Preventative Health Care

As with people, preventive healthcare is of vital importance and can make a real difference to the well being of your pet.

Essentially, its all about getting the basics of pet care right from the start and maintaining the correct level of care throughout your pet's life.

Taking positive steps early on will help to prevent disease and other problems arising and assist your pet in leading a lengthy, fit and active life.

Annual Health Checks and Booster Vaccination - your pet's 'MOT'

The most important part of preventative healthcare is to ensure your pet visits the Surgery annually for their booster vaccination and general health check with one of our Veterinary Surgeons. Before vaccination were introduced, our pets were at risk from fatal diseases. The good news is that vaccination has greatly reduced the amount of disease seen today. However, as a high percentage of dogs and cats are not vaccinated these diseases are still occurring. For maximum protection we recommend pets are vaccinated annually against disease.

During the physical examination the Veterinary Surgeon will carry out a number of routine checks and tests and is often able to detect anything abnormal. There is also plenty of opportunity for you to discuss any concerns regarding the welfare of your pet.

The types of checks conducted include:-

• Weight
• Heart
• Eyes
• Ears
• Teeth and gums
• Abdomen

Worming

It may not always be easy to tell when you pet has worms, particularly in the case of a mild infestation. In severe cases the symptoms are obvious: general loss of condition, rough dry coat, anaemia, vomiting, diarrhoea and/or constipation.

The majority of worms carried by dogs and cats pose no threat to human health. However, there are some which can potentially be transmitted to people and the results could be serious.

Puppies and kittens should be wormed at regular intervals up until 6 months and adult cats and dogs should be wormed every 3 months.

Many cats are difficult to dose and our Nurses will worm your pets at the Surgery.

Flea Treatment

Unfortunately, every dog and cat is likely to become infested with fleas at sometime during their life and your pet may not be the only one to suffer from itchy flea bites.

Adult female fleas can lay in excess of 50 eggs per day, thus a brief infestation can result in thousands of flea eggs being laid. These fall off your pet and are deposited around the house in carpets and bedding and can hatch within a few days. The larval stages can lie dormant for many months before developing into adult fleas and the cycle starts over again.

To protect you home we advise:

• Use of a household flea spray on carpets and soft furnishings
• Treat all pets in your household all year round as fleas are present throughout the year
• Regular vacuuming to reduce the number of eggs and fleas in carpets

For advice on how to treat you pet and your home, please ask a member of staff.

Dental Health

Have you smelt your pet's breath recently? Do you look at your pet's teeth? Did you know gum disease is one of the most common diseases in dogs and cats with more than 80% affected?

Oral health and hygiene are important for the overall well being of your pet. A healthy mouth is essential to help support your pet's natural resistance to disease. Dental disease can occur in young and aged animals so it is vital your pet gets used to having his/her mouth examined regularly.

If tartar (hard brown material) and gingivitis (red gums) are already present, your pet will need a general anaesthetic to have the teeth cleaned using an ultrasonic scaler. If untreated, periodontal disease can lead to extensive loss of teeth, cause extreme discomfort, reduce resistance to diseases and affect their ability to chew.

To help reduce the risk of gum disease:

• Take your pet for regular dental check-ups, ideally every 6 months
• Train your pet from an early age to let you look into their mouths
• Brush your pet's teeth regularly using a special pet toothbrush and toothpaste

Pet Insurance

Did you know that on average one in three pets requires veterinary treatment for illness or accidents each year?

We recommend that you take out Pet Insurance as it offers peace of mind should your pet fall ill and require complex or long term treatment.

With ongoing advances in technology and medicines, there are often more sophisticated options and treatments available. However, costs inevitably rise and this may become a limiting factor to pet owners.

Pet owners often associate serious injuries or broken bones as the main reason for pet insurance, however other unpredictable conditions such as skin problems, arthritis and diabetes (to name but a few!) often involve long term and in some cases life long treatment. For example, £677.98 for a dog with a Cruciate ligament injury, up to £3,548 over a lifetime for Arthritis and £582.67 for a cat that had been hit by a car.

Which pet Insurance is right for me?

Not all pet Insurance is the same, there are three main types:

Maximum Benefit Cover - cover is provided up to a maximum amount per condition, therefore complex and skilled medical procedures that often require referral to Specialists may not be covered.

Time limited Policies - usually have a 12 month limit on paying for a condition, therefore, long term conditions such as arthritis, dermatitis or diabetes will not be covered after 12 months.

Lifetime Policies - this is the best type as cover is renewed at the start of each year and is the best cover for ongoing treatments.

At Barnhouse, we recommend Pet Plan Insurance who offer a Lifetime (cover for life) policy.