Doc says “Season’s Freezin’”

Christmas pets – We love them and if you got one, now is the time to start a “Pet Savings Plan”. New puppies and kittens are little, adorable money pits. We want you to be prepared. Vaccinations need to be started, continued, finished this year and then boostered every year after, so plan for 2 or 3 vaccination and worming visits with your veterinarian in the first 3 months of pet ownership; then start planning for the annual visit next year. Spaying or neutering should be done at 5 to 6 months of age. We are glad to let you prepay this as you can, so that when the time comes for surgery, you have money sitting on your account. We also advise having a savings account for emergency care so that you don’t have to crowdsource money from friends and family. RBVS also offers a credit option that you can apply for online, so keep your credit rating in good shape to qualify for that (Dad advice “wink, wink”).

Antifreeze – RBVS has seen it’s first antifreeze poisoned pet of the fall/winter season. Be careful with auto antifreeze changes and disposal. Antifreeze tastes sweet and if a pet finds a puddle of antifreeze, they will enjoy a lick or three. Antifreeze is highly toxic and treatment for the toxicosis is difficult and expensive. Ice melt can also create a toxic situation so try to use the pet-safe ice melt products or wipe your pet’s paws after they have been outdoors. Ice melt doesn’t seem to taste good but who hasn’t seen our pet laying on the sofa and thoughtfully licking their feet, each and every toe, between each and we ev … Hey, wait, is that just my pets??

Heartworm special - As RBVS discussed earlier in the fall on our blog https://www.redbarnvet.com/ (lower left of home page) and on our Facebook page (Nov. 28th post), we will now require a negative annual heartworm test each year before allowing the purchase of or prescribing heartworm preventative. This is following the American Heartworm Society recommendations, the veterinary gold standard on heartworm prevention and treatment. See the blog post or Facebook post for more information and explanation for this RBVS protocol change. To jumpstart the new year, we are offering a 20 % discount on a tech appointment, blood draw and heartworm test in the months of January and February. Call and schedule with the office at 620-365-3964.

Keep warm and keep hugging the pets in your life!