Vaccinations: Regular vaccination of your dog or cat is important to prevent several diseases (some of which are fatal). Rabbits can also be vaccinated against the fatal calici virus.

Annual Health Checks: It is also important to have your pet checked annually to ensure it is in top condition. One year of a pet's life equals approximately 7 years of a human life, therefore one year without a check up for a pet is equivalent to 7 years without a visit to the doctor. Many diseases and problems can be prevented or eased by having an annual health check.

Examples include:

• Dental & Oral Disease: Many owners are unaware of the bad state of their pet's teeth. Plaque and tartar can accumulate and lead to bad breath, gingivitis and peridontal disease with subsequent teeth loss and infections that travel and damage other parts of the body such as the kidney. By 3 years of age well over 50% of cats and dogs have peridontal diseases.
  
• Weight Control: Around 50% of dogs and cats are overweight to some degree. An overweight pet is at increased risk of many conditions such as diabetes, heart disease, skin disease, breathing difficulties and arthritis. Please feel free to pop in and use our accurate electronic scales to weigh your pet.
  
• Old Age: Certain conditions occur as our pets get older. A lot of older cats get kidney failure. While there is no treatment to regenerate already failing kidney capacity there are some things you can do to help remaining kidney capacity to cope better.
  Like us, dogs get arthritis but they often tend to suffer in silence. Early action means your dog will enjoy a healthier, active life for longer. Clues that may indicate increasing pain and stiffness are reluctance to walk or play, difficulty or slowness in climbing stairs, limping or stiffness, reduced interaction with people, difficulty in getting up after resting, difficulty in jumping into the car/chair, changes in character or aggression, reduced appetite, change in toilet behaviour, licking or self injury, increase in anxiety/clinginess.

Saying Goodbye: There comes a time when we need to say goodbye to our much loved companion. This can be a very difficult time for us all. There can be many difficult decisions to make such as if and when to euthanase, whether to bury our pet at home in their favourite place or whether to cremate and what to do with the ashes. The way we choose to deal with our loss is very personal and everyone responds in different ways. You may have your own ideas or you may want some guidance. We respect your wishes and will try to ease the burden. Please feel free to ask us about the options available or for any help you may need.

House Calls: The clinic is the best place to have your pet examined because we have all the equipment, medicines and experienced nurses on hand. Occasionally the need may arise for a house visit - such as for pets who would like to end their days at home. If you live near by then we can often oblige. There is an extra charge for this and we need some flexibility with the time.

Visit our Petstuff page for nutritional information and petware and petcare products.