Coastal Valley Veterinary Services, LLC

02/01/2023

January 1 - Happy New Year! But also, make sure your pets are still covered with an effective flea and tick preventative... found this crawling on my pup! Where's winter?!?

02/03/2022

Update: HPAI has been confirmed in a backyard flock in New London County. If you have or see any sick or dead birds please contact the CT Dept of Agriculture at 860-713-2505 or [email protected].

Please be aware that Highly Pathogenic Avian Influenza (HPAI) has been detected in domestic poultry flocks in neighboring states, and in wild birds in CT. This is not a human health concern but it is extremely contagious and deadly (over 90% mortality) in domestic poultry, and the virus can be transmitted via contaminated surfaces (clothing, shoes, vehicles). If you have a backyard flock, the current recommendation is to practice good biosecurity: keep wild birds and rodents out of coops, keep food secure, consider removing bird feeders to avoid attracting wild birds, wash hands and scrub boots before and after entering coops, change clothes and shoes if you've been in an area frequented by waterfowl before handling poultry. Although I don't see birds in my practice, I'm happy to answer any questions you might have to best of my ability, or help find additional resources if needed. Take care!

11/02/2022

Cockatoos are really smart! 🦜🧠☺️

The birds’ slick sporting skills could help to shed light on the rise of tool use in early humans.

30/11/2021

Today is Giving Tuesday. The past 18 months have been crazy for veterinary medicine in general, but also the best year financially that my little business has ever had. I'd like to give back a little, to the causes and non-profits that you, my clients, find important. Please post links below and I'll donate (please no political campaigns or issues; amount donated to each link will depend on how many links posted by the end of the day). Happy, Safe, Healthy Holidays everyone! (Pic is my old girl Shelly, who knows nothing but giving love!)

04/09/2021

A beautiful article that applies to any species of pet ❤

When my yellow Lab died last spring, I was flattened by an overwhelming sadness that’s with me still. And that’s normal, experts say, because losing a pet is often one of the hardest yet least acknowledged traumas we’ll ever face.

18/02/2021

Who's cutting onions?!? 😭💕🐕🐾

https://edition.cnn.com/2021/01/22/world/dog-hospital-scli-intl/

They say that a dog is a man's best friend -- and that saying rang true for one patient of a hospital in Trabzon, northeastern Turkey, whose loyal pet waited patiently outside the entrance for six days until he was discharged.

20/01/2021

This was given to me by an at-home euthanasia client, and it means SO much to me!

17/01/2021

Too cute!!

07/07/2020

Natural Balance chicken & liver canned cat food has been recalled:

The company said it received reports of pets having adverse reactions to Natural Balance Ultra Premium Chicken & Liver Paté Formula. The concerns are likely due to elevated levels of choline chloride, according to the company.

15/03/2020

Dear clients and friends: please be assured that I am closely following the development of the ongoing pandemic of COVID-19 in our country and around the world. Following the guidance of the AVMA and CDC, we are adopting some protocols for our appointments (copied below). We would like to minimize any non-urgent appointments at this time, but as long as I and my staff remain healthy we will do our best to provide the same standard of care that we have always provided to you, our valued clients. Please do not hesitate to reach out to us if you have questions or concerns. As always, I am a one-doctor practice with many hats so please be patient if I am not able to get back to you immediately. If you have an urgent care question or emergency, the best way to get in touch as soon as possible is to call (860)867-6367, and if I am not available to return your call immediately, my voicemail message will always have emergency contact numbers. Please stay safe and follow CDC guidelines in your own households, and we look forward to seeing you and your furry friends in the future!

COVID – 19 Protocols Adopted 3/16/2020

Considering the current ongoing pandemic, the following practices will be adopted by Coastal Valley Veterinary Services (CVVS). These practices are for your safety and ours. If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to contact us.

1. While at this time we all are feeling healthy, if any of my staff members start to show signs of illness that person will not see appointments, and if I start to feel ill or have any clinical signs of COVID-19 then all subsequent appointments will be cancelled or postponed.

2. If you or a family member are sick, even if the signs are mild, or if you are quarantined after travel please reschedule your appointment. If your pet needs to be seen urgently, please call and I will try to help as much as I can via telemedicine or other options. Please note that telemedicine is only available to current clients with whom CVVS has a valid veterinary-client-patient relationship.

3. We will maintain a 6-foot distance between a client’s 2-legged family members and ourselves, as recommend by the CDC guidelines for “social distancing.” We realize this is difficult and awkward, especially since we are normally very warm and hugging-type people, but nevertheless very important. Please consider letting us know if you are immunocompromised.

4. Canine appointments will take place outside or in a garage if possible. Cat appointments will be seen inside but it is very important that your cat(s) be in an enclosed room or isolated area ahead of time, and that we can easily reach. We will not be able to engage in our usual “kitty wrangling” if your cat is not caught up ahead of time.

5. We will ask you to discard of any trash that we generate during our appointment (other than needles or other sharps).

6. We will call you ahead of your appointment time to gather pertinent history and any concerns or questions over the phone, in order to minimize contact and exposure. We may ask to call you after the appointment as well, to discuss treatment plans or recommendations.

7. If we do not have a recent weight on your pet we ask that you provide this information ahead of time – cats and small/medium dogs can be weighed while you hold them and step on a bathroom scale and then subtract your weight without the pet on the same scale, and larger dogs can be estimated. We will not be using our scale.

8. We will bring only the equipment and tools absolutely necessary to the exam, and non-disposable equipment (such as the stethoscope) will be thoroughly disinfected between patients.

13/12/2019

One of my all time Christmas favorites!

Merry Christmas from the Talking Animals channel. Video by Andrew Grantham: http://facebook.com/klaatu42 Follow on twitter: http://twitter.com/talkinganimals...

13/12/2019

Sammy has been found!! Thank you everyone for keeping an eye out for him!

This is my brother's dog, missing since Dec 11 in the Grassy Hill area of Lyme, CT. Please keep an eye out for him - he is a sweetheart and dearly missed!

09/12/2019

Interesting! I got 8/8 correct for the "easy" level and 6/8 correct for "advanced" :)

In a recent survey, those adept at understanding cat cues were mostly young and female—but surprisingly, they didn't necessarily own a cat.

15/07/2019

Hush little baby... ❤️

Mother-calf whale pairs call to each other quietly to stay in touch while avoiding attracting the attention of predators, a study suggests.

18/06/2019

THIS is an example of why rabies vaccines are required for indoor-only cats. Imagine if this man had a cat who encountered the bat and killed it, potentially getting exposed to rabies, and the family was never the wiser? Far-fetched perhaps, but potential exposure to virus with near 100% mortality just isn't worth skipping an inexpensive vaccine.

A South Hampton man is on the mend after a bat somehow got inside his home and bit him last week.

12/06/2019

Interesting!

Science chats with the researcher behind a new attempt to record cats when they’re on their own

24/05/2019

A story that can't help but make you smile!

It's not clear how the animal ended up stranded in the middle of the Gulf of Thailand. But the pup, now named Boonrod, is gaining strength and looks happy and well-fed.

24/05/2019

I wonder if the gene is recessive or dominant...? 😆

Could a love for canines be contained in your genes?

16/05/2019

This would be my Kelpie... unless of course, the voice was saying "who's hungry...?"

11/05/2019

How socially smart is your cat? If given the choice between food, toys, and interaction with people, I know what my cats would choose! 🤣

Social cognition researchers are finally probing the secrets of the feline mind—when the cats deign to cooperate

01/02/2019

Hill's Pet Nutrition is voluntary recalling select canned dog food for excessive Vitamin D:

Hill’s Pet Nutrition is voluntarily recalling select canned dog food products due to potentially elevated levels of vitamin D. While vitamin D is an essential nutrient for dogs, ingestion of elevated levels can lead to potential health issues depending on the level of vitamin D and the length of e...

10/01/2019

I had the privilege of working with these magnificent animals, and was heartbroken to learn of their tragic loss. Earl has been a client of CVVS since 2010, and I truly hope he is able to rebuild.

A treasured and lifelong member of the Old Saybrook community, Earl Endrich of Town Line Farms, suffered a tragic loss on Sunday December 30, 2018. A fire devastated his barn and took the lives of his many beloved animals including bulls Red, Rock, Tom and Lucky and Johnny the Donkey. This GoF...

05/12/2018

Information about Pet Food recall:

The FDA is investigating the presence of elevated, potentially toxic levels of vitamin D in several dry pet foodsVitamin D in very high amounts can cause serious health problems like kidney failure or death.

01/12/2018

Tonight, I am thinking of a very sweet but very shy kitty, adopted as an adult only 3 months ago by a man who is not the "stereotypical" cat person. This kitty had more than one chronic health issue, but the most pressing issue required surgery two days ago, something I'm sure his new "dad" did not anticipate but was more than willing to provide for despite his own hardships. I am thinking of them both, and praying for them both. They are why I do what I do.

25/11/2018

Sometimes the truck gets repurposed ;)

15/10/2018

🤣

08/09/2018

My patient this morning, and her one-day old calf.

31/08/2018

Just like parents, veterinarians are not supposed to have "favorites." But just like parents, the truth is... I do have favorites. The ones who know only love, the ones who are shy but still sweet, the ones who have such a strong bond with their owners that make me feel privileged to be a part of that relationship, the ones who are sick but still rally with every fiber of their being because their "person" is hurting and they want to help (the ones who don't understand that the heartache is due entirely to the understanding that a complete cure is not always possible, when time is the pathogen and the correct therapy is only acceptance.) Those are my favorites, and right now one of them is fighting, and my thoughts and prayers are with him and his owner.

19/08/2018

If you're headed to the Hamburg Fair in Lyme, CT this weekend, stop by Hannah's Meatball Cart for some really yummy meatballs! All proceeds benefit Dog Days rescue organization!

13/05/2018

Happy Mother's Day to all you Moms of furry- and four-legged kids!