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March 2007 edition IN THIS ISSUE 1. The Family Photo Album...Welcome to Baby Liam! 2. Cat Capers and Snake Tales 3. Did you know AquaDog has DIY Hydrobaths? 4. International Cat’s Birthday – celebrate cats and win! 5. AquaDog Swimmer of the month: Jackson Caroll 6. Inside & Out...It's all about Total Wellness 7. What if your dog had heartworm and you didn’t know? 8. Mac bounces back 9. Zoom in for a Groom 10. Your personal trainer says, “Let’s go!” 11. We’re BACK TO SCHOOL for 2007 12. Cat profile: the Chinchilla |
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1. The Family Photo Album...Welcome to Baby Liam! Well here we have them!!........ the exquisite family photos of little Liam and his proud parents Margaret & Hamish, as promised in our last newsletter. Liam David Kiddle DOB: 10th January 2007 8.30pm Wt: 8lb 14oz (4.03kg) Ht: 51cm Margaret assures us that it is blissful at home with their little blessing, Liam. She is really enjoying being a mum and this was really obvious when we snapped this lovely photo of her and her son on their recent visit to introduce little Liam to all of our veterinary team. Back to top |
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2. Cat Capers and Snake Tales It sounds a bit like a fairy tale although the reality of our pets coming across a snake can be more like a nightmare and sometimes lack the happy ending! In these hot steamy days of summer with our urban neighbourhoods encroaching on their habitat, snakes are often seen in our backyards and homes and can be a serious threat to our furry friends. Cats, particularly with their curious natures will often be the first to find a snake hiding out on your property. Unfortunately, a bite from a venomous snake can be fatal, just as it is with humans. We spoke to our team of veterinary surgeons about the dangers of snake bite and what to do if your pet is bitten. Not all snakes are venomous, although Australia has a large percentage of the world's most venomous creatures living here. Carpet snakes for example are not venomous but can swallow small puppies and kittens. If your pet is bitten by any snake, it is important to take immediate action and seek urgent veterinary care, until the danger can be identified. IMMEDIATE ACTION: 1. Identify the snake if possible. Get as good a description as is safely possible. Features like colour, particularly under belly, and shape of head will help identify the type of snake and if venomous aid the vet in selecting the appropriate antivenene. 2. Restrict movement of the pet. 3. Loosely immobilise the limb, with a bandage in a normal position, if bitten on an extremity. 4. DO NOT incise the bite wound to aspirate the venom and DO NOT apply a tourniquet without veterinary assistance. DO NOT apply ice to the area. 5. Seek immediate veterinary attention. If the snake is venomous it is very important that the patient receives the antivenene as soon as possible. The key to successful treatment is enough of the correct antivenene given soon enough. Often with our pets the snake bite incident is not witnessed and the bite marks usually not seen. The first signs of a snake bite are often due to the rapid effects of the toxin on the nervous system. These can vary depending on the type of snake but may appear rapidly as dilated pupils, paralysis (floppy and unable to move). Particularly with brown snakes, these signs can be shortly followed by bleeding from nose, gums etc, bruising and breathing difficulties. Immediate Veterinary attention is crucial and even once anti-venin is given the patient can require weeks of supportive intensive care for a full recovery. The first 24hrs of treatment is critical and the best result are achieved with the least amount of time between the bite and the start of treatment. So what can you do to reduce the risks of this happening to your pet? • Keep your property mowed and clear of materials like wood stacks, timber roofing iron, rocks & bricks. • Install a cat enclosure for your peace of mind and safe outdoor play for your cat. There are several companies that manufacture and install a variety of innovative designs in outdoor cat playgrounds. • Be a responsible cat owner and keep them in at night. This is the time when cats like to do their best exploration and if left outside can easily come across danger whether it be a snake or a motor car. • Don't encourage your cats to play with toys that look like snakes as they can't be expected to know the dangerous difference between a plastic toy and the real live thing. For more information on snakes or if you need a snake removed from your property, contact Qld Parks and Wildlife 1300 130 372. They can refer you to a licenced snake handler who will remove the snake from your property for a fee. Back to top |
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3. Did you know AquaDog has DIY Hydrobaths? AquaDog is a great safe, fun place for Swimming ….... Did you know we also offer ………. DIY Hydrobaths ? With all our attention this month on your pet's Total Wellness, cleanliness as well as fitness is easy and economical with our “do it yourself” Hydrobath facilities at AquaDog. At half the cost of a regular hydrobath, our DIY facility gives you the opportunity to treat your dog regularly to an invigorating, safe and thoroughly cleansing bath. Our Hydrobath is soap free, PH balanced and includes a flea rinse. Afterwards, you are offered the FREE use of ear cleaner and spray cologne to ensure your dogs “total freshness”. For those owners a little unsure about “doing it yourself”, we offer a FREE demonstration with our Pet Aquatics specialist trained veterinary nurse, on your first visit. Aquadog is right next to The Vets at Nerang. Bookings for DIY Hydrobaths are recommended. Call our friendly team at Aquadog on 5502-2444 to arrange a Fun introductory swim or DIY Hydrobath for your dog. Back to top |
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4. International Cat’s Birthday – celebrate cats and win! The 1st of March is the International Cat's Birthday so it's time to celebrate our amazing friend, the cat. Cats impact our lives in so many different ways. They read us so well - they're always there when you need to be comforted. But they can be rascals too - disappearing when you need to take them to the vet! Some cats even perform heroics – such as the famous Sooty O'Brien who saved his family from a house fire. To mark this special day, we're giving away some great prizes – see below for more information. Created by Australian vet Dr Kim Kendall, the Cat's Birthday on the 1st of March is now celebrated by cat owners across Australia and overseas. A date was set because many cats have no known birth date – this often applies to strays. Kim also wanted to celebrate the extraordinary acts of bravery and altruism that cats perform. On this day, special awards are presented by her to remarkable cats. Why March, you ask? - because it was when the Egyptians celebrated the cat goddess Bastet. To enter the competition, click on the button below. Choose your favourite famous cat and automatically go into the draw to win Village Cinemas movie tickets. Results of the poll will be posted in the next edition – so keep an eye out to see if others agree with your choice. Back to top |
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5. AquaDog Swimmer of the month: Jackson Caroll Last month we featured our AquaDog Health & Fitness facility as a great place for exercise and weight loss. This is exactly why Jackson Caroll really deserves our swimmer of the month title for this edition. Jackson is a 5 year old Cavalier King Charles Spaniel who was a little on the chubby side..........However, thanks to swimming at Aquadog every week and Hills Science R/D diet, Jackson has shed over 3 kilos! He has now rediscovered his waistline and is happier, healthier and has more energy than ever before! Swimming is great for weight loss because it is low impact and 10 minutes of swimming is equivalent to approximately an hour of walking! Well done Jackson. Back to top |
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6. Inside & Out...It's all about Total Wellness Would you like to know more about your keeping your pet healthy? On the outside, our pets appearance and behaviour can reveal some important factors about their state of health. By working together on our TEN STEP PET CARE PLAN, we can help provide your pet with excellent health care. Find out how your Pet would score? Check our 10 question checklist below to find out: 1. Vaccination and Health Examination Puppies and kittens require a course of vaccinations and then annual health examinations and vaccinations for life. Senior pets benefit from more frequent examination to monitor and detect changes associated with ageing. For senior care ask for a Sensational Seniors sheet. 2. Intestinal worming Intestinal worms can cause illness in cats and dogs and can pose a threat to children and adults. Regular intestinal worming is advised. 3. Heartworm prevention Heartworm is spread by mosquitoes, is a high risk and potentially fatal disease for dogs and cats in Queensland. It is preventable in dogs and cats. Easy to apply products can prevent heartworm, fleas and worms. 4. Flea Control Fleas are the most common cause of skin problems. Female fleas can lay up to 2000 eggs in their short lifetime, a rapid population explosion if left unchecked. 5. Tick Control Paralysis ticks can kill dogs and cats. The tick is spread by wallabies and bandicoots. All pets with potential access to tick areas are at risk. Prevention is crucial especially in tick season between July and March. 6. Microchipping Microchips provide a permanent form of identification for your pet. Microchips cannot be lost and increase the chance of your pet being reunited with you if lost or stolen. 7. Nutrition Premium quality life-stage nutrition is essential in helping your pet lead a happy and healthy life. The quality and control of protein, carbohydrates, fat, vitamins, antioxidants, salts and minerals provides many long term benefits. 8. Dental Hygiene Unlike ourselves our pets cannot clean their teeth. Without attention to dental hygiene tartar will build up and cause dental disease leading to bad breath and tooth loss. 9. Desexing We recommend desexing your pet for a wide variety of reasons including reduced hierarchical behaviors such as dominance and aggression, roaming and associated injury and loss, inappropriate urination, prevention of sex related medical diseases and to control the number of unwanted litters that are euthanased. 10. Socialization, Training, Responsibility and Insurance Puppy Pre-school, obedience classes, regular exercise, containment and registration should be considered by dog owners. Cats should ideally be housed indoors or be contained in an outdoor enclosure or if free to roam, should be inside by dusk. Pet insurance plans are available to help with unexpected vet fees. UNTICKED BOXES? FEEL FREE TO CONTACT OUR VETERINARY TEAM FOR INORMATION AND ADVICE. HOW DID YOU SCORE? 7-10 Excellent! 4-6 Doing well, do you need any help? 0-3 we are here to help with your pet's health care needs. Wellness Testing Your pet's inside Health could be as simple as a test. Even though we'd like to think they can, our pets can't always tell us where it hurts and we can't always see what's happening on the inside. Would you like to know more about your pet's health on the inside? We are often asked how we can tell whether a pet is healthy on the inside. A pet that appears healthy on the outside may be hiding internal signs of disease. A simple blood test is one way of helping detect early signs of disease. Wellness testing includes a complete blood count, tests for liver and kidney function, diabetes and a urine concentration test. If you would like to find out more about your pet's internal health just make an appointment for a Wellness Test for your pet and if possible bring along a urine sample. It's simple & easy. If you require any help just call and talk to our friendly veterinary team. Back to top |
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7. What if your dog had heartworm and you didn’t know? As you can tell by its name, heartworm is about worms living in a dog's heart. This is a lethal condition that causes heart and lung disease and, eventually, death. It is passed by mosquitoes and so dogs can become infected without contacting other dogs. The good news is that heartworm can be easily prevented with either monthly tablets or an annual injection. While your dog is likely to be on heartworm prevention, research shows that many dogs are overdue for their heartworm protection and may be at risk of being infected. Simply restarting the heartworm protection may not be enough: while prevention has lapsed mosquitoes may have bitten your dog causing a heartworm infection. If your dog has missed heartworm tablets or is overdue for treatment, talk to us. We recommend a heartworm test for all dogs where the prevention has lapsed significantly. The blood test is done in the clinic while you wait and is not painful for your dog. Results are available immediately to give you peace of mind. Back to top |
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8. Mac bounces back Joan has just turned 90 and is worried about her dog, Mac. Mac is a 12 year old terrier cross and means the world to Joan. They are best friends and much more. She walks him every day. Because of his jaunty, happy walk, people can't resist coming up and talking to Joan about her dear little dog. Joan loves these chats and dropping in on people like Trevor the butcher to get Mac's bones. So when Mac started limping, she was worried for her friend and keen to see him fixed as soon as possible. At the vet, the examination revealed pain in both his right elbow and hips. Because of his age, Mac was given a blood and urine test before being anaesthetised and his painful joints x-rayed. The blood and urine tests showed him to be in very good health but the x-rays confirmed that he was suffering from arthritis. Joan was devastated at the thought of losing Mac but was quickly reassured that there were things that could be done. He might never be as lively as a puppy again but the arthritis could be managed well. He was first put on a course of anti-inflammatories to settle the pain. Then he was given a course of Cartrophen – an injectable medication that helps to lubricate the joints – and a special diet for joint illness. The results were excellent. Within a week he was back to being almost normal and over the next month, he started loving his walks again. Today they're back to their normal routine – walking to the shops and enjoying meeting people and having a chat. Back to top |
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9. Zoom in for a Groom The Vets at Nerang and Helensvale is a great place for your pet to cool off and get a stylish new look for summer. Our professional pet stylist, Lisa is available now to help your pets shed that unnecessary coat for some great carefree summer days of play. Just call us for an appointment. Wishing, your pets no more bad hair days, just carefree summer days of play. Back to top |
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10. Your personal trainer says, “Let’s go!” It's time to get into the groove of regular exercise with your pet. Before the days get too short, start walking together and you'll both reap the benefits. A recent Australian study showed that walking with dogs can help people live longer and save the country $175m on medical bills – the benefits are comparable to giving up smoking. Significantly, the study also found that 50% of dog owners were not walking the 150 minutes a week required to have any health benefits* – and this is what we want to focus on. We want more people out there walking with their dogs – for the benefit of people and pets. Benefits for your dog of regular walking include: • It helps to maintain correct body weight – pets at the correct body weight can live 25% longer and are a lot happier • You don't need to pay a personal trainer • Meeting new people. Walking a pet will give you more opportunities to engage with other walkers than if you walked by yourself The secret to successful regular exercise: • Commit to walking at least once a day • Make it as easy as possible to start – walk locally – dogs love going around the block • Organise to walk with a neighbour, friend or local group – this can make it more fun • Do it when you know you'll have the time – early morning or late evening [after the kids are in bed for instance] are popular. To read the study click here *The study cited the US Surgeon General's report which says that a person needs to do 150 minutes a week of moderate exercise to produce health benefits. Back to top |
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11. We’re BACK TO SCHOOL for 2007 Live, Love, Listen, Laugh and Learn...our first puppy classes for 2007 have graduated with all the enthusiasm and exuberance you could expected from a bunch of pre-schoolers and their parents Congratulations to our most recent graduates: Nerang Jager Hobbs Kaya Robertson Sampson Hazell Coco Pajti Rusty Elliot Minty Riddell Helensvale Bullseye Roots Mya Sondergeld Olly Thompson Roxy Chappel Ella Bonney Assana Jacobs Bali Kiernan Pepsi Bolin Moby Codron-Tai Maggie Hall Arundel Lucy Lowater Rocky Read Missy Fortunato Puppy Preschool …really is the beginning of a beautiful friendship. Our puppy pre-school is a fun way for puppies and families to learn all the skills required for a rewarding life together. Under the expert guidance of our qualified nurses, parents can enjoy being involved in developing their new puppy's social skills to ensure they become polite and well behaved canine citizens. Classes are held once a week for 4 weeks 6.30 - 7.30pm. To join our next class, please call the location that suits your family and ask our friendly staff for more details. Back to top |
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12. Cat profile: the Chinchilla This month being the International Cat's Birthday we thought we'd profile a famous cat – and we've chosen the Chinchilla. After first appearing on the lap of James Bond's arch enemy, Blofeld, this white beauty has been seen in pretty much every villain role where a cat is required. It was a chinchilla that played the villain in the first Austin Powers movie, the great kids cartoon Inspector Gadget and the more recent Cats and Dogs. The truth is that they're not evil at all but, as the films do suggest, devoted pets who love lounging around - especially near or on their owners. Description: Chinchillas are actually Persian cats with a white or silver coloured coat. They are loving cats who bond closely with their owner. They enjoy indoor living and so it should be noted that because they shed white hair, this means regular cleaning up is needed. Hair removal rollers for furniture and clothes are a smart move for any Chinchilla owner. Care: Importantly, these cats need daily brushing. You should be prepared to spend 15 minutes a day to prevent the build up of hair mats or clumps. This keeps the coat healthy but also strengthens the bond between owner and cat. Cost: Kittens are around $350 – $450. Chinchillas, like other long haired cats, can be prone to an inherited kidney disease. This can be prevented by correct screening of breeding cats. If you're interested in getting one of these beautiful cats, we can help you find a great breeder. Back to top |
The Vets Nerang Unit 5/90 Spencer Road Nerang 4211 ph 5596 2322 fx 5596 0549 Helensvale Unit 7/14 Sir John Overall Drive Helensvale 4212 ph 5529 8011 fx 5529 4133 www.thevets.com.au |
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