Frequently Asked Questions

We prefer clients to ring ahead prior to arrival and make an appointment. Our consultation hours are 8.00-10.40am and 3.00-6.00pm Monday to Friday and 8.00am-1.00pm Saturdays. Emergencies are seen immediately anytime.

If you cannot make it during these times, please speak to our front desk and we will arrange an alternative time.

Of course if you have an emergency and are unable to ring us first, please come into our clinic immediately.

We perform all our surgeries Monday through to Friday. Once your pet is booked in with our clinic, please drop them off between 8.00am and 8.30am the morning of the procedure. If you have school drop off, let us know and we will organise a more suitable time.

As your dog or cat will be having a general anesthetic, they should be fasted overnight (from 7pm). It is fine to let them drink water overnight (until 6am).

We will contact you once we have completed the procedure and usually then arrange discharge between 3.00-5.30pm.

There are several important reasons for desexing your pet:

• As veterinarians, we would like to prevent the euthanasia of unwanted dogs and cats. It seems unbelievable, but in Australia, 24/7, one dog or cat is destroyed every 2-3 minutes because nobody wants them. By preventing unplanned litters, it is our aim to minimize the euthanasia of healthy animals.
• Your dog or cat will be a better pet as a de-sexed animal. Desexing will minimize the likelihood of your pet running away, being aggressive and inappropriate behavior (urine marking, inappropriate sniffing and mounting behavior)
• There are a range of diseases that pets are at greater risk of developing if not de-sexed. Examples of some diseases include prostate and testicular disease in males, and mammary tumors and pyometras in females. Our pets usually live longer and have less visits to the vet as de-sexed animals.

We recommend yearly vaccination for your dog or cat.

We use a C5 vaccine for dogs, which inoculates against Parvovirus, Distemper, Hepatitis, Parainfluenza and Bordetella.

Please be aware that if you dog receives a tri-annual vaccine, you still need to do the Bordetella and Parainfluenza components yearly. Also yearly health checks are a good idea as our pets age much faster than we do

In cats, we use a F3 vaccination, which inoculates against Calicivirus, Panleucopaenia and feline Herpes virus.

If your dog or cat is more than six months old, they should be wormed for intestinal worms every three months.

For puppies and kittens, we recommend worming with an appropriate product fortnightly until twelve weeks of age.

From twelve weeks of age, they should be wormed monthly until six months of age.

Please note: It is important to use a good quality worming product; these can be bought over the counter at our veterinary clinic.

Fleas can be controlled with the monthly use of any good quality flea product. The important points to remember with flea control are:

• Use a good quality product. These can be bought over the counter at our veterinary clinic and come with free advice from our trained staff.
• Apply correctly; follow the instructions. Our staff are only too happy to show you how to do this correctly. Please do not hesitate to ring us should you require more information.
• Consistency. If you miss treatments, this will allow the continuity of the flea life cycle and result in poor flea control.
• All animals (dogs and cats) at home must be treated.
• Washing animal bedding in a hot washing machine cycle, or alternatively, disposing of old bedding can help to speed up flea control.

There are two main differences between these foods:

• Dogs and cats should have a food that is consistently high in quality animal protein. The foods found in our veterinary clinic derive their protein from what you and I recognize as edible animal protein – meat in other words. The cheaper “supermarket type” foods, unbelievable as it seems, usually do not have any meat in their product, and instead derive their protein content from grains (cereal grains). Often the inclusion of one type of grain over another is based on price, so consistency varies greatly. Grain also has poor digestibility, and approximately only half of the stated protein of a grain based food is digestible to your pet. Some foods may bolster protein levels with the addition of chicken by product meal, which may include bones, offal and feathers. This product is significantly cheaper than meat, consistency varies between batches and it lacks the digestibility of meat.
• The manufacturers of the foods you find in a veterinary clinic publish a huge amount of research. These exhaustive tests ensure the optimal type and quantity of ingredients in their food, leading to better health for your pet.

For after hours care, we recommend the services of AES (Animal Emergency Services).

They are located at 104 Eastlake Street, Carrara (Phone: 07 55591599) only 10-15 minutes from our clinic.

Please see our “Links” tab for more information.