Specialized Small Animal Equipment
At the Ashland Area Veterinary Clinic, we use the latest in specialized small animal equipment/services to ensure your pet receives unsurpassed care. Among the tools and instruments we provide:
Digital X-Ray
Tiffani Administering a
Digital Dental X-Ray
Digital x-rays allow us to see much more than conventional films. They are much clearer and we can manipulate the light and dark areas to see things that would be missed by conventional radiography. With instantaneous referral to board-certified radiologists when necessary, we can have that important consult with a click of the mouse.
Digital Dental X-Ray
Like the digital unit probably used by your own dentist, this allows us to use the smaller plates that can even fit into tiny mouths. This is the only way to accurately assess what is happening inside the tooth and below the gum line.
Surgical Monitoring
To insure their utmost safety, we monitor our patients carefully. During surgeries, we use a pulse oximeter that lets us "listen" to each beat of the heart. It monitors blood oxygen levels and blood pressure, alerting us with an alarm if these important parameters begin to leave normal ranges. Recovery is observed in our treatment area until patients are quite awake.
ECG
Especially in our older patients, we worry about unexplained coughs, exercise intolerance, and any abnormal heart sounds occasionally found during exams. Along with chest x-rays, an electrocardiogram (ECG) allows us to better assess the function of your pet's heart. We can make paper or digital traces to allow us to study patterns in our clinic or easily forward them to a cardiologist for consultation.
Blood Pressure Testing
Blood Pressure Testing
High blood pressure, especially in our older patients, can lead to early heart and kidney disease and loss of vision due to glaucoma. Older cats often succumb to kidney failure which is aggravated by high blood pressure. Early detection and correction are crucial in prevention of these critical conditions.
Glaucoma Testing
Dr. Wilson and Samantha
Conducting Glaucoma Tests
Glaucoma is high pressure inside the eye. The problem can originate in the globe of the eye itself or it can be a symptom of disease elsewhere in a seemingly normal pet. Excessive pressures damage the retina with its fragile nerve endings, resulting in blindness. Some breeds are more likely to experience this unfortunate condition than others. As a part of our geriatric screening, and in individual situations where we suspect a problem, we try to find these cases well before they are obvious to you. Early detection and very rapid correction will save sight in many cases.
Laser for Less Pain and Faster Healing
Client and Leiah with therapy Laser
Our new Class IV Therapy Laser penetrates deeply into tissues without cutting, to bring amazing healing, decreased swelling, and blessed reprieve from chronic arthritis, acute trauma, surgeries, and miscellaneous wounds.
The therapy laser generates photons of light that penetrate deeply into inflamed joints, muscles, or wounds. Patients feel only a mild warmth. Tissue cells absorb photons and turn them into useful energy that stimulates increased metabolic activity, better oxygenation, and formation of healing enzymes. Faster metabolism and optimum chemical factors then result in quicker cellular reproduction and tissue repair. This light energy stimulates more rapid formation of new capillaries that speed healing and it activates lymphatic drainage to reduce swelling. Beneficial effects also occur outside the specifically targeted area. This laser light helps to strengthen immunity by activating immunoglobulins and lymphocytes which protect the body from disease.
Tiffani and Harley with Laser
Patients who will likely benefit from laser therapy are those in whom we can localize and target the damaged tissues. Hip dysplasia, back injuries that are either chronic or new, bad knees or elbows, are all candidates for laser therapy. In addition, strains and sprains, surgeries, and many types of wounds will respond to this treatment. Therapy laser applications in horses abound, especially where drugs are not allowed for performance competition.
Ear Cleaning and Flushing Fiber Optic Unit
Before and After of an Infected Ear
Infected ears are major sources of pain for our pets and frustration for their owners. Dog and cat ear canals are not short and straight like those in humans. The vertical portion of an ear canal may be up to about four inches deep in a very large dog. At the bottom of this vertical tube, there is a sharp bend that is the beginning of the next segment, the horizontal ear canal. This deep horizontal portion leads finally to the eardrum. Natural drainage is virtually impossible.
Now, we can greatly decrease your sensitive pet's pain from recurring ear infections because we finally have a tool to get to those problem areas. This piece of equipment has a fiber optic light/camera working through an ear probe. Images are viewed greatly magnified on a special monitor. With a small rubber catheter fed through the probe, we flush out those inaccessible areas all the way to the eardrum and even behind, if flushing of the middle ear is indicated.
Viewing an ear smear under a microscope, we can see what type of organism is causing your pet's problem and then treat accordingly. The old ways of cleaning with Q-tips are now considered potentially damaging to ear structures and tend to pack debris into those deep recesses more tightly. Our patients are so much happier and more comfortable thanks to this great technology!
Modern In-House Laboratory
Advanced diagnostic testing is available with our very modern, in-house laboratory. Blood chemistries, blood counts, and disease screening give us immediate assessments of what is happening inside our patients. This twenty-four hour accessibility is especially important in emergency situations. For your pets' safety, we offer and sometimes require certain routine blood screening before anesthesia for minor procedures or surgery. Some of these wellness tests are also included in our geriatric screening exams. Our excellent diagnostics often alert us to hidden health problems in seemingly normal pets. We use this information to allow us to use preventative care and/or medications in time to keep you and your best friend together even longer.
Routine Blood and Chemistry Counts
We can check values of a number of blood chemistries that are indicators of metabolic dysfunction, liver or kidney disease, low protein conditions, and abnormal blood sugar levels. Blood counts may warn us of anemias, bleeding problems, infections, allergies, and possible parasitism.
Thyroid
Many of our four-legged companions suffer from thyroid disease. Older cats may lose weight in spite of strong appetites and may seem more active than expected. These are symptoms of high thyroid secretion that increases their metabolisms and heart rates to dangerously unhealthy levels.
Dogs may have low thyroid conditions that become more severe with age. Weight gain, flaky skin, poor hair coat, and slowed heart rate are noticeable symptoms. You especially want to check thyroid levels before embarking upon any serious diet for your pet. While under the influence of a thyroid deficiency, weight loss is difficult to impossible. Low thyroid is easily treated.
Heartworm/Lyme/Erlichiosis/Anaplasmosis (4Dx Test for Canines)
In heartworm disease, spaghetti-like worms block blood vessels of the heart and lungs, causing severe inflammation in the lungs and eventual heart failure. It is not common in our area because our cool nights usually prevent mosquitoes from successfully incubating heartworm larvae for the necessary two weeks before they become infective to dogs and cats (and humans). We do see about one case per year. The monthly oral preventative products are very effective and in spite of our relatively low risk of actual heartworm, you may want to use them because the "plus" or "max" labeled products also prevent maturation of some intestinal parasites ("worms") to which you pet may easily be exposed. Test annually to check for infection to be sure and always use preventative treatments if you are traveling out of our area where this disease may be rampant. Let's not see your companion as our next annual surprise case!
Lyme is a very common disease in our area. Spread by deer ticks, we see many positives every year. Lameness and flu-like symptoms are common. Occasional cases suffer irreversible kidney or heart failure. Although we may never totally clear this organism from the body, finding and treating for this disease early may prevent fatal complications later on. Our canine companions should be protected by annual vaccinations and by using the monthly topical Vectra 3D year round.
Erlichiosis is closely related to Lyme disease. Also carried by deer ticks, with similar symptoms, we find an occasional case in our area. Monthly application of Vectra 3D year round, is your dog's best protection.
Anaplasmosis is also included in this annual 4DX test. Similarly carried by deer ticks, we are seeing slightly more cases of this than of Lyme disease. Infected pets may show no symptoms at all or very similar ones to Lyme disease. In addition, this organism may destroy blood cells and interfere with normal blood clotting mechanisms, leading to bleeding disorders and anemias in some unfortunate pets. Only symptomatic victims are generally treated. Again, monthly topical Vectra 3D is most effective in repelling and killing ticks to keep your pal safe.
Parvo Virus Test
Parvo virus causes an extremely contagious and often deadly infection in dogs. Unfortunately, in spite of the ease of vaccination against this killer, we still see a number of cases every year. Parvo virus is generally a disease of puppies and we use this test whenever we see parvo's typical depression, severe vomiting, and diarrhea.
Giardia
We test for giardia when we see a generally more moderate diarrhea that may come and go. Highly contagious, it is a protozoal parasite found in water of puddles, lakes and streams.
Leukemia and Feline Immunodeficiency Virus
These are two common viral cat diseases in our area. They are spread predominantly by bites, breeding, and body fluids. As with HIV in people, cats with these diseases may seem perfectly normal for years, able to spread their infection to other cats in close contact. We test for leukemia at the first kitten wellness exam and for FIV at 6 months if we suspect exposure. Vaccinations are available for both but the usefulness of the FIV has been questioned by many and it is not widely used.