Along with May flowers, this month is filled with amazing recognition for our wonderful furry friends!
Overall, the month of May is recognized as National Pet Month! Here at GWLAH, we love seeing pets come through and making sure that they are receiving the best possible care throughout their different life stages. Please feel free to share your pets on our social media pages, Facebook and Instagram, along with any happy "tails" about your fantastic four-legged friend!
This week was established back in 1981 by AVMA (American Veterinary Medical Association) to recognize that pets transform our lives and to encourage responsible pet care every day of the year! The week has specific themes for each day as listed below. If you have any questions, concerns or there's a topic you would like to explore more with our staff and doctors, please call us!
National Pet Week Scroll down and pick a topic.
Feel free to click the individual links for each day to learn more about each day and how to provide the best care for your furry companions!
As our pets get older, there comes more care and time to continue a healthy life. One of the biggest conditions we care for as our pets get older, is osteoarthritis. Osteoarthristis is a chronic and progressive joint disease that affects both cats and dogs. For this condition, there is no cure but there are many options to help support your pet and ease the discomfort associated with osteoarthritis!
The common symptoms we can see with osteoarthritis in dogs are the following:
The common symptoms we can see with osteoarthritis in cats are the following:
If you notice any of these signs in your pet, please reach out to us to schedule an appointment so our doctors can properly diagnosis your pet and provide recommendations. There are many different approaches that can help ease your pet's discomfort due to osteoarthritis. To list a few are fatty acid and joint supplements, weight management (including dietary and physical activity changes), and pain management with NSAIDS. We also currently carry injections that manages osteoarthritis pain for dogs (Librela) and cats (Solensia) up to a month. Give us a call so we can figure out a plan for your older pet!
With all those beautiful May flowers and green buds on trees, comes the dreadful allergies and increased asthma attacks associated with the spring season. While human symptoms of allergies are sneezing, sniffling, redness and itchy eyes and itchy nose, our pets deal with allergies in a different way.
Allergies are an immune-mediated reaction to something in our pet's environment. While some animals have seasonal allergies like humans, other deal with allergies all year around due to molds, dust mites, storage mites and insects. There could also be a food allergy component to our pet's allergies that results to year around symptoms.
Allergies lower our pet's immune system, making them more susceptible to skin infections/rashes (like hot spots), ear infections, interdigital cysts and claw bed infections. Other symptoms of allergies are increase in itch over body and paws, overgrooming/constant licking, bald/sparse hair areas, redness of skin, and greasy/dull coats. Allergies can never be cured but they can be managed with medications and topical therapies (shampoos, mousses, medicated pads, ear cleaners, etc.). If you feel that your pet is suffering with these symptoms multiple times a year, give us a call to schedule an appointment to discuss allergy management with our doctors and discuss a long-term game plan to keep them comfortable and healthy!
Along with the increased pollen and dust in the air from spring cleaning, pets can suffer asthma attacks. Asthma attacks are caused by an inhaled allergen that creates inflammation in the lower airways making it difficult to breathe, which decreases oxygen levels in the body. Common symptoms of an asthma attack are coughing, wheezing, hacking, open-mouth breathing, rapid breathing rate and struggling/labored breathing. Some animals may even turn pale blue or white due to the lack of oxygen. If you think your animal is suffering an asthma attack, the first thing to do is remain calm and get your pet to a veterinary hospital. If we are open, please call us immediately and let us know you are on your way and that your pet is experiencing respiratory distress. Once you arrive, we bring your pet in the back to be evaluated and to receive oxygen then we will discuss with you the available diagnostics to help your pet during this stressful event. If we are closed, we recommend you seek emergency care right away as your pet needs to be evaluated as soon as possible!
May is really the month for animals! We just wanted to list a few more days that are coming up this month:
If you have a pet you are celebrating this month, please share on our social media pages, Facebook and Instagram! We would love to see all our patients (furry, feathered or scaly) on our pages, bringing smiles to all!
The GWLAH staff would like to wish a very Happy Mother's Day to all the wonderful moms out there!!! We wish you a wonderful day surrounded by loved ones and happiness!
The staff at GWLAH would like to wish all our clients, family and friends a wonderful and safe Memorial Day! We thank all those who have served and sacrificed their lives for our freedom!
Birthdays we are celebrating this month:
Dr.Price (veterinarian), Dr.Fiedorczyk (veterinarian) and Keith (kennel assistant) will be celebrating their birthdays this month! Please join us in celebrating these amazing people and wishing them a fantastic birthday!
Anniversaries we are celebrating this month:
Denise (receptionist) celebrating 2 years
Samantha (receptionist) celebrating 5 years
Kristin (practice manager) celebrating her 1st year
Beth (lead exam technician) celebrating 8 years
We are absolutely delighted to have all these wonderful people as part of our team. Thank you, everyone for all your hard work and care you pour into helping our clients and patients feel comfortable and loved here at GWLAH!