Companion Vet Care - Vet Clinic North Lakes

14/02/2025

Happy Valentine’s Day!

14/02/2025

‼️AN IMPORTANT MESSAGE TO OUR CLIENTS ABOUT HOMESAFEID MICROCHIP REGISTRY ‼️

HomeSafeID is a privately owned microchip registry that is expected to go offline. This is understandably creating a lot of worry for pet owners. To help ease these worries here is what you need to know:

🐶 If you are unsure where your pets microchip is registered you can check on this website, Pet Address https://www.petaddress.com.au/ by entering their microchip number.

🐱 If you do not know your pets microchip number please don’t call the clinic, instead please email us at [email protected] and we will check if we have it recorded on our system. If we don’t have it registered we will then organise a time to bring your pet into the clinic to have their microchip scanned. This is free of charge.

🐾 If you discover your pet is registered with HomeSafeID you will need to register their microchip with another registry. Below are some options:

- Central Animal Registry https://car.com.au/ (from $11.99 registration/transfer fee)

- Australasian Animal Registry https://www.aar.org.au/ ($15 registration/transfer fee)

- Global Micro Animal Registry https://www.globalmicro.com.au/ (Free transfer)

(Please note the registration/transfer fee information we have gathered is accurate as of 14/02/2025. Please confirm any registration/transfer fees prior to registering, we cannot be held responsible for these charges changing)

🐶 If your pets microchip is registered in NSW it will not show up as registered anywhere when searched on Pet Address. This is because any microchips registered in NSW are not part of a nationwide database. We strongly recommend taking this opportunity to register your pet with one of the above registries.

🐱 Regardless of where you pets microchip is registered this is a great opportunity to log on to ensure all details are up to date. Unfortunately the majority of stray animals that are presented to the clinic do not have a current contact number registered and are often still registered in the breeders name.

We are happy to assist should you have any further questions but please direct all questions through email so we can appropriately triage these enquiries and keep our phones free for appointments and emergencies.

10/02/2025

Miss Sophie has the most beautiful smile and such a gentle nature!

23/01/2025

So not to state the obvious, but its HOT!!!! And tomorrow is predicted to be another hot day so we thought we would remind you to think about our furry, feathered and scaley friends which can also suffer from heat stress. Put a few extra bowls of water out in a shady location, away from pets, for wildlife. Ensure all your animals have a source of shade and plenty of water. Wherever possible bring your animals into air-conditioning. This is especially important for small pets (birds, mice, rats and guinea pigs) as well as brachycephalic breeds which have impaired ability to cool down. Walking should be limited to early morning and late evening and the ground should 1st be checked with the back of the hand to ensure it is not too hot for your dog’s feet. Consider making pet ice blocks with small bits of food frozen in water for them to eat. Under no circumstances should dogs be left in cars as even a few minutes can result in severe life-threatening heat stroke. Stay cool everyone!

21/01/2025

06/01/2025

This handsome young man is Cannon. He is highly intelligent and very active so mom is cleverly doing all the training to positively reinforce his good behaviour!

31/12/2024

Happy new year!!!!!

24/12/2024

Merry Christmas to all our wonderful clients! Wishing you all a joyful Christmas full of puppy dog kisses and kitty cat cuddles!

19/12/2024

Friday funny....

19/12/2024

Can you believe that next week is Christmas already??? It snuck up so fast this year.

We hope that you will have a safe and happy Christmas so to reduce the chance of an emergency visit read the post below to ensure that you minimise the Xmas dangers for your pets.
Tinsel, Ribbon and other pretty Things: These appealing new ‘toys’ can be perilous for your pet. Shiny Christmas decorations are an obvious feline choice but don’t forget about ribbons, wrapping paper, toy packaging and extension cords which can also be very enticing ‘chew toys’. Eating tinsel or other string-like items such as ribbon (often called linear foreign bodies) can cause serious damage to the intestine. They can saw through the intestine as it contracts causing perforations which then result in peritonitis due to the leakage of bacteria from the gut into the abdomen. When this happens the prognosis for recovery becomes poor. Pets with linear foreign bodies quickly become ill with signs including vomiting, diarrhea, depression, belly pain and sometimes fever.
Other holiday decorations can also cause problems should they get stuck in the intestines with signs including depression, vomiting or inappetance.
Holiday Lights: These beautiful twinkling lights need to be examined each year for defective cords. Check for bite marks, loose or frayed wires, and make sure that they are positioned away from any water. Electrical shock can cause burns, difficulty breathing, abnormal heart rhythm, loss of consciousness, and death. The prognosis is partially dependent on how quickly treatment is initiated.
Water: Dogs and cats can be attracted to novel water sources and sometimes the addition of chemicals can make this particularly attractive. Should you have a live Christmas tree be careful about adding chemicals to the water (used to keep the tree fresher for longer) as they can be toxic to animals. Read the label first to ensure that they are safe for use with pets.
Child safety gates can be useful to keep dogs away from the tree.
Turkey, ham and all things delicious: Most of us can be suckered in to sharing in the spoils of Christmas lunch with our cats and dogs (hard to resist the puppy dog eyes or gently persuading paw). Though your pet may love you for this on the day, they may not thank you when they start feeling unwell. Gastro-intestinal upsets are a common complication with sharing the family feast but pancreatitis is also all too common. This is an incredibly painful and potentially life-threatening disease which can also have long term consequences.
Another treat with potential problems is bones. Cooked bones are more likely to splinter and therefore cut into the gut. They can also get stuck in the oesophagus, stomach or intestine so we do not recommend these left-overs for your pets.
It’s not Christmas without boxes of chocolates. Just remember that chocolate can be fatal to dogs and cats, so keep chocolates out of reach and don’t be tempted to hand them out as a treat. Wrappers should also be disposed of as even our feathered friends are at risk if ingested. Chocolate wrappers can cause gastric obstruction but can also be a source of heavy metals that can lead to poisoning in birds.
Foods containing grapes, raisins and currants (such as fruitcakes) should also be kept out of reach as they can result in kidney failure in cats and dogs
Alcohol may add to our merry demeanor but in dogs it is rapidly absorbed into the bloodstream causing dangerous drops in blood sugar, blood pressure and body temperature. Intoxicated animals can experience seizures and respiratory failure.
Extra attention from visiting relatives and friends may be relished by some pets while others seek solitude in their favourite hiding spot. Make sure pets are given some "personal space" if they want to get away from the commotion.

Wishing you all a wonderful Christmas!

13/12/2024

Maverick just knew there were treats hidden behind that reception desk!!!

11/12/2024

With Christmas just around the corner we would like to take the opportunity to advise of our clinic hours over the festive season.

05/12/2024

Who has "cat or dog proofed" their tree and who just embraced the inevitable? Share your Christmas tree for animals hacks below....