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Mountain West Animal Hospital

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Mountain West Animal Hospital

Mountain West Animal Hospital is a full service veterinary facility in Springville, UT. We have been serving our local community for nearly 40 years.
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Mountain West Hospital is a full service veterinary facility located in Springville, Utah. We understand the unique relationship you have with your pets. You can trust that your pets will receive the best care possible while at Mountain West Animal Hospital. Our mission is to provide the best possible veterinary care for our patients by maintaining and utilizing state of the art facilities and equ

ipment, and by employing and developing a well-trained competent and caring staff. We are dedicated to providing friendly, compassionate service to our clients in an atmosphere of professionalism, respect and concern. We advocate community and client responsibility in improving the welfare of animals. We seek to be a positive, contributing influence within the community we serve. At Mountain West Animal Hospital, we value life. We are advocates for those who have no voice. We believe that all animals have the right to a life free of pain and suffering. Everything we do is centered on this principle. We strive to provide the care that pets need and deserve.

11/12/2024

My Take Tuesday: Veterinarian of the Year

A couple of weeks ago, I had the privilege of speaking at a state veterinary conference, where I presented on llama and alpaca veterinary care, discussed camelid theriogenology, and participated in a roundtable on social media and marketing. Engaging with fellow veterinarians, paraprofessionals, and students is something I truly cherish. Veterinary medicine is a remarkable profession filled with incredible people, and these moments of collaboration and shared learning remind me of why I love this field so deeply.

During the annual business meeting of the Utah Veterinary Medical Association, I was genuinely surprised and deeply honored to receive the 2024 Utah Veterinarian of the Year Award. I had no idea this was coming, and in that moment, emotion overwhelmed me. Accepting this award with a heart full of gratitude, I couldn’t hold back the tears.

Reflecting on my journey, I think back to where it all began—a tiny town in Utah called Castle Dale. With a population of just 1,500, it’s a place that doesn’t have a stoplight, a movie theater, or even a grocery store open on Sundays. Surrounded by wide-open blue clay hills and a deep blue sky, I grew up with space to dream and a sense of purpose fostered by my surroundings. In Castle Dale, I developed a strong work ethic, a vivid imagination, and a unique sense of self. My parents instilled in each of their children the importance of hard work and resilience. They loved us unconditionally, encouraged us to always do our best, and taught us to find strength in setbacks and humility in success.

My path to this award has been one of learning, dedication, and a deep commitment to ethical care and the well-being of animals. Veterinary medicine is not easy; it requires long hours, intense emotional investment, and a deep sense of responsibility with every diagnosis and procedure. But moments like these—whether it’s a professional accolade or a simple thank-you note from a grateful client—remind me that the effort is seen and appreciated. These acknowledgments affirm that the sacrifices made, the challenges overcome, and the compassion shown truly make a difference.

Receiving the 2024 Utah State Veterinarian of the Year Award is both a humbling and profound honor. This recognition is not only for me but also for all those who have stood by me—my colleagues, mentors, friends, clients, and family. Each of you has been part of this journey, and I am deeply grateful for the trust, encouragement, and opportunities you have given me.

This honor also brings a renewed sense of responsibility to live up to the standards this award represents. As I continue on this path, I am committed to furthering the mission of veterinary care, to never stop learning, and to always prioritize the health and well-being of the animals and communities I serve.

And that is My Take.
N. Isaac Bott, DVM

11/11/2024

To all veterans- past, present, and future- your sacrifice and selfless duty is one of the greatest reasons on earth to be called an American. God bless each of you on this special day. May we never forget the precious gift of freedom you so honorably defend.

11/06/2024

My Take Tuesday: A Scar

Last year, after a long day at work, I slipped while using a knife and cut a large section of skin off the tip of my left middle finger. The pain was excruciating as I drove to the urgent care clinic. Because of the location and size of the wound, suturing it closed wasn’t an option. I was stuck wearing a large band-aid on my finger for the next few weeks. The occasional throbbing and tingling sensation reminded me throughout each day to be careful as I examined pets and went about my usual routine. I certainly have a good scar on the tip of my finger from this injury.

My left hand has been injured many times during my lifetime. Each of these injuries has left a unique scar. Each represent the best healing scenario for the injury sustained. Each scar has taught me how to deal with pain, how to be strong and each leave a detailed memory about how and when each injury happened. The most prominent of these scars is on my pointer finger.

You can see it if you look close enough, each time I extend my left hand with my palm down. It runs nearly perpendicular to the axis of my index finger.

Scars are a physical reminder of our own survival. They tell a story about places that you’ve been. They are tangible roadmaps to life’s lessons learned.

Every time I notice the scar on my finger, my mind travels back to my senior year of veterinary school in 2008. My best friends from veterinary school, Dan and Travis, were with me on this wild adventure.

It was a beautiful November day in Emmett, Idaho. The crisp fall air and dark yellow leaves of the cottonwood trees reminded me why this was my favorite time of the year.

During my last year of veterinary school, an entire month was spent at the Caine Veterinary Teaching Center in Caldwell, ID. This provided hands on training in a variety of agricultural species. Our days were spent on massive dairy operations, in the classroom and at livestock auctions.

On this particular day the sale yard was full. Cattle of every breed, gender and size were being sold and sorted through the sale barn.

My tasks were simple: 1) Vaccinate the females between 4-10 months of age. 2) Diagnose pregnancy in adult females. 3) An occasional bull calf would also need to be castrated.

Often cattle are sold because of their disposition. Wild, aggressive and flighty cattle are difficult to handle. Studies have shown a lower pregnancy rate among beef cattle that are flighty. Farmers are quick to cull cows that exhibit these traits. Therefore, wild and crazy cattle are prevalent at a livestock auction. Extreme care must be taken to avoid injury.

Facilities to process cattle make all of the difference for a veterinarian. It is very dangerous to attempt to process cattle in a rickety old squeeze chute. Unfortunately, too many sale barns have cattle handling facilities that leave much to be desired.

A black Angus calf entered the chute. I had castrated many calves before this and was very comfortable with the procedure. To facilitate castration, I entered the squeeze chute behind the calf. I reached down and made an incision. The calf immediately jumped and kicked. His right hind leg hit my right hand with incredible accuracy. The knife, still held securely in my right hand, plunged downward. The blade entered the index finger of my left hand, right between the first and second knuckles. The blade sank deep, and only stopped as it hit the bone in my finger.

The pain was immediate. I quickly exited the chute, holding my left hand tightly. Blood poured down my hand and dropped on the ground. The professor asked, “What happened?”

“I cut myself,” I responded.

As I stepped away from the squeeze chute, I glanced down at my finger. The open wound gushed blood. I immediately became lightheaded and nearly fainted as I stumbled to the truck.

I wrapped my finger tightly and headed to the nearest urgent care clinic. The throbbing pain seems to peak with each heartbeat.

After a couple hours and a few sutures, I was back at the sale yard. The remainder of the day went smoothly.

I will forever carry a reminder of that November day in Emmett, Idaho. Although time tends to color our memories optimistically, I still remember the painful lesson I learned that day.

Such is life. The ups and downs leave us battered and scarred. But with time, things get better. The pain won’t always be there and someday we will look back at each scrape and scratch and be reminded that scars are beautiful.

And that is my take!
N. Isaac Bott, DVM

10/30/2024

My Take Tuesday: Halloween

I love this time of year! The cool fall breeze, the crisp chill to the air, the brilliant, gilded glory of the golden aspen and cottonwood leaves, the deep red of the sugar maple and scrub oak bushes all bring out the best of nature’s canvas and bring a profound sense of relaxation to my senses. With all of the sadness in the world today, we are in desperate need of a new beginning, a comforting time to reset, a beauty that comes around every year in the form of autumn.

This is the season of the harvest moon, pumpkins, football games and corn mazes. The smell of the first fire in a wood burning stove, and the taste of hot apple cider all create an olfactory bonanza and take me back to days of long ago. I think about my childhood, pumpkin pie, Halloween carnivals at Castle Dale Elementary, and the magic in a young boy's hopes and dreams.

Nostalgia can be like a fun-house mirror, so any claims that “back in my day, we went trick-or-treating until midnight,” while kids these days are forced to make do with half an hour of highly supervised trick-or-treating before sunset, are surely a benign distortion.

Still, it seems like the tradition of going door-to-door demanding candy is not quite what it used to be. Over the past couple of years, as Halloween has come and gone, large “trunk or treating” events (in which community members circle up their cars, fling their trunks open, decorate them, and fill them with candy, and then have their kids make the rounds in a parking lot) have slowly replaced the door-to-door adventures I so fondly recall.

I remember one year especially well. The late October wind was serene and tranquil as the bold orange sun faded into the seemingly empty autumn evening sky west of Ferron, Utah. Crisp shades of red, yellow, and orange from fallen leaves, formed a thin layer over the verdant lawns of the neighborhood.

I set out with my friend Jake Bulkley on an epic trick-or-treat adventure in the small town of Ferron, Utah. I remember walking along 500 South carrying brightly colored plastic buckets filled with what seemed like endless supplies of Sour Patch Kids, Jaw Breakers, Lemon Heads, Candy Corn and Reese’s Peanut Cups. We felt like we had a successful candy haul until Jake’s younger sisters arrived home carrying pillowcases filled to the brim with candy. They had followed the exact same route, but somehow ended up with ten-fold the amount of candy. It was at the moment that I realized that trick or treating was for children younger than me. Jake and I decided our time would be better spent doorbell ditching and performing other typical teenage boy pranks. Jake and I still laugh to this day about our mischievous fall adventures we had while attending San Rafael Junior High.

Halloween for me is still filled with unpredictable adventures. As a veterinarian, I encounter more black cats than the average person. October 31st is always a busy day at Mountain West Animal Hospital. Although this is a fun holiday for us, Halloween can be precarious for our four-legged family members. Keeping our pets safe is a year-round job, requiring special attention during the holidays and special occasions. Pets chew up and eat things humans never would think of consuming. Here are a few pointers to keep your pets safe this Halloween:

1. Don't feed your pets Halloween candy, especially if it contains xylitol (a common sugar substitute found in sugar-free candies and gum); or chocolate.

2. Make sure your pet is properly identified (microchip, collar and ID tag) in case s/he escapes through the open door while you're distracted with trick-or-treaters.

3. Keep lit candles and jack-o-lanterns out of reach of pets.

4. If you plan to put a costume on your pet, make sure it fits properly and is comfortable, doesn't have any pieces that can easily be chewed off, and doesn't interfere with your pet's sight, hearing, breathing, opening its mouth, or moving. Take time to get your pet accustomed to the costume before Halloween, and never leave your pet unsupervised while he/she is wearing a costume.

5. Keep glow sticks and glow jewelry away from your pets. Although the liquid in these products isn't likely toxic, it tastes really bad and makes pets salivate excessively and act strangely.

6. If your pet is wary of strangers or has a tendency to bite, put him/her in another room during trick-or-treating hours or provide him/her with a safe hiding place.

7. Keep your pet inside. This is the easiest way to keep them safe.

Have a safe and fun Halloween!

And that is my take!
N. Isaac Bott, DVM

10/23/2024

My Take Tuesday: Fleming’s Vest-Pocket Veterinary Adviser

The year was 1904. The town of Emery, Utah had a population of around 560 people, nearly double what it has today. Emery has always been an agricultural community. Ranching and farming are as much a part of its scenery as the towering cliffs that overlook the small town. Visitors are often taken aback by the beauty and expanse of this beautiful country on the edge of the San Rafael Swell.

Louis W. Peterson made his living as a farmer. Life during this time could not have been easy. Lewis and his young wife experienced extreme heartbreak during their first few years together. Their only two children at the time would die from an whooping cough outbreak that indiscriminately killed so many in this small community in 1907.

The remote location of the town isolated it somewhat from other communities. The town had a fine yellow church house that had a large ballroom floor that served not only for Sunday worship services, but also for social gatherings. This building still stands in the center of town today.

Information came in the form of newspapers and books. Knowledge was a valuable asset that would set certain farmers apart. When information was available, these farmers were open to reading and learning. It was during this time that LW Peterson acquired a new book called, Fleming’s Vest-Pocket Veterinary Adviser.

This, now 120 year old, pocket sized handbook of veterinary information pertained to diseases of horses and cattle, and was designed to help farmers and stockman. It provided 192 pages of everything from birth to aging, to caring for illnesses, to poisonous weeds, maintenance, how to feed, and recipes for concoctions to treat a variety of ailments.

This book must have helped LW. He kept the book. He passed it down to his son, Kenneth Peterson, who passed it to his son Hugh Peterson.

My grandfather, Hugh Peterson, gave it to my mother, who gave it to me. This book is displayed prominently in the museum case in the reception area of Mountain West Animal Hospital.

The well worn pages of this book are fascinating to read through. Although veterinary science was in its infancy at this time, it is still interesting to read about treatments used. Without the luxuries of modern antibiotics, antiseptics, anesthetics and anti-inflammatories, these treatments were innovative for their time. The early 1900’s provided incredible advances in hygiene practices, preventive medicine concepts evolved, the first vaccines appeared, nutrition was studied and research was beginning to show which therapeutics actually worked, and why.

Perhaps some would consider this dated literature obsolete. Much of the information contained therein certainly would be considered so. I, however, consider it a treasure. I wonder if LW realized that, more than 60 years after his death, a veterinarian, carrying 1/16th of his DNA, would appreciate this book passed from generation to generation.

I will keep this book safe and pass it on to my children. Who knows, perhaps in another 100 years, it will still be seen as a valuable piece of family and veterinary history.

And that is my take.
N. Isaac Bott, DVM

10/10/2024

Theriogenology Thursday: Several mammals, such as mink, bats, and skunks, have evolved a mechanism known as delayed implantation whereby development of the embryo is arrested and remains in the oviduct or uterus for an extended period prior to implantation. This phenomenon allows births to occur when resources are abundant.

10/09/2024

My Take Tuesday: Shonna Dean Peterson

Yesterday would have been my grandmother’s 93rd birthday. She had a very profound impact on my life. Much of who I am is because of her example. She loved me unconditionally and she taught me how to be a good person through her actions. She passed away unexpectedly in June of 2021.

You always think that there will be more magical moments, that there will always be enough time, until there simply isn’t.

This past weekend, late one night I wandered outside my back door. The sky over Springville this time of year is magical. I love to stare at the starlight sky. This particular night did not disappoint. I stood there staring at the empyrean skies of wonder and thought about my sweet grandma. I miss her. Profoundly.

A popular Diamond Rio song cogently expresses my heart’s wish today:

“Last night I had a crazy dream
A wish was granted just for me
It could be for anything
I didn’t ask for money
Or a mansion in Malibu
I simply wished for one more day with you
One more day, one more time
One more sunset, maybe I’d be satisfied
But then again, I know what it would do
Leave me wishing still for one more day with you”
(One More Day lyrics © Capitol)

The tears that fall from my eyes are not just for you but are also for those of us that have to continue on without your physical presence, without the sound of your laugh and the sight of your contagious smile. Here is my best attempt at articulating just how much my grandma meant to me:

“This week’s My Take comes from a special sheltered corner in the fleshy tablet of my heart.

As I write this, I am physically in a beautiful costal city in southern Mexico. Mentally, I am in a small, tiny town along Highway 10, in central Utah, an alkaline oasis called Emery.
Yesterday, as the wheels of the plane touched down here in Mexico, I received the devastating news that my sweet grandma, Shonna Peterson had passed away.

News like this will hurt like hell because that is exactly what it is.

I struggle to find the words that can adequately express the profound sadness that I feel and the immense hole that her passing has left behind.

There are 19 people on this earth that are privileged to call this wonderful woman our grandma. Although each of us are vastly different, she loved each and every one of us equally and unconditionally.

Certainly, enough tears have fallen from each of us to flood the muddy creek that winds down the Wasatch Plateau and through the canyons and gullies of the blue clay hills near Emery.

I have had the privilege to have my grandma be part of my life for over 40 years. Some of my earliest memories are of setting on her lap and listening to her soothing voice.

As a young child, I looked forward to each and every visit to Emery to visit my grandma. With each visit, I literally felt the love she had for me as I entered her house.

During the summers of my youth, I would raise lambs to show at the yearly stock show in Ferron. The sunny, long hot July days were brutal. I remember many of these difficult days were ameliorated by my grandma pulling up in her tan Buick. Inside, she always had a cooler full of soda pop and snacks.

There are hundreds of memories that I have of my grandma coming to the rescue.
Looking back now, during most of these times, she was working full time and had just barely completed her long day’s work. Most of us would immediately head home to clear our minds and to get some rest.

However, none of us are Shonna Peterson.
She worked all day, and then afterwards she worried about others before giving any thought to herself. She taught me what unconditional love was, without saying a word.

She married her high school sweetheart in 1949. Together, they raised 6 beautiful daughters. My grandparents have spent over 7 decades by each other’s side.

My grandma had a very unique perspective about life. One of my favorite teachings from her pertained to being happy with what you have. So much happiness in the world seems to be conditional; “If I had this or that…….. then, and only then I will be happy.”
Grandma’s words were succinct, “You may not have the very best, but whatever you have is the BEST YOU HAVE, and you need to take care of it the very best you can.”
Grandma taught me to be happy right now. She taught me to enjoy the moment and to be satisfied with what was in front of me.

The last time I saw my grandma was just two weeks ago. As I gave her a goodbye hug, I held on a little longer than I normally would. I gazed at her beautiful face. I memorized each and every wrinkle and mark. I know that each one was forged through her worry and love for each of her children, grandchildren and great grandchildren. I wept as I realized that there was a wrinkle for me too.

As I looked into her eyes, I told her that I loved her. She told me that she loved me too and that she had been thinking about me a lot lately. She then wrapped her arms around me and placed her head on my chest. In this pose, my last photo with her was taken.

As the tears stream down my face, I miss my sweet grandma. Her love for me was real. It was raw and it would roar for me if required. It will stay with me in quietness and will forever be my comfort.

After all, real love will celebrate with you, and raise you up. It will keep you going when the world is against you. It will triumph at the end of each and every day.

Thank you for teaching me this grandma Shonnie.

Thank you for kissing the scars I hid from others, and for helping me turn the pages of my life that hurt so bad to read. I love you. Always and forever.

My only request grandma is that you please
wait for me so that one day we can walk together across the stars.”

Love,
Isaac

10/03/2024

Theriogenology Thursday: Muskoxen (Ovibos moschatus) have a low reproductive rate with single calves born annually or every 2 to 3 years. At 3 years of age, cows normally bear their first calf. Environmental factors such as availability of food and severity of weather affect the age of first breeding and whether calves are born annually or at longer intervals. Mating takes place in August and September with most calves born in late April or May. Within a few hours of birth, calves are able to follow their mothers back to the protection of the herd. Muskoxen have a mean gestation of 246 days.

10/02/2024

My Take Tuesday: Playing Possum

Fall has arrived in the Rocky Mountains. The beautiful red and yellow mountainsides that surround Utah Valley are a sign of the changing weather. The olive-green leaves of the quaking aspen groves are quickly changing to orange and brilliant yellow.

I love this time of year! The cool, crisp, fall air, the warm evenings and cold mornings signal the arrival of October. I enjoy the first day that is just chilly enough for a flannel shirt and the taste of a cup of hot apple cider, and the smell of wood-smoke beginning to billow from the chimneys.

There is much to accomplish before winter sets in. It is a busy time for me as a veterinarian. Sheep, goats, reindeer and elk breeding seasons require traveling all over the country as I provide assisted reproductive techniques on farms and ranches from Alaska to Arizona, and from Texas to Oregon.

Local farmers are bringing their cattle and sheep home from summer ranges and are preparing their horses for winter.

A recent farm call brought me to the beautiful grass pastures south of Salem, Utah. The owner, a friend of mine, met me at the beautiful wooden fence at the entrance to his pasture. A large Percheron draft horse was undergoing a routine hoof trim and the farrier was having some difficulty. This massive animal would not allow its left hindlimb to be trimmed.

I administered an intravenous sedative as soon as I arrived at the farm. This sedative works almost instantaneously. The huge draft horse’s head tilted downwards as his lower lip began to sag. Typically, this allows for quick non-painful procedures to be performed without protest from the horse.

The farrier attempted to lift the left rear limb after the sedative kicked in. Immediately, the horse angrily slammed down its massive hoof in a stubborn response. Because of the danger of such a large animal kicking and injuring all involved, I quickly made the decision to administer general anesthesia and to lay the animal down on the soft grass of the beautiful pasture.

Ketamine is commonly used in horses. It is of the cyclohexamine class of anesthetics. It is effective at rendering the animal motionless. The difficulty is safely getting a 2000 pound horse to lay down and get back up afterwards without injuring itself or landing on me. It is terrifying to stand next to an animal over 8 feet tall as it falls to the ground asleep. I take extreme caution in where I stand, how I place my hands on the halter, and how I am going to get to safety if something goes wrong.
As I administered the ketamine in the massive jugular vein, the large animal smoothly slumped and laid down as it entered a deep sleep. I positioned myself on the neck of the sleeping giant, as the farrier and my friend began the process of trimming the problematic hoof.

A group of curious pasture mates began to form in a circle around us as we worked. These inquisitive horses couldn’t figure out why this large Percheron, the alpha and bully of the herd, was sleeping in the middle of the day.

A sorrel gelding flared his nostrils as he sniffed the face of the napping equine. I reached out and touched his nose to assure him everything was alright.

Suddenly, without warning, this gelding stomped his right front hoof directly on the face of the sleeping horse. My fingers were just centimeters away from the hoof hammer as it came down. I gasped in bewilderment at what had just happened.

Suddenly, I felt the giant underneath me move. Within a second, the large Percheron went from being sound asleep to standing up and alert. This rapid motion gave me little time to respond. I was flung like a rag doll from atop the neck of this huge animal. The soft grass broke my fall as I came crashing down.

The three of us looked at each other in disbelief about what had just occurred. Fortunately, we were all safe and unharmed and the horse was unaffected by the stomp on its face.

Sometimes the unpredictable is best met with humor. A roar of laughter erupted as we replayed the sight of me flying headfirst through the air.

Even though Utah is not home to the mischievous opossum, there is a large Percheron draft horse in the pastures south of Salem that can play the part extremely well!

And that is my take!
N. Isaac Bott, DVM

09/25/2024

My Take Tuesday: Chickens

If you attended elementary school with me, you would probably remember my obsession with chickens. As a child, I would draw chickens as I sat at my school desk. Given the many drawing projects that elementary age children have, I drew hundreds of mediocre pictures of my pet chickens. Fortunately, my teachers were patient and supportive. Although my artistic abilities left much to be desired, I was free to draw to my heart’s content.

We would receive an annual catalog from Murray McMurray Hatchery. This catalog would depict every conceivable breed of chicken and give a short description of the desirable traits each possessed: comb type, leg feathering, silky, frizzle, bantam, standard, etc. I would spend hours and hours looking through this catalog. Each year, I was allowed to choose a single baby chick of the breed of my choosing. I took this choice seriously.

There are a range of things that one needs to consider when deciding what breed of chicken to have. These include the climate in which you live, whether you are raising backyard chickens for eggs or meat production, their temperament, foraging capability, predator awareness, and broodiness. I meticulously studied each breed and made my selection each year.

Here in the United States, the postal system accepts boxes filled with day-old chicks and delivers them coast to coast with overnight delivery. The chicks travel by Priority Mail and often have no food or water in their cardboard carrier to sustain them. How can this happen? Just prior to hatching, a chick absorbs all the remaining nutrients from within its egg. With this nourishment, the chick can survive for up to three days without food or water. This makes it possible to ship them by mail. In the nest, this process allows the mother to wait for the hatching of other chicks in her clutch before tending to the early hatchers: If chicks required immediate attention, the mother would leave with those that hatched first and the unhatched chicks would perish. This is a fascinating adaptation!

Like humans, chickens have full color vision, and are able to perceive red, green and blue light.

Several studies on visual cognition and spatial orientation in chickens (including young chicks) demonstrate that they are capable of such visual feats as completion of visual occlusion, biological motion perception, and object and spatial (even geometric) representations. One of the cognitive capacities most extensively explored in this domain is object permanence, that is, the ability to understand that something exists even when out of sight.

Other recent scientific studies tell us that chickens recognize over 100 individual faces even after several months of separation. They also confirm that chickens consider the future and practice self-restraint for the benefit of some later reward, something previously believed to be exclusive to humans and other primates. They possess some understanding of numerosity and share some very basic arithmetic capacities with other animals. These findings fascinate me.

To this day, chickens remain my favorite animals. I can sit for hours and watch my flock as they forage and explore the property behind the clinic.

I look back with fondness on the days spent coloring and drawing chickens with crayons.

Memories are painted optimistically with passing years. I miss the worry-free days sitting at a desk in elementary school.

I will forever treasure these pictures and the pleasant memories associated with them.

And that is my take!
N. Isaac Bott, DVM

Address

410 S 450 W
Springville, UT
84663

Opening Hours

Monday	8am - 12pm
	1pm - 5pm
Tuesday	8am - 12pm
	1pm - 5pm
Wednesday	8am - 12pm
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Thursday	8am - 12pm
	1pm - 5pm
Friday	8am - 12pm
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Saturday	9am - 1pm

Telephone

+18014899676

Website

https://docbott.com/

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Videos

My Take Tuesday: The Macabre Mite As a veterinarian, I see and treat a variety of pet diseases. Skin diseases are very common at my practice. Some of these skin conditions are caused by parasites. I recently diagnosed a pet with a condition called sarcoptic mange. Sarcoptic mange is caused by a parasitic mite (Sarcoptes scabiei) that burrows just beneath the surface of the skin. Sarcoptes scabiei mites bury into the skin of healthy adult dogs and puppies and feed on material in and on the skin. Sarcoptic mange is also known as scabies and is zoonotic, which means it is transmissible from pets to people. Mites are distant relatives of ticks, spiders, scorpions and other arachnids. Over 48,000 species have been described. Sarcoptic mange (scabies) is an infectious and contagious type of mange mite often picked up from other dogs or unclean environments. Symptoms of sarcoptic mange may include intense itching, scabbing and hair loss of most commonly thinly haired areas of the coat such as the ears, elbows, legs and abdomen. While diagnosis is made by performing a skin scrape, these mites are often difficult to find. However, when I see them, they are unforgettable. I imagine that many horror movies were inspired by staring at this mite under a microscope. Even though we see it commonly, seeing it under a microscope makes me itch. A lot. Just writing about it makes my scalp and arms itch. Watch this short video clip. Does this not make you itch? And that is my take! N. Isaac Bott, DVM

Reindeer Grunting

Reindeer communicate through a series of unique grunts. Here is a short clip of Sven saying what I assume translates to, “Where is my food?”

Merry Christmas

Preparations have begun for tonight’s long flight!

Reindeer birth occurs in three stages. During the first stage, cervical dilation occurs. Often, a female will be anxious during this phase. She may separate herself from the herd. It lasts from 12-24 hours. The second stage is expulsion of the fetus. This occurs rapidly (15-30 minutes). The third stage is passing of the placenta. It typically occurs within 1-12 hours following birth. In this short video, Flower, one of our resident females gives birth to a healthy baby girl.

Reindeer calves are precocious. They stand within an hour after birth and learn to run shortly thereafter. In this video, LumaLee, a female calf born this spring at Mountain West Animal Hospital, shows us what reindeer games look like. She is less than 24 hours old in this video.

Clicking

Reindeer make a clicking sound when they walk, and not just when up on a housetop. Tendons snap over sesamoid bones in their feet, and that's what makes the click. Experts think the clicking helps the members of a herd stay in contact, especially in snowstorms or, say, when it's foggy. Listen closely to this video. Apart from the vocalization (grunting), a distinct click is heard with each footstep.

Reindeer Eating Breakfast

Reindeer smack their lips when they eat. Sven is pretty adorable when he eats breakfast!!!!

Dr. Bott discusses some of the challenges with reindeer herd health and reproduction.

My Take Tuesday: The Macabre Mite As a veterinarian, I see and treat a variety of pet diseases. Skin diseases are very common at my practice. Some of these skin conditions are caused by parasites. I recently diagnosed a pet with a condition called sarcoptic mange. Sarcoptic mange is caused by a parasitic mite (Sarcoptes scabiei) that burrows just beneath the surface of the skin. Sarcoptes scabiei mites bury into the skin of healthy adult dogs and puppies and feed on material in and on the skin. Sarcoptic mange is also known as scabies and is zoonotic, which means it is transmissible from pets to people. Mites are distant relatives of ticks, spiders, scorpions and other arachnids. Over 48,000 species have been described. Sarcoptic mange (scabies) is an infectious and contagious type of mange mite often picked up from other dogs or unclean environments. Symptoms of sarcoptic mange may include intense itching, scabbing and hair loss of most commonly thinly haired areas of the coat such as the ears, elbows, legs and abdomen. While diagnosis is made by performing a skin scrape, these mites are often difficult to find. However, when I see them, they are unforgettable. I imagine that many horror movies were inspired by staring at this mite under a microscope. Even though we see it commonly, seeing it under a microscope makes me itch. A lot. Just writing about it makes my scalp and arms itch. Just watch this short video clip. Does this not make you itch? And that is my take! N. Isaac Bott, DVM

Lumi, one of our resident reindeer gave birth this week to a healthy baby girl. At only 36 hours old, she is running and jumping! We are absolutely in love!

We had a brazen thief break into an employee’s car this morning at 8:47 AM. Here is the camera footage of the disturbing incident. If you recognize this distinct car or the person wearing red sandals; please notify the Springville Police department. Thank you! – Dr. Bott