West Blacktown Veterinary Clinic

13/12/2024

12/12/2024

‎We’re thrilled to celebrate Head Nurse Cass's incredible 5 years with us!

Cass is the heart and soul of our clinic - the engine that keeps everything running smoothly. Her commitment to growth, learning, and striving for excellent patient and client care inspires us.

Cass is constantly pushing us to be better, and her dedication to the team’s development has fostered a supportive, collaborative environment where we all thrive. We could not be more proud of her!

We are so honoured that Cass chooses to be a part of our team here at West Blacktown. Her passion, hard work, and unwavering dedication make all the difference, and we can’t imagine this clinic without her.

Thank you, Cass, for everything you do 💜

11/12/2024

🐶 This handsome little man is Bodie. He was very brave, sweet and well-behaved for his second puppy vaccinations. 🥰

🐾 Bodie is a Border Collie - part of the “working dog” group.

🐕 The thing with dogs - especially working dogs - is that YOU ARE ALWAYS TRAINING THEM…even when you don’t realise it.

🐶 Dogs are so intelligent, they’re learning from you and their environment all the time. And sometimes, they’re training you too! What might you accidentally be teaching your dog?

🐾 If you need help with your dogs behaviour, be they a beautiful puppy like Bodie or an older dog, we can help.🙂

🐕 Between our puppy school with Pups Academy, our vets with behaviour interests, and our network of collaborative professionals, we can help you find the right solution for you and your pup. 🥰

10/12/2024

🐱Dr Amy’s cat, Buddy, visited us recently for an abdominal ultrasound. 🐱

🐾 Buddy has Small Cell Lymphoma (SCL) - a type of cancer - in his small intestine, and he also has Inflammatory Bowel Disease.

🐈 Like many cats, Buddy used to vomit occasionally. Over months it got more frequent. He was bright and happy, but after he didn’t respond to diet trials, he had further tests including bloodwork, abdominal ultrasound and intestinal biopsies, which confirmed his diagnoses.

🐈‍⬛ Inflammatory bowel disease is common in cats 5 years and older, but can occur in cats as young as 6 months . Affected cats may vomit, have soft stools with or without blood, reduced or increased appetite, weight loss and/or lethargy. It is thought that chronic inflammation in the intestine eventually leads to cancerous changes.

💊 Buddy has been on chemotherapy for 12 months now, with the average survival of cats with SCL being 3 years. Unlike humans, animals often tolerate chemotherapy well and for Buddy, chemotherapy takes the form of tablets every 2 weeks at home.

💕 Please SHARE with friends and family, so we can raise awareness of this insidious condition.

09/12/2024

On Friday, we bid farewell to our amazing receptionist, Renee. 🌺

💕 While we’re sad to see her go, we’re excited for her as she steps away to spend more quality time with her family.

🐶 Renee has been the friendly face greeting you and your pets for over two years, always making sure everyone felt comfortable and welcome, whether in the waiting room or on the phone.

We’ll miss her greatly, but we’re confident we’ll stay in touch and hope to see her again down the road. Best of luck, Renee! ⭐️

05/12/2024

We love kittens - but not kittens dumped at the bottom of our stairs on a 30 degree day. ☹️🥵

🐈 With the warmer weather comes kitten season, and shelters, rescues and vets are currently overflowing with the little fluff muffins. 🐈‍⬛

If you find young kittens, here’s what you need to know:

🐈 Kittens’ best chance of survival is WITH THEIR MOTHER.

🕥 Unless they are in immediate danger, wait for 10-12 hours to see if mum arrives before taking them - she’s often gone off to get food!

🤔 If they are in danger, can you move them somewhere nearby that is safe? Mum won’t abandon them because you touched them. (Urban myth).

🐱Mum often won’t come back while you are there so you will need to keep your distance.

🐾 Can’t stay and watch them? You can sprinkle a ring of flour around the babies to see whether mum has come back. If the flour has paw prints in it, you have your answer.

🩺👩‍⚕️If they are thin, or appear ill (for example, gunky eyes) bring them to your nearest vet or pound for assessment.

💕 If mum doesn’t return, you, a friend or family member may need to foster the kittens until there is space at a rescue facility or shelter, or until you find them homes.

What is the best thing you can do? Desex your cat, SHARE this post and encourage your friends, family and neighbours to desex their cats. Together, we can stop the overpopulation problem. 🐱🐾

04/12/2024

🐶 Meet Cinnamon! 🐶

This sweet little lady visited us for her desexing procedure, and was prescribed extra cuddles after surgery. 🥰

Just like many pups her age, Cinnamon had two retained baby teeth - her upper canines.

Adult teeth in dogs are usually full erupted by 6-7 months of age, pushing the baby teeth out as they come through. When the adult teeth erupt next to the baby ones, they might stick around causing tooth decay.

To avoid rotting her adult teeth, brave Cinnamon had her baby teeth removed after her desexing procedure. We definitely think that warranted the extra cuddles! 🐶💕

03/12/2024

💕 One of the best things about our job is watching our beautiful patients grow up and their personalities blossom. 💕

And we definitely still give them puppy cuddles even when they’re not *technically* puppies anymore. 🤭

This is little Remus cuddling Renee in 2022 and 2.5 years later in 2024. 🥰

02/12/2024

🍾 Celebrating another milestone within our amazing team 🍾

A huge congratulations to Dr Amannda and her new husband 💍 🥂

We couldn’t be happier for this amazing couple as they start their married life together - may it be filled with love, laughter and plenty of surprises (just like the ones Amannda always has in store for us 😂)

27/11/2024

💕We have a new member of the WBVC tribe!💕

A massive CONGRATULATIONS to Dr Gina and her husband, Damien on the arrival of baby Clare! 🤗🤗🤗

Having seen how much they have doted on their fur babies over the years, we just know Clare has the best parents around! 💕

Wishing you a wonderful maternity leave, Gina. We can’t wait to meet your little one in person when the time is right. ☺️

27/11/2024

Miss Grey has an itty bitty kitty heart murmur.

♥️ A “murmur” is where we can hear a “whooshing” sound of turbulent blood flow over the top of the heart beat.

🐱 In cats, murmurs can indicate heart disease or they may be normal. In dogs, murmurs almost always represent a health problem.

🧐 How do we tell if a murmur is a problem?
Miss Grey has regular blood tests to check for heart muscle cell damage and nurse Grace also measured her blood pressure during her visit. We are also lucky to be able to offer basic cardiac ultrasound here at WBVC. 🤓

26/11/2024

Congratulations to little Dolce 👏

Thanks to her family’s dedication, this little lady has lost a whopping 4 KILOS! 😯

🐈 After puppy or kitten-hood, it is common for pets weight to creep up. This can be because their metabolism slows and they also tend to get a little less active.

💔 Carrying extra weight shortens your pets life, and leads to increased risk of diabetes, high blood pressure, heart disease, infections, cancer and arthritis.

🦴 Helping your pet to lose weight can be achieved by:
- using a weight loss diet
- measuring the quantity given
- feeding 2-3 small meals per day instead of one large one
- utilising interactive food toys like Kong Wobblers, puzzle feeders, snuffle mats and scatter feeding
- ensuring they exercise and play every day

We think Dolce and her family have done an AMAZING job! Well done!! 🏆

25/11/2024

🧸 This little teddy bear is Cooper. 🧸

He came to see us recently with a very nasty case of gastroenteritis. 💩

🐶 Gastroenteritis in pets is just a fancy term for vomiting and diarrhoea, not an actual diagnosis. It can be caused by a variety of different conditions, from bacterial or viral infections, to foreign material in the gut, auto-immune diseases and even cancer. 🐱

Luckily, after ruling out some of the nastier causes of gastroenteritis with blood tests and an abdominal ultrasound, Cooper has made a full recovery and is back to his sweet self. 🥰

19/11/2024

🐶 This handsome older gentleman is Figo 🥹

Figo is a member of our free Seniors Program. That means he has his own Seniors Card, and he gets a complimentary health check each year.

We recommend twice yearly health checks for older pets because of their increased risk of serious health concerns, many of which hide under the radar. Our Seniors Program is part of our commitment to improve the quality of life of our golden oldies.

If you have an older pet, get in touch to see if they are eligible for their own Senior’s Card!

18/11/2024

🐀 When you thought the rat bait was a snack, but the vet said it was bad for you 😢

Little Enzo couldn’t resist a nibble of some rat bait. Rat bait is designed to smell yummy to draw in the rats - unfortunately, sometimes it attracts other species too. 🙁

🐀 Rat bait stops the blood from clotting, leading to rats - and unsuspecting pets - bleeding to death.

🐀 Signs of rat bait poisoning may take up to 7 days to show and vary depending on where the animal is bleeding. They include:
- external bleeding such a bruising, or blood in the urine or 💩
- weakness, lethargy and/or wobbliness
- difficult breathing
- bloated abdomen
- loss of appetite
- pale gums
- sudden death 😰

🐶 Luckily, Dr Ange gave Enzo the all-clear from his encounter with the naughty snack and hopefully he learned his lesson…but he is a Golden Retriever, so… 😬👀💕

14/11/2024

😾 Cleo might look like she wants to speak with the manager, but we’re pretty sure she’s forgiven us now. 😮‍💨😅

You see, poor Cleo has developed arthritis. She was struggling to get into bed, and limping with the pain. After a check-up with Dr Amy, this beautiful girl has started on treatment and is much better. ♥️

🐱 61% of cats over 6 years of age have arthritis in at least one joint.

Does your cat…
🐈 Sleep more than they used to?
🐈 Limp or seem stiff when first getting up?
🐈 Hesitate to jump on or off things?
🐈 Pause on their way up or down the stairs?
🐈 Seem reluctant to play?
🐈 Seem restless at night?
🐈 Repeatedly lick their joints?

If so, it might be worth having them checked over. Unfortunately, cats can be excellent at hiding signs of pain, which means us humans need to be extra vigilant. 👀

13/11/2024

🐶 This week is Human-Animal Relationship Awareness week.

🐱 Animals have a huge impact on our lives. Companion animals have been shown to help lower blood pressure, and improve physical and mental health - not to mention how much love they give us! 💕

🐾 Nurse and Practice Owner, Katrina, and her German Shepherd, Chevy, have used the power of the human-animal bond to help others through volunteering with Delta Therapy Dogs.

🦮 Delta Therapy Dogs is a non-profit organisation that helps animals and people bring joy to each other, and harnesses the human-animal bond to improve quality of life. In fact, they brighten the lives of 20,000 Australians in aged-care, hospitals, mental health facilities, dementia wards, palliative care, disability services and other community spaces every week!

Delta Therapy Dogs

12/11/2024

💕A picture speaks a thousand words 💕

Working in the veterinary industry isn’t always easy, but moments like this are what get you through… a little pause to cuddle a patient like Rusty can reset us too, and keep us going to the end of a long day.