Wellness Care
At Kings Highway Animal Clinic, we are committed to promoting responsible pet ownership, preventative health care, and pet health education.
Wellness Examination
During your pet's annual wellness exam, our doctors will examine the following:
- Cardiovascular Evaluation
- Pulmonary Evaluation
- Opthalmic Exam
- Otoscopic Exam
- Dental Exam
- Lymph Node Palpation
- Abdominal Palpation
- Coat and Skin Evaluation
Vaccinations
Canine
- Rabies - given at 12 weeks of age, booster in 12 months, then every 3 years thereafter (depending on county requirements)
- Distemper/Parvo/Hepatitis/Parainfluenza (DHPP) - given every 3-4 weeks starting at 6 weeks of age until 16 weeks of age, boostered at 1 year of age, then every 3 years thereafter.
- Leptospirosis - given every 3-4 weeks starting at 9 weeks of age until 16 weeks of age, boostered annually thereafter.
- Bordetella (Kennel Cough) - Given as early as 6 weeks of age, boostered annually thereafter
- Rattlesnake - For dogs at risk, given no earlier than 6 months of age, booster in 4 weeks, then re-vaccination at the beginning of snake season (spring/fall)
- Influenza (H3N2 / H3N8) - For dogs at risk, given no earlier than 8 weeks of age, booster in 3-4 weeks, followed by annual re-vaccination.
Feline
- Rabies - given at 12 weeks of age, booster in 12 months, then every 3 years thereafter (depending on county requirements)
- FVRCP (Feline Viral Rhinotracheitis, Calicivirus, Panleukopenia) - given at 9 weeks of age, boostered in 3-4 weeks, at 1 year of age, then every 3 years thereafter.
- FeLV (Feline Leukemia Virus) - given at 9 weeks of age, boostered in 3-4 weeks, then given annually thereafter
Heartworm Prevention
Heartworm disease is a serious and potentially fatal disease in pets. It is caused by Dirofilaria immitis, which are worms that live in the heart, lungs and associated blood vessels of affected pets. Heartworms cause severe lung disease, heart failure and damage to other organs in the body. Heartworm disease affects dogs, cats and ferrets, but heartworms also live in other mammal species. Because wild species such as coyotes live in proximity to our area, they are considered carriers of the disease.
Canine
The dog is a natural host for heartworms, which means that heartworms that live inside the dog mature into adults, mate and produce offspring. If untreated, their numbers can increase, and dogs have been known to harbor several hundred worms in their bodies. Heartworm disease causes lasting damage to the heart, lungs and arteries, and can affect the dog’s health and quality of life long after the parasites are gone. For this reason, prevention is by far the best option, and treatment—when needed—should be administered as early in the course of the disease as possible.
Heartworm Testing
We recommend an annual heartworm test during your dog's annual wellness exam. A heartworm test is a blood test performed in our clinic that tests for the presence of antigens (proteins) produced by adult heartworms.
Annual testing is recommended, even when dogs are on heartworm prevention year-round, to ensure that the prevention program is working. Heartworm medications are highly effective, but dogs can still become infected. If you miss just one dose of a monthly medication—or give it late—it can leave your dog unprotected. Even if you give the medication as recommended, your dog may spit out or vomit a heartworm pill—or rub off a topical medication. Heartworm preventives are highly effective, but not 100 percent effective. If you don’t get your dog tested, you won’t know your dog needs treatment.
Heartworm Prevention
We recommend giving your dog a monthly heartworm preventative. Preventative options include:
Heartworm Testing
We recommend an annual heartworm test during your dog's annual wellness exam. A heartworm test is a blood test performed in our clinic that tests for the presence of antigens (proteins) produced by adult heartworms.
Annual testing is recommended, even when dogs are on heartworm prevention year-round, to ensure that the prevention program is working. Heartworm medications are highly effective, but dogs can still become infected. If you miss just one dose of a monthly medication—or give it late—it can leave your dog unprotected. Even if you give the medication as recommended, your dog may spit out or vomit a heartworm pill—or rub off a topical medication. Heartworm preventives are highly effective, but not 100 percent effective. If you don’t get your dog tested, you won’t know your dog needs treatment.
Heartworm Prevention
We recommend giving your dog a monthly heartworm preventative. Preventative options include:
- Oral - chewable or tablet
- Injectable - Proheart (6 month or 12 month)
Feline
Heartworm disease in cats is very different from heartworm disease in dogs. The cat is an atypical host for heartworms, and most worms in cats do not survive to the adult stage. Cats with adult heartworms typically have just one to three worms, and many cats affected by heartworms have no adult worms. While this means heartworm disease often goes undiagnosed in cats, it’s important to understand that even immature worms cause real damage in the form of a condition known as heartworm associated respiratory disease (HARD). Moreover, the medication used to treat heartworm infections in dogs cannot be used in cats, so prevention is the only means of protecting cats from the effects of heartworm disease.
Heartworm Testing
Heartworm testing in cats is not as straightforward as in dogs. We can perform a blood test in our clinic that will detect the presence of heartworm antigens (proteins). Additional testing can be performed at a laboratory to detect the presence of antibodies if heartworm disease is suspected.
Heartworm Prevention
We recommend giving your cat a monthly heartworm preventative. Preventative options include:
Heartworm Testing
Heartworm testing in cats is not as straightforward as in dogs. We can perform a blood test in our clinic that will detect the presence of heartworm antigens (proteins). Additional testing can be performed at a laboratory to detect the presence of antibodies if heartworm disease is suspected.
Heartworm Prevention
We recommend giving your cat a monthly heartworm preventative. Preventative options include:
- Topical - Revolution PLUS
- Oral - chewable
Intestinal Parasite Prevention
Dogs and cats are susceptible to many different intestinal parasites. Intestinal parasites live in your pet's intestines and shed microscopic eggs in the stool. These eggs are infectious to other pets as well as to humans, therefore it is important to monitor your pets annually for intestinal parasites.
Some of the most common parasites include:
Some of the most common parasites include:
- Hookworms
- Roundworms
- Whipworms
- Tapeworms
- Coccidia
- Giardia
Symptoms
Not all pets will display symptoms of intestinal parasites. Some common symptoms include:
- Diarrhea - varying from soft to watery or bloody stool
- Vomiting
- Lack of appetite
- Weight Loss
- Dull hair coat
- Extended abdomen "pot belly"
Diagnosis
Intestinal parasites are diagnosed by performing fecal examination of your pet's stool. Diagnosis is made by identifying the presence of microscopic parasite eggs. We can run a screening test in our clinic or we may send out a quarter sized fecal sample to our outside reference laboratory where they perform a more thorough examination using fecal centrifugation and test for the presence of parasite antigens.
Prevention
We recommend giving your pet a monthly heartworm preventative that also prevents against intestinal parasites. Preventative medications only protect against some of the parasites mentioned above, so it is important to test your pet, especially if they develop any symptoms of intestinal parasites.
Flea and Tick Prevention
Fleas and ticks are more than just an annoyance. These critters can cause scratching, licking, skin conditions such as Flea Allergy Dermatitis, as well as transmit tapeworms to dogs and cats. Ticks can cause many different diseases such as Lyme Disease, Ehrlichia, Anaplasmosis and Rocky Mountain Spotted Fever.
We recommend giving your pet a monthly flea preventative. Preventative options include:
We recommend giving your pet a monthly flea preventative. Preventative options include:
- Oral - Nexgard, Simparica, Bravecto (3 month), Trifexis (heartworm & flea)
- Topical - Vectra3D, Cheristin (for cats)
Microchipping
Microchips are a safe and permanent form of pet identification. A microchip is a small electronic chip about the size of a grain of rice which transmits a unique identification number to a microchip scanner when the pet is scanned. Your pet's identification number is registered in a database that contains your contact information. Your pet can then be easily identified by animal control officers, animal shelters, and veterinary hospitals. A microchip can be implanted during routine wellness visits for most pets and is very similar to receiving a vaccination.
The cost of microchipping is $37, and includes lifetime registration with PetLink. Registration is quick and easy and can be updated at any time for free, for the lifetime of the pet. The microchips we use are ISO standard, which are compatible with all universal microchip scanners.
Read more about microchipping here.
The cost of microchipping is $37, and includes lifetime registration with PetLink. Registration is quick and easy and can be updated at any time for free, for the lifetime of the pet. The microchips we use are ISO standard, which are compatible with all universal microchip scanners.
Read more about microchipping here.