Eastown Veterinary Clinic
Pillars of Pet Ownership™
THE EASTOWN PROMISE As a community-focused veterinarian, we offer a new level of full-service veterinary medicine. The staff here at Eastown Veterinary Clinic seeks to provide not only a friendly atmosphere, but also the best possible medical, surgical and dental care for our highly valued patients. We are committed to promoting responsible pet ownership, preventative health care and health-related educational opportunities for our clients. We strive to offer excellence for you and your furry family members!
MEET THE DOCTORS AND THEIR PETS
Dr. Lynn Happel
After nearly one decade in the industry, Michigan State University graduate Dr. Lynn Happel opened Eastown Veterinary Clinic in Grand Rapids’ Eastown neighborhood in June 2011. Since then, she has worked to assemble a staff of passionate, dedicated animal lovers and devoted hundreds of hours in additional training to practice her personal passions of advanced veterinary dental procedures. She is a mother to two young boys, two dogs and one cat.
DVM / Owner
Dr. Ashley Tittle DVM / Associate
Born and raised in West Michigan, Dr. Tittle is a graduate of Calvin College and Michigan State University. Her passion for veterinary medicine began at the age of 10, and she feels blessed to touch the lives of animals and people collectively while nurturing the bonds that exist between pets and their owners. Dr. Tittle’s area of interest is in veterinary orthopedics. She is the mother to two dogs, one cat and a thoroughbred horse named Lyon.
ANIMAL WELLNESS
Wellness Exams A wellness examination is an important part of preventive health care for pets in all stages of life. If your pet appears to be young and healthy, a wellness examination is a great way to detect changes such as weight gain or loss, dental disease or other subtle differences that may not be evident at home. At the beginning of each wellness exam, your exam assistant will ask questions to obtain a complete medical history for your pet to determine if there have been any changes in health or behavior since your last visit. Your doctor will then perform a physical examination to assess your pet’s overall appearance and body condition by:
• Listening to the heart and lungs • Feeling for signs of pain, tumors or other unusual changes in the neck and abdomen • Checking joints for signs of arthritis or muscle weakness • Examining the eyes, ears and mouth for any signs of disease
For any pet, especially seniors, a wellness examination is vital to detect early onset of disease. Remember, they age seven years for every year of life! Just as with people, it’s important for dogs to see their doctors more often as they age. We recommend senior pets be examined every six months. With many dogs living well into their teens, many owners wonder when a dog is truly considered a senior. We consider our patients ‘senior’ at seven years and beyond. A thorough senior wellness exam is designed to: • Promote the longest and healthiest life possible • Recognize and control known health risks for older dogs and cats • Detect any signs of disease at their earliest, when they are the most treatable In addition to our routine wellness exam, a senior exam includes more questions about your pet’s life to identify early indicators of disease. There will be more discussion about abnormal findings and recommendations on keeping your senior pet feeling his/her best.
CARING FOR YOUR PET
· Physical exam and vaccination every 3-4 weeks until 16 weeks of age · Two negative fecal analysis 30 days apart · Monthly heartworm / flea / intestinal parasite prevention · Pre-anesthetic bloodwork in preparation for spay / neuter
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VACCINATIONS
- 4 weeks
8 w ks - 16w
The main objective of vaccination is to protect against or significantly reduce severity of infection and disease. Vaccinating pets also protects owners from zoonotic diseases, such as Rabies and Leptospirosis, both of which can be transmitted to humans. We will tailor vaccines to fit yours and your pet’s lifestyle; recommendations are below:
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Puppies/Kittens
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THROUGH ALL STAGES OF LIFE
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CATS
Distemper Rabies Leukemia
DOGS
Rabies Distemper / Parvovirus Leptospirosis Bordetella
Senior Dogs/Cats
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· Physical exam every six months · Annual vaccines and heartworm test · Senior wellness bloodwork and fecal analysis · Monthly heartworm / flea / intestinal parasite prevention
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1y r- 6 y rs o
6
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months
a fter 7yrs
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· Annual physical exam · Vaccines and heartworm test · Wellness bloodwork and fecal analysis · Monthly heartworm / flea / intestinal parasite prevention
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Adult Dogs/Cats
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Distemper, Leukemia and Leptospirosis vaccines require an initial series of vaccinations 3-4 weeks apart to stimulate the production of antibodies (the body’s army against disease). Puppies and kittens are vaccinated every 3-4 weeks until they are four months of age to ensure they maintain a strong immune system.
PREVENTATIVE DIAGNOSTIC TESTING
Wellness Bloodwork Our goal is to help catch diseases such as diabetes, thyroid disease and kidney disease early to improve your pets’ overall quality of life. Early detection not only aids in quality of life, but also is more cost-effective than waiting until your pet is sick. Often, your pet will not show symptoms of underlying illness until it is significantly progressed. Your veterinarian can spot and track any changes in blood work values, which should be checked annually. We recommend performing Adult Wellness bloodwork every year for cats and dogs from one to six years of age and Senior Wellness bloodwork every year for pets over seven years of age.
Parasite Screen Did you know certain types of intestinal parasites could be transmitted to humans? Yuck! These include giardia, hookworms and roundworms, making prevention important for the health of both your family and your pet. This is especially important for children, who often frequent the areas where parasites can run rampant – sandboxes, dirt and grass, to name a few. We check your pet’s stool sample annually to make sure s/he is free of parasites. Common symptoms include vomiting and diarrhea; however, sometimes there are no symptoms at all. Heartworm, which is transmitted by mosquitoes, affects cats and dogs alike. We test for heartworm through a small blood draw and recommend always testing annually. Heartworm medications are highly effective, but pets can still become infected. Your best chance for full recovery is a combination of prevention and early detection.
Radiographs Radiography is a very useful diagnostic tool we use because it can help obtain information about almost any organ in the body including the heart, lungs, abdominal organs and bones. The doctor will assess the size and shape of the organs and heart to detect any abnormalities. Radiographs can also help spot certain types of cancers.
Blood Pressure Check We may recommend a blood pressure test if your pet shows signs of high blood pressure or has been diagnosed with a disease associated with high blood pressure. Cats older than 10 years old are especially at high risk for kidney disease and hyperthyroidism, which can cause high blood pressure. Your pet’s organ health can also be affected.
Heartworm, Parasite and Flea Prevention
Nutrition
Preventative health care includes the prevention of common parasitic infections in dogs and cats. As several parasites can be transmitted to humans, prevention is just as important for your health. Giardia, hookworms and roundworms are examples of zoonotic parasites. Symptoms of intestinal parasites include:
Good nutrition enhances your pet’s quality of life and longevity. We will assess your pet’s nutritional needs at every visit to help make the best possible recommendations. Common nutrition-related risk factors include age, weight, atypical or homemade diet, medical conditions or changes in appetite. Dogs and cats have different dietary requirements and we will help you select the best food for your pet’s lifestyle.
PETS
Allergic reactions Blood loss and anemia Damage to organs Nutrient loss and toxin release into body
PEOPLE Digestive problems Liver and lung damage Partial or total blindness Itchy skin lesions
Heartworm disease can cause symptoms of a cough all the way to sudden death. Treatment for dogs is extensive and expensive. Currently, there is no treatment – only prevention – for cats; between 30-40% of indoor-only cats are being infected with heartworm disease. Pets are infected with heartworm through a mosquito bite. The microfilaria, or newborn heartworm, travels through the mosquito’s saliva into the bloodstream until reaching the heart. Heartworm prevention, such as Trifexis and Revolution, kills the microfilaria and larvae. Prevention should be given every 30 days in order to continue killing the microfilaria and larvae before they turn into adult heartworms. If prevention is not given every 30 days and the worms are allowed to reach the adult stage, the only option is an extensive, expensive and toxic treatment to kill the adult heartworms before they cause heart failure in your dog. Because of the size of the worm, a singular heartworm can cause serious complications and sudden death in cats. Fleas Just hearing the word makes me itch! Fleas create more trouble, however, than causing you and your pet to perpetually scratch. There are several serious health complications that can arise due to flea infestations. • Some pets may have an allergic reaction to the fleabites that can cause open sores to develop along their back and tail. • “Cat scratch fever” is an infection caused by a bacterium called Bartonella henselae and transmitted when a cat gets flea dirt (feces) in their claws from scratching. • The Bartonella infection in humans causes swollen lymph nodes and fever in best-case scenarios; worse case scenarios can cause spleen enlargement, heart valve infection and other conditions. Fleas are also responsible for tapeworms, which infect your pet when they lick their fur or paws and ingest flea eggs. Luckily, there are many prevention options available!
Grooming Grooming does more than make your pet really, really, ridiculously good looking. Regular brushing, bathing and trimming can help keep your pet’s skin and hair coat healthy. Regular grooming also helps you find or notice changes to your pet’s body, such as skin condition or new lumps and bumps. Longer-coated pets require more regular upkeep, as matted fur can cause hotspots, infections or even maggot formation.
Dental Care Did you know cats and dogs create as much tartar as you and I in one day? Imagine how your teeth and mouth would feel after not brushing for several years! Regular dental care and tooth brushing has many of the same health benefits for your pet as it does for you. The bacteria from tartar can enter your pet’s bloodstream, causing heart and kidney disease. Severe dental diseases can also cause painful tooth root abscesses, bone loss and tooth loss. Signs to look for include: • Bad breath • Teeth that are loose, discolored or covered in tartar • Excessive drooling or dropping food / trouble eating • Bleeding from the mouth • Loss of energy, appetite or weight loss Daily tooth brushing using a certified pet friendly toothpaste (no human toothpaste!) is recommended. Most pets need their first dental cleaning under general anesthesia around three years of age. In addition to cleaning the teeth, we use this time to more thoroughly examine the mouth and take radiographs of all the teeth to determine the health of the tooth roots. The doctor will make her next recommendations based on what she finds. We will examine your pet’s mouth at every visit to help you determine the next steps for the best overall health!
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