Greetings All,
I just experienced a truism in life; when your mother, who more often than not cannot turn on her own computer, tells you that you need to update the VVC of H’s blog on the website, it really needs to be done. Also, it’s a good idea to not respond by saying “I’ve been busy”, because those particular words lead to THE LOOK. Every son or daughter reading this comprehends the magnitude of that gaze. So, I hope you all enjoy the new blog!
• It has been an absolutely ridiculous year for fleas and ticks. We have seen more affected pets than in years previous. The local tick population was given a nice head start by Mother Nature in the form of all the snow we accumulated this past winter. Those ridiculous, snowy inches actually insulated the juvenile/baby ticks thereby protecting them from the tremendous cold temperatures. There was hardly a winter tick kill-off so they were ready and ever so hungry this spring. Our experience with fleas is that they are a problem year round, every year. Please make sure your pet is protected by using an appropriate flea/tick prevention product.
• 2 facts about rabies: you don’t want to be exposed to it and you don’t want your pet exposed to it. We had a dog brought to us that had been possibly attacked by a raccoon and had a large injury. The wound needed to be clipped and cleaned and stitches placed. The patient was released with pain control medicine and antibiotics. The following day, the owner called and told us that it likely had been a raccoon and that it had attacked other dogs in their neighborhood. Because our doctors and technicians had physically manipulated a potential rabies contaminated site, two of our team had to go get rabies vaccine boosters. There have been numerous rabies positive animals in Erie County this year. Every pet owner needs to make sure their pets are current with the rabies vaccine. Keep the documentation that comes with the vaccine as well! A future blog may relate the story of my client who awoke one morning to find a dead bat in one corner of her living room and her cat sitting in the opposite corner of the room, staring at said bat. The cat did not have an updated rabies vaccine. The Health Department was not happy. To be continued…….
I hope all is well with you and your creatures. Thank you for checking out our website and enjoy the autumn phasing into winter and then another 378 feet of snow, give or take.
All my best,
AR.