Mother's Day is coming up, Sunday 14th May, and we've got some great articles concerning canine mothers. To all our pet loving clients, you're all mother's to your pets and we hope you can lap up some furr baby love this Mother's Day!

For all our new furr parents, we welcome you to attend puppy school at the new time of 10am on Sunday 21st May (the Sunday after Mother's Day). Click here for further information.

This month we delve into the very common cold weather problem - arthritis. As well affecting older pets, it also appears in some unlucky younger animals, as young as 4 months!

We also have an article on a debilitating dog shoulder condition called Osteocondritis dessecans (OCD) with a video link showing a recent arthroscopic surgery performed at the Benalla Veterinary Clinic.  

Enthusiastic puppy-loving veterinary nurse, Peta Kelly.

A tiny arthroscopic curette, only 3mm wide

Benno is a young exuberant Border Collie who has had an intimitently painful shoulder joint since he was five months old. His problem, Osteocondritis dessecans (OCD), was initially diagnosed with shoulder X-rays, which revealed a defect in the cartilage at the back of his shoulder.   

OCD of the shoulder usually occurs in young dogs between 4 and 8 months of age. These dogs will limp on their affected fore leg (sometimes both are in trouble) and the pain can be severe. A developmental problem, shoulder OCD occurs when a specific area in the humerus bone fails to develop properly, resulting in an area of cartilage (a flap) that is loose and when the joint moves, the flap also moves about often causing agonising pain.

Surgery is generally successful and involves the removal of the damaged cartilage (flap) and the "cleaning" of the underlying bone to promote healing with new fibrocartilage (a lesser quality cartilage than the original, which provides a protective cover over the exposed sensitive bone). 

Benno recently underwent arthroscopic OCD shoulder surgery at Benalla Veterinary Clinic, in which Dr Steph Miechel used tiny instruments through two small incisions and removed the damaged cartilage. Benno is currently healing well, however, still needs to abstain from active exercise for several months for cartilage re-growth to occur. 

If you've decided that breeding is out for your dog then you should seriously consider desexing for the following valid reasons: 

• Preventing unwanted litters, which can be very costly, and may add to the already overwhelming number of stray animals that are put down each year

• Prevention of testicular cancer and prostate disease in males, and it can help prevent pyometra (infection of the uterus) and mammary tumours (breast cancer) in females

• Stopping the “heat” cycle in females 

• Decreasing aggression towards humans and other animals, especially in males

• Being less prone to wander, especially males

• Living a longer and healthier life

• Reduction of council registration fees

Dont' forget we can now reduce your dogs healing time, size of wounds and surgical pain level using keyhole laproscopic equipment to spey your dog.

Click here for more information on desexing and 'keyhole' surgery. 

With Mother's Day this month, we thought now would be a good time to share a few things about pregnancy in dogs. Here are some key facts:

• Pregnancy (or the gestation period) in bitches normally ranges from 58 to 65 days with an average of 65 days





 
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• During pregnancy your bitch should be on a balanced diet. Ask us for the best recommendation. It can be dangerous to supplement her diet with extra calcium or vitamins





 
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• A bitch should be dewormed with an all wormer at week 4 and 6 of pregnancy. This is important to ensure she does not infect her newborn pups. You should vaccinate your bitch prior to mating to ensure maximum immunity is passed on to her puppies.

When a dog gives birth to puppies it is known as "whelping", and the bitch usually rests between the delivery of individual pups. The rest time can range from fifteen minutes to an hour, but you should seek veterinary attention if:

• Half an hour has passed since the onset of abdominal contractions and a puppy has not been born or;
• Half an hour has passed after the birth of a pup, your bitch is still having strong contractions and there is no sign of another pup

We will be happy to assist you with any queries you have regarding your dog's pregnancy and whelping.

Click here to see 16 animal expressions that perfectly capture what motherhood is all about!

Arthritis is a nasty disease. It sneaks up on our pets and always seems to rear its ugly head as the weather starts to cool down.

Many people put the signs of arthritis down to "getting old" but have you ever thought that your pet might actually be in pain?

Remember - your pet doesn't necessarily have to have a limp to be suffering from arthritis as some of the symptoms are subtle.

Signs of arthritis in cats:

• Landing in a heap when jumping down
• Hesitant to jump down from your lap or from the furniture
• Reluctant to climb fences or trees
• Scruffy or matted coat as they are no longer able to groom easily

Signs of arthritis in dogs:

• Stiff and sometimes sore when getting up after lying down- especially in the morning
• Trouble jumping up onto furniture or into the car
• Behaviour changes - growling or grumpy when sore joints are touched
• Muscle loss especially over spine, the hips and around the hind legs

The good news is we have plenty of tools up our sleeve to help your arthritic pet become more mobile and pain-free. We will put a treatment plan in place and slow down the progression of this disease before your pet's quality of life is affected.

The month of May is a great time to arrange an arthritis check up with us.

The recent floods in Queensland and New South Wales have sadly resulted in hundreds of displaced pets.

Natural disasters are an important reminder as to why it is essential ALL of your pets are microchipped. 

When a lost pet has a microchip, they can be scanned at any vet clinic or animal shelter and the details attached to the chip found on a central database. 

Unfortunately, for many microchipped pets, the contact phone number assigned to the chip is incorrect and this makes the chip useless.

Now is the perfect time to make sure your pet is chipped and check the contact details attached to your pet's microchip. 

If you don't know your pet's microchip number please drop by with your pet and we can scan it for you. If you already know the microchip number you can jump online to update any details.

It's also a good idea to have an ID tag with your name and phone number attached to your pet's collar as this can speed up the lost and found process.

Ask us for more information about microchipping your pet. 

If your pet is diagnosed with arthritis, there are plenty of things you can do at home to help them feel more comfortable.

We recommend a multi-pronged attack as this helps to reduce the need for large amounts of medication and will lessen the potential side effects of any one treatment.

6 tips for an arthritis-friendly home:

1. Keep your pet lean to help reduce the load on their joints
2. Consider feeding a diet specifically formulated for arthritis (ask us for the best recommendation)
3. Continue to exercise your pet in moderation; gentle daily walks for dogs help keep the joints moving and muscles toned
4. Provide a warm and comfortable bed with plenty of padding
5. Use a portable ramp to help your dog in and out of the car
6. Provide an additional piece of furniture (like an ottoman) so your cat doesn't have to jump so high to reach his favourite spot

Ask us for more information on how to make your home arthritis-friendly.

For sheep farmers in particular, a good dog is one of your greatest assets. They make your day run efficiently and do what no-one else can to muster sheep. The modern sheep dog is the product of improved breeding, sound training methods and better health care. To function at maximum capacity, these performance-bred and trained animals require specialised nutrition. Here are a few tips which will lead to better performance of your dog.

Energy is key

The best way to provide working dogs with energy is high-fat products. Dogs can sprint faster when fed increased fat. Fat is the ideal source of energy for dogs because it has over twice the energy per gram compared with carbohydrates of protein.

What about protein?

Muscle size, density of blood vessels within muscle, and activity of enzymes, which are all made from amino acids, are known to increase with athletic training. For decades, soybeans and corn gluten have been used as a cheap source of protein, and while dogs survive on this food they thrive on the amino acids provided by animal protein.

So, what is the best diet for working dogs?

• Nutrient dense diet with a high level of fat
• Animal based protein source, with high levels of crude protein
• More than just meat – meat alone does not make a balanced diet
• Cooked meat – food-borne infection is a major complication of feeding fresh meat
• Only feed <10% “treats” – table scraps, liver treats etc

If you have any questions or concerns about your working dog's health please ask us.