Ponsonby Tails - December 2004
Monday, Nov 29, 2004
In this issue:-
We would like to take this opportunity to wish all our clients and their pets a very happy Christmas and New Year. We hope you have a great holiday break and we look forward to seeing you in 2005 with healthy pets.
Welcome to our Christmas newsletter. I am writing this after a wonderful day at the Grey Lynn festival - what a beautiful day and a great multicultural festival. Many congratulations to all the organisers who helped us celebrate our fantastic community in such style.
After walking around for a few hours in the heat our family was feeling the effect of the heat, and it reminded me of the threat of heat stroke to your pet at this time of year. Please don't leave your pet in the car alone, even for 15 minutes with the window ajar, the consequences are too serious.
Over the last 3 newsletters I have been covering common poisons that your pet may encounter around your home and garden, this month I wanted to talk about some of the threats to your pet in the festive season (see later).
As you can see these newsletter do have a strong first aid bias, this leads me on to an idea that I have been considering. Would you be interested in learning more about first aid for your pet? If so would a formal course, similar to St John's but related to pets, be of interest? The idea is to set up such a course and it would take 1-2 hours. If you think this is a good idea please send me an e-mail with your thoughts and ideas. If we have sufficient interest, I will set-to designing the course, it would be interactive and come with notes that you can refresh your memory with. Knowing first aid can make a crucial difference to whether your pet or someone elses survives an accident or injury.
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| December 20-24 - (Monday-Friday) |
8am - 6.30 pm |
| December 25 - (Saturday) |
Closed |
| December 26 - (Sunday) |
Closed |
| December 27 - (Monday) |
Closed |
| December 28 - (Tuesday) |
Closed |
| December 29-31 - (Wednesday-Friday) |
8am - 6.30pm |
| January 1 - (Saturday) |
Closed |
| January 2 - (Sunday) |
Closed |
| January 3 - (Monday) |
Closed |
| January 4 - (Tuesday) |
Closed |
| January 5 - (Wednesday - back to normal) |
8am - 6.30pm |
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If you require a vet in an emergency outside of our opening
hours please ring the after hours clinic on 820 7273. |
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Vaccinations for Kennels and Catteries
If you are going away over the summer holidays and your pet is going into a boarding kennel or cattery, make sure you dig out your pet's vaccination records. Check that their vaccinations are up to date and that your pet has had all of the vaccines that the boarding kennel/cattery requires.
Even if the kennel does not require Kennel Cough Vaccination, we are currently seeing a lot of cases and we recommend you consider vaccinating your dog against this disease.
If you have a cat, although the vaccines are good for 3 years, they are only licensed for 1 year; catteries will insist that your cat has been vaccinated within a year (possibly earlier). Studies have also shown that vaccinating 3-4 weeks prior to exposure to herpes virus and calici virus (cat flu/snuffles) will give a greater protection for your cat. The risk of these viruses are very high at Christmas. We would recommend, if you havn't vaccinated your cat in the last 6 months, to give your cat a booster to increase your cats protection.
For more information on vaccinations please click on this link. www.petvet.co.nz/news.cfm and look at our December 2003 newsletter.
FIV Vaccine Launched in New Zealand
In 2002 an FIV vaccine was launched in the US (http://www.petvet.co.nz/news.cfm?content_id=80) , this vaccine has just been launched in New Zealand. This vaccine may prove to be very valuable at saving some cat's lives - particularly those cats that like to fight.
We do have a couple of concerns about this vaccine, therefore we are not actively recommending it until these have been addressed.
Our main concerns are:-
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We do not know what type of FIV virus (A, B, C etc) we have in New Zealand (The vaccine contains A and D), studies are under way to find this information out.
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Once your pet has been vaccinated you cannot deternine if your cat becomes infected with the virus. The vaccine will also give a positive result to current tests. There is a new test being worked on although it is uncertain at this stages how effective this will be.
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The vaccine is not 100% effective. In one study 4 out of 25 vaccinated cats developed FIV when challenged with one incident of a suitable type virus (a lot better than not vaccinated cats). If your cat did contract the virus, we would not be able to tell as the vaccine would give a positive result with current tests.
There maybe a role for this vaccine to play in NZ when these questions have been answered. The cats we see that would particularly benefit are those at high risk of being exposed to the virus, primarily those that are fighting and in particular entire toms. A blood test to ensure the cat is free of the virus should be performed before vaccination (if the cat is over 6 months of age). 3 vaccinations are required followed by yearly boosters.
Christmas Trees and Cats
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Try Barbed wire. This provides unusual Christmas tinsel but will fail to protect your tree.
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Try Hanging the tree upside down from the ceiling. They might not reach it if you have a high enough stud.
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Try Moth balls. They might bat them around the floor.
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Try Aluminum foil. They might pee on it.
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Try Feliway (no longer available in NZ). They might love it.
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Try Anchoring the tree to a small hook in the ceiling, cross-tie it to the wall, fore-go lights and tinsel, don't get too attached to your ornaments, and let the cats enjoy the tree.
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Give up; tell them they can have the damn tree. They will probably never touch it again.
On a more serious note you can try the following: -
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Keep the ornaments out of reach from the ground, cover the electric cord and access to the water.
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Air horn? Water spray? Yelling? These techniques will be about as successful as keeping them from climbing on furniture. Can be done, but takes a lot of work on your part.
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Certain types of trees are less attractive: the more prickly, the better. Makes for some difficult decorating but they do seem to deter cats from climbing, although your ornaments will still not be safe. This Works for toddlers, too. However in New Zealand we don't seem to have a good supply of spikey Christmas trees.
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Give up; tell them they can have the damn tree. They will probably never touch it again.
A Dog Carol
Sing to the tune of Winter Wonderland.........
Dog tags ring, are you listenin'?
In the lane, snow is glistenin'.
It's yellow, NOT white I've been there tonight,
Marking up my winter wonderland
Smell that tree? That's my fragrance.
It's a sign for wandering vagrants
"Avoid where I pee, it's MY pro-per-ty!
Marked up as my winter wonderland."
In the meadow dad will build a snowman,
following the classical design.
Then I'll lift my leg and let it go Man,
So all the world will know that it's mine-mine-mine!
Straight from me to the fence post,
flows my natural incense boast
"Stay off my TURF, this small piece of earth,
I marked it as my winter wonderland."
Holiday Safety Tips
Some Holday food items are potentially dangerous so try and avoid these ones: -
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Alcoholic beverages
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Chocolate (cooking, dark or milk chocolate - the more cocoa the more toxic)
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Coffee (grounds, beans, chocolate covered espresso beans)
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Moldy or spoiled foods
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Onions, onion powder
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Fatty foods
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Salt
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Yeast dough
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Grapes and Rasisins
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Turkey Bones/Cooked bones
PLANTS
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Lilies are currently flowering and could be deadly to your cat. Many types of lily, such as daylillies, can cause kidney failure in cats.
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Poinsettias are generally over-rated in toxicity. If ingested, poinsettias can be irritating to the mouth and stomach, and may cause mild vomiting or nausea.
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HAZARDS AROUND THE CHRISTMAS TREE
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Christmas tree water may contain fertilizers, which if ingested can cause stomach upsets. Stagnant tree water can be a breeding ground for bacteria, which can also lead to vomiting, nausea, and diarrhoea.
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Electric cords. If these are chewed, they could electrocute your pet. Cover up or hide electric cords, never let your pet chew on them.
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Ribbons or tinsel can get caught up in the intestines and cause intestinal obstruction.
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Batteries contain corrosives. If ingested they can cause ulceration to the mouth, tongue, and the rest of the gastrointestinal tract. They can also cause Zinc toxicity.
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Glass ornaments can cut the tissues of the gastrointestinal tract if ingested.
MEDICATIONS
Keep all prescriptions and over-the-counter drugs out of the reach of your pets, preferably in closed cabinets. Pain killers (e.g. Ibuprofen, paracetamol), cold medicines, chemotherapy drugs, antidepressants, vitamins and diet pills are common examples of human medication that could be potentially lethal even in small dosages. Remind holiday guests to store their medications safely as well.
During the holidays, many veterinary clinics have limited office hours. In some cases, pet owners try to medicate their animals without their veterinarian's advice. Never give your animal any medications unless under the directions of a veterinarian. Many medications that are used safely in humans can be deadly when used inappropriately.
ALWAYS Be Prepared !!!!
Your animal may become poisoned in spite of your best efforts to prevent it. You should keep our telephone number (09 360 0961 - If you don't have one of our fridge magnets please ask for one at reception) and the Western After Hours Clinic (09 820 7273) in a convenient location. If you suspect that your pet has ingested something poisonous - seek medical attention immediately.
This is the last Newsletter of 2004 so once again have a fantastic Christmas and we wish everyone all the best for 2005.
