more information, call (772)
283-0920, visit www.palmcityanimalmedicalcenter.com or find
as a food allergy.
Canine atopy is a hypersensitivity reaction to inhaled or us on Facebook at www.facebook.com/PalmCityAnimalClinic.
ANTHONY LAVARGNA
ANTHONY LAVARGNA
Member of the Florida Bar
Licensed in the United States
District Court, Southern and
Middle Districts of Florida

CARRIE LAVARGNA
CARRIE LAVARGNA
Accredited Estate Planner (AEP)
Board Certified
Real Estate Attorney
REAL ESTATE
We provide quality, personal legal services to individuals and
businesses in Martin and St. Lucie Counties and
throughout the Treasure Coast.
1805 S. Kanner Highway, Stuart Financial Center, Stuart, FL 34994
.
.
772 286 7521
- REAL ESTATE PRACTICE TIP -

If you rent commercial o ce, retail, or warehouse space, Florida sales tax rate to use
commercial real property decreases to 5.7% on January 1, 2019. The local discretionary

sale surtax still applies. This decrease does not apply to parking or storage of motor
vehicles, docking or storage of boats or tie-down or storage of aircraft.