There was once a time when people only brought their pets to the veterinarian when the pet was ill and needed help immediately.  Times have changed and medicine has advanced, and we at the Animal Clinic of Rockbridge want to take a preventative approach to the care of your pet.  Although we often treat sick animals, we want to help you keep your pet from getting sick.  This will also result in more visits to the vet but overall will cost you less.

This concept of preventative care is known as wellness.  Your pet ages six to seven years for every year of your life.  This is why we recommend twice yearly examinations in order to catch any problems early.  If caught early, there are many treatments and diets which can lengthen the life of you pet.  All dogs and cats are exposed to pathogens and critters which can cause disease or illness.  Even your pets who are kept indoors are at risk, for not all problems come from the environment.  In addition, the outdoors always seems to find a way to come indoors.

With twice a year wellness exam, or as we call it, a life cycle consult, a technician and veterinarian will ask you specific questions about your pets behavior, lifestyle, diet and other topics in order to determine a disease prevention program specific for your pet and the risks to which they are prone   A dental grade and body condition score will be assigned to your pet. A nutrition specialist is also available for a consult to help you understand the prescription diets. Our vaccination protocol varies on the age and vaccine history of your pet.  However we only give two injectable vaccinations in order to reduce the occurrence of reactions.  Some of our vaccinations are also on a three year rotation.  In addition, there are also blood tests which we recommend for it alerts us to problems with internal organs which could otherwise go unnoticed.  Statistics say that 17 percent of animals who look healthy actually have a problem internally.  

For senior animals (animals older than seven years old) we offer a senior wellness package.  Included in this package is a urinalysis to test for urinary tract problems, an ERD to test for early kidney damage, an EKG in order to make sure there are no heart abnormalities, blood tests to test internal organs, tonometry to test the pressure of the eye and blood pressure monitoring. Since these tests are bundled together, we offer them at a discounted rate compared to getting all the tests singly.

            If you have any questions, we encourage you give us a call or to come in and speak with us. Our goal is not only to treat your pet and keep them healthy but also for you to understand all that we do and why we do it.

Holiday warning: The holiday season. We want to remind you that chocolate is toxic to both cats and dogs.  So given the chance, trick and not treat your animals.  Thanksgiving can tempt you to feed your pet a little something extra special.  Beware of bones which can cause choking and keep in mind that obesity is the #2 problem in all household pets which can lead to other problems such as diabetes and arthritis.  Here at the clinic we even offer an exercise program for dogs.  You can bring your dog in up to three times a week and we will exercise them, track their weight and even calculate how much food per day they should be eating. Some festive plants such as poinsettias can even be toxic to animals if they nibble on them too much.

CROOK'S CORNER
For those of you who don’t know me, I’m the clinic cat. You may not have seen me due to the fact that they keep me locked up so I won’t anger any of the dogs that come in to visit.  I also get to hear and see some things these people won’t tell you.  They just created a new discount.  For a while now they’ve had a discount on their senior animal package.  I finally laid down in enough people’s ways to convince them to create a young adult package! This includes blood work, a test for kidney functioning and also measuring blood pressure. Most importantly when you get the package, you get 10% off what they would have been separately.  I think I’m going to go find the girls and get them to do it to me, then I think it’s time for my second nap of the morning…that is, unless there’s some food they left unguarded. 

October is Wellness Month.  Just as a car needs regular check ups and servicing, pets need to be seen twice a year.  Since pets age approximately 5-9 times faster than humans, regular and early monitoring is necessary for intervention and prevention of disease.  These life cycle consults and tailored to your pet’s breed and age and include vaccinations, dental grade determination, body condition scoring, parasite screening (both internally and externally) and blood screens.  Your pet is considered to be an adult after their first year of life and a senior citizen once they are 7 years old. We offer a senior wellness package which includes tonometry (eye pressure), EKG (rhythm of the heart), ERD (tests for early kidney damage), urinalysis, blood pressure measurements, and blood work which we send off to an outside lab to detect problems with internal organs and glands. Getting these services bundled together not only helps your pets health, but also your wallet.