Talbot Road Veterinary Services

11/05/2024

Nugget says, "It's Talbot Tuesday!"

FAQ: Why do I need to have an exam to be a client - and why every year?

A: Ontario veterinarians practice under the Professional Practice Standard of their regulatory college, the CVO. Every animal treated must have what is called a VCPR: a veterinary-client-patient relationship.

A VCPR is established between a veterinarian (or other vet in the same practice), an owner (client), and each animal under that client's care. Our veterinarians are required to have a valid VCPR before providing treatment, giving advice, or prescribing any medications.

A VCPR must be maintained, which involves, at minimum, a brief annual exam. This is true even if there are no concerns and/or no vaccinations due.

Keeping an active VCPR with Talbot Road ensures priority booking whenever possible, enables our veterinarians to give advice when appropriate, allows for prescriptions to be refilled/renewed as appropriate, and maintains access to after-hours care.

10/31/2024

*EDIT please bring your own chairs if you’d like to sit!

Friendly reminder for everyone who signed up for the joint injection talk that it’s THIS Monday!
See you there! 🐴

10/31/2024

Myrtle says Happy Howl-o-ween everyone!

10/29/2024

Talbot Tuesday - Staff Spotlight!

Emily - Registered Veterinary Technician

Please welcome Emily, the newest addition to the TRVS Technician Team! Emily recently joined our clinic on the small animal side, and will soon be working on the large animal side, as well.

Education: St. Clair College, 2021

Family: Emily lives with her parents and many animals, including Bailey (a Mastiff cross), H***h (a Golden Retriever), goats Bonnie and Clyde, Sebastian the cat, Shadow the Morgan horse, and Mo, an Arabian cross.

Hidden talent: Emily was an impressive tap dancer back in the day!

Our staff pick 3 words to describe her: Reliable, attentive, dedicated

What is your favourite thing about working in veterinary medicine?: "Monitoring surgeries/anesthesia and helping to advocate for patients."

What completely non-veterinary-related things do you enjoy?: "Riding and spending time with my horses. I also spend a lot of my time helping out with my grandpa's Morgan horse breeding business."

If you were to win a small lottery and had to add something fun to the clinic, what would it be?: "An equine therapy/rehab area!"

10/25/2024

10/22/2024

Talbot Tuesday FAQ: Why can't medical concerns be addressed during vaccine appointments or meet-and-greets?

A: Our doctors want to ensure that all medical issues are thoroughly addressed and discussed. Vaccine appointments are scheduled for less time, as our patients are presumed at the time of booking to be stable, and therefore not requiring any diagnostics or treatments. Adding unexpected concerns to a visit often means falling behind on our schedule, which is unfair to other clients and patients, and involves use of limited team resources.

If you have concerns that may affect your animal's vaccination, please notify the clinic in advance so that we can reschedule and/or arrange a medical appointment if necessary.

If you require a medication refill or nail trim, please inform our team **at the time of booking**.

Thank you so much for your understanding.

This message brought to you by Bentley and Chance!

10/18/2024

Sugar-glidin' into the weekend - Happy Friday!

10/16/2024

Please take a moment to educate yourself on this brutal topic!

10/15/2024

This Talbot Tuesday, we are celebrating two special additions to TRVS family. They are not only new to us, but pretty new to the world, too!

Dr. Emily and Eric are excited to welcome foals Toast (palomino) and Cookie to their fur family. These girls have already settled in, and are (mostly) on their best behaviour!

Do you notice anything special about Cookie? 👀

10/13/2024

UPDATE: Thank you to everyone who reached out. We are delighted to have had many inquiries about Pocket, and will be putting his current family in touch with those who have expressed interest ☺️

In need of a home:

This is Pocket, a ~3 year old castrated male goat. Sadly, Pocket lost his penmate this past week, and has been quite lonely on his own. His family is looking to find him a new home where he can thrive as a pet (not for commercial/food use). Pocket can be shy with people but is a nice fellow! He is currently located in the Ingersoll area.

If you think your farm may be a good fit for Pocket, please email us at [email protected] with the subject line "Pocket", and we can put you in touch with his current family. We hope to find this boy a happy ending!

10/11/2024

Good Morning and Happy Friday!

Please be advised that our regular appointment bookings for our hospital will be closed on Monday October 14th, 2024 for Thanksgiving.

We will still be offering emergency after hour services for our existing clients (Patient has been seen within the last year). Please call the clinic phone number at 226-931-5362 and leave a voicemail for the oncall Veterinarian for further assistance should you need our emergency services.

In order to better understand what should constitute a middle of the night call we’ve created a chart with examples for each species of urgent (should be seen within ~24 hours) versus emergent (needs to be seen immediately or within a very short time period). Only emergent cases should prompt a late night/early morning call.

Dogs:
Urgent case examples: Not eating, vomiting, lethargy, fever, smaller wounds

Emergent case examples: Broken limb, non-productive vomiting/gagging in a large breed dog, toxin ingestion (chocolate, grapes, rat poison, anti-freeze etc), a wound with uncontrolled bleeding, seizures lasting longer than 5 minutes, sudden onset paralysis

Cats:
Urgent case examples: Not eating, vomiting, lethargy, fever, smaller wounds, struggling to p**p

Emergent case examples: Male cat unable to urinate, broken limb, toxin ingestion (grapes, lilies etc), wounds with uncontrolled bleeding, respiratory distress, sudden onset paralysis

Horses:

Urgent case examples: Off feed, fever, leg that is suddenly swollen but without trauma, lethargy, smaller wounds

Emergent case examples: Broken limb, colic signs (call vet to help triage the seriousness), wounds with large amounts of bleeding or that are overtop/near joints, choke, any birthing complication, down and unable to rise

Ruminants (Cattle, goats, sheep):

Urgent case examples: Off feed, fever, lethargy, small wounds

Emergent case examples: Uterine prolapse, birthing difficulties, “down cow”, bloat, sudden onset paralysis

10/08/2024

Talbot Tuesday - Staff Spotlight!

Nugget - Human/Non-human Resources

Nugget joined Talbot Road in early 2023. A friend of clinic staff knew he would not last long as an outdoor kitten with a deformed paw, so he moved into TRVS. He currently runs the HR department.

Education: Literally none

Family: Nugget spends weekdays with his employees. He is visited on weekends by Dr. Emily or Eric to be fed and cuddled, and to ensure he doesn't call the authorities on us.

Secret talent: Nugget has the uncanny ability to cross three continents in 2 milliseconds when he hears the Cheez Whiz container being opened.

Our staff choose 3 words to describe him: Disruptive, demanding, fickle

What is your favourite thing about working in veterinary medicine?: "Warming my bum when the autoclave is running."

What completely non-veterinary-related things do you enjoy?: "Eating, napping, eating, looking out the window, and eating."

If you were to win a small lottery and had to add something fun to the clinic, what would it be?: "An all-you-can-eat buffet".

10/04/2024

We're not sheepish to say, TGIF! It's a baaaaad case of the Friday Fatigues. Happy weekend, everyone!

10/01/2024

This week's Talbot Tuesday marks the first day of RVT Month.

RVTs - Registered Veterinary Technicians - are highly skilled professionals that play a crucial role in veterinary practices across the country. Completing a minimum of 2-3 years of schooling, RVTs comprise a regulated profession with intensive training.

This past year at TRVS has been a very busy one, and we could not have provided quality care to so many patients without the important work of Amanda, Hannah, and Andrea. These ladies are diversely proficient; their many duties include (but are not limited to): admitting and discharging surgery patients, collecting samples and running lab work; monitoring and running anesthesia; managing prescriptions, and much more.

As a small team, our RVTs often pitch in for duties outside their job description, including answering phones/emails, cleaning, organizing inventory, and beyond.

Please join us in expressing our gratitude and appreciation for our amazing RVTs!

09/26/2024

Limited spots available! Please RSVP to [email protected] to save a spot and include any dietary restrictions :)

09/25/2024

(Tardy) Talbot Tuesday! ⏰

FAQ: Why did my mobile appointment get changed last minute?

A: We do our very best to honour appointment times as closely as possible. As a mixed-animal, mobile practice, we occasionally need to rearrange the schedule when an emergency arises.

Sometimes this simply means we are running a little behind; other times we may need to reschedule to a different day. We realize this can be frustrating and inconvenient, and only do so when absolutely necessary.

Thank you so much to you, our wonderful clients, for your patience on those busier days. We are a small crew doing the very best we can, and we appreciate your understanding. 🥰

Send a message to learn more

09/17/2024

Talbot Tuesday - Staff Spotlight!

Dr. Carleigh Cathcart - Associate DVM

Education: Ontario Veterinary College, 2021

Family: Husband Jarrett, red heeler Rex, and rescue cat Alex (and hopefully many more animals in the future!)

Hidden talent: Can kick anyone's butt at Mad Gab

Surgery playlist: Almost anything; classic rock and country are best

Our staff pick three words to describe her: independent, passionate and witty

What is the best part about being a veterinarian?: "Fulfilling a lifelong dream of being able to treat and advocate for animals of all species. Being a voice for the voiceless is a privilege and honour".

What completely non-vet-related things do you enjoy?: "Jigsaw and word puzzles, dancing with friends, spending time in nature, and cheering for/crying over the Toronto Maple Leafs."

If you were to win a small lottery and had to add something fun to the clinic, what would it be?: "An all-species education building with interactive stations to teach people about husbandry, handling, etc."

09/12/2024

Hello everyone!

As our client list continues to grow we’ve come to the decision to update our after hours fee structure. Going forward, any calls that require a veterinarian to attend between 10pm and 7am will be subject to an additional $100 fee. Additionally, any phone consultations during that time frame where veterinary advice is given (for example; dosing of an over the counter medication) that will then require the vet to write a medical note on the conversation, will now cost $50. This will not only assist in more frequent full night sleeps for our veterinarians (who have fully booked days whether or not they saw someone in the middle of the night), but also help to reduce the frequency of non-emergent calls for advice during the night.

In order to better understand what should constitute a middle of the night call we’ve created a chart with examples for each species of urgent (should be seen within ~24 hours) versus emergent (needs to be seen immediately or within a very short time period). Only emergent cases should prompt a late night/early morning call. Otherwise we ask that you respect our vet’s (and their pet’s!) need for rest and avoid calling or texting at these times.

Dogs:
Urgent case examples: Not eating, vomiting, lethargy, fever, smaller wounds

Emergent case examples: Broken limb, non-productive vomiting/gagging in a large breed dog, toxin ingestion (chocolate, grapes, rat poison, anti-freeze etc), a wound with uncontrolled bleeding, seizures lasting longer than 5 minutes, sudden onset paralysis

Cats:
Urgent case examples: Not eating, vomiting, lethargy, fever, smaller wounds, struggling to p**p

Emergent case examples: Male cat unable to urinate, broken limb, toxin ingestion (grapes, lilies etc), wounds with uncontrolled bleeding, respiratory distress, sudden onset paralysis

Horses:
Urgent case examples: Off feed, fever, leg that is suddenly swollen but without trauma, lethargy, smaller wounds

Emergent case examples: Broken limb, colic signs (call vet to help triage the seriousness), wounds with large amounts of bleeding or that are overtop/near joints, choke, any birthing complication, down and unable to rise

Ruminants (Cattle, goats, sheep):
Urgent case examples: Off feed, fever, lethargy, small wounds

Emergent case examples: Uterine prolapse, birthing difficulties, “down cow”, bloat, sudden onset paralysis

We thank you in advance for your understanding! Please do not hesitate to reach out with any questions!