This month our practice focus remains with behaviour, but concerning our senior companions.

The brain of dogs ages in a very similar way to those humans with Alzheimers. As dogs live longer, Canine Cognitive Disorder has become a condition increasingly diagnosed.

Unfortunately there are no clinical tests which can prove Canine Cognitive Disorder. However reduced circulation and damage to the brain cells result in a combination of behaviour changes which can lead us to a diagnosis.

Typically our oldies become disorientated, suffer altered interaction with us and other pets, change their sleep patterns and forget their learned behaviours such as house training.

This can be really distressing for the household, but importantly, it is something that can be treated.

The good news is that early detection, use of medications to improve brain circulation and restore nerve cell function and some retraining can bring our old dogs back.

Please ask us for more information at your next visit and grab a behaviour questionnaire at reception. We can definitely put new life in the old dog!

Following new findings from a worldwide study on canine heart murmurs, there is now medication available to delay the onset of heart disease in many of our older patients with murmurs.

Dr Will is now able to offer cardiac ultrasounds to assess the hearts of these patients for the shape and size of the heart chambers and the stretch of the heart muscle. These findings determine if the medication is going to be of benefit.

To keep these studies accessible and affordable for as many patients as possible, we will be running ultrasound days when Will and our team will be available to scan several patients.

If your dog is diagnosed with a heart murmur and you would like to know more about please ask at your next visit.

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.