Happy International Cat Day!
Mr. Tutt had his urine collected for some routine blood work, and he had no issues laying on his back with some delicious Cat-It treats! We decided to continue with some of his care while he was happily feasting on some Chicken flavoured snacks.
We LOVE low stress handling and positive treat reinforcement.
A reminder that tick's are out in full force this year!
Zoey presented to us with some mobility concerns, and after taking her history and doing an examination our most likely diagnosis was tick paralysis! She had a luscious hair coat, so it took all hands on deck to find our friend! Soon enough, we found an engorged tick embedded. The tick was successfully removed, and we began her on tick preventative.
Tick paralysis can present in varying degrees of mobility concerns - they can be wobbly, then can lose complete ability to use their legs, or in severe cases they can also have breathing/respiratory issues. Once the tick is removed in full and tick preventative is administered, mobility can return within a few hours time.
We love unique pet names! Have you heard any of these before?
A round of applause for RVT's Robyn and Linda, demonstrating how we take x-rays on large dogs with staff pet Mara!
(Fluff fluff fluff)
#tiktoktuesday
Sometimes veterinary medicine meets yoga! #funnyfriday #vetmed
Hey NVH'ers!
A reminder that our office will be closed Saturday August 5th, reopening Tuesday August 8th at 8AM.
If you have an emergency during this time, please call 250-980-2480 to be directed to the On-Call Emergency Clinic.
We hope you all have a fun and safe long weekend! ☀️
Shout out to the classics! Bella, Luna, Buddy, Benny, Charlie, Cooper.. We love you! Honourable mentions: Koda, Lucy, Max, Bailey. You rock, don't ever change! #kamloops #vetmed
Will shake 🤝 for snacks!
#vetmed #kamloops
They're having a party in their own little world- and we love that for them 🥳 #puppylove
When a client asks for help carrying in litters of puppies 🐶 #mefirst #puppylove
It's Edi's first day as a NVH receptionist! He's still leaning his social ques...
This little moving creature is an ear mite!
These little beasties like to infest the ears of dogs and cats, and they are infectious, and can thus be spread between pets.
Animals that have an ear mite infestation are often very itchy, and will scratch at their ears and shake their heads. Their ears are often filled with thick brown discharge, which your veterinarian will sample and look at under the microscope.
It is a relatively easy condition to treat which is the good news! The ears need to be cleaned thoroughly, and the pet then needs to be given an anti-mite treatment, such as Revolution, which is often repeated in 14-28 days. It is always a good idea to then have another vet check done to ensure that infestation has cleared.
Here is a video of Mozzy, one of our employee’s rats, taking medication willingly from a syringe.
Now if only it was always that easy!
Like dogs and cats, exotic animals may require oral medications at some point in their lives. Syringe training can be something you do with your exotic pet BEFORE they get sick to decrease stress and anxiety should they need to receive medication or food via syringe in the future.
For syringe training:
-Start by holding the syringe near the face of your pet. Let them check it out! Let them sniff the syringe, nibble on it/lick it (under supervision only, syringe consumption is not recommended).
-Next, put some water in it. Hold near pet’s face and let them check it out. Gently squeeze syringe so some water comes out. See if pet shows any interest in licking the syringe. Lots of verbal praise, affection/petting (if pet enjoys this type of interaction) and positive reinforcement with their favorite treat.
-You can also put a small amount of a sweet liquid (applesauce, fruit juice, etc. Consider diluting sweet substance with water) in the syringe to try to entice your pet into licking the end of the syringe. Emphasis on small amount of sweet liquid as too much sugar can cause digestive upset in many exotic species (esp. rabbits and guinea pigs).
You can make syringe training part of your daily or weekly training routine with your pet!
Let us know what other exotic training tips or info you would like to see!
How do we measure intra-ocular pressures in your pets?
We use something called an iCare TONOVET Plus. This tool uses a very small and gentle percussive probe, that moves in and out of the measuring head, to make momentary contact with the surface of the cornea.
Most pets tolerate this quite well, as it is MUCH easier and faster to use than some of the older equipment out there. No topical anesthetic is needed, and generally only very minimal restraint is required.
Edi here is showing us the proper technique for its use. He got lots of treats afterwards for his efforts!
Good morning NVH'ers,
Lights, Coffee, Action! 🎬
Come along with us to open the clinic this morning- Starting with our exam rooms (and of course, topping up the treats), starting the laundry, laying out the surgical gown packs, prepping the kennel for our little friends visit, and getting their surgical consent forms ready.
What's your favourite part of your morning routine?
With training and time, it can be very easy to place a muzzle on your pet. When River is at home, she will walk forward and place her snout into the muzzle to get her liver treat, but at the clinic she is a bit more shy about it and will need some more direction.
We know that the use of a muzzle often has a very negative connotation, and that many people feel it is mean or unnecessary, but with positive reinforcement training by owners at home, it becomes a more regular part of your dogs care. The use of muzzles is extremely important in veterinary medicine as we need to be able to do our jobs safely, and most of the time, pets are coming to us in pain or distress with illness, so they are less predictable than they are normally, and more likely to bite.
A bite from a dog (or cat or ferret!), can put a team member in the hospital with severe wounds, deep infections or even loss of body parts. When in doubt, or if the animal is displaying signs of fear aggression (eg. River showing "whale eyes" and then nipping) or open aggression(lunging, barking and snapping), our team will place a muzzle in order to keep everyone safe.
Again, many times when an animal has a muzzle placed, they are more calm and much less restraint is then needed to be able to complete the task we need to complete.
Safety first! And training is key!
Help your pet and help your vet! Engage in muzzle training! Let's change the way we all think about muzzles!
Lick mats and Kong cheese spray for the win!
Fear free practice is always the goal here at NVH. It is very helpful when our patients are so food motivated!
Looking for something to do with your pup this long weekend? Try out these tips at home to get your four legged friend comfortable wearing a muzzle!
#muzzletraining #safevetsafepet
It is very important that our small mammals start eating as quickly as possible during recovery from a procedure. These little guys are very prone to "gut stasis", and we need to avoid this!
This wee guinea pig, who was recovering from a bladder surgery (see previous post), was happily recovering in the incubator and munching on cilantro within 10 minutes of waking up! We would call that a success!
Pain relief, proper anesthetic protocols, appropriate patient monitoring, IV fluid therapy, and ensuring maintenance of body temperature, are all very important for these teeny creatures, and all of these factors are a big focus of our team here at NVH.
#themoreyouknow #guineapigcare #exoticpetcare
Remember adorable Diesel from last week who visited the clinic for vaccines and itchy ears? Here is a view from our microscope showing how we came to the diagnosis of ear mites!
