Top Ten Tips for General Wellness

#10 Prevention is the best medicine! Junior and senior wellness blood tests can find problems long before symptoms begin. Your pet can seem asymptomatic, but once the symptoms begin to show, the illness may be advanced which can be more difficult and costly to diagnose and treat. Our goal is to prevent, control, or completely reverse disease. This can be accomplished if the condition is diagnosed early enough.

#9 Your pet’s dental health is important, too! Pet owners who clean their animal’s teeth for just thirty seconds a day, every night, will save them money in addition to saving their pet’s teeth and life.

#8 Chubby isn’t always cute! Skinny and even starving animals will live longer than overweight animals. Amazing fact, huh? Ask us about our weight reduction program and what your animal’s ideal weight is.

#7 Helpful or hurtful? Did you know that Tylenol or any piece of a Lily flower (even the stem or pollen) can kill your cat?

#6 I wish there was pet insurance! There is. Our clients who sign up for pet insurance early in their pet’s life say that their yearly fee pays for most of their vet costs and emergencies.

#5 Microchipping is invaluable! One dog or cat is reunited with its owner every six minutes in this country because they were microchipped. A microchip is a small (about the size of a grain of rice) identifying integrated circuit placed under the skin of a dog or cat that can be the reason your pet is returned to you should it get lost. Microchips are very affordable and easy to implant through a simple injection.

#4 Lepto What? If your dogs are in contact with streams, rivers, lakes, like to hike in the mountains, or play with other dogs that live that lifestyle, ask for a leptospirosis handout. 25% of kidney failures in dogs that live in New Jersey are due to this disease. Leptospirosis can even kill people. Get a handout today from our office and get educated!

#3 Parasite prevention is key! All dogs should be getting monthly heartworm pills, a Frontline Plus application, and yearly intestinal worm treatments. Dogs and cats can acquire intestinal parasites simply by licking their paws. We also offer Iverhart, which we carry in our hospital or can be ordered online on our website. More people and dogs get Lyme disease from ticks in the fall and winter months because the owner has stopped their Frontline applications. Remember, we use Frontline Plus applications to protect our families as much as our pets.

#2 Vaccinations can save lives! Labs, Goldens and Shelties are the most susceptible breeds to the fatal form of Lyme disease – nephropathy. Nephropathy refers to damage or disease of the kidneys. We recommend that these dogs be vaccinated especially. However, unlike most vets, we do not recommend vaccinating dogs for Distemper and Parvo every year of their lives. Once we feel their immune system can protect them for more than one year, we recommend titers or vaccinating every 2 to 3 years, just like the Rabies vaccine.

#1 Get Educated! We provide a whole host of information on our website. We want to help educate pet parents so you make the right decisions and your pet stays happy and healthy longer!