Welcome to the latest issue of our newsletter designed to keep you up to date with what’s happening in the practice.

Practice Facilities

• Appointment system
• On site parking
• 24 hour emergency service
• Annual health checks
• Convenient surgery hours
• Weight clinics & Free weight checks
• In-house laboratory
• Full dental facilities
• Modern surgical facilities
• Royal Canin lifestage diets
• Royal Canin prescription diets

Consulting Times

Monday – Friday

9-10am Open Surgery
2-7pm Appointment Only

Saturday
9-10am & 5-6pm
Open Surgery

Sunday
10-11am
Open Surgery

Please call
( (01664) 567724/562142
For appointments

24-Hour Emergency Service
Available for registered clients
( (01664) 567724/562142

News

Oral Care Checks Extended

Due to the success of Oral Care Month in March we have decided to extend the offer of free dog dental checks into April, if you would like to book a check please call or drop into the surgery.

Take Care This Easter

There is usually a lot of chocolate around at this time of year and although dogs love eating it, it can cause them to be very sick. Dark chocolate is the most dangerous but milk and white chocolate can cause problems too, so try to keep your eggs out of reach of the dog!

What Do We Vaccinate For And Why?

Most of you bring your dogs and cats to us year in, year out for their booster injections, but why do we ask you to do this? And what are we actually vaccinating against? Below is a list of diseases covered by the boosters; all are present in the UK except for rabies, so if your pet is unvaccinated they will be at risk of catching them.

Dogs

Booster Vaccination

Additional Vaccinations;

Cats

• Feline Infectious Enteritis – Virus, causes diarrhoea and damage blood cells.
• Calicivirus & Herpesvirus – Viruses, can both cause ‘cat flu’, can cause serious illness if not treated promptly.
• Feline Leukaemia Virus – Virus, can cause leukaemia and can lead to formation of tumours.

Brushing Your Dog’s Teeth, Are We Having A Laugh?

We are all used to brushing our own teeth twice a day to keep them clean but idea of brushing a dog’s teeth may seem like a bit of a joke. Obviously in the wild dogs do not brush their teeth, so why do we recommend that you do so with your pets?

Pet dogs are now living much longer lives than wild dogs and this, combined with the high sugar content of many dog foods and treats, means that dental problems have become more and more common, especially in older animals.

The first stage of tooth disease is plaque build up, this happens constantly. As the dog eats, bacteria feed on the small food particles that stick to the teeth and multiply, forming a film of plaque. The next stage is tartar formation, tartar is a hard substance that forms from plaque, and it can start forming as little as 48 hours after cleaning the teeth. Once present tartar cannot be removed by brushing and provides an ideal environment for bacteria to grow. The final stage is periodontal disease, the bacteria start to damage the connection between the teeth and the jaw, this leads to inflammation of the gums, loosening of the teeth and eventually can result in tooth root infection and loss of teeth. This process can be very painful for the dog and may even stop them from eating.

Tartar can only be removed by scaling the teeth under anaesthetic at the surgery, but daily brushing can prevent tartar build up. The mechanical action of brushing, with or without canine toothpaste, is the best way to remove plaque and therefore prevent dental disease. Enzymatic food and water additives also help and although dental chews and dry foods do help to some extent, they do not clean the teeth well enough to prevent tartar from forming on the teeth.

Meet The Staff

Name – Charlotte Aston
Position – Veterinary Surgeon

Charlotte joined The Crescent in February this year after running the small animal first opinion department at Liverpool University for two years.
She graduated from the Royal Veterinary College in London in 2002, so she has plenty of experience dealing with all aspects of small animal medicine and surgery.

Outside of work Charlotte enjoys looking after her many pets including a parrot, 4 cats, 2 dogs, several chickens, 3 pigs and 2 tortoises. She also reads and paints when she has some time to spare!

Pet Of The Month

Name – Chester Goddard
Breed – Springer Spaniel    Age – 11 months
Favourite Food – Chub Meaty Treats
Favourite Toy – Whinnie The Pooh Teddy
Favourite Activity – Out and about on walks
Naughtiest Moment – Digging up the lawn

Last month Chester was out on a walk and jumped over a brook and hurt his elbow. He was still very sore on it the next morning so he came to see us. His elbow was very swollen, when we x-rayed it we found that he had fractured a bone in his elbow, which is a common injury in Springer Spaniels.
Chester had to go and see an orthopaedic specialist to have a screw put in to fix the break; he was recovering well but had an over-exuberant moment and broke the screw! This meant another visit to the specialist to put in a bigger screw. Chester is now recovering nicely and the larger screw seems to be doing the job. We wish him a speedy recovery!