Strait Veterinary Hospital

11/11/2024

Reminder that our offices are closed today in honour of Remembrance Day. We are scheduled to reopen Tuesday, November 12th.

If you are an active client of Baddeck Veterinary Clinic or Strait Veterinary Hospital and require emergency services, please call (902) 295-3440.

11/09/2024

This is Kwazii 🐈 owned by me (CJ), your veterinary assistant at our Strait Veterinary Hospital location.

And while she may look like an adorable orange cat, I can assure you that she is actually a chaos gremlin in cat’s clothing.

Named after an Octonauts character, Kwazii joined our ranks in December 2022 as a companion for my daughter, whom she loves. She also loves my three other cats, my partner, my sister, the cable repair man and the ghost in my basement. Everyone except me, the person who brought her into this house, feeds her and pays for her.

Her favourite pastimes are climbing door frames, stealing food and raising my blood pressure. She has been arrested on several occasions and is currently facing charges of disorderly conduct, disturbing the peace, failure to comply, mischief, theft under $5000, breach of probation order, treason against the crown and attempted arson. It is expected that the jury will find her innocent of all charges {yet again} because well, who is going to convict that face?!

When she isn’t committing cat crimes, she takes her role as resident bug exterminator very seriously and off the clock, she can often be found playing one of her 467 toys, cuddling with my other cats, playing with Ophelia and posing for photos.

She does have one super power. She can always sense when I’m feeling down and will seek me out for head butts, leg rubs or she will wait until I’m almost asleep to curl up on my feet for a cat nap, and that {mostly} makes up for all the rest. I do love her very much, despite her limited love for me (the obvious spare human).

Thank you for reading all about “The Kwaz”!🧡

11/07/2024

We will be closed Monday, November 11th for Remembrance Day.

If you require a refill of your pet's medication or prescription diet prior to this closure, please make arrangements for pick up by end of day on Friday, November 8th.

If you have an emergency during this closure and are an active client of Strait Veterinary Hospital or Baddeck Veterinary Clinic, please call (902) 295-3440 to speak with our after-hours answering service.

11/04/2024

November is Senior Pet Month 🐾

Thanks to advancements in veterinary care and research, our pets are living longer, happier and healthier lives. Even so, it is important to understand and be prepared for changes that come along as your cat or dog ages.

While every pet may age differently based on species, breed and lifestyle, there are general guidelines to determine when your pet reaches the senior milestone. Large and giant breed dogs are considered senior at a younger age than small or medium breeds and cats, on average, live longer than most dogs. The senior age for most cats is 8-10 years while dogs greater than fifty pounds are considered senior at around 6 years and smaller dogs at approximately 8 years.

While age is not a disease, there are certain health conditions that affect senior pets more often than their younger counterparts. These conditions include arthritis, dental disease, changes in vision or hearing, kidney and liver disease and the appearance of lumps and bumps, just to name a few. It is important to note and discuss any changes in your pet’s appetite, mobility or routine with your veterinarian during regular senior wellness exams.

There are changes you can make at home to help accommodate your senior pet’s lifestyle. For example, senior dogs with arthritic changes could benefit from the addition of rugs to slippery floors and similarly cats may find wider, shallower litter boxes easier to get in and out of.

For more information on how to care for your senior pet, click on the link below🔗

Older pets may develop age-related problems. Good care allows them to live happy, healthy, and active lives in their senior years.

11/02/2024

Say Hello to Sonny!

“Rockn It Sonny” or as he’s more commonly known around the barn, Sonny, is a Solid Paint Horse. Born in Saskatchewan in 2019, Sonny made his was to Yarmouth as a c**t before being purchased by Maesey, one of our RVTs, in the spring of 2020 and moving to Margaree.

Don’t let this cute face fool you, Sonny always finds some kind of mischief to get up to, especially when it comes to playing with his big bother, Red. No pylon is safe with Sonny around. He loves to pick them up and swing them, occasionally hitting his play mate.

Some of Sonny’s favourite things are carrots, apples, playing halter tag with his brother and being worked, although he does get lazy from time to time.

Thanks for taking the time to learn a little about the very handsome, Sonny!

10/27/2024

Today is National Black Cat Day! 🐈‍⬛ 🐾

And what better way to celebrate than with our very own Lucy!

Lucy is now seven years old and came to us in the fall of 2017 as a young kitten. Famous for her “hockey stick” leg, she can often be found assisting Jo-Ann on the front desk, distracting CJ in the treatment area or harassing Dr. Buckley to share her lunch.

A local hide-and-seek champion, she routinely sneaks away to one of her “spots” as the clock ticks closer to closing time. On several occasions our team has spent nearly an hour looking for her, only to have her reappear in the middle of the room as if by magic.

When she isn’t climbing bookshelves to ease drop on phone calls (or to smash bottles of fish oil), she loves to cat nap on Dr. Campbell’s coat when he returns from horse calls and attempt to convince our clinic assistant, Carmaline, that she hasn’t actually been fed at all that day.

Although shy with our clients, she loves to get Dr. MacEachern’s attention after hours by banging the cupboard doors until she takes a break from charting to give her all the treats she deserves!

We are so fortunate to have Lucy (& her “sister” Luna) to greet us every morning and to keep us in line during the day, we don’t know what we would do without them!

If you have your own black cat and wish to celebrate them, post their photo in the comment section below!🖤

10/26/2024

After a two week hiatus, we’re back with another…

🐎 Staff Pet Saturday 🐩

Say Hi to Ty!

Tymal “Ty” Torrance is a fifteen year old standardbred owned by our RVT, Lily.

The son of Jeremes Jet, Ty was born at Tymal farms in Ontario and later relocated to Nova Scotia. In 2015, he moved from Sydney to Inverness and into the care of Lily and her Dad.

He raced competitively for five years before an injury forced him into retirement. Since then he has discovered his true passion for exterior redesign (otherwise known as property damage).

These days you’ll likely find him enjoying a sun-soaked midday nap with his buddy, Indie, in Cape Mabou when he isn’t hiding out from the rain or snow.

Thank you for reading all about Ty!

10/24/2024

We’re preparing for a spook-tacular Halloween!👻 🎃

And will be closing one hour early (at 4pm) on Thursday, October 31st to allow our staff to get home in time to welcome the trick-or-treaters!

If you have an emergency during this closure and are an active client of Strait Veterinary Hospital or Baddeck Veterinary Clinic, please call (902) 295-3440 to speak with our after hours emergency service.

10/22/2024

Don't let your furry little monsters access candy or human treats, as they can be poisonous. When in doubt, talk to your veterinarian about the best treats for your pet!

10/21/2024

The Asian ladybeetles were out in full force this weekend in a few different parts of the quad counties, so what does that mean for our pets?

The good news is that serious encounters are rare, but when ingested by dogs and cats, Asian ladybeetles secrete defensive compounds that may cause irritation or sores in the mouth. The defensive compound has an awful taste and foul odour, meaning our pets are less likely to go back for seconds or thirds. There may be exceptions to the rule (I’m looking at the Labrador Retrievers here) but if your dog quickly swallows the beetles, irritation to the mouth appears to be minimal.

If your pet is experiencing symptoms of excessive drooling or foaming at the mouth, reluctance to eat with a foul odour coming from the mouth, be sure to check the inside of your pet’s mouth for signs of beetles, sores or other irritation. As uncommon as these encounters are, ingestion in large quantities could also have a negative impact on your pet’s gastrointestinal tract resulting in reduced appetite, vomiting or diarrhea.

The best prevention is to keep the numbers in and around your home low by sealing any cracks or damage around doors, windows and other crevices and using a vacuum (rather than squishing) to dispose of those found indoors.

Many of the symptoms of Asian beetle ingestion are general in nature and therefore common to other ailments. It is best to speak directly to your veterinary team regarding specific symptoms and next steps.

10/10/2024

We have received confirmation of an Eastern Equine Encephalitis (EEE) case in Nova Scotia. EEE is a viral disease spread to horses by mosquitos. Mosquitos become infected after biting infected birds. Mosquitos are the only way the disease can be spread; it cannot spread horse to horse or from birds directly to horses.

Eastern Equine Encephalitis causes inflammation of the brain and clinical signs can progress quickly. There is no cure for EEE and death occurs in 90% of cases.

Signs to be aware of include:

· Depression/lethargy
· Anorexia (not eating)
· Fever
· Ataxia (stumbling gait)
· Paralysis
· Seizures
· Mental dullness
· Laying down and unable to rise

Thankfully EEE is a disease that we can vaccinate for! Horses that have been vaccinated by our clinic with a 5-way vaccine (Prestige 5 or Vetera 5XP) within the last 12 months will have coverage for EEE. If your horse has not been vaccinated in the last 12 months, please contact the clinic to discuss options for updating your horse’s vaccines.

If you have questions about the disease or about your horse’s vaccine status, please email the clinic at [email protected], if you are an existing client please include the name on your account and the best phone number to reach you at. We ask clients to please leave our phone lines available for clients that need to reach us for emergency care for their pets. We understand that this emerging disease is distressing, and we are working diligently with our clients to protect our equine companions.

*Photi is a stock image

10/10/2024

🦃 🍂

10/08/2024

We will be closed Monday, October 14th for Thanksgiving.

If you require a refill of your pet's medication or prescription diet prior to this closure, please make arrangements for pick up by end of day on Friday, October 11th.

If you have an emergency during this closure and are an active client of Baddeck Veterinary Clinic or Strait Veterinary Hospital, please call (902) 295-3440 to speak with our after hours answering service.

Have a great long weekend!🍂

10/07/2024

‼️💵 Cash Only 💵‼️

Our electronic payment provider is currently experiencing an interruption of service. We are working with them to resolve the issue and will be cash only for the time being.

Thank you for your patience.

10/05/2024

🐈 Staff Pet Saturday 🐾

Hello, Clarice. 🐑
(Feel free to read that in your best Hannibal Lecter voice)

This is Clarice Starling, former FBI cadet and current amateur emotional support cat to CJ (me), your veterinary assistant at Strait Veterinary Hospital.

Clarice has been with our family for nine years and has spent most of that time following around her favourite not-so-tiny-anymore human, Ophelia and making the best, most airy biscuits in all the quad counties.

When she isn’t overseeing childrearing or assisting the FBI with international manhunts, she likes to kick back on the couch and cuddle with Mom over morning coffee and episodes of Dateline or Unsolved Mysteries. She also enjoys cat napping with one of her siblings in the sunshine when she isn’t trying to steal a bite of cheese. Her nightshift consists of attempting to out-snore her Dad {she has yet to be successful} and kneading the couch cushions into submission.

Clarice has been nominated for a sainthood {because she is the sweetest cat on earth} and is also currently in active litigation against Luna, our clinic cat, for identify theft.

Thank you for reading all about Clarice Starling!🐦‍⬛

10/03/2024

🩵

🐾Our next Tender Tails Pet Loss Group starts this October.

💻The group meets virtually and is available to anyone over the age of 19 living in an Atlantic Canadian province.

💻The group meets 6:30 to 8 pm AT on Oct 29, Nov 5, Nov 12, Nov 19, Nov 26, Dec 3, Dec 10, and Dec 17.

In this eight-week program, you will meet others who are going through similar pain. Your feelings, thoughts, questions, and worries will be supported and honoured. You’ll find compassion and comfort for the journey ahead. Kathleen Dunbar, a veterinary social worker and registered veterinary technician, facilitates the group.

This group is for you if you are experiencing:

🐾guilt in the face of your heartbreaking loss

🐾 a flooding of painful feelings and thoughts

🐾a sense of emptiness

The fee is $200 (no tax) for eight sessions. There is a limit of ten participants.

Tender Tails is eligible for reimbursement with most extended health care plan providers, including MedaVie Blue Cross. Limited pro bono offerings are available for those who are unable to pay.
Email [email protected] to register.