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Winter Weather Advice
Keeping Warm
They may have a thick fur coat, but both cats and dogs can get cold in chilly weather, especially if they aren’t used to it – and for those breeds with lighter coats.
So do make sure your pets are warm and dry, especially if you are out all day and the heating is off then. Warm blankets to curl up in will be very popular – and make sure beds are protected from draughts.
Outdoor pets, such as rabbits and guinea pigs are especially vulnerable, so make sure they have plenty of dry bedding and protective covers for hutches. If you can, you may want to bring them into a garage or shed, which will be dry and warmer. Always remember that good ventilation is important too.
Access To Water
When the temperature falls and water freezes over, do make sure ice is broken and removed every day and that your outdoor pets have access to a clean supply of fresh water.
Exercise
Exercise is still vital in the winter, to keep your pet fit and healthy – but there are a couple of things to look out for at the chilly times of year, so a little extra care will keep them safe and healthy.
The Dangers of Grit, Salt and Anti-freeze to Your Pets
At this time of year grit and salt is all over our roads and pavements, to keep them clear of icy patches.
Salt can be dangerous to pets, who may be tempted to lick it off their paws after a walk outside. It can also get stuck to fur, causing skin issues.
The same applies to anti-freeze – puddles near homes and driveways, as well as pavements, often contain poisonous anti-freeze.
Winter Walks with your Dog
Here are some tips to keep your pet safe this year:
Wipe their paws, legs and tummy after being outside.
Be sure to check between their toes for any irritating grit or ice.
A bath with a pet safe shampoo may be a good idea – be sure to dry them completely afterwards.
Salt Poisoning Signs to Watch Out for
Signs of salt poisoning include thirst, vomiting and lethargy and may lead to kidney damage.
If you think your pet may have ingested any rock salt, please contact us immediately.
As ever, if you have any queries about your pet, please call us on 01435 864422.
Heathfield Vets – Quality Care with a Friendly Face
Could Your Dog Save A Life?
Read on to learn more about the process of animal blood donation.
Sign up and your furry friend could help save the lives of countless other dogs just like them!
Blood donor Pimms is retiring – and we need more dogs to carry on the good work.
Why may a dog need a blood transfusion?
Blood transfusions are carried out to treat the symptoms of anaemia caused by disease, toxicity or trauma. The goal is to replace the lost red blood cells so that more oxygen can be carried and transported around the body and to vital organs.
Not all cases of anaemia are serious enough to need a blood transfusion. Cases where blood transfusions are required tend to be acute situations such as blood loss or diseases like acute hemolysis, but they can be used in ongoing conditions such as immune mediated haemolytic anaemia.
How does it work?
We ask that you fill in the attached questionnaire to establish whether your dog is a suitable candidate for donation – this means answering questions like “has your pet ever been abroad?” and “is your dog over 25 kilograms in weight?”. Once we know they meet the prerequisites, we will invite you to bring them in to see the vet for a free full health check, and so that we can take a blood sample.
Like us, dogs have different blood types and we test for Positive and Negative, so that we can make sure that the dog receiving the donation gets the right type at the right point in treatment. We then keep this on your pet’s record.
Once these steps have been completed, your dog is on the donor list!
When we have a patient that needs a blood transfusion, we will contact you and ask you to bring your dog in to give a donation.
Before they donate, we will carry out another free full health check and we will take a blood sample to make sure they have a high enough red blood cell count.
If everything is found to be okay we will begin the blood transfusion. A small area of fur will be clipped on their neck in order for the vet to easily locate a vein. A local anaesthetic is applied to the area and then we will use a small needle to collect around 450ml of blood.
The process should be painless and our nurses will be on hand to hold and comfort your dog throughout, as well as for treats and lots of cuddles afterwards. Once we have collected the blood it will be taken and transfused into the patient in need.
What does it involve for me and my pet?
Blood donations can be required at anytime and we are unable to store blood samples for long periods of time. To store blood samples to keep them on hand would make the transfusion process very expensive overall, and would mean that we are not able to use this treatment method in as many cases as we would like.
We prefer the alternative of using fresh donations, as it makes the treatment more accessible.
You will be contacted when a donation is needed for immediate use on a patient, so that you can bring your dog to the practice. The sample will then be taken and transfused into the patient that same day. Because the need for a blood transfusion is usually fairly urgent and unexpected, we ask that you are regularly available be at the practice within a reasonable amount of time.
We hope to build up a selection of potential donors so that if you unable to make it to us for any reason, another dog will be there to help. Your dog must reach certain criteria to ensure that it is safe for your pet to give blood without putting their own health at risk.
Dogs can donate up to 6 times per year, but cases are rare and with several dogs on our register actual donations should be far less frequent.
What are the requirements for me and my pet?
Your dog must reach the following criteria:
- Be fit and healthy
- Be between one and five years old
- Weigh more than 25kg
- Have a good temperament
- Have never travelled abroad
- Be fully vaccinated
- Not be on any medication
- Have never received a blood donation before
Is there anything I can do to prepare my dog for donation?
Any new experiences can be nerve-racking for dogs. Luckily there are a few things you can do to prepare your pet for blood donation.
1 – Get them used to visiting us.
We love getting visits from your furry friends any time, not just when they have an appointment.
Bringing them into us frequently for a fuss and a treat will reinforce that the vets is a positive place and will help reduce nerves and stress when they come in to donate.
2 – Familiarise them with the clippers.
The noise and sensation of fur clippers can upset dogs if they have never encountered them before. If you have clippers at home, try to start to train your dog with them.
Training is best carried out in small, frequent sessions. Daily, at first, if possible. Try turning the clippers on in your dog’s presence to see how they react. Do this several times on consecutive days to ensure they are comfortable.
Once your dog is no longer reacting to the sound, with the clippers off and a cover over the blades, try to move the clippers around their legs and neck. Let your dog investigate the clippers and realise there is nothing to fear.
Once they are happy with this, turn the clippers on, again with a cover on the blades, while you are sitting close to them. If they react, do not touch them with the clippers and repeat this stage.
Once there is no reaction you can touch them with the clippers whilst they are on (with a cover on so no fur is clipped).
3 – Practice holding and lifting.
Dogs can sometime be wary of being held for blood tests and having their legs touched.
Familiarising your dog with these techniques can help them to feel at ease during the donation.
Similarly to the clippers, training should be carried out in short, frequent sessions and start gently. Start with soft touching of the feet and legs with the use of treats and praise.
Once they are comfortable with this you can try to lift and hold them as if they were having blood taken. Slowly increase the length of time your dog is held for and always praise them afterwards.
Speak to one of our nurses for advice on how your dog may be held.
What if I am interested but have further questions?
Please give us a call!
Our team is on hand to give you as much information as you would like about the donation process.
Our number is 01435 864 422.
How do I sign up?
Fill in the form below and return it to us in order to sign up and begin the registration process.
Click Here to Download the Blood Donor Form
You can return it in person to one of our reception team or you can email it to us at vets@heathfieldvets.co.uk and a member of staff will get in touch with you as to when would be a good time to arrange your assessment appointment.
Heathfield Vets – Quality Care With A Friendly Face
Christmas Opening Hours
Here Are Our Christmas Opening Hours:
Please do Call Us on 01435 864 422
CHRISTMAS EVE – Monday 24 Dec
Early Close
8.30 am – 4 pm
CHRISTMAS DAY & BOXING DAY
CLOSED
EMERGENCY SERVICE
for Heathfield Vets’ Registered Clients
Thursday 27 December – Sunday 30 December
OUR NORMAL OPENING HOURS
NEW YEAR’S EVE – Monday 31 Dec
Early Close
8.30 am – 4 pm
NEW YEARS DAY – Tuesday 1 JANUARY 2019
CLOSED
OUR EMERGENCY SERVICE
for Heathfield Vets’ Registered Clients
TUESDAY 2 January 2018
BACK TO Our NORMAL HOURS
8.30 am – 7 pm – Surgery, by appointment
Wishing all our clients and pets a fabulous festive season
From all the team at Heathfield
Heathfield Vets – Quality Care With A Friendly Face
Eye Clinic Update
As many of you know, every month for many years now Sally Turner has been travelling down to us to perform the BVA eye testing.
Owing to the time and distance to travel, as well has her commitments at her base practices, sadly we have to announce that her last clinic here will be in December.
We are in the process of trying to find another BVA panellist who is able to provide the clinics, but given how few panellists there are and their distance from us, this looks unlikely at this stage.
If you are looking to have the BVA eye testing after December, Sally will continue to hold eye testing clinics at her base practice in London, or you are able to look for another panellist here –
https://www.bva.co.uk/
As ever, if you have any queries about your pet, please call us on 01435 864422.
Heathfield Vets – Quality Care with a Friendly Face
Charity Bike Ride
Congratulations to vet Ian Killian, who completed the Manchester to London Bike Ride In A Day this month, in aid of the charity Ambitious About Autism.
2 years ago, Ian Killian, one of our senior vets, completed the Lands End to John O’Groats bike ride, in aid of charity. This time, he’s been on a single day challenge, cycling 220 miles in a single day!
Here’s is Ian’s account of the day:
I just thought that I would update you all on the outcome of the endurance bike ride from Manchester to London which I participated in on Sunday. I completed the 220 miles (355km) in a total of 16h 15mins including some leisurely stops for food, with an actual pedalling time 13h 50mins at an average speed of 16mph.
I was lucky enough to team up with 3 other riders of similar ability to me shortly after the start, at 6am, and we rode the rest of the way together, to finish in the dark at the Olympic Park Velodrome at 10.15pm. Having company on long rides like this does definitely help the time pass more quickly. The time just seemed to fly by. Luckily I didn’t have any major problems and was able to ride steadily to the end.
The event was very well organised with 4 food stops along the way. The variety of food was just what was needed for an endurance event, including sausage rolls, pies, jacket potatoes, sandwiches as well as multiple other sweet and savoury treats.
The weather was kind to us, dry all the way but a bit warm in the early afternoon. There was a brisk head wind all the way which did slow us down but also helped to keep us cool during the heat of the day. One of my companions was unfortunate enough to acquire 2 punctures on route resulting in a couple of enforced stops while they were repaired. Extra stops to top up empty water bottles were also needed during the heat of the day.
There were a total of 152 nutters attempting the challenge, about 15 of which were only doing the shorter 80 mile route. On the eve of the event the charity, Ambitious About Autism, was on target with their fund raising goal having already raised almost £200k and they were expecting a further surge in income over the next few weeks as potential sponsors donated to riders upon completion of the event.
I just want to take this opportunity to say a very big thank you to everyone for your support and sponsorship. I really do appreciate everybody’s generosity and I’m sure that Ambitious About Autism are truly grateful and will put it to very good use.
My Virgin Money Giving page will remain open for a few more weeks if anyone would still like to make a donation. Once I have closed the fundraising page I will post an update on the final figure raised.
Here is the link to my Virgin Money page:
https://uk.virginmoneygiving.com/fund…/showROFundraiserPage…
Thank you again.
Ian Killian
Please do call us on 01435 864422 for more info – or of course if you need advice, or help with your pet’s health.
Heathfield Vets – Quality Care With A Friendly Face
August Bank Holiday Cover
Congratulations to Donné Stam, our Practice Manager, who is getting married this Sunday 26 August
The whole Heathfield team will be there to wish her well and join in the celebrations. To make this happen, we have arranged emergency cover with Vets Now, just for this Sunday, 26 August.
As you know, we pride ourselves on our 24/7 emergency cover – but we know you’ll understand that we had to make an exception for such a special occasion.
As it is a Bank Holiday on Monday 27 August, we will be closed, but our own usual Emergency Cover will be in place.
In an emergency, please call the usual phone number – including on Sunday 26 August, when you will be redirected by our emergency team to the nearest Vets Now branch.
Please do call us on 01435 864422 if you need advice, or if you have any queries or concerns about your pet or would like to make an appointment.
As ever, we hope you have a wonderful Bank Holiday weekend.
Heathfield Vets – Quality Care With A Friendly Face
Saturday Appointment System
Appointments from 9 am – 11 am
To improve our services and help those of you who work during the week, our clinics are now open on Saturdays for appointments only.
So all pets will be seen by appointment, instead of our “open clinic”, from Saturday 7 April.
Appointments will be available up to 10.45 am.
Reception will be open from 8.30 am – 11 am, as at present.
By making the change to booked appointments, we aim to make Saturday appointments more accessible, by cutting down on waiting times.
We also hope that by staggering arrival times, our waiting rooms and car park will be quieter and calmer, making Saturday visits less stressful for both pets and owners!
To make a Saturday appointment, please do call us on 01435 864422.
Heathfield Vets – Quality Care with a Friendly Face
Hero Pet – Ziggy’s Story
Ziggy, the cat’s story shows how experienced vet care is essential after an accident.
It all started one evening, when Ziggy returned to his home unable to put weight on one of his hind legs. He was also visibly breathing very rapidly and his owners knew something had happened to him while he had been out.
They phoned our emergency line where our on call vet, Gerald Stam advised Ziggy should be seen immediately.
Gerald met Ziggy’s owners at the practice where he conducted an examination to try to figure out what had happened to Ziggy. As well as the injury to his leg, he had some additional graze wounds and Gerald also noted that his nails were scuffed; an obvious sign of a road traffic accident.
It appeared that Ziggy had been struck by a car and had bravely managed to find his way home, despite his injuries.
Gerald decided to monitor Ziggy closely overnight, giving pain relief to make him more comfortable. Once he had had time to stabilise overnight, he needed x-rays to determine exactly where the damage was, and what could be done to fix it.
The next morning, Ziggy was stable enough to be anaesthetised for the x-rays. An anaesthetic is required for most animal x-rays so that the pet will stay still enough to get an accurate image. In Ziggy’s case, he especially needed to be under general anaesthetic to get a clear view of the area, due to the pain from his injuries.
The x-rays showed that Ziggy’s right hip was dislocated, but luckily there appeared to be no other major damage.
The minor superficial wounds were cleaned up and attended to and experienced surgeon, Philip Snyman, then tried to manually manipulate the hip back into its socket.
Unfortunately, every time he succeeded in placing the hip, it would dislocate again shortly after. After several attempts, they decided that it would be best to end the procedure and devise a new treatment plan.
The recovery nurses looked after Ziggy while he was waking up, as Philip studied the x-rays further to find a way to repair the hip. If they were unable to find a way to stop Ziggy’s hip from dislocating, the last resort would be to remove the ball of the hip, which they wanted to avoid as much as possible.
Philip concluded that the best chance to save Ziggy’s leg would be to conduct another procedure where the hip would be placed back into the socket and a pin inserted to fasten it into place. The pin would stay in place for 2-3 weeks, giving the muscles and ligaments around the joint time to strengthen and hopefully hold it together once the pin was removed.
Since Ziggy had already been through a lengthy procedure that day, it was decided to leave him another day, as the stress of putting his already injured body through another anaesthetic could do more harm than good. So he stayed in our hospital for another night, with our nurses taking care of him and making him comfortable.
The next day, Ziggy was doing well and making himself at home, so the procedure went ahead as scheduled. The surgery lasted for 90 minutes and everything went according to plan.
Philip was cautiously optimistic, but only time would tell. For now though, the vet’s work was done so Ziggy was allowed to go home later that day on strict cage rest to make sure his leg was given the best chance to heal.
After three weeks and a few home visits to check Ziggy’s progress, the moment of truth came. Ziggy came back in for his procedure to remove the pin in his hip. The crate rest had obviously paid off as the pin was removed with no complications and the hip stayed in place – a very pleasing outcome for Philip and the team.
Ziggy went home that same day, now with a little more freedom to come out of his crate and walk around the house with close supervision to ensure he didn’t attempt any crazy stunts which could injure the leg again.
Finally, nearly a month after the initial incident, Philip conducted his final check up. He was delighted at how well Ziggy had healed. The staples around the incision were able to be removed, the wound itself looked good and Ziggy was able to put weight on the leg again and was surprisingly mobile!
He still has a little way to go before the leg is back to normal again, but he is now allowed full access to the house and his owners couldn’t be more pleased to have him back again – a very brave boy, the whole way through!
To learn more about anything detailed in this article, give us a call on 01435 864422 and our team can discuss this in further detail.
Heathfield Vets – Quality Care with a Friendly Face
Quiz Night – Sat 3 Feb 2018
Join Us on Saturday 3 February 2018
at Butchers Hook Cafe
7.30 pm for 8 pm start
Join the fun as we raise funds for our charities the Cheetah Conservation Fund and Heathfield and Waldron First Responders
- Raffle with fabulous prizes
- Bar
- Supper included with your ticket
Minimum 4 in a team.
Tickets
Just £10, including supper – with a choice between curry, lasagne or macaroni cheese.
To Book
Call Butchers Hook Cafe on 01435 868444 – to book and give your food choice – ask to speak to Jackie.
Only 72 tickets available, so make sure to grab yours soon!
For more information, please Call us on 01435 864422
Heathfield Vets
Christmas Raffle 2017
***Raffle Tickets now on sale for our Luxury Christmas Hamper***
£2 a ticket, £8 for a strip of five tickets!
With all the delicious savoury and sweet food you could want during the festive period, make sure you grab your tickets before the winner is drawn on Monday 18th December!
All the funds raised will go to our two charities for this year, the Cheetah Conservation Fund and the Heathfield and Waldron First Responders!
For more information, please Call us on 01435 864422
Heathfield Vets
