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Anaesthesia is essentially rendering the dog unaware of the surgery we're performing, in a safe and reversible way. Without it, we wouldn't be able to perform any surgical procedures in a safe and ethical manner - from elective operations like spays and castrations up to major procedures like spinal and orthopaedic reconstruction surgery, we wouldn't be able to perform any of them. We appreciate that an anaesthetic on your dog is a stressful idea at the best of times, so in this factsheet we're going to go through the procedure for you and explain what will happen, and why we do it.
Anaesthesia seems really scary, and people get very worried about the risks. However, except in life-or-death emergencies, we will have carefully prepared, and we wouldn't recommend an anaesthetic unless the risk of not performing the operation was much higher than the risk of carrying it out. All our vets and nurses are fully trained in anaesthesia - because as we're all taught at vet school, there's no such thing as a safe anaesthetic, only a safe anaesthetist!
Deciding to breed from your dog is a major decision - there are a lot of things that can go wrong, as well as a lot of important decisions that you'll have to make! It can be difficult, and heart-breaking, and expensive, and rewarding (often all at the same time!), so we've put together this brief guide to help you through the process
Breeding requires a great deal of effort, not to mention expertise - but that should be the least of your worries, because you can always talk to us for any advice you need.
In the wild, all male dogs remain entire and fertile throughout their lives. However, the price of that is an increased vulnerability to some diseases and injuries, and some behaviours that we, as owners, don't find attractive. Neutering is the most common surgical procedure carried out on dogs, and it is now commonplace. If you're trying to decide whether to get your dog "done", it's worth looking at the arguments for it, against it, and then looking at the procedure itself, so that you can make an educated and informed choice.
Neutering of male dogs does prevent some unpleasant diseases, and increases lifespan by about 14%. However, there are arguments both ways, and you have to make up your mind about your own dog and what would be best for him.
It's a common misconception that dogs in the wild live off meat - but of course that isn't true! They also eat vegetables and, more importantly, whole animals - meat, bone and internal organs. Putting together a properly balanced diet for a dog isn't actually as easy as you might think, so we've prepared this brief guide to help you!
Although, like us, dogs are omnivores (meaning that they can eat both meat and vegetables), there are some important differences in what they require for a healthy diet. All animals need a number of components in their food, and the correct balance is essential for health.
In practice, the best approach is usually to feed a reputable, balanced, commercial diet. For example, taurine-deficiency cardiomyopathy is nowadays only seen in those who follow an inappropriate home-cooked diet; whereas calcium imbalances are most common in those who follow a "raw-meaty bones" type diet. That said, it is perfectly possible to formulate a healthy home-cooked diet; however, before you do, make sure you talk to a properly qualified canine nutritionist - don't try to make it up as you go along, or follow a fad internet diet! Our vets will be able to put you in touch with someone if you wish.
We look after our dogs, let them into our home and our hearts, and love them dearly. In the end, though, all too often it's us who have to decide when to call it a day and let them go. In this short guide, we'll talk about how and when to make that decision, preparing yourself and your family for it, and then the procedure itself.
Although it can be the hardest decision in the world to make, it's even harder to live with the fact that you left it too long, and allowed a beloved pet to suffer unnecessarily. If you need to talk to anyone, please feel free to give us a ring.
Obesity is a real threat to dogs (and people!) in the UK, and how better to manage it that with a fitness programme! But do you know how much exercise your dog needs? How should you modify it if they're old, or ill, or very young? In this guide, we'll talk you through the details of best to exercise your best friend.
As a bare minimum, almost every dog needs 30 minutes of exercise per day - and some need a LOT more!
It's really scary when you find your dog suddenly injured or hurt - but if you know how to respond immediately (in the minutes before you can get them to us), that can make all the difference to whether they survive or not. So, here's our guide to emergency first aid!
There are a series of basic steps you can take that will allow you to work through most types of injury and give your dog the best chance, If at any stage, however, you're unsure what to do or you're worried about your dog - CALL US!
If your dog survives to reach us at the surgery, there is a good chance we can save them - but what you do in the first few minutes after an accident or injury can make all the difference.
Fleas are the biggest cause of skin disease for UK pets - even now, with so many great products on the market, they're still present living on dogs across the country! There are two reasons they're hard to get rid of - firstly, they can jump from dog to cat to rabbit to human to dog and so evade us; and second, 95% of the fleas aren't living on the animal, but hiding away in your home, waiting for their chance.
There are a number of phases to getting your home "Flea Free", but they sit easily into two categories. Firstly, kill the adults, then break the life-cycle!
No one medication or intervention will control a severe infestation - instead, you'll need to attack them on several fronts, usually with an adult-killing medication, and environmental control spray or medication, and spotless hygiene in the home. If you need advice, feel free to call us!
It's all very well for us vets to say "give these tablets twice a day, next patient please!" - but how easy do you actually find it to give medication to your dog? In this brief guide, we'll look at some common medications, and easy tricks to help you get them into or onto your pet!
Giving medications can be tough, but it's usually straightforward once you know how! If your dog really resents it or you're finding it really hard, don't struggle on and risk getting hurt, or hurting your pet. Instead, give us a call and we'll be able to show you how (or suggest a different option if even we can't get them to cooperate!).
It's always worrying when your dog has to come in for an operation - but it's really useful to know what will happen and how to prepare for it! In this guide, we'll explain what will happen, what the options are, how best to prepare your dog, and how to help them recover afterwards.
We will walk you through every step of the way, but if there's something you don't understand, or you're at all worried about your dog - call us and ask!
Entire bitches are at an increased risk of a number of disease condition, some of which are potentially life-threatening. These diseases can be prevented, or at the very least, the risk reduced, by spaying (neutering). However, this is a surgical procedure, and obviously it does involve some risks in and of itself, as well as having other consequences (never having any more puppies being the most obvious!). There are a lot of people and websites who will tell you that you MUST have your bitch spayed, or that you MUSTN'T. In this guide, however, we'll look at all the pros and cons, so that you can make your own mind up.
Spaying your dog is an important decision - there are hundreds of thousands of unwanted dogs in the UK, so reproductive control is really important. It also genuinely does save lives; however, there are disadvantages too, so it's important that you make up your own mind.
Your dog is constantly at risk of contracting a potentially deadly disease. Distemper, Parvovirus, Infectious Canine Hepatitis - they haven't gone away, they're still out there. The reason we don't see them as commonly as we used to is that most dogs are vaccinated to protect them; without vaccination, any dog is at risk. There are also some rarer or less severe diseases we can vaccinate against - such as Kennel Cough and Leishmania. Vaccination is a very low risk way to protect your dog - and the other dogs around you - and we strongly recommend it!
Vaccination will reduce the chance that your dog contracts the disease, the severity if they do contract it, and the risk of them spreading it. Not all dogs can be vaccinated effectively (for example, dogs on certain medications won't respond properly to vaccines), so you are protecting these dogs as well as your own by vaccinating. If you want to know more about a particular disease or vaccine, give us a call!
Dogs are naturally host to a range of unpleasant internal parasites. The most important of these are roundworms and tapeworms, but hookworms and pinworms are also a problem for many dogs. Some roundworms pose a very real threat to human health as well - their larvae (present in and around dog droppings) can invade the gut if poor hygiene is followed, and may even crawl in to the liver, brain or eyes (we call this visceral larval migrans, and it's most significantly a problem in children). The best way to control these parasites is with an effective worming programme for your dog.
Our dogs will always be at risk from worm infestations, but with a regular worming programme, they can be controlled. Talk to us for more details.
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