Newsletter Winter 2013

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SEPTEMBER-D ECEMBER
201 3
N E W S L E T T E R!
Ashlea Veterinary Centre
WHAT IS AN EMERGENCY?
As a practice we have always believed that we should be
there should your pet need us in an emergency; and so
our vets and nurses provide in-house emergency cover
for our clients 24/7, 365 days a year. But given that
out-of-hours calls are unavoidably expensive, what
actually constitutes an emergency? This list can never
be definitive - but the following symptoms would
certainly cause our vets concern:
Protracted vomiting and diarrhoea - most stomach upsets are transient and will
resolve within 24 hours.
Vomiting and diarrhoea involving the loss of significant amounts of fresh blood.
Sudden abdominal swelling - the abdomen becomes tense, like a drum, a gassy
‘bloat’ accompanied by unsuccessful attempts to vomit.
Open traumatic wounds that tend to gape open as the animal moves or which
continue to bleed significantly.
Painful, closed eyes, especially if there is evidence of a wound to the eyelids.
Difficulty in breathing - with slow, exaggerated, strained breathing movements.
Breathlessness - rapid shallow breathing accompanied by dark ‘blueish’ gums.
Collapse - animals showing impaired consciousness and an inability to stand.
Urinary obstruction - a dog or cat is constantly trying, but failing, to pass urine
Prolonged seizures (> than 3-4 minutes) or seizures which are occurring in
multiple ‘clusters’.
An animal in labour which has been straining to deliver a
puppy or kitten for more than an hour without success.
Bitches heavily in milk which have become over-excited and
‘twitchy’
The vast majority of emergencies will be best seen at the
practice where our vet can have immediate access to all the
necessary supportive equipment. But please don’t be scared
to contact us - sometimes all you will need is some
reassuring advice over the phone!
Below are some xrays and a photo of the lovely Phoenix, who tore the cruciate
ligament in her stifle or knee. On of our vets, Chris, has recently learned to perform a new
technique called Modified Maquet Produre (MMP). This is where a titanium wedge implant
is inserted in to a cut made in the bone. This moves part of the bone to a place where the
joint is more stable. Four months on from her operation Phoenix is doing brilliantly.
Ashlea Vet Centre Ltd
Unit 2b
Port Road Business Park
Carlisle
CA2 7AF
Tel: 01228 549177
www.ashleavets.co.uk
www.facebook.com/ashleavets
Surgery Times
Mon, Tues & Thurs
9am - 6.30pm
Wed & Fri
9- 6pm
Saturday
9am - 3pm
Consultation by appointment only
For emergency advice or attention
beyond these hours phone the
practice on 01228 549177 and
listen to the message for the duty
vets number
Veterinary Surgeons
Chris Barker MRCVS
Kirsty Barker MRCVS
Morag Liddon MRCVS
Laura Askew MRCVS
Receptionists
Christine Coulthard
Karen Steele
Nurses
Rowena Batey RVN
Katy Clarke RVN
Rachael Scholes RVN
Lauren Batey RVN
Student Nurses
Ruth Asquith
Hannah Mason
Felicity Clegg
Lauren Bowe
Practice cat
‘Abby’
FEMUR
PATELLA
TIBIA
THIS IS PHOENIX’S XRAY TAKEN BEFORE THE
OPERATION THAT VET CHRIS USED TO WORK
OUT THE SIZE OF IMPLANT NEEDED
TITANIUM
IMPLANT
THIS IS PHOENIX’S KNEE AFTER THE
SUCCESSFUL OPERATION. THE IMPLANT IS
SECURELY IN PLACE.
THE LOVELY PHOENIX BACK TO FULL STRENGTH
(AND BOUNCE AND LOVELINESS!)
TRAINING TO BE A VETERINARY NURSE
FIREWORK PHOBIAS
In our last newsletter we looked at a day in the life of our head
nurse, Rowena. We often have people asking us what they
would have to do to become a qualified Veterinary Nurse
(RVN). There are fewer routes now available for people
already employed by veterinary practices to enter nurse
training; most veterinary nurses now graduate from degree
courses (or their equivalent ) run by Colleges such as
Myerscough, Newton Rigg, SRUC Barony Campus, Harper
Adams or Edinburgh University.
Nursing students will receive lectures and tutorials at their college/
university but will supplement their practical experience with block or day
release placements in training practices. Their placements are based on a
minimum of a 35 hour week, working on a voluntary basis alongside qualified
vets and nurses.
While some of our animals are happy to join in the
celebrations of Bonfire Night, Christmas and New Year,
for some it is a terrifying time. Noise phobias are not
uncommon and there are lots of things you can do to help
your pet. We recommend you make an free appointment
with one of our qualified nurses for some advice.
In the past the only option was to sedate your
pet; while this is sometimes the only
option for severe noise phobias there
are several alternative approaches.
There are calming
pheromone-based
products called Adaptil and
are happy to advise which would be
the best option for you and your pet and how to use the
products. There are anti-anxiety drugs called Zylkene
and Calmex which don’t have any sedative effects but
lower your pet’s anxiety levels. All
these can be used during Bonfire
Night and other celebrations but
can also be used as part of a dog
behaviour re-training
programme. It is definitely worth
committing time to try to re-train your dog
as this is the longest lasting and
best solution for all involved.
Our nurse can explain how to go
about doing this and provide you
with a free training CD. Cats can be helped by keeping
them indoors and having a safe place to hide in as well as
using Feliway and Zylkene.
had problems with fireworks our nurses are
always happy to advise you on ways of ensuring
that a noise phobia never develops!
All student nurses working at Ashlea Vets are
constantly supported and supervised by our
qualified staff. While this represents a
considerable investment in time and resources by
the Centre, we are proud to be a registered training
practice contributing to the education of a new generation of veterinary nurses.
Visit http://www.rcvs.org.uk/education/i-want-to-be-a-veterinary-nurse/ for
further information
BE AWARE OF ANTIFREEZE POISONING THIS WINTER
Feliway, with plug-in diffusers and
sprays, and for dogs, collars
activated by body heat. Our nurses
Planning ahead is key, so make an appointment now.
And if you have a dog or cat who has never
As they progress through their course, students will have College/University
examinations to pass alongside the completion of a Nursing Progress Log
(NPL), which is a log of cases seen and practical skills
acquired. The NPL is used to demonstrate
competence in a range of practical skills and has to be
approved by a practice’s qualified clinical coaches.
A major concern over the winter is antifreeze poisoning. Unfortunately many
animals, especially cats, find the taste of antifreeze very attractive, and ingesting
even the smallest amount can lead to kidney failure and death.
Accidental poisonings due to spillage from containers, or from coolant leaking
from car engines, happen every year and can result in the death of pets.
However if people regularly check their car for leaks and take care when
storing, using and disposing of antifreeze and coolant from cars, most accidental
poisonings can be avoided.
• Keep antifreeze in clearly labelled,
robust and sealed containers, away
from pets and their environment
• Clean up any spills immediately, no
matter how small, and make sure pets
cannot access the area until it’s clean
and safe.
• Dispose of antifreeze and water
coolant safely and responsibly.
However there will be times, no
matter how careful you are, when
accidents still happen. If you suspect
that your pet has come into contact with antifreeze or leaked coolant then
immediate veterinary attention is required.
Should pets show any combination of the following signs owners should
contact us immediately:
Vomiting; Seeming to be depressed or sleepy; Appearing drunk and
uncoordinated; Seizures (fits); Difficulty in breathing; Increased thirst;
Increased urination.
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REMEMBER REMEMBER YOUR PETS THIS NOVEMBER!!
MY TH
Signs of antifreeze poisoning can start to show as early
as 30 minutes after ingestion, though it can be two or
three days before the signs of kidney failure are seen.
The sooner your pet receives veterinary
treatment, the better their chances of survival.
Untreated, antifreeze poisoning can cause animals pain,
suffering and distress, and will lead to the inevitable death
of your pet.
ABBY’S VIEWPOINT
Thank you so much for your support of our charity events this
year. Our charities for 2013 have been Comic Relief, Hounds
for Heroes, Cumbria Cerebral Palsy, and International China
Concern. So far we have raised £1409.87 and received
some lovely letters thanking us for the
money we have distributed.
So far this year we have had a cake and marmalade sale
Comic relief fun
for Comic Relief where we raised £340, and with the
the practice donating £1 for every transaction on Red
Nose Day the total raised came an impressive £400.
The Ashlea Vet Quiz took place on the 24th March and we
raised a huge £730. A great time was had by all, as 26 teams
competed for the title; many gifts were generously donated to
If you haven’t been introduced to
Abby yet, she is the feisty but
adorable tortoiseshell cat we have
adopted as our practice cat.
Affectionately known as ‘Scabs’
due to her ongoing skin problems
she was brought in as a stray in
September 2012. She also has
severe tendon damage in her
back legs but happily licks her
Metacam from the end of syringe
each day to ensure she can get
about pain-free! She definitely
thinks she’s in charge of things
round here so we’ve decided to
let her have her own column to let you know
what going on in the practice...
“Hello again! So what has been happening
round here since my last column? I’ve been
trying to do a lot of thinking about it but keep
falling asleep in the staff room - I can’t
understand why I’m the only one to take
The winning team
regular day time naps round here. The rest
of the staff should stop working so hard and join me Despite the heat outside, our Cake Bake from the
in their own bed of course, I don’t want to share mine!
3rd -15th June was a great success as raising £250
the raffle. The winning team was the interestingly named
‘Richard Gere’s Hamster’. Thank you to all who took part! We
were delighted to be able to send
£500 to Hounds for Heroes
Some of our
yummy cakes
which we passed on to Cumbria
Cerebral Palsy.
In August Kirsty and son Andrew completed
Total Warrior. It’s known as the toughest
10km race with 25 punishing obstacles. They
were part of a team raising money for
International China Concern and it was great to
have your encouragement and your sponsorship.
We were able to send £350 to International
China Concern while the team as a whole
Total Warrior
raised a total of £1500.
We would love to hear any suggestions for
fundraising ideas and for charities we could
support this year and beyond.
It is humbling to realise that we’ve raised £11432.87 in
the last 10 years. So thank you, and well done; it’s only because of your
generous donations that it’s been possible.
BRUNO IS FAMOUS!!
We couldn’t miss the opportunity to
tell you about one of our lovely pets
being painted in the underpasses
leading from Hardwicke Circus to Bitts
Park and the Sands Centre as part of
a
Bruno painted in the mural
initiative
from Carlisle Council with the help of
40 volunteers. Bruno was chosen to go
on the wall and we think he looks
great. He is a lovely little dog and it is
nice to recognise that pets are an
important part of life for so many of us
Bruno playing in the
in Carlisle - do go and have a look!
mud at home
I think the main news is that I got microchipped
recently! I don’t really understand why everyone was
making such a big fuss. They were giving me so many
cuddles (which I wasn’t too impressed about) that I
was expecting something really bad, but then apart
from a slight sting on the back of my neck it was all
fine - don’t understand why I didn’t get this done
earlier especially as now it means I can go for little
walks outside! I only really like going out when it’s
sunny and someone has to come with me - I try to
pretend they’re not there - but my legs are too weak to
get out of the way of a car so I am secretly grateful
that they try to look after me.
The people round here seems to still be keeping
themselves busy decorating. I do like things to look
nice but it seems a lot of effort. The consultation
rooms have been painted and then two of my friends
came in on their days off to take the old furniture out
and put new units in. It does look good and they’ve
got some nice photos on the wall - not sure why they
didn’t get a huge photo of me but maybe these one
are just temporary while they wait for a photographer
to come in to take my photos.
I am waiting at the
moment for the
new Christmas
toys to come in. I
love inspecting all
the toys and
choosing my
favourite. I would
love something
tasty but
apparently I’m not
allowed any because
I have to stay on
special diet for my
skin - the things I
Relaxing in the staff room!
have to do to look
this fabulous! Bye
for now - if you are visiting the practice I’ll wander
round to say hello!
MAX AND HIS FUNNY BONES!
The very cute and
adorable Max
We first met the lovely Max
in November 2012 when he was
just 9 weeks old. He had a bit of
a cough and a upset tummy in
his first few weeks but once
these had cleared he had his
primary vaccinations to give him
the best start to life and was
doing really well.
At the end of January
Extra bone
2013 his owners brought
Max into the surgery as
he was screaming when
they touched his head.
When we examined him
he was in obvious pain
whenever we tried to
open his mouth or when
Xray of Max’s skull
we touched him around
his temporo-mandibular joint (TMJ). Also we noticed
that his skull seemed to bulge slightly at the top of his
head. We gave him some pain
relief but told his owners that
we wanted to xray his skull to
check our suspicion that Max had
a condition called craniomandibular osteopathy. This
condition is often seen in young
West Highland White Terriers and
Extra bone
involves excessive bone growth
around the head and jaw. Max
A more typical appearance
of Max’s condition with
improved on the pain relief and
extra bone at the TMJ joint. our xrays did indeed show extra
bone along the top of his skull
which confirmed our diagnosis. Normally with this
disease the extra bone is seen round the TMJ (as seen
on the xray above) but Max was determined to be
different! Given adequate pain relief the condition will
resolve naturally as the dog gets older. Another month
passed, uneventfully, and when we checked on how Max
was doing all seemed fine except for those times of
puppy madness when he would get over-excited and
bump his head into the furniture!
So all was going well until March 2013 when Max’s
owners brought him back in - he had jumped off the
sofa the night before, yelped, and not put his right hind
leg down since. He was very sore when we examined
him, especially around his stifle (knee) joint. There were
no obvious fractures, but our
vet was concerned about a
tibial crest avulsion, a
common injury in young dogs
with bones that are still
growing. Once again the
Growth
xrays confirmed our diagnosis
plates
as well as showing a
greenstick fracture through
An xray of Max’s healthy
the caudal tibia. We
left stifle joint
recommended strict cage rest
to allow the avulsion site to heal without the need for
surgery. The pain relief Max was already using for his
jaw and head would help his leg equally well!
A month later we checked his leg and although his
muscles were skinnier on his injured leg (because he
hadn’t been using it as much) his knee joint seemed a
lot more stable. We told his
owner to start increasing his
The tibial
crest has
exercise, letting him go on very
moved
short walks, gradually
increasing the distance as long
as his leg coped ok. Max
came in to be castrated shortly
after this, so we took the
opportunity to do a thorough
examination of his leg while he
was under anaesthetic. We
An xray of Max’s right leg
could feel an obvious callus
with gaps around his tibial
crest which has avulsed. forming (a rough bit of new
bone that completes the
healing process) but reassured his owners that this
would slim down once the healing was complete.
In June Max came for a check up his head felt almost normal and
there was no obvious pain when we
touched and moved it. We told his
owner that it was time to see if he
could manage without his pain
relief and he’s since been doing
great. He’s a cute as ever and has
certainly found a soft spot for all
the staff here!
New bone or callus
Max’s leg a month after the
Even better for Max’s owners is
original injury - it is healing
that because they joined Max onto
well with new bone filling in
our in-house healthcare scheme where the gap was.
Healthcare Plus - they paid just
one consultation fee of £23.40 for his head problem and
another for his leg. All the investigations, check-ups,
xrays and treatments have since been covered by the
scheme - saving them a total of £502.53
10% off all routine neutering
Bring this voucher in to get 10% off dog, cat and rabbit castration and dog, cat and rabbit spays.
This offer excludes Dog Trust neutering, and is valid from Sept-Dec 2013 inclusive.
Ask at reception or phone for more information or to discuss the benefits of neutering your pet.
AS H LE A V ET C E NT R E