Wellness examinations are essential for the long-term health of our pets.  These are examinations of animals that “appear healthy” versus an ill animal visit.  These examinations allow us not only to evaluate our patients but also communicate with you regarding your pet’s lifestyle.  These examinations are part of a preventative health care plan to maintain your pet’s optimal health.

We recommend wellness exams at least twice yearly; more frequent examinations may be recommended for patients with chronic disease processes.  Puppies and kittens also receive more frequent wellness examinations.  We must remember that our pets age faster than humans; different breeds age at different rates.  For example, a small breed dog is middle aged at about 5 years while a giant breed would be considered a senior.

During a wellness exam, you can expect to be asked about your pet’s lifestyle, including questions regarding diet, exercise, elimination habits, behavior, and more.  A complete physical examination will also be performed.   Using the findings from the physical exam, lifestyle questions, breed, and age, recommendations will be made for your pet.  These preventative health recommendations will include appropriate vaccinations, parasite preventatives, nutrition, coat & skin health, and dental care.  Depending on your pet’s breed, age, and lifestyle, additional testing may be recommended.

Canine Protocol

RABIES VACCINE

• Virus that attacks the brain. Prevalent in wildlife and transmissible to all warm-blooded animals. Always fatal once symptoms are present.
• Rabies vaccines are good for 3 years if given before the previous vaccination expires, otherwise the vaccine will be good for 1 year and are 99.9% effective in preventing rabies.

DISTEMPER VACCINE

• Our Distemper Vaccine is a combo vaccine which includes protection against Distemper, Parvovirus, Parainfluenza and Hepatitis. Distemper is a highly contagious, often fatal disease. Symptoms start mildly with eye discharge, cough, weight loss, vomiting and progress to convulsion, paralysis and death. Parvovirus is an often fatal disease of the intestinal tract and very contagious. Parainfluenza is an upper respiratory infection and one component of kennel cough. Hepatitis is an infectious viral disease of the liver.
• Distemper vaccines are good for 3 years after the initial puppy series.

BORDETELLA

• Bordetella is a bacterial infection present when a dog has kennel cough.
• A Bordetella vaccination is good for 1 year; however the efficacy begins to diminish after 6 months so companions that frequent dog parks, doggy daycare or grooming/boarding facilities may benefit from boosters every 6 months.

LEPTOSPIROSIS

• A bacteria carried by wildlife (raccoons, deer), excreted through their urine and feces. Causes liver problems and can be fatal. Also transferable to humans.
• Leptospirosis vaccines are good for 1 year.  This is not a core vaccination but is recommended for pets who may frequent areas with wildlife, hunting dogs, or those who live near bodies of water.

LYME

• A virus carried by ticks. Causes muscle weakness and fatigue.
• Lyme vaccines are good for 1 year. Because we prefer to protect against all ticks with Frontline Plus, this vaccine is recommended only for pets in highly tick-infested areas.

FECAL FLOTATION TEST

• Looks for evidence of intestinal parasite eggs. Intestinal parasites can cause bloody diarrhea, weight loss and in severe cases, anemia and death. Many intestinal parasites are transferable to humans.
• Fecal flotation tests should be completed once a year for each companion. Tests can be done more often if the companion has loose stools or is believed to have a parasite.

4DX HEARTWORM, LYME, EHRLICHIOSIS, ANAPLASMOSIS TEST

• Heartworm disease is carried by mosquitoes and transferred when the mosquito feeds on the pet. The injected larvae mature into adult heartworms that can prevent the flow of blood through the heart and cause death. This test checks for the presence of heartworms.
• Lyme disease is transmitted by the deer tick.   Dogs with Lyme disease typically present with a polyarthropathy, fevers, weakness, lethargy, and anorexia.  There is a vaccine for Lyme disease which we recommend for dogs that are at high risk.
• Ehrlichia is transmitted by the brown dog tick and the lone star tick.  It is a disease that typically presents as vague clinical signs-lethargy, anorexia, enlarged spleen, pain, and CBC abnormalities.
• Anaplasma is transmitted by the deer tick as well.  It presents similar to Ehrlichia with lethargy, fever, and pain with some CBC abnormalities.
• A 4DX test should be completed once a year and monthly heartworm prevention should be given year-round.

Feline Vaccination Protocol

RABIES VACCINE

• Virus that attacks the brain. Prevalent in wildlife and transmissible to all warm-blooded animals. Always fatal once symptoms are present.
• Rabies vaccines are good for 1 year.

DISTEMPER VACCINE

• Our Distemper Vaccine is a combo vaccine which includes protection against Distemper, Rhinotracheitis, Calicivirus and Chlamydia. Distemper is a highly contagious, often fatal disease. Symptoms include loss of appetite, diarrhea and vomiting. Rhinotracheitis is similar to a cold for cats but can cause serious problems in kittens and elderly cats. Calicivirus causes sneezing, fever, loss of appetite, inflammation around the eyes and ulcers in the mouth. Chlamydia symptoms are similar to Calici and Rhinotracheitis.
• Distemper vaccines are good for 3 years after the initial kitten series.

FeLV VACCINE (FELINE LEUKEMIA)

• One of the most common causes of illness and death in cats. Highly prevalent in outdoor cats. It is a cancer- causing virus that can suppress the cat’s ability to fight infections.
• Vaccines are given in a series with the last one being good for 3 years. Only recommended to cats that go outdoors.

FECAL FLOTATION TEST

• Looks for evidence of intestinal parasite eggs. Intestinal parasites can cause bloody diarrhea, weight loss and in severe cases, anemia and death. Many intestinal parasites are transferable to humans.
• Fecal flotation tests should be completed once a year. Tests can be done more often if the companion has loose stools or believed to have a parasite.

FLFIV TEST (FELINE LEUKEMIA/FIV)

• Tests for both Feline Leukemia explained above, and FIV, a form of feline AIDS. Both diseases are easily transmitted to other cats.
• Tests are done on new cats and kittens preferable before introducing them into a household that already has cats. Because these diseases can take up to 3 months to show on a snap test, we recommend re-testing 3 months after acquiring new cat/kitten.

Click here for information on our Puppy Wellness Plan.
Click here for information on our Kitten Wellness Plan.

Prior to all anesthetic procedures, a doctor performs a thorough physical examination. Lab work is then run looking for any abnormalities that could not be detected on physical examination. Pre-anesthetic sedation is given to relax the patient and help lessen the amount of anesthesia needed. An IV catheter is placed to have immediate access intravenously in case additional medications are needed. They are then given an injection of an anesthetic agent and an endotracheal tube is placed to help them breathe oxygen during surgery. During all anesthetic procedures a registered veterinary technician monitors blood pressure, pulse oxygenation, temperature, ECG, heart rate, respiratory rate, and end tidal CO2 level. IV fluids are run to maintain your pet’s hydration & blood pressure.

After all of the pre-surgical tasks are completed, the ovariohysterectomy is performed in our sterile surgery suite.  After surgery your pet is moved to a recovery cage where we monitor their temperature closely. Your pet can either then spend the night at our hospital or go home depending on how they recover after anesthesia.  Spay procedures have an abdominal incision, but absorbable sutures are usually placed.

A neuter procedure is a little less invasive.  Your dog will have one incision in the area between his penis and testicles.  Absorbable sutures are placed and recovery is very similar to a spay.

Exercise restriction is very important post-operatively as it can reduce swelling, pain, and infection rates.  It is very important to keep a close eye on your pet’s incisions and prevent them from licking.  Some pets require the use of an Elizabethan collar (the dreaded cone of shame!) if they are licking their incision to prevent infection rates.  After 10-14 days, they are usually in the clear and can resume normal activity.