Benalla Veterinary Clinic
16 Church Street
Benalla, VIC, 3672
admin@benallavetclinic.com.au
www.benallavetclinic.com.au
Phone: 03 5762 2788

NEWS FEED

Benalla Vet Clinic is changing software in December to ensure that the clinic is up to date and providing the most efficient service. We will be training our staff prior to the changeover and apologise for any initial delays you may experience.

CHRISTMAS & NEW YEAR HOLIDAYS – The clinic will be closed from Christmas Day (Friday 25^th Deccember) and re-open at 8.30am Tuesday 29^th December 2015. We will also be closed on Friday 1^st January for New Years Day. A vet will be on call for emergencies during these times. For emergency help please call (03) 5762 2788 and leave a message. 

We have made an interesting video for you this month - with the help of our new bronchoscope, you are able to have a close up view deep into a healthy dog lung.  It really is a fascinating view, so click on this link to watch our video.  Benalla Vet Clinic has recently invested in amazing new equipment to ensure we can provide the very best for your pet whenever required for we believe that it is our primary role. Enjoy watching.  

Turbo is a Jack Russell Terrier with the strength of a lion!  Having survived a road traffic accident in 2010 and coping very well since then as an amputee (as a result of a very complicated fracture of his hind limb),  he was brought to Benalla Vet Clinic once again because he had a very painful knee.

Medial luxating patella (loose kneecap) was the diagnosis, and his owners asked Dr Stephan Miechel to surgically correct the problem.  Dr Miechel has performed many patella corrective surgeries; however Turbo’s situation was very different because he only has one knee, so it was vitally important that the operation and subsequent recovery would go to plan.  The pressure was on!

The surgery did go well and his loose patella was secured into a newly fashioned groove and the knee conformation corrected by translocating the front of his upper tibia to realign the quadriceps muscle pulling forces.  Turbo was an excellent patient and with the help of modern advances in pain control (multi-modal pain relief using epidurals, local anaesthetic wound infusion, and medications) he made a rapid recovery.

His diligent owner was shown how to perform some specific rehabilitation exercises on his leg, and was soon able to assist Turbo walking around the garden supported initially by a rolled towel under his belly.  It took two weeks for Turbo to feel confident  enough to walk unassisted, and he is now 3 months out from surgery and very happy with his pain-free knee. 

Click on this link to see how well Turbo is going!

Contact the clinic if you think your dog or cat may have discomfort in a leg, because the pain is often hidden by our animals until it becomes unbearable.  Vets can formulate pain management plans that may involve corrective surgery, medical management, or a combination of both.  No pet should have to suffer in silence with chronic pain these days. 

Well we are back into hot weather conditions again and the fleas are in abundance.  It’s timely to talk about what to do to break the flea lifecycle and ease the pain and irritation for our dogs and cats.

Flea control depends on using an integrated, multi-faceted range of control techniques and products such as:

1. Flea bombing your house:  Fido’s flea bombs are the best value product on the market at $20.85 per can at Benalla Vet Clinic. Not only killing adult fleas quickly, a residual insect growth regulator then remains in carpet and furniture for the next 9 months stopping the flea lifecycle.  For the most effective treatment you should repeat every 9 months.  Try and raise furniture so the mist will get into and under beds and couches.

2. Products to kill and repel fleas on pets:  These include spot-on products, sprays, chewable tablets shampoos and rinses.

3. Products for pet bedding and sleeping areas:  These include sprays and rinses such as Fleatrol Plus

4. Products for your outdoor areas:  Either professional pest control sprays or use of quality sprays such as Fleatrol Plus.

Don’t forget to:

• Use a vacuum cleaner to physically remove all flea stages from carpets, furniture and in pet bedding areas.
• Use carpet cleaning equipment and
• Frequently washing and drying pet bedding to kill fleas.

Benalla Vet Clinic has a large range of flea control products at great low prices and we are waiting to assist you to buy the correct products for your individual situation.  Come on in and let us make sense of it for you.

Without doubt, the best gift you can give your pet this Christmas is comfort. And we don't mean a king sized bed or a back massage! The most simple way to make sure your pet is comfy is to prevent itchy skin. 

Allergies to fleas, grasses, trees, plant pollen, dust mites and moulds as well as certain foods can all set off an attack of the itches. 

Itchy dogs will bite, lick or scratch with their legs whereas a cat will constantly lick at particular areas, causing hair loss. 

Itching quickly leads to self-trauma of the skin and this causes secondary infections that require (expensive) antibiotic treatment.

Top tips for preventing an itch: 

• Be absolutely vigilant with flea treatment all year round. Fleas are THE major cause of an itchy pet and regular use of a flea treatment is cheaper and easier than repairing the damage. Ask us for the best flea treatment available
• Keep your pet's skin and coat in top shape to provide a good barrier from allergens - ask us for a premium diet balanced in essential fatty acids 
• Wash your dog in pet approved shampoo and conditioner - ask us for a recommendation
• Some pets may find relief with an antihistamine or a medication to help reduce the immune system's response to the allergen - we can provide you with more information so enquire now

If you have an itchy pet at your house call us for advice. We will make sure your pet is as comfortable and itch free as can be! 

Have you ever witnessed your dog dragging his bottom along the ground? This strange doggy dance is known as 'scooting' and it is an indication that your dog has irritated anal glands.

The anal glands are located on either side of your dog's anus. Each gland holds a small amount of a foul smelling brown liquid that is released as your pet does a poo. This custom scent is left on the poo and this is used as a doggie calling card.

Most dogs won’t have a problem but if the glands are not sufficiently expressed they become impacted and uncomfortable. Your dog will try to relieve the irritation by rubbing his bottom along the ground. 

Dogs that suffer from allergies and itchy skin are very susceptible to irritated anal glands. 

Warning signs to watch out for:

• Licking or chewing the bottom, turning around suddenly
• Rubbing bottom on the ground especially after defecating
• A foul odour (some describe it as a 'fishy' smell)
• Soft stools or diarrhoea - the glands can become impacted following a bout of diarrhoea

If you notice any of these signs, the glands need to be manually checked and expressed by us to check infection is not present. A premium diet can also help reduce anal gland problems so ask us for a recommendation.  

Here are our top tips to help prevent a Christmas catastrophe and keep your pet healthy and happy this Christmas.

Keep leftovers off the menu!

Don't be tempted to feed your pet leftovers. Christmas dinner is notorious for causing upset tummies and nasty episodes of painful pancreatitis in our pets. Never feed cooked bones and watch out for skewered meat that falls from the BBQ - we don't want to have to remove one of those from your dog's stomach!

Be on hazard watch

Be on the look out for hazardous things your pet might find interesting. Cats love Christmas ornaments, electrical wires, ribbon, string and wrapping paper but all of these can cause major problems if ingested. Candles and burning oils are also dangerous. Remember that ingestion of stems, stamen or the flowers of Christmas lilies can cause kidney failure in cats.

Make festive plans for your pet

Give your pet plenty of love and attention over Christmas - it is a busy time of year and your pet will pick up on this. Make sure you plan out some fun for your pet on Christmas Day and remember to keep them safe and secure during festive fireworks.

Don't forget: We have some great treats and presents available to help stuff your pet's Christmas stocking so drop by to check them out!

Production animal welfare, especially in regards to painful routine husbandry procedures such as castration and dehorning, are becoming an increased public concern. In many countries, the routine practice of disbudding calves without pain relief is coming under a lot of scrutiny from both activists groups and, dare we say it, more rational folk as well.

If you read closely into the debate, most people accept that calves require disbudding to prevent horn growth. They understand that as the cows get older they use their horns as weapons in the battle for bovine social supremacy. What the public don’t accept is any level of management less intense than what would be applied at a human level. What does this mean for calf disbudding? Essentially, if humans were to grow horns which needed removal, we would be anaesthetised, provided with local anaesthetic and then pain relief post procedure.

So can this be done practically at an individual calf level? The answer is absolutely yes! It is actually reasonably quick and easy to sedate calves, provide them with local anaesthetic and long acting pain relief and then disbud them. This needs to be done under the supervision of a veterinarian.  

At the very least, all calves require long acting pain relief. If just reducing discomfort isn’t enough to get you over the line, studies have also found an association with NSAID (non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drug) administration and productivity. These include a quicker return to rumination and increased hay and grain intake following disbudding. A 2015 study demonstrated that disbudding without pain relief was associated with decreased milk intake. Given this, the administration of an NSAID will pay for itself in productivity gains and there really isno a good excuse not to use pain relief anymore.

Many horses and ponies can live into their thirties or beyond with the right care. Here are some of the key areas you will have to consider as your horse gets older.

Diet: Maintaining healthy body condition in older horses is very important and can be achieved by supplementing their diet with an energy-dense feed product. Older horses may not be able to consume as much as they once did or may have lost their ability to absorb all the nutrients from their diet so feeding them products rich in energy will help meet their requirements and maintain body condition. 

Dental health: Caring for an older horse involves maintaining their dental health and ability to eat. Older horses can lose teeth, develop sharp points and painful ulcers, all of which affect their ability to chew and digest food. Signs a horse may have a dental problem include weight loss, dropping feed and foul smelling breath. If you’re concerned about your horse's dental health call us to arrange a check up.

Arthritis: Older horses, just like older humans, can develop arthritis! Arthritis means painful joints, and horses that have had an athletic career can be at increased risk. Fortunately there are many treatments available to slow the progression of arthirits. Feed supplements, oral anti-inflammatory medication and regular intra-muscular injections can be extremely beneficial in keeping older animals moving comfortably. 

No foot no horse: The adage is still true for older horses! Keeping your older horse's feet in good condition will improve their longevity. Advanced foot problems can greatly affect your horse’s quality of life. Laminitis, white line disease (seedy toe) and hoof cracks are seen commonly in older horses.

End of life care: When the time comes to make the difficult decision to part with your aged equine friend our caring veterinarians are here to offer advice regarding pain management and euthanasia.

Annual veterinary health checks are recommended for all horses, and these become increasingly important as your horse ages. Our veterinarians can perform a thorough physical examination and blood tests to identify horses with liver, kidney, gastrointestinal or hormonal dysfunction, all of which are common in older horses.