Celebrating the Grand Opening of Tri-County Animal Clinic. In collaboration with Logan’s Run Rescue, we are offering a reduced cost rabies clinic and parasite testing day at our Peachtree location. In addition to vaccinations and parasite tests, pet identification tags, collars and leads will be sold to benefit LRR. There will be gifts and lots of fun for all the family (2 and four legged).
Rabies is a deadly viral disease that affects animals and people spread most commonly by skunks, raccoons, foxes, and bats. Over one thousand cases of rabies have been reported over the last three years in North Carolina alone. This disease is spread by saliva from an infected animal and attacks the brain and central nervous system of the animal or person. Almost all animals infected by the rabies virus ultimately die.
While the virus is of major concern in dogs, cats, and wildlife, rabies can also infect people. If a person is bitten by a rabid animal and does not seek treatment, the result is most likely death. A bite wound from an animal should be scrubbed vigorously, reported to Animal Control to capture the animal for rabies testing, and the person should seek medical attention. If the animal is found to be rabid, the person bitten will have to undergo a series of injections to avoid the disease.
The public should be aware to never approach a raccoon, skunk, fox, or bat exhibiting unusual behavior. For example, raccoons are active usually at night and tend to shy away from people. If a raccoon is spotted in daylight and seems overly friendly or aggressive, the animal should be reported to animal control for possible capture.
In Georgia and North Carolina, if a pet does not have a current rabies vaccine and is exposed to a rabid animal, the pet must be euthanized or quarantined for six months at the owners expense. State law requires that all dogs and cats over four months of age receive rabies vaccines. To avoid losing a pet that may have been exposed to rabies, the public is urged to have their pets vaccinated.
This month we reached another milestone — 5,000 new clients since our opening on March 1, 2005. Tim Turpin brought in his seven year old German Shepherd, Roxy. They are pictured above along with (left to right) Stephen Smith, veterinary assistant, Holley Kemp, manager veterinary technical team, Susan Burr, hospital administrator, Mr. Turpin and Roxy, Dr. Burr, and Kristin Hall, receptionist.
In April, Dr. Francine da Silveira Postiglione will be joining the staff here at LCAH and TCAC, coming to us all the way from Brazil. Dr. Postiglione was born in Rio Grande do Sul, but has lived in Florianopolis in Santa Catarina for most of her life. She was awarded her DVM degree in 2007 from the University of the State of Santa Catarina in Lages.
Her experience also includes an exchange program with the University of Missouri CVM in 2006. Since her graduation, she has been studying to enroll at the Educational Commission for Foreign Veterinary Graduates and working as an autonomous veterinarian, with the goal to sit for examination to earn a foreign DVM equivalency degree which will allow her to practice veterinary medicine in the U.S. Dr. Burr has agreed to serve as her mentor and to help her through the degree process.
Dr. Postiglione is a lifelong Catholic and is very active in her church with the youth group, retreats, and volunteer work at the local asylums. Her interests include horseback riding, hiking with her dogs, painting, reading, and relaxing at the beach.
Her training with Dr. Burr is expected to be for a four– to six–month period and she will be residing in Hiawassee. Dr. Burr and staff are excited to introduce Dr. Postiglione to their clients and patients and believe it will be a rewarding experience for all concerned.
1/28/11: Merrick Pet Care Jr. Texas Taffy Pet Treats, Item #27077, UPC 02280827077, all lots up to and including #10364
Receive a $50.00 Rebate by mail when your pet gets a professional teeth cleaning from your veterinarian and you purchase any size DH Canine or Feline Formula.
Ask our receptionists for the certificate needed to send in with a copy of your receipt and qualifying UPC (DH Canine, 18 lb.: 38100-13687; DH Canine Small Bites, 6 lb.: 38100-13860 and DH Feline, 6 lb.: 38100-13841.
Limit one request per individual or address. Offer valid January 1, 2011 to December 31, 2011.
When you are given a prescription for your pet, it means that your veterinarian has made a decision that the medication is recommended or necessary to treat your pet’s health problem. Many prescription drugs are only effective for specific problems, and may actually be harmful to your pet if used without that critical veterinary examination and diagnosis. Having these drugs available as prescription-only medications ensures that they are used appropriately.
Take heartworm preventives as an example: Heartworm preventives are labeled as “prescription only” because it’s critical that your veterinarian makes sure the medication is the right one based on your pet’s health status. The preventives target the larvae of heartworms that circulate in the blood and eventually become adult heartworms. If your dog or cat already has heartworms, giving the preventive medication will not effectively treat the disease because the preventives don’t readily kill adult heartworms, and it could potentially cause a life-threatening reaction if your dog has a large number of microfiliaria circulating in its bloodstream.
There are drugs, called “over the counter” drugs, that don’t require prescriptions. Drugs can be bought OTC when the Food and Drug Administration determines that the directions for the drug’s use aren’t overly complicated and are adequate for the public to follow.
You have several options when your pet needs a prescription medication:
Lake Chatuge Animal Hospital has partnered with Vet Source, a resource for veterinarians and their clients that checks the prices of all the online pharmacies and offers our clients the lowest possible price for the product offered on any given day. You can access Vet Source yourself by visiting the Vet Source section of our website, or you may ask one of our receptionists to do it for you the day of your veterinary visit. Vet Source delivers all products ordered with them straight to your front door.
The main advantage of ordering from your veterinarian is that he/she can answer your questions, provide you with instructions for use, and even demonstrate how to give your pet the medication. In addition, if your pet has an adverse event, your veterinarian can serve as your advocate with negotiating with the manufacturer. An online pharmacy will not provide this support.
According to the AVMA Principles of Veterinary Medical Ethics, it is unethical, and in most states, unlawful, for a veterinarian to write a prescription or dispense a prescription drug outside a veterinarian-client-patient relationship. In order to maintain this relationship, your vet needs to see your pet regularly — how regularly depends on the pet’s health. If your pet is on a prescription medicine, your vet may need to reexamine your pet, check blood work, or perform other tests to monitor your pet’s response to treatment and determine if it needs to be changed.
Early this year we announced that we had begun to follow the American Animal Hospital Association (AAHA) recommendation to include body condition scoring as a new vital sign (along with temperature, pulse character and blood pressure, heart and respiratory rates, membrane color, and pain level assessment).
Body condition scores range from:
1 (extreme thinness/debilitation) — 9 (morbidly obese), with 5 being ideal body score
Many medical conditions are either caused or directly affected by poor body condition so we will begin to emphasize this important reality. We are blessed to have made great progress in the field of veterinary nutrition where specific diet formulations are now available that can either be the main treatment or serve as an important adjunct along with other therapies thus reducing the use of drug therapy that may be associated with adverse events or undesirable side effects.
We offer a full line of pet diets made by Royal Canin and Purina Veterinary Diets. Both brands are 100% natural and are made with only the best nutrients. We stock the life-stage/life-style diets for healthy pets and the prescription diets for specific health needs. Both dry and canned foods are available. We also stock healthy treats. The healthy pet diets are sold at retail recommended prices which are competitive with other high quality diets. The prescription diets tend to cost more, but their health benefits far outweigh this by saving money on medications that will no longer be needed. Both Royal Canin and Purina Veterinary Diets are 100% guaranteed for any reason.
Have you met Christie Bennett? She is our Hospital Manager and she takes care of EVERYONE!! She is a very busy girl around here and keeps everyone straight.
Christie grew up in Avon Park, Florida but moved to Blairsville in 2001. Back in Florida, her mom was the hospital administrator of Highlands Animal Hospital and Christie started working there when she was in middle school. She went to college at S. Florida Community College and N. Georgia Tech in business management. She has over 15 years experience working in veterinary hospitals.
Christie is “Madrea” to five great kids that she considers to be absolute blessings: Stephen Joel, 20 (works here as a veterinary assistant); Garrett Kendall, 19; Bailie Raquel, 18 (both will be graduating from Union County High School Class of 2011); Wyatt “Kolt”, 14; and Hailie “Karigan”, 12. She has a 150 lb. English Mastiff named “Willow” who completes her family.
Christie is a member of Trinity Baptist Church and she spends her time away from LCAH with her family and friends. She enjoys “retail therapy”, long drives across the mountain in the spring, NFL and NBA games. Her favorite college teams are Florida State and Georgia (and whoever is playing Tennessee or the Gators) , but most of all she enjoys being her kids’ “favorite cheerleader”.
Christie has been a huge blessing for us here at LCAH and she really does try to take care of all of us. She does an outstanding job and we would be lost without her. If you ever need a question answered or have a problem, give her a call or shoot her an email at lcah-christie@brmemc.net.