Empangeni Veterinary Hospital

22/01/2025

NEWSPAPERS NEEDED!
If possible please drop off at 14 Pasteur Road, Empangeni. Or we can arrange for collection. Would be much appreciated. 🐶

17/01/2025

FEBRUARY SPECIALS:

10th -14th - 10% OFF ON VACCINE'S
17th - 21st - 10% OFF ON STERILIZATIONS

BY APPOINTMENT ONLY!!!
PLEASE CALL PRACTICE TO MAKE AN APPOINTMENT

035 - 7727054

13/01/2025

IMPORTANT NOTICE❗❗

For the past 28 years Arboretum Veterinary Hospital, Meerensee Veterinary Hospital and Empangeni Veterinary Hospital have been sharing the emergency after hours and weekend duty roster. However, in early January 2025 we were informed by Dr Otto from Arboretum Veterinary Hospital that he was not longer able to be part of the “Vets on Call” duty roster due to health reasons. He stated that he would still do after hours work, however it would be on an ad hoc basis. When he was not available he would then refer his after hours emergency work to hospitals in Durban North and Westville. These hospitals have 24 hour emergency facilities.

Whilst Meerensee Veterinary Hospital do offer an after hours emergency facility, it is only till 20H00 in the evening. They too refer their clients to the 24 hour emergency hospitals in Durban
North and Westville.

Unfortunately this has lead to Empangeni Veterinary Hospital being inundated with after hours work as clients of Meerensee and Arboretum Veterinary Hospital would rather travel, understandably so, to Empangeni than to Durban North or Westville.

I trust that people realise that it is simply unsustainable and unfair to expect Dr de Bruin to be on call for the whole of Richards Bay, Meerensee and Empangeni 24 hours a day 365 days a year.

In order to safeguard Dr de Bruin's mental and physical well being, Empangeni Veterinary Hospital will give preference to existing, active clients of Empangeni Veterinary Hospital. A client is only considered to be “active” if they have brought an animal into the hospital within the last year. If people are not clients of Empangeni Veterinary Hospital, and do require emergency treatment at Empangeni Veterinary Hospital, a double surcharge fee will be charged out. It will be up to the discretion of Dr de Bruin if he is available to people who are not active clients of Empangeni Veterinary Hospital.

I would just like to assure all active clients of Empangeni Veterinary Hospital that Dr de Bruin will still be available to you. However, please do understand that he also needs time off for himself and his family, so there will be times that he will not be available and will need to refer you to the emergency facilities elsewhere.

Please also note that the emergency number should only be used for emergency cases and not to discuss matters that can be sorted out during normal hours. Please could clients respect Dr de Bruin's personal time and not abuse the emergency number. This also applies for Whatsapp messages.

06/12/2024

05/12/2024

Your dog is both the home and food source for fleas and ticks. Once a flea gets on your dog, it will remain there until it is killed by a flea product or dies naturally. Just like the adult flea, the adult tick will remain on your dog and eventually produce eggs while feeding on the blood from your dog. Ticks however, go through various life stages. Ticks will leave the host and "moult" from one stage to the next. Ticks transmit the most disease to dogs and humans in the nymph and adult stages. If your dog is not on a preventative or adulticide (product to kill fleas and ticks), it is possible for dog and possibly your home to develop a serious infestation within just a few short weeks.
Many years ago, flea collars, sprays, powders and shampoos were the maintainstay of flea control. These products are more toxic and less effective than the majority of products we now recommend. For this reason, we do not recommend any of these products. However, medicated shampoos can be very helpful in treating the secondary skin infections that your dog may have developed due to flea infestation.

Today, the recommended flea and tick treatments for dogs include oral tablets/chews. These are a great choice for both prevention and treatment of fleas, while being safe for both your dog and your family. Most tablets have extended duration of protection. These tablets can be obtained from your veterinarian over the counter.

15/11/2024

POISONING

Recently we have had an interesting case of poison ingestion. An all natural product consumed by many humans for alleviate stress, assist with mood and sleep. Luckily prompt recognition and treatment saved the lives of these two pups.

A little bit more about this potentially lethal substance:

5-Hydroxytryptophan (5-HTP) is both a drug and a natural component of some dietary supplements. It comes in a variety of forms and may also be labeled as oxitriptan or Griffonia seed extract. It is used in humans to promote relaxation and to alleviate symptoms related to depression, insomnia, headaches, and various other ailments.

5-HTP is a precursor to serotonin and can cause serotonin syndrome.
In animals, clinical signs associated with toxicosis due to 5-HTP ingestion include CNS depression, tremors, hyperesthesia, ataxia, seizures, hyperthermia, mydriasis, transient blindness, tachycardia, tachypnea, vocalization, vomiting, and diarrhea. Clinical signs develop within 1–4 hours of ingestion and last 12–36 hours.

12/11/2024

WE HAVE THIS SUPER FRIENDLY LITTLE KITTEN AT OUR PRACTICE, WAS PICKED UP FOR GAME EMPANGENI, BROUGHT INTO THE PRACTICE ON FRIDAY.. STILL NOT CLAIMED BY HIS OWNER!!!

IF YOU ARE MISSING YOUR BABY PLEASE GIVE US A CALL ON
035-7727054

12/11/2024

SPECIAL ON MICROCHIP:

NORMAL PRICE: R250.00
SPECIAL PRICE: R100.00

WHILE STOCKS LAST..

PLEASE CALL THE PRACTICE TO MAKE AN APPOINTMENT
035 - 7727054

17/10/2024

As summer is approaching and fleas are a problem, then this is important to know..

11/09/2024

30/08/2024

SUPPORT OUR LOCAL SPCA

29/08/2024

RABIES IN ANIMALS

In animals, rabies is a viral zoonotic neuro-invasive disease which causes inflammation in the brain and is usually fatal. Rabies, caused by the rabies virus, primarily infects mammals. In the laboratory it has been found that birds can be infected, as well as cell cultures from birds, reptiles and insects.[1] The brains of animals with rabies deteriorate. As a result, they tend to behave bizarrely and often aggressively, increasing the chances that they will bite another animal or a person and transmit the disease.