7 Questions You Must Ask Your Vet Before They Sterilise Your Pet

7 Questions You Must Ask Your Vet Before They Sterilise Your Pet

1. Do you give pain killers to every animal as standard? We believe every animal undergoing desexing surgery needs good quality pain relief, se we include it in the price we give you.

 2. Does every animal receive intravenous fluids during the surgery? With 85% of animals experiencing low blood pressure during surgery, intravenous fluids are important to help maintain blood pressure, making the surgery safer and the recovery faster.

 3. Will a fully qualified vet nurse be monitoring the anaesthetic?

4. Do you monitor blood pressure, oxygen levels, breath carbon dioxide levels and temperature constantly? This is critical to make the anaesthetic as safe as possible.

 5. Do you use a warm air machine while the animal is under anaesthetic and use heat pads when the animal is recovering as standard? Hypothermia is one of the biggest killers of animals under anaesthetic, as well as delaying wound healing and recovery.

6. Do you provide a collar to stop the pet being able to lick its wound?

 7. Does the price you have been given include all this as standard?

 At the Bunbury and Eaton Vet Clinics, the answer to all these questions is yes.

Cushing's Disease

Senior Pet Problem: Cushing’s Disease.

Does your elderly dog drink more than usual? Is it losing hair or getting pot-bellied? It may have Cushing’s Disease.

Cushing’s Disease, or Hyperadrenocorticism, is caused by the body producing excessive amounts of steroids. We see this dog most commonly in older, small breed dogs such as maltese and poodles, but it can affect many breeds.

It can be a bit of a tricky disease to diagnose. The most common signs owners notice are increased drinking and urination, a pot-bellied appearance and hair loss. This hair loss can show certain patterns such as losing hair along the length of the tail (producing what looks like a “rats tail”), and along both sides of the body.

Cushing’s Disease is most commonly caused by a small, benign tumour on the pituitary gland. This tumour produces a hormone that stimulates the adrenal gland to produce excessive amounts of steroids. A small amount of steroids is normal for the body to produce, but this increased production becomes problematic. There is a less common form of Cushing’s Disease caused by a tumour on the adrenal gland, which produces similar signs.

Diagnosis is by a specific blood test, and in some cases by ultrasound. It can be quite challenging to diagnose in some cases, but with the right tests and experienced vets most cases are diagnosed quite quickly.

There are a couple of treatment options available. The older treatment used to be a tablet that destroyed the adrenal glands. The problem with this treatment is it could potentially destroy too much of the glands, which is very dangerous. The newest treatment works by blocking the steroid production pathways. It is much safer and easier to use, and gives excellent control in most cases.

If your dog is showing any signs of hair loss, increased drinking or looking pot-bellied it should be checked out by a vet. Now is a good time to have it examined with our Senior Pet Month giving a $15 discount on all Senior Pet Consultations throughout June.

Chronic Kidney Disease in Cats

Senior Pet Problem: Chronic Kidney Disease in Cats

Chronic Kidney Disease (CKD) in cats is a relatively common but underdiagnosed problem affecting cats kidneys. It affects a large number of cats, but often goes undiagnosed as many owners don’t realise what signs to look out for.

The earliest signs we see of CKD is increased drinking and urination. Cats have the ability to concentrate their urine more than almost any other animal. When the kidneys start to fail, the ability to concentrate the urine is reduced, so the volume of urine produced is much larger. This leads to increased drinking to make up for the water lost in the urine.

As the CKD progresses, the kidneys can no longer remove the “toxic” body products as they normally would. This creates a build-up of toxins in the body which makes the cat feel unwell. This is where cats can get very sick very quickly. As the toxins build-up, the cat feels unwell so is less likely to drink. This makes the cat dehydrated, which in turn reduces blood flow to the kidneys, leading to the problem getting worse.

CKD is normally diagnosed with a combination of a blood and urine test. It is quick and simple to test for, and early diagnosis can make a big difference.

Treatment can be with medicine, diet, or a combination of these. Specially designed diets help prevent the build-up of toxins, and medications can help improve blood flow to the kidneys.

If your cat is over 10 years of age, now is a great time to have it checked out. With a $15 discount on Senior Pet consults this month, and a discounted Senior Wellness Blood Test available throughout June, we can make sure your cat is in great shape.

Urinary Incontinence

Senior Pet Problem: Urinary Incontinence.

Urinary incontinence is a common problem in older dogs, especially desexed females. It can affect up to 10% of dogs as they age, but is often left undiagnosed.

Many people only seek help for incontinence when the dog is leaving puddles when it sits or sleeps. By the time the dog is doing this, it is quite severe and often they have secondary problems such as a urinary tract infection.

One of the earliest signs we get of urinary incontinence is a bad smell. Often the owners can’t pinpoint where the smell is coming from, but it is most often a slightly fishy smell. This can be a sign of a very mild incontinence, with the smell being produced by bacteria that grow in the damp fur and folds around the vulva.

Left untreated, urinary incontinence can significantly affect quality of life. The effect I find most distressing for the dog is the way owners will shut the dog outside or not allow it into areas where it previously had access because of it’s bad smell. This isolation can be very difficult for an old dog to adapt to.

Urinary tract infections are also quite common in incontinent dogs, which can be very uncomfortable and contribute further to the incontinence. In rare cases I have also seen dogs become fly-struck because of the damp fur and smell attracting flies.

Fortunately in most cases urinary incontinence is very easy to treat. It normally responds to medication within days, though the earlier it is detected and treated the faster the response.

In rare cases, particularly when the dog is relatively young or when they don’t respond to the medication, there is a surgical treatment available.

If you are concerned your dog may be suffering from incontinence, please take advantage of our Senior Pet Month and book them in for a check-up. With a $15 Senior Pet Discount there will never be a better time.

Barking Mad

Barking Mad!

The number one reason why otherwise healthy dogs get put to sleep is barking. To can cause a lot of stress to owners, create problems with neighbours and generally make owning a dog a bad experience.

It is normal for dogs to bark. It is part of the way they communicate and is an important part of how they “evolved” to be useful to people, fulfilling a security role. Barking when there is a noise at the edge of the dogs territory or when someone comes to the front door can be considered normal, but should still be managed and not excessive.

Problems come when the barking is persistent, if the dog barks at every noise every time, or if the dog is barking at antisocial hours.

Inappropriate barking is something that needs a diagnosis and treatment. Just the same as vomiting or diarrhea are symptoms of an underlying disease, barking can be a sign of an underlying problem.

Inappropriate barking can be caused by stress, boredom, anxiety, senility, overstimulation, pain, or because the owner has “trained” the dog to bark by coming out to see the dog every time it barks (for some dogs the owner coming out to tell them off is better than the owner not coming out at all).

To treat problem barking, a diagnosis needs to be reached. Working with your vet to reach a diagnosis and develop a treatment plan is an important step. We tend to approach barking in the following way:

1.       Making sure there are no medical or behavioural abnormalities contributing to the barking.

2.       Ensuring the dog’s physical and mental needs are being fully met, for example a nutritional diet and plenty of exercise.

3.       Determining why the dog believes that barking is worthwhile.

4.       Removing the reason why the dog believes barking is worthwhile.

5.       Working with a professional dog trainer to teach the dog to be quiet when requested.

6.       Learning how to use distraction techniques to give the dog something better to do.

7.       Teaching the dog how to relax using reward-based training techniques.

The importance of a diagnosis can’t be stressed enough. Some people just buy an electric shock collar to stop barking, but if the dog is barking because of anxiety or pain, a collar can make the problem worse and make the dog suffer.

As with any other problem, early intervention tends to give the most rapid resolution of barking related issues. Please talk to your vet if your dog’s barking is causing problems. It may save your dogs life.

HEARTWORM AND MOZZIES

Heartworm is another one of those diseases mozzies spread, and is quite an important disease for all dog owners to be aware of.

Heartworm (Dirofilaria immitis) is a parasite that lives in the main blood vessel between the heart and the lungs. The adult worm produces infectious stages called microfilaria, which are discharged into the blood stream. These are then picked up by mosquitoes when they bite, develop a bit more in the mosquito then are injected into another dog when the mosquito bites. For heartworm to spread in a population of dogs you need two things – mosquitoes and infected dogs.

Fortunately in Bunbury we are in a lower risk area, although we do see the occasional case. We obviously have a LOT of mozzies, but few infected dogs (though those numbers can increase over summer when holiday makers from Perth bring their dogs with them). Perth, north of Perth and inland are much higher risk areas. In one study, 18% of unprotected dogs in Perth were found to have Heartworm.

The first sign of heartworm disease is normally the dog coughing. This is caused by the worms creating blood clots which lodge in the lungs. The cough can be quite severe, and in some cases fatal. Infection is normally confirmed with a blood test.

We recommend all dogs in this region have Heartworm protection. Although we are a relatively low risk area, the disease is very difficult to treat. We use a product similar to arsenic to kill the worms, and dead worms can break away to lodge in the lungs, causing potentially fatal respiratory problems.

We normally start using Heartworm preventing medications from around 12 weeks of age. For puppies less than 6 months we recommend monthly products such as Advocate which also protects against fleas and other parasites. We recommend the use of Proheart injections for adult dogs, which are given annually and provides year-round protection.

Please ask your vet about Heartworm, or give us a call on 97215999 if you have any questions. Once again, this is a disease where prevention is much better than cure.

Cost Versus Value

Why does the cost of having your pet desexed vary so much between clinics? After all, isn’t it the same no matter where it gets done? There are actually a lot of reasons why the prices vary from clinic to clinic.

The first thing to check when asking for a price is what’s included. We believe that when you get a price, it should include everything your pet needs. The price we give people includes everything including the surgery, a collar to stop them licking the wound, and pain killers to go home with. Some clinics will give you a lower price when you phone for a quote, but don’t include things like pain killers. We don’t see pain relief as an “optional extra”, so it’s included in the price we give.

A recent study from Murdoch University has shown that 85%of dogs undergoing routine desexing will experience low blood pressure (hypotension). This hypotension increases the risk of major organ damage, as well as leading to a slower recovery, delayed wound healing and an increased risk of post-operative infections. Based on these results, we have decided that all dogs and cats undergoing anaesthesia at the Bunbury Vet Clinic will have intravenous fluids administered to help prevent this hypotension.

The level of anaesthetic monitoring and intraoperative care also varies considerably. All animals undergoing anaesthesia at the Bunbury Vet Clinic are placed on a heating mat or warm air blanket for the surgery and recovery, and undergo continuous monitoring of blood oxygen levels. For animals undergoing major surgery we will also use our state of the art Surgivet monitoring machine. This allows us to run a continuous ECG of the heart, monitor core body temperature and even measure the amount of CO2 in the animal’s breath so we can gauge the animal’s respiration and metabolism. This level of monitoring allows us to recognise very early signs of problems with the animal and take corrective actions, massively increasing the safety of our anaesthetics.

The skill and experience of the staff also varies between clinics. All our vets have over 12 years experience, and our vet nurses are all fully qualified and experienced. Many vet clinics have less experienced staff, and many of their “nurses” may not actually be qualified.

When you compare prices for a procedure, ensure you are comparing apples with apples. What might seem more expensive may actually be better value.