Pekin Animal Hospital

02/13/2025

Tomorrow is Pet Theft Awareness Day

The best way to prove ownership and help you get your pet back, whether stolen or lost, is to microchip.

We offer microchipping for any of our patients, just give us a call, today, if you'd like to set up an appointment to get your pet chipped.

Here's a recent story of a stolen dog recovered after TWO YEARS! Thanks to her microchip.

A Laredo resident was reunited with her dog, two years after she went missing, thanks to a microchip.

02/12/2025

We will be closing at 2pm today to make sure our staff is able to get home safely. We plan on being back to our regular business hours, tomorrow. Any changes will be made, here, on Facebook, as soon as decisions are made.

Stay safe and enjoy the snow day!

02/10/2025

February is Pet Dental Health Month! This is intended to help bring awareness to the growing need of focusing on our pets' dental health, however, this is a year and lifelong detail we need to keep an eye on.

Our pets are living longer and longer, which is awesome, but it also means a greater likelihood of needing some dental work done. From a simple cleaning to broken teeth extractions, we can help with them all. We are fortunate to have a dental suite set up in the clinic designed especially for performing dentals safely and efficiently. We have a wet table, under animal warmers, fluid pumps, equipment to monitor heart rate and other vital signs, therapeutic laser that stimulates healing of extracted teeth and gingival disease, and even dental radiography, which is designed specifically to help our veterinarians see what your pets' teeth look like under the gum line. This can help them determine whether or a not a tooth needs extraction, saving a lot of time and pain for the pet.

Give us a call today for an appointment with our technicians or assistants or veterinarians(if your pet hasn't been seen by one of them in the last 12 months) to help evaluate your pets dental health and need for a cleaning or more! Even without extractions, a dental is an extensive procedure with many specialized pieces of equipment and lots of monitoring and time involved.

Below is a link to a more in depth look into pets' dental health and some photos of our dental suite!

https://www.avma.org/events/national-pet-dental-health-month #:~:text=While%20February%20is%20National%20Pet,pet%20owners%20all%20year%20long.

02/07/2025

Attention pet owners! It has come to our attention that "Save This Life" microchip, the microchip company we have utilized for many years, has shut down without notice. Their website is still up, but they are no longer responding to emails, phone calls, etc. and their database has been unlinked from the national registry. As a result, Save This Life microchips are no longer functional for veterinary hospitals or shelters reuniting lost pets with their owners.

To ensure your pet’s microchip remains a reliable safety measure, we strongly recommend transferring its registration to another trusted microchip registry.
✅ Reputable Registries – A quick internet search will provide many trusted options. (PetLink, HomeAgain, AKC Reunite, etc.) Please note that some registries may charge a small fee.
✅ Free Pet Chip Registry – A free, universal registry compatible with all microchip brands. You can register your pet at freepetchipregistry.com.

If you are unsure of your pet’s microchip number, we are happy to assist. Send us a text to (309)347-6674 requesting the number, with your pet's name and we will be happy to provide it. We can also set up a time to scan your pet, if necessary.

We sincerely apologize for any inconvenience this may cause! Our team is just as shocked by this news as you are, but we are here to assist you in any way we can.

02/05/2025

We all know February as commercialized lovey dovey hearts and roses month, right? Well, we like to consider it "Heart Month" for a different reason.

Heart disease is one of the more common disorders we see in our pets. There have been many developments in the treatment of heart diseases is dogs and cats and we're here to help you and your pet treat, and live with that diagnosis. The key, as with many other diseases and disorders, can lie in catching it early. One of the best tools is a test called ProBNP. This is a cardiac specific test that can be run in our clinic, along with a simple blood panel.

Below is some information on heart disease in general, and ProBNP specifically. Please call if you have any questions or concerns and would like our veterinarians to assess your pet.

https://www.purinainstitute.com/science-of-nutrition/transforming-heart-health/cardiac-conditions

https://www.dvm360.com/view/nt-probnp-testing-an-important-tool-for-veterinary-practitioners

Explore the vital role this biomarker test plays in identifying cardiac conditions in dogs, plus how to use it in daily practice (Sponsored by BIONOTE).

02/03/2025

Today is National Golden Retriever Day

This gorgeous, loyal, sweet hearted breed is always a staff favorite. We have some GREAT Golden patients. Any of their owners here on FB willing to share their pics?

02/01/2025

Today is World Greyhound Day! This elegant and talented breed has it's roots in dog racing. Most, if not all, of the Greyhounds we've had pass through our practice, have been retired racers. They've been magnificent dogs and many first time greyhound owners become lifelong greyhound owners.

Dolly was one of those sweet, quiet, and patient dogs adopted from the race business. She belonged to one of our assistants. Does anyone have a guess on who it was who belonged to Dolly?

Also pictured are a few of the Greyhounds from the group that Grace, our newest CVT, worked with at school. We think someday Grace will have one of her own.

Answer will be dropped into the comments tomorrow.

02/01/2025

Tomorrow is Ground Hog Day! The cute, chubby little critter day, not the movie. We're sure most of us always hope for an early Spring, but if you want to have some fun this Sunday, head to Wildlife Prairie Park. It's supposed to be a very nice day. Gertie is trying to make her accuracy rating increase to 4 in a row!

https://www.facebook.com/share/p/1M6mfyaPDv/

Gertie has been right for 3 years in a row, will she make it 4?

Join us for a day of Groundhog Day activities beginning at 6am on Sunday, February 2nd.

6 to 8 a.m. FREE Park Admission
6 to 9 a.m. Complimentary craft at the Visitor’s Center
6 to 9 a.m. Snacks and warm beverages are available for purchase
6:30 a.m. Live music and entertainment with local musician Barry Cloyd
7:08 a.m. Sunrise and Gertie’s official weather prognostication
8:30 a.m. Deadline for scavenger hunt entries - turn into the Visitor Center
8:45 a.m. Announcement of the WINNER of the Gertie’s Scavenger Hunt
11 a.m. Keeper Chat
1 p.m. Keeper Chat

https://wildlifeprairiepark.org/gertie/

01/29/2025

Today is National Tuxedo Cat Day!

These handsome black or grey and white cats always look like they are ready to attend a wedding or prom, but their personalities are often mischievous and full of s***k!

How many Tuxedo cats owners do we have out there?

01/24/2025

Today is Peanut Butter Day! Peanut butter has always been an easy, convenient and tasty treat for dogs. They are often used to fill Kong toys for enrichment and also great for hiding medications.

We thought today was a good day to remind everyone that while it's still an excellent treat, there ARE some new dangers we need to watch for. Some containing Xylitol(also called Birch sugar) and though it's perfectly safe for humans, it is VERY dangerous to dogs. Dogs appear to be unable to metabolize xylitol, so it is quickly absorbed by the pancreas and causes critical drops in insulin in the body as quickly as minutes after it's ingested. It's very important to keep anything containing xylitol away from dogs. The most common culprits are sugar free gum and candy, and peanut butter. Please check all labels and, if possible, don't even keep them in your home, if you can replace them with non toxic options.

To learn more about xylitol toxicity and to see a list of the best peanut butters that DON'T contain it, check the links below.

https://www.fda.gov/consumers/consumer-updates/paws-xylitol-its-dangerous-dogs

https://www.restonyc.com/which-peanut-butter-has-no-xylitol/

This sugar substitute, found in some human foods and dental products, can be poisonous to your dog.

01/24/2025

Today is National Change a Pet's Life Day

Now, most of us reading this can say we've changed a life whether it's been by adopting, treating an illness, or even baby sitting your grand pets. It's just who we are.

However, we thought this was the perfect opportunity to spotlight a couple who stand out as beyond amazing among our amazing clients. Some of our techs say when they die they want to come back as one of their cats. Others say they want to be just like them when they grow up.

These two people have dedicated their lives to improving the lives of animals. Their examples are way to numerous to list, but we will throw out a few. They've adopted more animals than probably all of our current employees, combined(and we've adopted a lot of animals!), they've made dozens of trips to the University of Illinois for specialty treatments and diagnostics. They have animals who've had laser treatments for pain, diabetic treatments, thyroid treatments and so so much more. They regularly get their pets groomed and have fed multiple "special diets" and given so many medications, leading to careful and mindful meal times.

There is just so much we can say about these special people, but we will leave it at this and include some photos of just a fraction of the fortunate pets who have been in their lives.

Some of you may already know them, but help us show our gratitude that people like this still exist in the world. We, here at the clinic, respect and admire them both and are proud to call them friends, as well as clients.

Shari and Ursala. The world is a better place because you are in it.

Thank you to them, and every other client we have. Every visit you make to the clinic is because you love them and that IS making a difference in their lives. Give them extra hugs and treats from us, today!

01/24/2025

Our water is back on and we will be open normal hours tomorrow, Friday, January 24th. Hooray!
We thank you all for your patience and understanding! We've missed you!

01/23/2025

Yesterday was Answer Your Cat's Question Day. This is really just a fun way to remind us all how important it is to pay attention to how our pets communicate with us.

As owners, we need to watch their behaviors for changes that could mean they are in pain, experiencing litter box issues, or maybe even tummy issues.

As a veterinary clinic, it's our job to not only pay attention to the signs from the pets, but also listen to the owners. We always say you know your pets better than we do. So don't ever hesitate to mention behavior changes to the vet staff.

https://www.amcny.org/2025-pet-holidays-and-veterinary-awareness-days/national-answer-your-cats-question-day-2025/

01/22/2025

Our office will be open on Thursday, January 23rd from 11:00am-1:00pm and 3:30pm-5:30pm for food/medication orders and pickups. We will not be seeing any patients during this time, as we are still experiencing water issues. However, we want our patients to receive their food and medications as soon as possible.
We truly apologize for the inconvenience surrounding this situation. We are trying our best with something that is completely out of our control. We greatly appreciate your kindness and understanding.

01/22/2025

Today is National Yorkshire Terries Day!

These adorable, smiley critters rarely fail to put a smile on OUR faces!

Can we see your Yorkie smiles, below?

01/22/2025

We are very sorry to say that we will be closed again tomorrow, Wednesday, January 22nd. We are still without water and we cannot run our clinic without it.
We apologize for any inconvenience this may cause and greatly appreciate you kindness and understanding.

If you have a pet emergency, please visit one of the following clinics:
Tri-County Animal Emergency Clinic in Peoria - https://www.tricountyanimalemergencyclinic.com/
Animal Emergency Clinic of McLean County in Bloomington - https://animalemergencybloomington.com/
University of Illinois in Urbana - https://vetmed.illinois.edu/hospital/veterinary-teaching-hospital/veterinary-specialties/emergency-24-7/

01/21/2025

Attention Pekin Animal Hospital Clients:
We will be closing at 10:00am today, Tuesday, January 21st. A pipe burst, coming off of the water main, leading to our building, leaving us without water during the repair.
We are contacting all clients with appointments today to reschedule. We apologize for any inconvenience this may cause.
We hope to be back up and running tomorrow, but we will keep everyone posted. We greatly appreciate your kindness and understanding.

01/17/2025

It's National Boxer Day! We are quite fond of this breed around here. Their lovable, goofy personalities always bring a smile.

We've had some great boxers in the PAH family. Can we see your handsome/adorable boxers?