Small Animal Services
Vaccinations
Vet in the Valley offers a full range of preventative medicine, including vaccinations. As apart of your animals vaccinations, a full health check is completed. This is a great time to talk to our veterinarians about any health concerns or issues you have with your pet. Dogs are vaccinated against three main diseases – parvovirus, hepatitis and distemper, and additional vaccines are for kennel cough, which is bordatella and parainfluenza.
Cats are vaccinated against a standard panleukopenia, herpes virus and calicivirus.
Microchipping
It is a general requirement that all dogs over the age of 6 months, and all cats that are re-homed or sold are microchipped. Microchipping is then insertion of a small chip, that contains a unique number. The number is entered into a national database and is directly correlated with you and your pet.
Arthritis
Osteoarthritis is a significant cause of reduced quality of life for our older pets. Arthritis is the wear and tear of joints and cartilage within the joints; hence we see it in older animals. Occasionally due to confirmation issues, or trauma we can see it in younger animals. Vet in the Valley can help customise a treatment plan for your animal to maximise their quality of life and slow any deterioration.
Anxiety
We live in a loud world, and it’s only fair that some pets are a little nervous about it! Anxiety in animals is becoming more and more recognised, and we are becoming better at helping those animals that need it. Please have a chat to our veterinarians about environmental enrichments and medications that can help your pet.
Geriatric Health Checks
Both cats and dogs have disease processes that will reduce their quality of life if early detection isn’t done. Vet in the Valley can complete a full health check, which may include blood tests to screen for all the common diseases, all in the comfort of your own home.
Ultrasound
Ultrasound technology uses sound waves to produce images of internal structures with the use of a hand held probe. Structures inside the body with different densities i.e. tendons, bone, fluid and ligaments reflect some sound waves back to the probe. These reflections are used to create a digital image of the structures being scanned. Bone appears white, fluid appears black, and most other structures show up in a grey scale.
Pathology
Vet in the Valley has fast reliable access to a full range of small animal pathology tests. This includes blood tests, biopsies, cytology, and bacterial cultures. Our veterinarians are able to collect relevant samples and either submit these to the local laboratory or perform in-house testing. Sample turn-around times are generally quite rapid, with blood results often the next day.
At home Euthanasia
Vet in the Valley will be there with empathy and compassion when you have to make this hard decision for your pet. We understand the potential difficulty of the decision and can help guide you into making the correct one for your family member. Ultimately, if euthanasia is required, then doing it in a home setting is much more relaxed and comfortable. We talk you through the process, step-by-step and we aim to make it as stress free as possible. We work in conjunction with Pets At Rest Cremation, and can organise that if required. Alternative arrangements can be made on request.
Afterhours Service
Unfortunately as Vet in the Valley is predominately ambulatory, we do not have the facilities to hospitalise animals. Therefore we DO NOT offer afterhours services for small animals.
Please contact AES on 1300 302 912