Beat the heat, keep your pet cool!

Here’s some tips to help you beat the heat and keep your pet cool during the hot summer weather.

Most pet owners understand that leaving a pet in a car in the summer can kill them.  Unfortunately, not many realize just how quickly the effects of heatstroke can set in for a dog or cat.

Heatstroke is a condition that develops gradually at first but accelerates over time.  It is very easy for the early signs of heatstroke to not be noticed, and for the pet to be in an emergency situation fairly quickly.

On a summer day, a vehicle acts like an oven.  It holds the heat inside, and that heat becomes very intense even on days that don’t seem too warm. On an summer day, for example, even with the windows open, the temperature inside a car can climb to 120 degrees in just minutes and with humidity, it may go even higher. Because a pet’s normal body temperature is 101-102.5 degrees Fahrenheit, he/she can only tolerate a body temperature of 107-108 degrees for only a very short time before suffering irreparable brain damage…or death.

If you are going to do errands where you’ll have to get out of your vehicle this summer, do what is best for your pet by leaving them home with proper shelter and water, or inside to enjoy the comforts of air conditioning. 

Dogs should be walked in the early morning and early to later evening to keep them comfortable during the summer weather.  Pets should be provided with plenty of fresh, clean, cool water.  They should also be provided with shade.  They should be check upon frequently to make sure they are not too hot, especially if they are left outside.

The typical signs of heatstroke are:
-Panting
-High body temperature
-Dehydration
-Red mouth/eye membranes
-Rapid, irregular heart rate
-Diarrhea
-Weakness, looking dazed
-Coma

A heatstroke is an emergency situation where your pet needs immediate medical attention.

Surgery at Concord Chapel Animal Hospital

Dr Gale Kerr and Vet Tech Katherine – in Surgery

Surgeries are scheduled weekdays. Your pet is monitored closely before, during and after surgery.

Our staff is happy to discuss the benefits of having your pet spayed or neutered. There are many other surgeries performed including emergency surgeries which are performed for various health reasons.

We hope you’ll make plans to attend our upcoming Open House. You’ll be able to see our surgery suite, the heated surgery table, our monitoring equipment and meet our veterinarians and staff.

Veterinary Technician Shannon prepares to xray a dog…

Bathing our pets …

Is your dog muddy, dirty or smelly? Is your cat “un-huggable”? Pets need baths to help maintain their coat and health. It’s also a must when our pets live inside with us.

Some bathing tips and precautions:

Bathing our pets can be difficult. We need to be sure they are not slipping and falling when in the bathtub. It can also be difficult on our backs and it can create a large mess to clean up.

Pets need to be brushed prior to bathing. This is to help keep mats from forming and to get any mats out prior to bathing. Bathing a pet with mats will only make the mats worse.

Keep the water and soap out of their ears and eyes. When we bathe a pet, your pets ears are protected with cotton balls and your pets eyes are protected with a safe lubricant.

If pets are bathed too frequently or with the wrong type of shampoo for your pets coat condition, then the skin and coat loose its protective characters. Pet shampoos can be a tool the veterinarian chooses to use to help with different diseases, skin and coat conditions. One of the safe shampoos we use is: eZall Dog and Cat Shampoo
Please remember not to use human shampoo or soaps on your pet and always use caution when using a new product for the first time.

Have all of your products together that you’ll need for the bath such as the brush, a pitcher or a pet shower attachment, a large plastic cup, shampoo, conditioner, cotton balls and towels. Put on some relaxing music and make the bath an enjoyable experience. Allow time for the bath and for the necessary clean up afterwards. Give your pet praise and a treat when everything is finished!

If you don’t want the mess at home and you’d like for us to help you keep your pet clean, give us a call at 614.871.1111 to schedule your pets BATH appointment.

the SICK pet …

When your pet is sick, one of the first things you do is take him/her to the veterinarian.

At Concord Chapel Animal Hospital, your ill pet will see Dr Gale Kerr or Dr Elizabeth Lauron. The veterinarians have a moral, ethical and legal obligation to help you find out what is wrong with your pet.

Wouldn’t it be terrible if you took your pet to the vet … and they did not offer any diagnostic testing and only offered you an option of taking your pet home and keeping him/her comfortable.

What if your veterinarian decided not to mention diagnostic testing to you because she assumed you wouldn’t want to spend that kind of money on a pet, or that you couldn’t afford it? What if your veterinarian decided to guess at what was wrong instead of doing diagnostic testing and guessed wrong because those symptoms could have been for several different illnesses?

What if you chose all of the possible testing available which helped the veterinarian make a diagnosis and a treatment plan that might save your pet’s life or could help your pet life a healthy and normal life? What if this treatment plan was reasonable, affordable and easy to do to treat your pet? What if this treatment plan was really expensive?

A veterinarian is under a moral, ethical and legal obligation to offer to you every thing that she knows is available that may help your pet when he/she is sick. It would be irresponsible to not inform you of all of your options to help your pet.

Diagnostic testing is a tool to help veterinarians determine the problem with your pet who cannot talk and describe pain, discomfort, feelings or symptoms. The veterinarians and staff only know what the pet parents see, witness and can explain. Pets can get as many different illnesses as humans. Diagnostic testing is a great tool to help veterinarians provide quality care to your pets.

It is your decision to do what is best for your pet, your life, your situation and what you are capable of doing. You know what you can do and cannot do for your pet.

a short video about the Human Animal Bond

Here’s a great video to watch! Renowned veterinarian and acclaimed author and speaker

Dr Marty Becker – shares a life experience and talks about the Human-Animal Bond

Pet People Are Great People!

Pet people are great people!

While it is not typical for the veterinarians to see a rat, there was a situation where a family brought in their pet rat for treatment. I’ve never been around a rat and never thought about a rat as a pet until I seen this little boy with big brown eyes staring at me with tears running down his face saying … “will the doctor help Fred?”.

It doesn’t matter if you are a dog person or a cat person, or if your favorite is a rat, a goat or a horse, there’s something special about a human who loves an animal.

Keep your pet healthy during this snow storm!

It is a beautiful winter wonderland outside today. We have the biggest snow storm of the season and Grove City is at a Level 2 Snow Emergency.

Please remember to take great care of your pets during this winter snow storm. The severe weather can be just as dangerous to your pets as it is to us.

If your dog or cat is use to being inside and comfortable, you’ll need to use extra caution when letting them outside in this snow which has blanketed central Ohio. Since we have blowing wind and drifting snow, it is a good idea to go out with your pet and stay out with your dog or cat. If that isn’t possible, only leave your pet outdoors for a brief period of time. If you live near an open body of water, such as a pond, be sure to keep your dog on a leash or off of the snow covered pond which may not be frozen solid.

If your pet lives outside, he/she needs to have a solid structure for shelter. It needs to protect your pet from the elements and ideally be elevated to keep moisture out. It should have clean and dry bedding too. Obviously, you’ll want to be sure your pet has plenty of fresh water too. Cats are quick to snuggle up under the hood of a car. To avoid a potentially fatal situation, be sure to tap on the hood of your car, prior to starting it, if you suspect a cat could be seeking shelter there.

If your pet is very young, older or has health conditions, these things can contribute to your pets ability to tolerate the cold weather. If you have any questions about your pet and the weather, please call and make an appointment to talk with one of our veterinarians, Dr Kerr or Dr Lauron.

When your pet comes back inside, be sure to dry their body and wipe their feet. This will keep them from licking their paws and digesting the salt and can keep their pads from getting raw or chapped.

Put some extra loving thoughts to your pet care during this snow storm to keep your pet healthy! It can be a great opportunity to enjoy the beauty of the snow, romp and play in it and then curl up together in the warmth of your home with a great book.

Grove City, Ohio

Concord Chapel Animal Hospital is located in Grove City, Ohio.

Grove City is located just minutes from Columbus, home of The Ohio State University and our state’s capital. Our convenient location offers easy access to I270, I70 and I71, so we are able to serve those in Grove City and in surrounding communities.

If you are visiting or relocating to Grove City, OH here are two websites which share a lot of information about this wonderful community so you may learn more:

http://www.grovecityohio.gov/

http://www.visitgrovecityoh.com/

Concord Chapel Animal Hospital is happy to be part of the community of Grove City OH.