Tag Archives: Lungworm

Our 2018 Spring Newsletter has arrived!

Leave a reply

 

Our Spring 2018 newsletter has arrived – its filled with advice on how to keep your pet happy and healthy in 2018. Read it here.

 

Below is a few snippets of what’s included in this seasons newsletter. Including some top tips to keep your pets happy and healthy in 2018.

 

Parasite alert! 

 

As the weather warms up, parasites become more and more of an issue. The key amongst these are fleas and ticks! Fleas love the warm weather and eggs from last year will rapidly hatch out into adult fleas, hopping on to passing pets and hitching a ride into your home. This is why year round flea protection is so important. Don’t forget if you want to spread the cost of parasite protection join our pet healthcare club. To understand the other parasites that could be lurking read our newsletter here.

 

 

Kennel Cough – is your dog protected? 

 

The condition can involve several infectious agents including viruses and a bacteria. Read our newsletter to understand why some dogs are more vulnerable than others. Also explained are the common symptoms to look out for in your dog. To reduce the risk of your dog developing the disease contact our surgery to arrange your dogs kennel cough intranasal vaccine.

 

Thyroid problems – are surprisingly common in pets.

 

 

The Thyroid glands consist of two lobes, located either side of your pets wind pipe. Two conditions which can effect the glands are Hyperthyroidism and Hypothyroidism – to understand they difference and learn the signs to watch out for in your pet, read our newsletter here.

 

What should you feed your Guinea Pig?

 

 

Guinea Pigs are sociable animals and should be kept in pairs or groups. Our Newsletter will help you decide where is best to put your hutch and run. Owners should also provide branches for gnawing on, this is really important to keep dental disease at bay. Understand more about a guinea pigs diet here.

 

We hope you enjoy reading our newsletter, if you have any questions on any of the articles don’t hesitate to contact our team.

Autumn Newsletter.

Read our Autumn Newsletter here!

Leave a reply

Our Autumn Newsletter has arrived, read it here!

 

Do fireworks put your pet in a fizz?

Does your pet get stressed by fireworks? Or is your pet a real worrier? Sadly fireworks is more of a ‘season’ than a night so being prepared before they start is key to having a stress free home during fireworks. Read our NEWSLETTER for some top tips to help settle your pet and feel free to contact our team if you would like to discuss this further or get help for your pet.

 

Arthritis alert – Is your pet affected?

Arthritis is a painful and debilitating condition caused by inflammation of the joints. It is more common in older pets, but can strike any breed or species. Read our NEWSLETTER to understand more about this condition and learn the signs to watch our for in your pet. There are many different treatments available for arthritis and every patient and joint is different so there is no set protocol. If you suspect your pet has arthritis contact our veterinary team for further advice.

 

Feeling ticked off?

Pets should be monitored daily for ticks, and if any are found these should be removed with a specially designed tick remover. Ticks can spread Lyme Disease, Babesiosis and Erlichiosis. The latter two conditions are particularly prevalent abroad, so if you take your dog abroad on holiday, it is essential to protect them against ticks.

Spring 2017 newsletter

Spring 2017 Newsletter.

Leave a reply

 

Read our Spring 2017 Newsletter HERE.

 Our Spring 2017 Newsletter includes :

     How to tell if your dog is the ideal weight and the issues surrounding obesity in pets. What’s included in the Pet Healthcare Club – available for cats, dogs and rabbits, all ages and breeds welcome. Caring for your older cat – some signs to watch out for include drinking more than usual, this can be a sign of Diabetes or Kidney problems. Eating less than usual could indicate a mouth or tooth problem. It can be difficult to check a cats teeth, so if you are worried, just bring them to down.

    Do you know why a rabbits diet is so important to maintain good health – because a rabbits teeth never stop growing!  In fact their teeth are perfectly adapted to their natural diet of tough abrasive vegetation, which – without continued tooth growth, would soon result in their teeth being ground down to nothing. Read more about their continued tooth growth here.

 

Lungworm causes heart failure in a dog

Leave a reply

 

We have recently seen another dog with lungworm infection. This dog showed signs of heart failure, as the worm can infect the large arteries (pulmonary arteries) around the heart. This caused high blood pressure in the pulmonic artery which in turn caused heart failure to occur.

This is a video of the heart with a leaky tricuspid heart valve cause by the high blood pressure. The heart is on its side and the top chambers in the picture are to the right side of the heart. The colour flow shows leaking of blood back across the leaky heart valves. Normally the bottom chambers (the left side of the heart) would be bigger than the top right sided chambers, but due to the heart failure you can see that the top chambers are bigger.

 

Lungworm is becoming more prevalent in West London due to foxes spreading the disease. It is spread to slugs and snails and if your dog eats a slug or snail or the slimy slug trail lungworm infection may occur. We strongly recommend that owners treat dogs monthly with Advocate to the back of the neck to prevent this disease. Please see www.youngvets.co.uk for contact details of our nearest surgery to you.

Lungworm in dogs

Leave a reply

Lungworm or Angiostrongylus vasorum is being seen more commonly in dogs in our region of West London.  It is spread from foxes to slugs or snails, and if a dog eats a slug or snail or licks the slug “trail” it can become infected. This can progress to a life threatening infection, which can cause coughing, lethargy , bleeding or even heart failure.

It can be prevented by a monthly treatment of a spot on to the back of the neck – Advocate.

Have a look at this video which explains the life cycle

Advocate monthly spot on

For more information or to contact your local surgery see

www.youngvets.co.uk

Killer Snails and Slugs

Leave a reply

Dogs can pick up a dangerous disease from slugs and snails in your garden, called lungworm or angiostrongylus. It is being spread by foxes to the slugs or snails and if your dog eats a slug or snail, or even licks the slug trail it can pick up the disease, which can cause severe bleeding , and even death.

Vet Matthew Wilson comments ” We are seeing more cases of this dangerous disease each year in Hounslow,  as foxes are very common in our region.  Young dogs and certain breeds such as Staffordshire Bull Terriers are infected most commonly.”

You can protect your pet from this potentially deadly disease with a monthly spot on application of Advocate, which is a vial of liquid that is poured on the back of your dogs neck once a month. This is a prescription only medicine that can be purchased from your vet and is dispensed according to the weight of your dog.