Let’s face it. No one wants to take their pet to the vet over the Christmas break. And you vet probably wants a bit of time off as well. But every year, we see the same Christmas related problems.
Here are our top tips for avoiding a trip to the vet this Christmas.
- Don’t feed left-overs to your dog. We see a couple of common issues coming from this. A condition called pancreatitis can be triggered when a dog eats an unusually large or fatty meal. This is a very painful and potentially life-threatening condition. We have also seen dogs become constipated or blocked by eating ham bones, and a dog with onion toxicity over the last few year. We recommend feeding your pet its normal diet over the Christmas period.
- Watch your pets around the Christmas ornaments. We often see cats swallowing bits of tinsel, which can cause a blockage in their intestines. If your cat likes to play with tinsel, it’s time to pack it away. It’s just not worth the risk.
Also be careful with ornaments which can break into sharp pieces. We often see pets with cut paws when they knock ornaments onto the floor then tread on the broken shards.
- Make sure your pet has a place to hide. Although a lot of people coming around for Christmas dinner might be fun for us, it can be very stressful for pets. Make sure your pet has somewhere out of the way where it can go and hide away from the crowd. Stress can trigger several medical conditions, especially in cats.
- Ensure your pet’s vaccinations are up to date. With a lot of holiday makers coming down from Perth with their pets, we see a spike in the number of parvovirus cases over summer. You need to ensure your pet is up to date with its vaccination to keep it safe.
If you’re planning to put your pet into kennels, double check they are fully vaccinated and that you have a copy of their vaccination certificate. You don’t want to have your holiday ruined because the kennels won’t look after your pet which isn’t up to date with their vaccines.
- Make sure you have enough of your pet’s medications. If your pet needs regular medication, make sure you have enough to see you through any days when we’re closed. We are only closed on the public holidays, but you still need to make sure you don’t run out. If your pet’s medication needs to be ordered in especially for them, you need to allow for delays in the post arriving.
If your pet does become unwell over Christmas or needs urgent vet attention, we will be operating an on call service as usual when we are closed. To talk to the duty vet, please phone the normal clinic number and press “2” when prompted.
Have a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year.