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| a great place for pets - www.thevets.com.au | |||
April 2005 edition
1. Would you like to meet some of Nemo’s friends? 2. Pancreatitis hurts 3. A placemat for your pet - great school holiday fun! 4. Stopping a digging dog 5. H..H...Hairballs 6. Wild & Wonderful pets: The Axolotl |
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1. Would you like to meet some of Nemo’s friends? Meet some of Nemo's colourful friends and much more at our Kidz Club night; 6:30pm Tuesday 26th April 2005. Come to the clinic at Nerang for some amazing animal fun. You'll get to see: Fish: we'll have all sorts of fish on display and the team from Pet Barn will show you some great stuff about Nemo and his friends. Birds: wonder at the brilliance of the Macaw, the chatter of the Budgerigar or bonding of a pair of Love Birds – just some of the birds you might see during the night. Swimming dogs: find out more about our Aquadog facility and how water can play a big role in keeping pets in shape. Safety: How could a little microchip, smaller than a grain of rice, save a pet's life? The story is amazing! So what are you waiting for? We'll see you at 6:30pm Tuesday 26th April 2005 at the clinic. Please RSVP by Monday 18 April – we can't wait to see you. Back to top |
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2. Pancreatitis hurts Ben, a 12 year old Kelpie cross, is a fortunate survivor of a serious condition called pancreatitis. Ben's owner first noticed there was something wrong when Ben vomited twice during the day and became depressed. He was brought into the vet that evening and found to have a high temperature, a very sore abdomen and the colour of his gums wasn't the normal pink colour. Blood tests were run and revealed several factors that when combined, indicated the likelihood of an inflammed pancreas. Amongst other things the readings for amylase, one of the biochemistries measured was high as was the total number of white blood cells. Because of the intense pain associated with pancreatitis, Ben was admitted to hospital and given pain relief via an intravenous catheter as well as antibiotics to control any infection. In addition, intravenous fluids and electrolytes were used to replenish those he'd lost during the day from vomiting and provide ongoing fluid support for the next few days. Not eating or drinking is an important part of the treatment to allow the stomach, upper small intestine and pancreas to heal. Ben made slow but steady progress. On the third day he was able to eat a little food and was much brighter. He went home that evening on a special diet and has not looked back, continuing to improve every day. Some things you can do to help prevent pancreatitis in your pet: · Keep your dog in the best body condition possible – avoid being overweight · Feed a consistent, high quality diet – prevent scavenging and eating fatty foods – such as off cuts from barbeques. Back to top |
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3. A placemat for your pet - great school holiday fun! Here's a great idea for the school holidays - put a sparkle in your pet's day by making his or her very own placemat. Have fun choosing a fabric that suits your pet's personality. Placemats are essential for messy eaters and at the same time look fantastic. Click on the button below to see the easy step-by-step instructions: Back to top |
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4. Stopping a digging dog Digging is a natural behaviour for dogs but when it means your garden is being trashed or your pup is escaping the yard, it's no fun. Stopping a dog from digging means understanding why the digging is happening in the first place. The key reasons and solutions are: Fun: many dogs will dig for fun or mental stimulation. The key here is to satisfy your dog's craving for entertainment in different ways. A good option is to provide a digging pit – where your dog can safely dig and be rewarded for it, and at the same time discourage digging elsewhere. Create a sandpit in an area of the garden where you are happy for your dog to dig. Bury some treats in the sand and encourage your dog to dig. Finding the treats will be the reward and reinforcing this verbally will help. Anxiety: if your dog is worried about you leaving, digging may result. Digging is just one of the destructive behaviours you might see – others include pulling washing from the line and howling. If this is the case, seek our help as a combination of medication and training may be needed to change this behaviour. Heat: dogs will dig to find cool earth to lie in on hot days. One solution is to provide a paddling pool that your dog can cool off in – kid's plastic clam shell pools are good for this and double as digging pits in cooler weather. Regardless of the cause, make sure your garden is secure. The last thing you want is your dog getting out and risking being injured, lost or causing a traffic accident. Please click here to watch a short video on how to get your dog to use a digging pit. Training tips are courtesy of Erin Mathieson, a Delta Society Australia qualified Canine Good Citizen Instructor. For more information click here. Back to top |
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5. H..H...Hairballs Hairballs are freaky looking things, an unpleasant although small price to pay for living with such a remarkable creature as a cat. “Yuk!…what is that?” cat owners cry when they see a hairball for the first time. Hairballs can cause abdominal discomfort and constipation but the good news is that you can prevent them. Hairballs are formed when hair accumulates in the stomach over time as a result of a cat's grooming. As the cat grooms, loose hair is ingested. Hair accumulates in the stomach, forming a ball over time. Because this can't be digested, the cat vomits the hair to prevent blockage of the intestine. Signs include a dry cough followed by vomiting where food and or fluid are brought up in addition to the matted hairball. Long haired cats such as Persians are more likely to develop hairballs. Seek advice from us if your cat is continually coughing, shows loss of appetite or is depressed. Hairballs that aren't passed can cause problems or may indicate that other illnesses are involved. Hairballs can be prevented by: · Regular brushing of the coat, bathing or even shaving your cat · Feeding a diet that includes a natural vegetable fibre to help the hair pass through the intestine Science Diet Hairball Control Formula is the first food with specially shaped pyramid kibble for easy eating and natural fibre content for hairball control. For more information click here. Back to top |
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6. Wild & Wonderful pets: The Axolotl Axolotls, or “Mexican Walking Fish” are creatures of contrasts and contradictions - they breath air as well as using gills to breath underwater. Their physical development has been suspended – they will never become adults and yet they can be sexually mature, even produce young. If that's not enough, they also have the capacity to regenerate damaged body parts. Some people have these amazing animals as pets. Here's how: Care: They are straight forward to care for but have some specific requirements. They require a large tank, 60cm or longer for multiple axolotls, with weekly water changes. A good quality water filter and device to aerate the water are of benefit. They are good eaters feeding on worms, live fish or pet food. It's preferable to not house them with small fish – axolotls will eat other fish. Other fish may even nibble on the axolotl's gills. Despite appearing robust, their scaleless skin makes them fragile and they should be handled only as you would fish – with a net and as infrequently as possible. Ideal for: Children who can be supervised, teenagers and people who want a low key but rather unusual pet. Axolotl owners can bond strongly to their eccentric aquatic friends. Cost: Adults cost around $25 and in total, with tank and filter will cost $100 - $200 depending on the quality of filter and size of tank. 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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