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Blood Pressure Monitoring
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The Cardell blood pressure monitor.
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During surgery, we monitor each patient's blood pressure. A small cuff is placed on the patient's leg and soon after, the monitor reports the pressure, just as it is done in a human hospital. Some medical conditons require that we regularly monitor a patient's blood pressure as well. This can be done in the examination room and does not require sedation.
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Canine Vaccinations
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Puppies receive a series of 3 sets of vaccines ideally a month apart starting at 8 weeks of age. Vaccines are boosted every year after that, although it has been recently found that not every vaccine needs to be boosted every year. Rabies virus, for example, is liscensed to be given every 3 years after it is boosted at 1 year. Some townships require that the rabies vaccine be given every 2 years though so check with your township for its requirement. Through recent studies, it has been found that a lot of other vaccines produce enough protection that they can also be boosted every 3 years These diseases include Distemper, Parvovirus, Parainfluenza, and Adenovirus,
There are some vaccines that need to be given every year. These include Leptospirosis, Lyme, and the Bordatella vaccines. If these vaccines are not boosted every year, then there is no guarantee that the vaccine will be as effective. The Lyme vaccine and the Bordatella vaccine are considered optional vaccines. Bordatella, or kennel cough, is usually given to dogs that are going to be at a boarding facility. The Lyme vaccine is given to dogs that are determined to be high risk for Lyme disease however, feel free to ask questions to your veterinarian about any vaccine.
The vast majority of dogs will never have a reaction to any vaccine however some dogs can have mild to severe reactions to different vaccines. Mild reactions include transient fever, lethargy, not wanting to eat, and just acting out of it. These reactions should resolve in 24-36 hours after a vaccine. A small minority of dogs can have more severe reactions to vaccines including swelling of the face, hives, and vomiting. Any reaction to a vaccine should be reported to your veterinarian and the more serious reactions might require a follow-up visit. Do not hesitate to call if you have any questions regarding a vaccine.
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Dentistry
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Our dental suite includes the Summit Hill Vetroson Dental Scaler.
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Proper dental care can extend your pet's life by several years. Sadly, pet dental care is often overlooked. When left unchecked, common problems can lead to pain, or in some instances, can require extensive surgical procedures. During a dental exam, the veterinarian thoroughly inspects your pet's teeth and oral cavity. Often the only treatment needed is a good cleaning. We offer dental cleanings and some advanced services including Oravet dental sealant, dental radiography, fractured jaw repairs and oral tumor removal. You wouldn't skip a dental exam, so why should your pet!
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EKG Monitoring
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Silogic EC 60 monitor
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Just like in a human hospital, we constantly monitor our patients' hearts with an EKG and respiratory monitor while anesthetized for surgery. This greatly increases anesthetic safety.
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Feline Vaccinations
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We follow the most current guidelines from the American Association of Feline Practitioners, the American Animal Hospital Association, and the American Veterinary Medical Association. Right now, that means that kitten receive a series of 3 vaccines, ideally starting at 8 weeks of age, each a month apart. The initial rabies vaccine is given when the kitten is 12 weeks old or older. These vaccines are boosted a year later. After that, indoor cats only receive vaccinations every 3 years. Cats that go outside are candidates to receive the feline leukemia vaccine; discuss it with our doctors to determine whether your cat should have this vaccine.
In the last few years, a new strain of calicivirus has emerged, which is very different than the calicivirus we’ve vaccinated against for years. In March 2007, protection against this new strain was added to the feline distemper vaccine that we use. This means that the next time your cat receives the feline distemper vaccine, he or she will need to receive one more dose of the new calicivirus part of the vaccine, a month later. Please feel free to ask any questions you may have about this new disease.
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Hospitalization
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We use Heska fluid infusion pumps.
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Sometimes a pet's illness, injury or surgical procedure calls for the need to be hospitalized for treatment. Each hospitalized patient receives individualized medical attention; utilizing the latest in patient care techniques, including fluid infusion pumps.
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Laboratory
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Our laboratory features the Heska family of laboratory equipment including the Heska CBC Diff (shown).
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Most of our blood test samples are sent to a certified veterinary laboratory, with rapid turnaround time. In addition, we have an in-house blood chemistry and CBC analyzer, so we can check blood tests quickly in cases of emergency or before surgery.
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Microchip ID
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Resq microchip system
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We have microchip technology - a small, inert microchip is placed under the skin between your pet's shoulders. Each chip has a unique number that can be read by a scanner, which most shelters and veterinarians' offices have.
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Ocular Tonometry
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Ocular Tonometry is the measurement of ocular fluid pressure within the eyeball. The tonometer (TonoPen) is the device used to measure this pressure.
Abnormal eye conditions can cause the ocular fluid to build up pressure within the eye. This elevated intraocular pressure can cause permanent damage to the optic nerve, resulting in blindness.
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Pain Management
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Pets feel pain, too! Our approach to pain management is multimodal; we give a combination of pain medications before, during, and after painful surgeries and procedures. Chronic painful conditions are treated, as well. Pain-free pets are happy pets!
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Pharmacy
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Our practice has an on-site pharmacy stocked with a great variety of veterinary medications used in the prevention and treatment of illness and disease.
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Pulse Oximetry
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During surgery, we also monitor the percent of oxygen being carried in the patient's blood, using pulse oximetry. A small, gentle clip is placed on the patient's tongue after they are anesthetized. This clip uses light waves to measure how much oxygen the blood cells are carrying. This greatly increases anesthesia safety.
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Radiology
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Normal canine hips
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X-rays show more than broken bones! We take radiographs to look for other bone problems, like arthritis or hip dysplasia. X-rays will also show us tumors, bladder stones, intestinal obstruction, foreign objects that have been swallowed, asthma, pneumonia, enlarged hearts, and many other things.
A board certified veterinary radiologist, who returns a written report detailing the x-ray findings and any recommendations for treatment of the condition, reviews each x-ray taken in our hospital.
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Surgery
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Image Coming Soon
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We perform many surgical procedures here at Greenfields Veterinary Associates, LLC. Such surgeries as spay, neuter, laser declaw, growth removal, cystotomy (bladder stone removal), & exploratory surgeries are performed Monday - Friday. On occasion we will find that a patient would be better served by seeing a surgeon who specializes in more difficult procedures, like orthopedic surgery. In such cases, we will refer to the veterinary specialists in Wilmington, Delaware or the University of Pennsylvania in Philadelphia.
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Ultrasound
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The Hitachi EUB405
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If you think of radiographs (x-rays) as snapshots of the inside of your pet, ultrasound is like videotape: you can see more. This technology is especially useful for seeing abdominal structures in more detail than an x-ray can. Some examples are bladder stones, abnormal kidneys, etc. Ultrasound is newly available in veterinary practice and we are excited to be able to offer it!
- What is required beforehand? You may be asked to not feed your pet for 12 hours before the ultrasound.
- How is it done? Sometimes some hair may have to be shaved from your pet's belly area, especially if the hair is thick. The ultrasound scanner is painless, and your pet only has to hold still for a short time while we scan.
- Do we have the results right away? Yes and No. The doctor doing the ultrasound scan sees everything in real-time, so we have the capability of sending the ultrasound images we capture over the internet to a board certified veterinary radiologist (a specialist with advanced training in reading ultrasound). It may take a day or two to receive the specialist's report.
- Will my pet have a sedative? Probably not, most dogs and cats are fine with ultrasound. A pet that strongly resists other normal things we do, however, may need to have a sedative in order to cooperate with the ultrasound.
In addition to allowing us to ''see'' into the abdomen better, ultrasound also allows us to take aspirates (samples of cells) from abdominal organs such as the liver. These samples can be sent to the laboratory for analysis, to help with the diagnosis of a suspected problem.
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