Articles

Keep up to date with all our latest news, articles of interest, and case studies from the veterinary world.

close up photo of cat

An Insight For Sore Eyes

The old saying goes; “the eyes are the window to the soul” and I’m sure most, if not all, pet owners could probably attest to this when their little critter stares deeply into their own, especially around dinner time. Which is why we need to make sure we look after our companions’ eyes this summer…

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Arthritis

General stiffness, slowing down, difficulty rising…  Is it just old age? Our senior pets may show subtle signs or be quite obvious in their attempts to tell us about their problems.  One of these problems that we commonly see is arthritis.  Signs may include lameness in one or more legs, difficulty getting up in the…

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Cannabis Toxicity in Dogs

In the words of the old song, can a pet “take a trip and never leave the farm”, even in this Covid-19 era of travel restrictions? Unfortunately, the answer is yes. More and more frequently we are presented with dogs who are acting strangely and who are known to, or suspected of having ingested, someone’s…

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COLIC – WHAT A PAIN!

Colic, a word that strikes fear into the heart of every horse owner! But what is it and what can we do? In the simplest sense, colic is a broad term used to describe abdominal pain and the behaviour that we see associated with that pain. This is most commonly associated with the gastrointestinal tract,…

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COUGHING AND WHEEZY HORSES

The classic ‘coughing horse’ is a common sight and sound at this time of year, and often transient viral respiratory disease is to blame. But as much as we love to blame a virus, they are not always the cause! This year has seen an influx of allergy associated disease in all classes of stock…

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black and white cow on green grass field during daytime

Dairy Cow Lameness

Cows are amazingly stoic creatures, hiding their pain well from us.   Lameness is one of the ways they will show pain, and most of the time it has stemmed from a foot issue.  The corium is the layer of tissue inside the hoof that the hard hoof grows from, and when it becomes damaged it…

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Desexing your dog – when’s the best time?

WHEN’S THE BEST TIME TO HAVE YOUR DOG DESEXED? Recently, if and when to spay (female) or castrate (male) your dog has become a topic of debate and everyone seems to have slightly different opinions. The reason for this is that there is pros and cons of performing this procedure at different ages, and these…

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black and white cow calf

Disbudding – don’t leave it too late!

Dairy calves are thick on the ground here in Dannevirke and we are very busy with debudding! The optimal time to debud calves is when they are 2-6 weeks of age so horn buds are removed before they have a chance to attach to the skull, this makes the job quicker and reduces the risk…

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Dogs in Hot Cars – New regulations

New regulations are in force meaning that if you leave your dog in a parked car and it is showing signs of heat distress you can receive a fine and a broken car window. Dogs quickly suffer and die in hot cars, so please leave your dogs at home. If you leave a dog in…

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white sheep on brown grass field near body of water during daytime

Drench Checks

Do you know whether that drench you just gave your stock is working? They may look to be free from signs of parasitism, but a drench can have lost a significant amount of its efficacy before you will notice any clinical impact. Continued use of a poorly effective drench is a perfect recipe for building…

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Ear Disease

Duck shooting doesn’t seem to cause many concerns for our canine companions, usually only a few cuts and bruises that are insignificant compared to the enjoyment derived from the exercise. However getting damp in water for long periods can give rise to a flare up of ear disease (otitis externa). Some dogs seem prone to…

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