Puppy & Kitten Veterinary Care
Congratulations on your new pet! We can’t wait to meet the newest addition to your family.
Please schedule a puppy or kitten visit with us for your new pet with us as soon as possible. Early veterinary care is important to make sure he or she grows up strong and healthy.
We will make sure your puppy or kitten is receiving the proper protection he or she needs through vaccinations, parasite protection and nutrition, ensuring a healthy start in life.
Puppy/Kitten Exams Include:
- A comprehensive physical exam
- Intestinal parasite screening
- Intestinal parasite deworming if needed (additional information below)
- Appropriate vaccines (additional information below)
- Heartworm prevention recommendations
- Recommendations for controlling and preventing external parasite such as flea and ticks
- Behavior and housetraining recommendations
- Nutritional counseling
For your first puppy/kitten visit with us, we request that you bring all paperwork you have received pertaining to the previous care of your pet including all previous immunizations, deworming, medications and any veterinary medical records. For puppies, please also bring a fresh (the day of the visit) fecal sample.
The following are signs that your puppy or kitten needs immediate care. If your puppy exhibits any of these signs, please give us a call as soon as possible:
- Any respiratory problem: coughing, trouble breathing or near drowning
- Any signs of pain: panting, labored breathing, increased body temperature, lethargy, restlessness or loss of appetite
- Bleeding you cannot stop
- Persistent vomiting or diarrhea
- Blood in urine or feces
- Unconsciousness or lethargy
- Staggering or seizures
- Any wound or laceration that’s open and bleeding, or any animal bite
- Allergic reactions, such as swelling around the face, or hives, most easily seen on the belly
- Any eye injury, no matter how mild
- Any suspected poisoning, including ingestion of antifreeze, rodent or snail bait, or human medication
- Signs that your pet has swallowed something poisonous such as mouth irritation, drooling, vomiting, seizures, or fever
- Seizure, fainting, or collapse
- Thermal Stress, either too cold or too hot, even if the pet seems to have recovered
- Trauma, such as being hit by a car, even if the pet seems fine
- Straining in the litter box with no results
- Signs of pain, such as swelling or inability to use his/her leg
Vaccination: Puppies and kittens receive a series of vaccinations usually starting around 8 weeks of age. The reason that a series is necessary is that puppies and kittens get antibodies from their mother that wear off over time. With any vaccination be observant for signs of an allergic reaction to the vaccines demonstrated by vomiting, facial swelling, hives, or extreme lethargy. If you see any of these signs bring your pet in for evaluation. If our hospital is closed please contact the emergency clinic.
Heartworm Control: Heartworm disease is a 100% preventable condition. We recommend oral heartworm control for all pets beginning at 8 weeks of age. Yearly testing for heartworm is also recommended even with monthly preventative. Please ask if you would like additional information on heartworm disease.
Flea Control: Flea control is important. Aside from creating itchy bites, fleas also can transmit diseases and parasites (tapeworms) to your pet. For puppies and kittens too young for oral or topical flea control, the safest method to remove fleas is flea combing. Before applying any flea product, be sure that your puppy is older than the minimum age stated on the label of the product. Please ask if you would like additional information on flea control.
Fecal Examination/ Deworming: We recommend bringing a fecal sample to check for intestinal parasites on your first puppy or kitten visit. Puppies and kittens may be born with roundworms that they acquire from their mother while either still in utereo or while nursing. Roundworms are transmissible to humans. A fecal examination can also reveal infections with coccidia, giardia, hookworms and other less common intestinal parasites and may require different dewormers. We deworm puppies at 2, 4, 6, and 8 weeks of age, at which time they are started on monthly prevention.
