Alpine Veterinary Hospital Bingen

06/18/2025

Happy Tuesday!

06/16/2025

The Western Rattlesnake is often encountered in our area in the warmer months. Usually on hiking trails, brushy or rocky areas or near down logs but can also be found in backyards and more public spaces. The amount of venom injected by a bite varies and some bites are "dry", however venomous snake bites to dogs and cats are a veterinary emergency. If you suspect a snake bite to your pet, seek veterinary care immediately.
Symptoms of a snake bite include swelling, bruising, pain, drooling, weakness, difficulty breathing, abnormal heart rate or paralysis. Snake bites are treated with the administration of antivenin, IV fluids, pain management and wound care. Antivenin helps to counteract the effect of the venom and the amount needed varies with each specific situation.
There is a rattlesnake vaccine available for dogs, however there are very few studies regarding the efficacy of the product. In addition, the vaccine claims to help minimize the effects of the venom but immediate veterinary care is still needed despite the vaccination status of the pet.
What can you do to help prevent and care for snake bites? Keep your pet on a leash when out hiking and if you suspect a snake bite, calmly carry your pet to your vehicle and seek veterinary care. Do not ice the area and do not apply a tourniquet. The prognosis for bites is generally good if treatment is started within 4 hours, and antivenin has been shown to have a positive effect even 24 hours post bite.

06/10/2025

One of the best things about living in the gorge is the outdoor activities and close proximity to forested areas. With the warmer weather and many people out hiking and camping with their pets we have had many questions surrounding ticks and Lyme disease.

The black legged tick (or deer tick) is our local carrier of Lyme disease. They can be found mostly in wooded or brushy areas and usually spring through fall. Dogs, cats, horses and people can become infected with the bacteria Borrelia burgdorferi transmitted through ticks. About 90% of people that are infected with this bacteria become ill, where 5-10% of dogs that have been infected show signs of illness. Little is known about whether infected cats become ill.

Some signs of Lyme disease in dogs include intermittent lameness, fever, loss of appetite, decreased activity, swollen lymph nodes, and painful, swollen joints. Some of these infected dogs go on to develop a type of kidney disease called Lyme nephritis which can be fatal.

The good news is that Lyme disease is easy to test for and easy to prevent. A tick has to be embedded in the skin for 24 hours before it can transmit disease so checking your pet for ticks is a first line of defense. Because the ticks can be so small and difficult to detect (see photo), there are numerous products on the market to kill and even repel ticks.

Call your vet for more information!

05/29/2025

We will be closing early today at 4pm for our regular staff bonding. We will open again tomorrow 5/30/25 at 8am!

05/27/2025

With the dry weather approaching comes with it dry grasses.

One of the most common problems we have with pets in the summer time in our area is from dry foxtail or cheat grass awns making their way into places on the body they shouldn't be. The most common complaints we hear that can be associated with cheat grass awns are coughing, sneezing, shaking of the head, rubbing the eyes and lumps between the toes. Cheat grass loves to get stuck in the throat, sniffed up the nose, get into the ear canal, get stuck behind the eyelids and get stuck between the toes where it penetrates the skin and causes an abscess, but any area of the body can get cheat grass embedded.

In order to get these grass awns out, your pet usually has to be sedated while we search for the lost seed.

To help avoid this situation you can keep your pet out of the tall, dry grasses whether it's in your yard or on a hike. You can clean the grass seeds off of their coat after being outside and check thoroughly in between each toe. If you have a thick coated or curly coated dog, it can be helpful to shave the hair between the toes.

05/16/2025

What do you call a wiener dog riding a bike?.........Doxycycline!

Happy Friday!

05/09/2025

We are approaching wildfire season and we would like to remind you to keep your pets in mind when planning for possible evacuations or other disasters. How do you prepare your pets?

First and foremost, you should have a plan in place. It is difficult to make quick decisions under stressful situations and important things could be easily missed. Many hotels and shelters do not accept animals, so have a plan for a place for your pets to go in an emergency. Make a plan with a capable neighbor that can gather your pets if you are not home and make sure they know your pet's favorite hiding places.

Have a small bag and a carrier of some sort ready in an easy to access location. Work on familiarizing your pet with a sturdy carrier ahead of time so they are more likely to easily go in. You can place a familiar blanket or toy inside, and if your pet is difficult to get into the carrier you can work on feeding them in it and leaving it open in common areas of the house. You should have an extra leash, collar and ID tag, water, a small supply of food, necessary medications, a litter box and litter, trash bags and baby wipes. Food and medications should be in a water tight container. You can keep a larger supply as well for sheltering in place (in case of snow storms and road closures). Include a recent photo of yourself with your pet to help identify and prove ownership if you get separated.

The American Red Cross website has window labels to inform emergency personnel of animals in the household, but be sure to write "evacuated" on it if you pack up and go so they don't use precious time searching. Always watch weather alerts and make sure your contact information is up to date with alert systems, and early evacuation is better than late!

Also, remember an evacuation or other emergency can be traumatizing to our pets too, so be patient and aware of any behavior changes following any disaster situation.

Stay safe!

05/06/2025

Here's an idea for those lazy cats that need to shed some extra weight!

877 likes, 17 comments. “ ”

05/01/2025

Not all of our animal friends are house pets and professional couch potatoes...some of them have jobs to do.

There are many different ways for dogs to showcase their abilities. Dogs can be "employed" in herding and guarding livestock, working on the police force or the military as bomb sniffing dogs, drug sniffing dogs or even electronics sniffing dogs. There are also therapy dogs, crisis response dogs, search and rescue dogs, hunting dogs, guide dogs, truffle sniffing dogs, those that detect disease and those that pull delivery carts or sleds.
The Boston Museum of Fine Arts has employed a bug sniffing dog will sit at a display that may have the beginnings of a bug infestation so the damage can be stopped before the art is destroyed.
Traverse City airport in Michigan had employed a border collie to chase wildlife off of the runway and to catch rodents that attract birds of prey.
A man in Florida trained his dogs to dive 15 feet underwater for lobsters.
Dogs have been trained and employed in wineries to sniff out a certain molecule that adds a musty odor and flavor to wine making it undrinkable.
The University of Washington has several Labradors used as whale p**p detectors to help track the movement of Orca whales. One of these dogs can also detect the scent of moose, caribou, wolf, iguana and bat f***s to assist scientists in studying these animals.

There is no end to what dogs can learn and do to help their human companions. Here's to the working dogs!

04/24/2025

Happy Thursday!

04/21/2025

April is National Heartworm Awareness Month.

How do you know if your pet has heartworms?
There are few, if any, early signs of the disease so testing may be recommended annually, prior to starting regular preventatives or after returning from a high heartworm risk area. We take a small amount of blood and can usually get results back within 30 min.

What happens if the test is positive?
Treatment for dogs is complex so your vet will send out another test to the lab to confirm any positive result. Activity should be restricted right away, the more active the pet the faster the heartworms cause damage. Your pet will be stabilized prior to starting treatment if necessary, then your vet will develop a multistep treatment protocol. 9 months after treatment is completed, your pet will be tested again.
There currently is no treatment approved for use in cats, so prevention is the best choice.

Don't forget to ask your vet about heartworms at your pets next annual exam!

04/19/2025

Cat ladies (crazy or not) we appreciate you!

Happy National Cat Lady Day!