Beautiful crisp fall days seem to be behind us now and nasty winter days are coming up fast. We have some cold weather tips to help your pets enjoy the winter season a bit more!

1/ Salty toes : Some salt used on streets and sidewalks is very dangerous for your dogs, and cats as well. Boots are an option, however most pets are not pleased to be wearing them. Giving those toes a little wipe with a dry towel each time they come in from the outdoors will keep their feet in good shape all winter long. This will also give you a quick look at their paws to catch any cuts or scrapes they may get from stepping on a sharp piece of ice. You can look for pet friendly de-icing products wherever you buy salt for your own property.

2/ Freezing temperatures: If it is too cold outside for you to stay out, it is too cold for your pet to stay out for extended periods of time, unless they are a breed adapted to cold climates or have a warm winter coat and accessories. Please bring your pets inside and provide them with a bed to sleep on. Pets should have a bed that is up off of the floor supports them and is away from drafts. An appropriate bed will benefit your pet for years to come and also make them comfy and happy.

3/ Reduce bathing: In the dry winter months you should reduce the amount of times you bathe your dog by half. This is to reduce the effects of dry skin. You may also want to find a moisturizing shampoo that reduces dry skin irritation.

4/ Adjust calories: This adjustment can be up or down depending on your pet’s activity level in the winter months. If your pet loves snow and spends a lot of time playing and running outside he may need more calories. If your pet spends the winter lounging in front of the fire they will most certainly need less calories. Remember it takes more calories to keep warm than it does to cool down.

5/ Snowstorms: Did you know a dog can lose his scent trail and sense of direction in a snowstorm? This is a good reason to keep them on a leash if you are walking in a blizzard.

6/ Antifreeze: Antifreeze is extremely toxic to pets and has a sweet taste so they are attracted to drinking it. Please be cautious with its use and never let pets drink from puddles, they may contain antifreeze.

7/ Christmas: At Christmas time we see the most cases of diarrhea cause by too many treats! Christmas in itself is an entire safety concern for your pet! There are dangers lurking everywhere, including, turkey, chocolate, treats, alcohol, tinsel, electric cords and lights! Please keep your pet in mind when you place these items for the season or for the day. Can your pet access it? If so move it! It will make everyone’s holiday much jollier!                           

8/ Emergencies: Did you know that if you have an emergency or a sick pet after hours, that veterinary care is always available? Our patients can be seen at Brant Norfolk Veterinary Clinic located at 155 Lynden road. 519- 720-0753  They have a veterinarian and support staff available overnight, Saturdays and Sundays and holidays. Basically any time that we are closed they are open and prepared to see your pet and they will also notify us of your visit and send us a complete report.

We want to know how we can serve you better. Please take our 2 minute survey HERE.

It’s that time of year again when mosquitoes, fleas and ticks reappear. Not only are they a nuisance but they carry diseases that can be deadly to our pets.

Heartworm testing is now underway.  Each year we draw a blood sample to verify that your dog is negative for heartworm.  If so, a course of prevention is given over the summer months while mosquitoes are active.  Many of these products have flea and tick protection included.  Some products are oral, and some are topical. There is a wide range of options to suit everyone.

We run the blood tests in clinic using Idexx’s Snap 4DXPlus tests which identify not only heartworm disease, but 5 tick borne diseases: Lyme disease, two types of Anaplasma and two types of Ehrlichia. These tick borne diseases can cause a variety of clinical signs including fever, arthritis, kidney failure, anemia and bleeding disorders. The scary thing about these is that they are zoonotic which means they can also cause disease in humans. The good news is we can run the test during the appointment so you will have the results before you go home.

With the rising number of ticks in our area, we thought this was a great value added test for you!

For those of you who are very busy and enjoy the flexibility of using the web for most of your tasks we now offer a better way to book online appointments! Simply click the “Make an Appointment” button and by following the prompts you will be able to directly access our appointment schedule. No more emailing back and forth trying to figure out what time works best for you. You’ll be able to do it in real time. You can also access your personal file if you need to update information and your pet’s file as well. You can upload photos of your pets, see what medications have been prescribed, and see if they are due for any vaccinations.

It only takes a minute to set things up and it’s very easy to use. If you have any questions please do not hesitate to call the clinic and we’ll be happy to assist.

This booking feature is also available on our Facebook page.

Happy Holidays! 

The Staff at Scott Veterinary clinic would like to extend our warmest wishes for a Merry Christmas and a happy New Year.

We would also like to take this opportunity to thank you for your continued support over the past year.

You may have noticed that we have been busy with renovations in the last year and are excited to get them finished so that we can show off our new digs!  Last winter, we completed a new laboratory and kennel area; designed separate cat, dog, and exotic wards to minimize their stress while staying with us.  We also installed a new radiology suite offering digital radiographs.

You may have noticed the facelift that the exam rooms received last winter.  They were in need of a little TLC and we are very happy with the result.  They are in need of some artwork, and we are looking for volunteers to bring pet photos in for the walls. If you have a particularly nice photo and want your pet to be “famous”, then bring them in!  We will be blowing up the pictures and putting them in 12*12 frames for all to see.

The next step in our plans is to add a state of the art dental suite complete with dental imaging in the upcoming year. This is expected to begin in December (now) in the former treatment area, and will enable us to better diagnose and treat dental infections and pain in your pet’s mouths.  As this will be a learning curve for us, we plan to offer free dental radiographs to all pets that will be coming in for elective surgery in the upcoming year so that we can become comfortable with taking and interpreting these x-rays.  It will be an added bonus for anyone requiring elective surgery.  We have become fond of our new work space and are looking forward to scheduling an open house to show everything off!  If you would like a tour before then, feel free to drop in and ask to see what we have been up to!

We hope that you are all enjoying the gardening and outdoor improvements; we are happy to hear that you notice them and really enjoy your compliments.

As many of you know, all were greatly saddened by the passing of our beloved Parker. He crossed the Rainbow Bridge in June of this year after his long battle with kidney failure. We miss him dearly but enjoy our sweet girls Spookie and Zeta! The girls have new digs too, they have a brand new kennel system all to themselves it looks a bit like a Habitrail but for cats!

We are very excited to welcome a new groomer and full time receptionist to our team after an exhausting search.  Our new groomer Katelyn has been doing an awesome job grooming and the pets really like her, as well. Danielle, our new receptionist is a local girl with an education in Veterinary Office admin and animal care.  She may not know all of you by name just yet, but she is very eager to be helpful and is ready for your phone calls! Please give her a big welcome when you see her next!

Dr. Lee (Shannon) has been very busy this year with her twins. Aubrey and Colton turned 2 this fall and are into everything!  Brooklyn continues to progress with her mobility; she is now in grade 2, and with all of her supportive therapy her parents were excited to witness her first steps this year!  The Lee family bid farewell to their dog and companion Hennesee this summer after a short battle with lymphoma. He is dearly missed but his picture hangs in the clinic as a daily reminder of just how special our pets are to each and every one of us.

Many of you were surprised to see Dr Stephenson back in action this year! We were so thankful that he was willing to come out of retirement to help us out during Dr. Mantle’s extended leave. It was great to see him again and catch up on how everyone is doing.  Dr. Stephenson has hung up his stethoscope once again and has been spending some much deserved time with his family and travelling.

Dr. Mantle has returned from her leave of absence, and has fit right back in where she left off. She still maintains her vast array of critters at home, from Victoria the neurotic horse to a multitude of handicapped felines down to the collection of cast off chickens that pillage her garden on a daily basis. Not to mention the numerous woodland creatures that considers her farm and back door their home! She loves and cares for them all.

Crystal’s  2 cats and her dog Tanner are eagerly awaiting Christmas, they think that they have been especially good this year.  She and her husband have also been house hunting this year for their forever home. Good luck Crystal and Dave!

Sue has been up to her usual work behind the scenes, setting up all our new equipment and then teaching the rest of us how to use it. Sue also lost a family member this year. She and her husband Ed lost their sweet cat Cameo after a long battle with kidney failure. She and Ed continue to maintain their beautiful gardens at home and like to spend time in the summer camping and fishing. They also get their hands dirty for the Dunnville Horticultural Society, spending many hours volunteering for them.

We would all like to extend a huge congratulation to Kelly. Some of you may know that Kelly quit smoking last year, and on December the 8^th it will be one year. Way to go Kelly! Kelly and her husband Kelly are also outdoors people and spent some time this summer at a cottage and fishing with their pooch Piper! They too were also saddened by a loss this year; their kitty Jo was also claimed by kidney failure. They are happy to have “The Boys” at home- Alejandro and Julian, their Siamese cats.

Many you have met our part time staff members; Sam (who is back at school to become an RVT), Alyssa (who works full time at the hospital doing physiotherapy), and Hanna (our kennel student).  This year, Lauren said goodbye as she embarks on her new career as a lab technician and Amanda decided to hang up her hat after 25 years with us, to spend more time at home with her family.  Our groomer Tiffany, moved on to take a full time position elsewhere.  We wish everyone the best of luck in their future endeavours.

In close we would like to wish good health to you and your pets and all the best for the upcoming year. We hope that you will continue to choose Scott Veterinary Clinic for your pets’ healthcare and we will be seeing all of you soon.

Scott Veterinary Clinic is proud to welcome “Eddie” the victim’s service dog to The Brantford Victims Service Unit. We are proud to help support this new and innovative endeavour by providing Victim Services with all of Eddie’s preventative health care needs. 

Eddie has been specially trained and will be working in our community to help support victims of trauma, violence and crime.  Eddie is a 15 month old Barbet, a French breed of water dog. He enjoys his visits to the clinic and we will always be happy to see him. Welcome Eddie! ❤️

Rabies has been in the news for sometime now, because of raccoons and skunks found in close proximity to people in town and cities in Southern Ontario.  Recently the outbreak has taken a big turn for the worse: a man in Caledonia was bitten by a rabid stray cat. The Canadian Food Inspection Agency tested the cat for the potentially fatal disease and confirmed it’s findings with authorities.  This is the first report of a domestic animal having the disease and the first incident of involving a human. The man has been receiving treatment and the local health unit is trying to determine if anyone else was exposed.

Local health units are very concerned that feral cats may become vectors. They live in large numbers in cities and in rural areas and could become infected by contact with raccoons and skunks.

It is very important that you take the following steps to protect yourself and your pets:

–Keep pets’ rabies vaccinations up to date. This is mandatory under the law in Brant, Haldimand, Simcoe and Niagara Counties.  This is, without a doubt, the most important thing you can do to protect your pet from this disease.

–Stay away from and do not touch unfamiliar animals. Avoid all animals that are acting strangely.

–Stay away from wild animals and do not feed them.

–Prevent pets from coming in contact with wild animals.

–Carefully supervise children around animals.

–Do not let pets roam freely through the neighbourhood or in the countryside.

Anyone encountering wild animals behaving strangely can contact police or the Ministry of Natural Resources & Forestry’s Rabies Information Line at 1-888-574-6656.

Anyone bitten or scratched by a wild animal should contact the Brant County Health Unit at 1-519-753-4937, in Norfolk at 1-519-426-6170 or in Haldimand at 1-905-318-6623.

If you suspect your pet has been exposed to a rabid animal, consult your veterinarian immediately.

Summer is the best time of year.  Sunshine and blue skies usually mean more time spent outdoors.  It’s very important to remember to protect our pets from the hazards of the season.  Dogs tend to be at a greater risk of heat stroke and dehydration simply by their nature: we take them with us everywhere; for walks, playtime in the park and of course for car rides. Having said that, all pets are at risk for heat related injury.

First and foremost never leave your pet unattended in a car, even if it’s for 5 minutes. The inside of a car can heat up rapidly, even with the windows down or the air conditioning on. If you can’t take him with you when you stop the car, leave him home.  If you discover a pet left unattended in a hot vehicle, call 310-SPCA (7722) in Ontario, your local SPCA or Humane Society, or your local police department.

Increased exercise outside can lead to heat stroke and dehydration. Be sure to provide lots of water, and frequent breaks in the shade.  Walk with caution: pavement can be scorching hot and can be a burn hazard.  It’s best to walk your dog in the early morning or late evening.

Our “In The News” section has some well-timed articles on hot weather safety.  It’s a great guide for a great summer.

Keep cool and keep safe!

Photo courtesy of Lifelearn.