Regular examinations of your pet are important for the early diagnosis and prevention of disease. Often these examinations are performed at the time of the pet’s annual vaccination. Commonly, we will discover problems in need of attention, such as ear and dental infections, arthritis, heart conditions and even tumors. This is also an opportunity to discuss your pet’s diet, weight, and behavior with the doctor.
Dogs are susceptible to round, hook and tape worms. Whip worms are a major problem in older dogs. They may acquire heartworms from infected mosquitoes and should be kept on a preventative all year. Round worms are common in humans too, especially to young children, so a good worming program is very important.
Warm summers and centrally heated winters mean fleas are now a problem all year, resulting in a dry, itchy coat or even a “hotspot”. Treatment can be frustrating with the wrong products. We can recommend the most effective products for you.
Ticks can be picked up in long grasses and shrubbery at any time of year. They can carry a number of dangerous diseases including Lyme disease. Ticks should not be removed with fingers, but instead use tweezers or “Tick-off” devices. Products like frontline, K9-Advantix and scalibor collars will kill ticks and may even repel them from biting.
As dogs and cats grow to middle age, we recommend yearly chemistry screening to ensure that internal illness aren’t ‘creeping up’ without our noticing. With early detection of chronic liver, thyroid or kidney disease, we can start a program of special foods, supplements and medicines to help reduce the damage and improve their quality of life- time span.
Ideally, cats over the age of 10 should have a yearly blood screening test for heart muscle disease. This is estimated to affect 15% of cats. There may be no symptoms at all until they suddenly go into failure. Early warning can enable us to reduce the stress load on the heart.
Dogs on Long Island should have a heartworm blood test yearly. Our in-house test also checks for Lyme, and other tick borne diseases.
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