Natomas Veterinary Hospital

Website Links

Description

Examinations: All great veterinary care begins with an exam of your pet. The exam allows the doctor to see, to touch, and to listen to your pet. This one on one time also allows the doctor to ask you, the owner, specific questions about your pet. After taking a history and performing an exam, the doctor can then provide you with a treatment plan for your pet. For healthy pets, this will typically involve offering advice on current preventative medicine interventions that are designed to maintain your animal ’s good health. For pets with medical or surgical problems, after the exam, the veterinarian will be able to discuss with you any recommended diagnostic tests or any appropriate initial treatments for your pet. Vaccinations and Preventative Care: Generally speaking, most cats and dogs need yearly vaccines along with their exams. Although we recommend exams, we do offer vaccine only appointments with our experienced technicians. For dogs, the recommended “core ” vaccines are DHLPP (commonly called the distemper-parvo vaccine) and the rabies vaccine. DHLPP stands for distemper, hepatitis, leptospirosis, parainfluenza, and parvo. Since some dogs, usually toy breeds, can have an allergic reaction to the leptospirosis part of the vaccine, the veterinarian may want to do this vaccine in the morning or possibly skip it altogether. Other frequently advised canine vaccines are Bordatella (kennel cough), canine influenza (canine flu), lyme ’s disease, and rattlesnake vaccines. For our feline friends, the core vaccines are FVRCP (feline viral rhinotracheitis, calici, and panleukopenia) and rabies. We also offer the Leukemia vaccine for outdoor cats. The decision regarding which vaccines to give your dog or cat should be discussed with the veterinarian, as the potential risks they face depend on your pet ’s lifestyle. Regarding preventative care, dogs and cats should both be on heartworm preventation. Heartworms are spread by infected mosquitoes biting and injecting baby heartworms into your pet ’s skin, after which they migrate to the heart via the blood stream. These worms can eventually cause heart failure, severe respiratory problems, and even death. We advise all dogs to be tested once yearly for heartworms, even if they are on the monthly oral preventative, and always before restarting preventation after a hiatus. Cats generally are put on a topical preventative, and cats do not have to be tested beforehand. All pets should have yearly fecals (stool samples which are tested for intestinal parasites), and all, even the indoor pets, should be on flea and/or tick control. Fleas and ticks can carry diseases, some of which can be transmitted to humans, so protecting your pets also helps keep your family healthy. Puppies and Kittens: We do have puppy and kitten packages.

Products & services

Similar companies nearby