News for June
June is turning out to be lovely and warm. Some pets do not do well in the heat, particularly the older ones. If you’re out exercising your dog, best to go early in the cooler mornings and take plenty of water with you. See our tips further down for how to help keep your pet cool.
June is also national microchipping month. Have you checked that your pet’s microchip details are up to date? Particularly important if you are taking them away with you on holiday, or if they are staying with a pet sitter. Most chip companies will allow a back up telephone number on the pet’s record.
Rainbow Bridge
We also had national pet memorial day earlier in the month. We know how important it is to our clients to cherish the memory of pets that have passed. We work with Rainbow Bridge Pet Cremations. We have chosen to work with them because we know that they always give pets that have passed the love and respect that they deserve. They are also able to offer a range of memorial products. Rainbow Bridge Memorials and Shop
If you are struggling with the loss of a pet, either through death, theft, or a change in circumstances, there are plenty of resources available to help. Take a look at our Final Farewell page.
Dog training tips
We know that understanding your dog and communicating between the two of you is one of the biggest challenges that dog owners face. We have asked some local dog trainers to give us their best tips. Isabella Macbride runs Smart Dog Training , with classes in Attleborough and Eaton, plus one to one training in your home. Thanks, Isabella, we’ll be posting more of her tips on our Facebook page.
Hazards – Grass seeds, heat stroke.
This is the season for grass seeds. They get stuck in ears, paws, eyes and other places. Be alert to any changes in your pet’s behaviour such as shaking their head, squinting, rubbing at an eye or locking a paw. Grass seeds anywhere are very uncomfortable for your pet so please get in touch for advice.
Heat stroke, shows up as excessive panting, disorientation, appearing drunk and collapse. We would advice you to get your pet wet – jugs
or buckets of water from the cold tap or the garden hose – run the hot water out of the hose first. It is important to cool your pet quickly and getting them wet with cool or cold water is the most effective way to do this. Do not worry that you will cause ‘shock’ or ‘ shut down their circulation’. Not cooling quickly enough is far more detrimental. Call us for advice, and if you are able, once wet, bring them down to the surgery.
Follow this advice from the RSPCA for keeping dogs cool. How to keep your dog cool
And some really handy tips for cats too. How to keep your cat cool
Drug delivery, repeat prescriptions.
Please can we remind everyone that we need five working days for repeat prescriptions. This gives enough time for the vet to review and approve the medication, order it in, if need be, and then post it out to you. Posting is the most cost effective and efficient way of getting your medications to you. We are able to deliver medications if you have run short and out of time. The cost for drug delivery by a clinician is £11.00, if it can be fitted in to their rounds, £35.00 for urgent/ same day delivery.
You are, of course, welcome to collect medications from the surgery instead. There is no charge for medications delivered at the same time as an appointment.
Friends of Hempnall School Fest.
We are proud to be part of our local community and will be at the Friends of Hempnall School Fest on the 29th of June, between 12.00 and 16.00, running a teddy bear hospital. Bring along any little people you know and their teddy bear and they can play at being a vet or vet nurse. Lots of other activities too, all in aid of raising funds for new play equipment. See you there!
Finally
- we are still putting together the final touches for our photo competition, so look out for a separate mailing shortly. Keep snapping some lovely pics of your pets, especially now the sun is out.