WELLNESS & PREVENTIVE VETERINARY CARE IN DAINGERFIELD, TEXAS
HEALTHY PET EXAMS
Since animals can’t tell us when they first start to feel sick, one of the best ways to catch problems early, and to help prevent some problems from ever starting, is to have routine “check ups” for your animals.
When you see your pet all the time, sometimes you can miss a subtle sign of a problem, because it creeps up on your pet and seems like it is “normal”.
That’s why regular wellness exams with our doctor can help pinpoint things that are actually normal, and things that we need to address to keep them from becoming a more serious problem.
An exam by Dr. Robinson is required by State and Federal laws, in order to prescribe medications/vaccinations/treatments for your animals.
WE RECOMMEND:
- Yearly exams for healthy adult pets.
- Twice yearly exams (sometimes more often) for older pets, pets with chronic health problems, pets taking certain medications.
- Frequent vet visits for young, growing animals whose bodies are changing rapidly.
VACCINATIONS FOR CATS, DOGS, HORSES, AND MORE
Our clinic provides both core vaccines and “lifestyle” vaccines for a variety of animals.
- Rabies – Rabies vaccinations are required yearly for dogs and cats, to comply with the law. We strongly recommend a yearly rabies vaccination for horses/mules/donkeys, ferrets, and some other animals. Rabies is a core vaccine recommended for a variety of animals, and is especially important due to wildlife encounters that can spread rabies to your animals, and even your human family. Rabies can be transmitted without an actual bite happening.
- Dogs: Other core vaccines for dogs include leptospirosis, distemper, adenovirus, parvovirus, parainfluenza. Yearly boosters of core vaccines are recommended for adult dogs. Other vaccines include things like bordetella (kennel cough), which may need boosters yearly or more often.
- Cats: Besides rabies, cats have two other core vaccinations, the FVRCP and the FeLV. These vaccines protect against feline distemper, the calicivirus, viral rhinotracheitis and feline leukemia. Yearly boosters for adults are recommended.
- Horses/Donkeys/Mules: Core vaccines to be administered yearly to adult equines include Rabies, Tetanus, West Nile Virus, and Eastern & Western Equine Encephalomyelitis (EEE & WEE). Risk-based vaccines include, Leptospirosis, Venezuelan Equine Encephalomyelitis (VEE), Strangles, Potomac Horse Fever, Equine Influenze, Equine Herpesvirus (Rhinopneumonitis), Equine Viral Arteritis, Botulism, Anthrax, Rotaviral Diarrhea, and snakebite.
- Ferrets: A yearly Rabies and Canine Distemper vaccination is recommended for ferrets.
- Cows/Livestock/Farm Animals: A yearly rabies vaccination is recommended for farm animals that are in close, frequent contact with humans. Other species specific vaccinations are recommended for various farm animals that we see. Talk with Doc to discuss what vaccinations are recommended for your farm animals, to help protect them, your pets, and your human family from disease.
HEARTWORM TESTING AND PREVENTION
Heartworms are worms that live in the heart and lungs of animals, causing not only illness, but also death. Heartworms are spread by mosquitos and affect dogs, cats, and ferrets.
Heartworms also affect wildlife, including coyotes, foxes, wolves, and raccoons. Which means that for us living out here in a rural area, one bite from one mosquito can infect our pets with heartworms, after the mosquito has bitten an animal that has heartworms.
We strongly encourage you to have your pets (cats, dogs & ferrets) tested for heartworms every year, and keep your pets on year-round heartworm prevention. Because it’s always mosquito season in Texas.
Texas is now the NUMBER 1 state in the country for heartworm cases!
For more information about heartworms, testing, and prevention, check out this video and information from the American Heartworm Society. CLICK HERE
INTESTINAL PARASITE TESTING
There are a variety of parasites that can live inside your animal without you knowing it until there are serious symptoms. These parasites can cause weight loss, malnutrition, and blood loss leading to death, Some can even burrow into other parts of your pet’s body, like the lungs, and cause other sorts of problems.
We recommend testing for intestinal parasites at least once per year for most animals. Just because you haven’t seen any worms in your animal’s poop, doesn’t mean they don’t have worms.
When you come in, bring a sample of your animal’s freshly laid poop for testing. Your pet will thank you for it! We can get a sample from your pet when you bring them to see us. But your pet would much prefer you just pick up a piece of fresh poop and bring it with you in a plastic baggie so we don’t have to stick the sample collector up their rear end.
FLEA & TICK PREVENTION & CONTROL
Fleas and ticks make our animals miserable. Fleas and ticks can spread diseases to our animals and to people. Fleas & ticks also cause pain, and the scratching from itching can break open your pet’s skin and cause infections.
Killing fleas and ticks, and preventing flea and tick infestations in the first place, is a part of your pet’s Wellness Care that you play a big part in.
There are a lot of flea and tick medications to choose from at the store. Some of these may not be the best choice for every pet. Some over the counter products, like flea and tick products made with permethrin/pyrethrin-based drugs, can actually kill cats, with just a tiny amount.
So when flea and tick products sold at the store aren’t working for you, or you are worried about choosing the wrong one that may hurt your pet, it’s time for you to talk with Dr. Robinson and the staff here at Daingerfield Vet Hospital. We can help you plan a flea & tick prevention program for your animals.
Because Texas is known for having periods of warm weather in winter, we recommend you keep your pets on flea and tick preventative medication year-round.
DENTAL CARE
Part of your pet’s check up will include looking inside their mouth to detect problems.
Healthy teeth and gums are essential to your animal’s ability to eat normally. Problems with your pet’s teeth can cause malnutrition and pain. Bacteria in the mouth can cause infections that can spread to other areas, such as your pet’s joints, or even their heart.
We know it may be hard for you to brush your pet’s teeth. Which means that your pet may need regular teeth cleanings, while under anesthesia, to keep their pearly whites in good shape. Similar to what you have done at your dentist.
For animals like horses and rabbits, whose teeth don’t stop growing, routine floating (grinding down) of their teeth may be needed to keep their teeth from growing too long and causing problems.
ROUTINE BLOOD TESTING
Just like in people, having your pet’s blood tested at regular intervals, as part of an annual wellness exam, can provide more information about your pet’s health – often before there are any outward signs of a problem.
Some breeds are more prone to certain diseases. And there are diseases that tend to show up more often in older pets, such as diabetes, thyroid problems, kidney failure, and liver failure. Doing routine blood testing gives us a baseline of what your pet’s normal bloodwork looks like, so that we can spot trends that can indicate a pet may be heading for a problem. Early detection of problems, by having blood tested routinely, allows us to get ahead of the problem before it suddenly becomes an emergency.
We recommend yearly blood testing for most younger animals. Older animals, and animals with chronic health problems or certain risk factors, and animals taking certain medications, may need blood work two or more times per year for best care.
Having routine blood testing can help alert us to problems earlier so that your pet can start treatment sooner – often making them more comfortable and prolonging the amount of time you have to enjoy your pet.
MICROCHIPS
Microchips are one of the most important things you can do to help get your pet home if they are ever lost.
Microchips are about the size of a grain of rice. They are injected under the skin using a needle, similar to giving your pet a vaccination.
Microchips do not track your pets. Microchips broadcast a registration number, that can be read with a scanner. That number is paired with your contact information in the microchip database.
If someone finds your lost pet, and has them scanned for a microchip, the finder is then able to go online and enter your pet’s microchip number into the database, and find out how to contact you.
We always recommend collars and identification tags, especially for dogs and cats. Cats should always have breakaway buckle or elastic collars. But collars and tags can come off or be removed. A microchip stays with your pet.
We recommend microchips for all cats and dogs, as well as other pets that could possibly become lost, or may need to have their identity verified, such as turtles/tortoises (Sulcatas are Houdinis), ferrets, equines, birds, show animals, and rare breed animals.
Some organizations are now requiring microchips for horses and other equines to participate in their events.
WELLNESS/PREVENTIVE CARE COSTS VERSUS SICK CARE COSTS
Sometimes it can seem like the cost of wellness care is too expensive. But it really is cheaper to provide preventive care for your pets, compared to the cost of treating an illness that could have been prevented with a vaccination. Or treating an illness that is advanced, because it wasn’t caught in the early stages on a routine wellness checkup.
When was the last time your pet came in for a check up? If it’s been more than a year, that is way too long!
Call us today at 903-645-3101, or click here to go to our Pet Portal, to schedule an appointment!
