wellness recommendations for dogs

Comprehensive Physical Exam and Consultation	47
The physical exam is the most important part of annual wellness care for pets. This process includes weighing your pet, assigning a Body Condition Score, pain scoring and completing a comprehensive 12 system exam. We will also address any behavior changes and discuss any issues you have noted since the last examination.

Vaccinations

17-25 each

Although vaccines are not recommended annually, thay are still an important part of wellness care to prevent disease. We tailor vaccine protocols to meet the individual needs of each patient based on their age, medical condition and lifestyle.

DAP: Core vaccination is recommended for all dogs including Distemper, Adenovirus (Hepatitis) and Parvo virus. We use a 3 year FDA approved vaccine.

Rabies: This vaccination protects against a life threatening incurable disease that is transmissible to humans and it is legally required that all dogs stay current on this vaccine. In May 2008, a rabid bat was found in a home in SE Portland - so the risk for exposure is real. We use a 3-year vaccine.

Bordetella: This vaccination is recommended for all social dogs that attend doggie day care or dog parks, receive regular grooming or are boarded. Bordetella is an intranasal vaccine that is given as drops placed in one nostril and protects against kennel cough. We also carry an injectable form for dogs that are averse to the intranasal administration.

Leptospirosis: This vaccination protects against a bacterium that is spread through exposure to wildlife urine in water. The disease can be contracted by drinking, running through or exposure to infected water. This non-core vaccination is recommended for any dog that has wildlife exposure in their backyards, swimmers, dogs that hike or camp and those that go to the beach (where it is spread by sealions).

Annual Deworming	15-45
The CDC (Center for Disease Control) and CAPC (Companion Animal Parasite Control Council) recommend annual deworming of all pets to protect people. We recommend annual deworming to protect pets and their people. We use a medication called Drontal Plus which treats roundworms, hookworms, whipworms and tapeworms.

Intestinal Parasite Screening	25
Annual fecal testing is recommended for all dogs to check for internal parasites, although we deworm annually it is important to know if parasites are present (for follow up treatment) and to ensure that your dog does not have Giardia or Coccidia, two parasites our dewormer does not cover.

Annual Heartworm Testing

Heartworm is a preventable disease is caused by a parasite spread by mosquitoes. We, along with the American Heartworm Association, recommend heartworm testing dogs annually. We are very lucky to be in a non-endemic heartworm area but the disease has moved into Southern Oregon and there are more dogs diagnosed yearly with heartworm disease in our area that have never traveled to endemic regions. In 2007 there were a total of 11 dogs in Oregon that were heartworm positive. We also recommend that dogs on monthly preventative receive annual testing to complete the requirements for the guarantee on the preventative and to ensure that there have been no breaks in treatment leading to exposure.

Annual Blood Testing

young adult   60
young adult (with fecal testing)   70
young adult (with fecal and heartworm testing)   85
mature 108

Annual blood testing is recommended for all dogs to ensure that they are as healthy on the inside as they appear during their physical examination. For young adult dogs this blood testing is often normal and serves as baseline testing. As dogs mature we can recognize changes in lab values that help us to intervene early for prevention rather than waiting for crisis treatment when they are ill from their condition.

Flea and Heartworm Prevention

varies

We recommend year round flea and heartworm prevention for all dogs. We offer a variety of options for dogs and individualize recommendations based on each patient's lifestyle and desires of their family. All flea and heartworm medications we carry are FDA approved medications (and not EPA approved pesticides).

Our favorite topical product is the "spot on" Revolution. It is a topically applied systemic product absorbed quickly (within 2 hours). It is a flea preventative for all lifestages of fleas, is a monthly dewormer, and is a heartworm preventative.

For those who prefer an oral product for their dogs we have a few to choose from. Sentinel is an oral monthly heartworm prevention, dewormer, and flea birthcontrol. Interceptor is also an oral monthly heartworm prevention and dewormer but has no flea control.

Comfortis is a new oral adult flea preventative that lasts for 30 days. It contains the same ingredient that is used in organic farming for pest control.