Maple River Veterinary Associates

25/12/2023

23/12/2023

Just a reminder of our holiday hours starting today. We will close at noon today and reopen on Wednesday, December 27th at 8am.
We are always available for our client's emergencies by calling 231-529-6227 and following the prompts to reach the doctor on call.

Here are our office hours for the upcoming holidays. Please plan for medication and food pick ups if you are running low. We are open 8-5 today through Friday.

22/12/2023

Santa came to visit us this past Tuesday! Brooke was not in the holiday spirit quite yet 😸

21/12/2023

Recently, we brought in a new product from our friends at Zoetis: Librela. The first and only monthly injectable anti-nerve growth factor monoclonal antibody therapy for dogs with osteoarthritis pain. Here is a before and after video of "Mac" after 2 doses of Librela. This is what his owner had to say:
"Mac (black and white) 10 years old, has arthritis in his back and both knees playing with his 1 year old brother Gus-Gus. Before Librela he couldn’t play much, now after his second injection, he is able to give his much younger brother a run for his money when they play."
Be sure to ask if Librela is right for your dog at your next visit!

19/12/2023

Here are our office hours for the upcoming holidays. Please plan for medication and food pick ups if you are running low. We are open 8-5 today through Friday.

14/12/2023

One of the fun things that we did at our Christmas party the other night was have an ugly sweater contest! Dr. Burks won first prize with his very festive suit. Matthew, who is Dr. McNichols' husband, came in second place. And Jan, who is one of our receptionists, came in third with her cat themed jacket! They all got fun little prizes and we had a good time 🎄

12/12/2023

We will be closing at 4pm this afternoon for our staff Christmas party! Please plan for pick ups of medication & food accordingly. We still have a doctor on call for emergencies.

30/11/2023

We've had some clients concerned about the canine respiratory disease that has been in the news recently... At this time (as of 11/29/23), MDARD has not received any reports of atypical canine infectious respiratory illness in Michigan dogs.

LANSING, MI— As reports and concerns over an atypical canine infectious respiratory illness affecting dogs across the nation continue to grow, the Michigan Department of Agriculture and Rural Development (MDARD) and the Michigan State University Veterinary Diagnostic Laboratory (MSU VDL) encourage dog owners to remain vigilant regarding their pet’s health and to work closely with their veterinarian if they notice signs of illness. There are multiple causes of infectious respiratory diseases in dogs, many of which can be prevented or minimized through routine vaccination or timely veterinary care.
“While the exact cause of this illness remains unknown, taking some basic steps to prevent a dog’s exposure to harmful germs can go a long way to protecting their overall health,” said State Veterinarian Nora Wineland, DVM, MS, DACVPM. “If owners notice respiratory symptoms (such as coughing, sneezing, or nasal discharge) in their dogs, it is important to reach out to their veterinarian early on in their animal’s illness so diagnostic testing can be completed and an appropriate course of treatment can begin.”
In general, the illness is contagious, spreading among dogs that have contact with other dogs. The only way to distinguish between the multiple causes of infectious respiratory disease in dogs is through early diagnostic testing. Signs of the disease include coughing, sneezing, nasal and/or eye discharge, fever, loss of appetite, and lethargy. Coughing may persist for weeks to months, and severe forms of the disease can progress to life-threatening pneumonia.
To date, suspected cases of the disease have been reported in several states. For a case to be considered suspect for this illness, diagnostic testing is required to rule out other common causes.
“Because common respiratory illnesses (i.e., kennel cough) in dogs is generally self-limiting, veterinarians may not routinely perform diagnostic testing. However, performing testing early on can serve multiple purposes,” said MSU Veterinary Diagnostic Laboratory director Kimberly Dodd, DVM, MS, PhD. “If a more common cause of illness is found, it may give owners peace of mind. Based on the diagnosis, clinicians can better predict the course of illness and administer antibiotics when warranted. If routine diagnostics are negative, having acute samples can help us as we try to identify the cause of this atypical respiratory illness.”
To best keep Michigan’s dogs safe and healthy, MDARD strongly encourages owners to:
Work with their veterinarian to ensure their dog is up to date on routine vaccinations.
Make sure their dog is fully vaccinated before interacting with other dogs.
Avoid food and water bowls shared by multiple unknown dogs.
Contact their veterinarian if their dog is exhibiting any signs of illness and keep their dog at home and away from other dogs.
Keep their dog away from dogs that are sick or whose vaccination status is unknown.
Also, MDARD is encouraging animal shelter and kennel staff to follow their intake and vaccination protocols when bringing in new dogs and continue to follow required isolation protocols and recommended cleaning/disinfection procedures for surfaces and equipment.
MDARD and the MSU VDL will continue to monitor the situation surrounding this disease and will provide updates as more is learned. If dogs are exhibiting signs of respiratory illness, it is best to keep them at home and away from other dogs and contact your veterinarian.

28/11/2023

Just a reminder that our PetDesk service will be closing out this Friday, December 1st!

Do you use PetDesk? If yes, please read this update:

When the Pellston Animal Clinic and the Maple River Animal Clinic merged as one on 1/1/2022, many PAC clients had been utilizing the PetDesk app that was available for requesting appointments, medication refills, or texting.
We have decided not to keep PetDesk and that service will close out on December 1, 2023. The texting part of PetDesk has already been shut off as of yesterday afternoon.
Please use the following forms of communication going forward at this time:
PHONE: 231-529-6227 (calls only, does not accept texts)
EMAIL: [email protected]
As always, please CALL the clinic for any emergencies as the email may not be seen right away and it is not monitored outside of business hours.

Thank you and we apologize for any inconvenience.

23/11/2023

Happy Thanksgiving from our family to yours!

15/11/2023

Do you use PetDesk? If yes, please read this update:

When the Pellston Animal Clinic and the Maple River Animal Clinic merged as one on 1/1/2022, many PAC clients had been utilizing the PetDesk app that was available for requesting appointments, medication refills, or texting.
We have decided not to keep PetDesk and that service will close out on December 1, 2023. The texting part of PetDesk has already been shut off as of yesterday afternoon.
Please use the following forms of communication going forward at this time:
PHONE: 231-529-6227 (calls only, does not accept texts)
EMAIL: [email protected]
As always, please CALL the clinic for any emergencies as the email may not be seen right away and it is not monitored outside of business hours.

Thank you and we apologize for any inconvenience.

20/10/2023

As Veterinary Technician Week comes to an end, we would like to share with you some fun facts about our great techs!

Tammy has been here for 22 years! In her spare time, she enjoys farming, 4H, photography, and crafting.
Brooke has been here for 12 years. She is a huge Green Bay Packers fan and enjoys going out with friends.
Marie has worked for Dr. Howard for almost 12 years. She has 2 dogs and a cat and likes to paint.
Lindsy has been here for 11 years. She stays quite busy with her family and also has her own small business: Creative Outlets by Lindsy.
CC has been here for 8 years. In her spare time, she enjoys camping, gardening, and cooking.
Devon has been here for 6 years. She is quite artistic and has an amazing talent for drawing and painting.
Alayna has been here for 3 years. She has a variety of animals to keep her busy including horses, dogs, cats, and rabbits.
Emilee has been here 2-1/2 years. She loves to go trail riding on her horse or hiking with her dog.
Heather has been here about 6 months but she had been employed here previously for quite a while. She took some time to be with her 3 young children and we are so glad she is back even part-time!

We appreciate all of our technicians!

13/09/2023

Many of our clients do not know that we have Saturday hours. We are open 8-noon. Although the doctor schedules often fill up weeks in advance for a Saturday, we frequently have a technician available for easy a**l gland expression, toe nail trims, suture removals, some vaccines, and allergy shots. Your pet must be well behaved for these procedures as we have very limited staff available to help on a Saturday with restraint. Please give us a call with any questions!

08/09/2023

JOB OPENING! Please share...
We are a very busy mixed animal practice and we are looking for a full time assistant to join our team! As an assistant, you would help the doctors and technicians with restraint, diagnostics, surgery & treating patients along with cleaning the kennels & exam rooms. A work week of 4 days with one weekend a month and shared holidays with the other assistants. Benefits package includes an hourly wage, dental, optical, Blue Cross health insurance, simple IRA, vacation/sick pay, and discounted pet care for your pets. If interested, please email your resume to: [email protected]

01/09/2023

In honor of the Labor Day weekend we will be closed Saturday, Sunday, and Monday for normal business hours. As always if you are a current client of ours and are experiencing an emergency please call (231)529-6227 and follow the prompts. Thank you!

25/07/2023

We would like to introduce a very exciting treatment that we can offer for your pet! Have you heard of Phovia? It uses fluorescent light therapy to help heal a variety of skin issues. It can be very helpful with healing a hot spot, a major trauma, a surgical incision, and many other cases. Below are some before and after pictures and even some pictures of us doing the treatment. At your next appointment, be sure and ask your doctor if Phovia is right for your pet's ailment!
https://phoviausa.com/

14/07/2023

Happy Friday everyone! Posing a question today...
We are potentially exploring the possibility of having a mobile veterinary unit that could make house calls for small animals. We are looking for feedback to see if we would have enough need for it. Please "like or love" this post if you are in favor of this idea or comment. If you are NOT in favor of this, please use the "angry" emoji. Obviously there would be a house call charge like we do for farm calls and that only involves us traveling to you - not exams or diagnostics, etc. If we did this, it may be a while before we would be fully functional out on the road so it may be limited to routine appointments such as annual check ups and vaccines in the beginning. It would likely be two days a week that we would offer this service. Thank you for your feedback!
( picture for attention - we don't actually have a unit yet ;) )

05/06/2023

We welcomed Dr. Donvee Burks to our team today! He is a recent graduate of Ross University's Veterinary Program and a native of northern Michigan. We are very excited for him and his future here!

26/05/2023

A couple of Sphinx kittens came in today!

26/05/2023

In observance of Memorial Day, we will be closing at 5pm today and will be closed until Tuesday May 30th at 8am. As always, we are available for our client's emergencies by calling 231-529-6227 and following the prompts to reach the doctor on call.

11/05/2023

11/05/2023

Heartworms, fleas, and ticks are definitely unwanted pests for your pet! If you purchase Interceptor Plus or Credelio from our office from May 1, 2023 - June 30, 2023 your name will be entered in a drawing to win this cool YETI lunch bag and dog bowl from our friends at Elanco!
*Pet must be current on a wellness exam and have a current negative heartworm test.

19/04/2023

We often get asked about how to switch a pet's food. Food transitions should be made over a week's time if at all possible. Below is photo showing how to do this from our friends at Hill’s Pet Nutrition.

18/04/2023

We saw this very sweet, very TINY, little baby goat yesterday morning. Her name is Thumbelina 🥰

14/04/2023

TGIF🙌 End this week on a strong note and do something awesome today! Have a great weekend everyone ✨

13/04/2023

Let's see your feline friends!

12/04/2023

They make the best companions and the biggest messes! 🐶❤️ Share your dog's name and breed in the comments, and we can guess whose furry friend leaves the most hair behind!

10/04/2023

TRAFFIC DETOUR UPDATE! The map on the left is for those that are coming from the north headed south to the clinic follow the detour onto Milton rd. Then take the short cutoff road just south of the clinic to US31 take a left and you’ll be at the clinic. On the right is the detour for those from the south heading north. This detour is just around downtown Alanson. Follow the signs take a right on River st. Then go over the swing bridge to Banwell rd. turn left and follow out to M-68 then take a left to get back down to US31 then turn right to head north to the clinic as usual. SORRY FOR THIS INCONVENIENCE! It is orange barrel season and it looks like it will be a long one!