Clinton Street Veterinary Clinic Autumn Newsletter 2020

Autumn has started with some much needed soaking rain and it is amazing to watch the pasture turn from a desolate brown colour to a lush green. This quarter’s newsletter will talk about changes in staff and problems to watch out for with the recent flush of green grass.

 

Farewell Dr Brooke

After 6 years, Dr Brooke has said goodbye to Clinton Street Vets. We know that she has helped many of our clients and their animals during her time here, and we are sad to see her go. She is looking forward to spending more time with her animals and undertaking more small animal work, including further study in her area of passion of feline and canine dentistry. We wish her all the very best in her future endeavours.

Drs Peter, Lloyd and Ellen remain working full time. Thankfully, Brooke has passed on much of her dental knowledge, so fear not, we are happy to assess your pet's teeth. We can complete dental surgery, including x-rays, to a high standard with a full suite of iM3 dental equipment in the Clinic.

 

Students in the clinic

Over the summer months, we had a few Vet Students complete placement with us, including from the University of Sydney and Charles Stuart University. We also have Vet Nursing Students for weekly work placement as they study a Certificate 4 in Veterinary Nursing. We have also recently welcomed our Saturday high school volunteer Maxxie, who is hoping to study Vet Science next year. As part of their training, all Vets and Vet Nurses undertake clinical placements. Under supervision, they participate in all aspects of veterinary work and are both a help and a delight to have in the Clinic. We appreciate the patience and understanding of all our clients whilst we take a little extra time to pass our skills and knowledge onto the future of the profession.

 

A sad good bye to Boss

Boss, our grey clinic cat, sadly died in early March. He very quickly developed a large amount of fluid in both his abdomen and chest. Despite multiple attempts to drain the fluid from his chest and abdomen, it continued to reoccur.  Exploratory surgery showed widespread cancer of the intestines and the Clinic decided to put him to sleep peacefully while still anaesthetised. We all miss his distinct personality, as does Herbert (our Orange clinic cat), who will now have to rule over the front desk unassisted.

 

Laminitis

Rain around the region has been met with great joy. With rain comes green grass, and for some ponies and horses, with green grass comes laminitis. Laminitis is a complex disease and often has underlying hormonal diseases like Equine Cushing’s Symptom or Equine Metabolic Disease.  There is a strong link between intake of fresh, growing, green grass, and development of laminitis in susceptible horses and ponies. High levels of non-structural carbohydrates (sugars) in the grasses create an inflammatory environment within the intestinal system of the horses.

These inflammatory messengers then travel throughout the body, finding the critical lamellae structures of the foot and causing damage. Due to the confined location and specialised structure of these lamellae, inflammation leads to weakening of the bonds which hold the pedal bone within the hoof.

Rapid treatment is the best way to reduce damage, which can be ongoing. In chronic cases, x-rays can be taken, which show the degree of bone rotation or sinking, indicating a prognosis and helping guide corrective trimming. The Clinic has portable x-ray equipment which allows us to come onto your property to x-ray your horses’ feet. Measurements including the degree of rotation and sole thickness can be calculated, and then these x-rays can be emailed to your farrier to help with corrective trimming and shoeing. We can also test for diseases like Equine Cushing’s, and help determine appropriate therapy of your horse.

 

Arthritis in dogs and cats

With the mornings a touch cooler and the days not quite as warm, many of our older pets can begin to feel the effects of arthritis. Whilst in dogs it can be quite easy to see them walking stiffly, not wanting to run or walk a lot when they first get up, or hear their toe nails dragging on the floor, cats can be a little more subtle. Cats may not jump up quite as high as they used to, struggle to toilet comfortably, or simply sleep more. Unfortunately, arthritis is a progressive disease, with no treatments which reverse or "cure" the problem. There are however, many ways to manage arthritis pain in our pets, and if you feel your animal is becoming uncomfortable our Vets are happy to help. With good pain management many animals are able to live very comfortably and still enjoy their favourite games (or jump onto their favourite couches).

 

Joke Corner

What do you call a pig doing karate?

A pork chop!

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