Posts Tagged: Pet Care

It is the goal of every pet lover to keep their beloved furry friend happy and healthy. We advocate that here at Arlington Animal Hospital, and a big part of keeping your animal healthy is proactive pet wellness care. Learn how important preventive pet care can be. 

The holidays are all about giving, and our waistlines are the visual receipt. If your pants seem to be a bit tighter than last month, there’s a good reason. Chocolates, pies, cookies, boozy drinks, and fatty meats are to blame for human holiday pounds, but how can we account for weight gain in pets? It has to do with making time for regular pet exercise opportunities, every single day. 

Pet dental health is so vital to overall wellness that it actually gets an entire month dedicated to it. Yes, February marks National Pet Dental Health Month, a fact we couldn’t be happier about!

While many pet owners simply shrug off stinky dog or cat breath as a part of life, we can assure you that it’s actually a red flag that something is amiss in the mouth. If left alone, a variety of problems could develop, threatening your pet’s health.

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It may not be a name that rolls off of the tongue, or one that is as common as parvo; however, Leptospirosis  (‘lepto’) is on the rise and is one of the more serious offenders when to comes to contagious illnesses in our pets. In cities across the United States, we have seen a steady increase in the number of lepto cases, including in the Arlington area.

The Arlington team wants you to better understand leptospirosis in dogs, what lepto is about, the signs of infection, and what you can do to prevent this serious disease.

Lepto 411

Leptospirosis is caused by the Leptospira bacteria, which is a spiral organism known as spirochetes, and is shed through infected animals (via water, soil, or direct contact). While dogs who spend time in outdoor or rural areas are more at risk, we are now finding an increasing prevalence of lepto in urban areas, too. This is due to several reasons, including an increase in infected rodents and other small mammals that spread leptospirosis in areas where pets play.

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There’s nothing quite like a confident, well-behaved, and happy dog. Their enthusiastic tail-wagging can bring a smile to every dog lover. But dogs do not just innately know how to behave, how to play well with others, and how to be a good canine citizen in a very big world. All dogs need training and socialization to set them off on the right paw.

Training is more than just a few basic commands (although these are essential); it is your pet’s form of lifelong education, instilling the confidence and understanding needed to have a healthy life. Learn more about why we at Arlington Animal Hospital encourage all dog owners to put importance on training and socialization – the keys to your pet’s lifetime well-being!

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What’s more fun than a summer getaway? Why, bringing your best furry friend along, too! In fact, many pet owners choose to take their pets on journeys near and far, especially during the summer months when vacation season is in full swing.

But as you might expect, bringing an animal companion on a trip, whether by car or plane, requires some forethought, planning, and safety measures. Arlington Animal Hospital has you covered with our list of pet travel tips for your upcoming adventures.

Pet Travel Tips for Safety AND Adventure

Before you pack your bags and head out, the first stop with any trip involving your pet is to ensure their readiness for the trip. This means making sure your pet is in good health, is on the right vaccines and parasite preventatives for the destination, and is generally able to deal with the stress of new places, smells, and experiences.

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Veterinary acupuncture, or pet acupuncture, is an incredible noninvasive therapeutic modality that complements existing treatment options. For several centuries, acupuncture was practiced throughout the Far East as a component of Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) and has more recently been embraced by Western medicine.

Like acupuncture for humans, pet acupuncture is used in a variety of ways, most significantly to alleviate pain, encourage healing, and promote greater well being.

Defining Veterinary Acupuncture as a New Therapy

While it may sound esoteric, acupuncture relies on the understanding of the body as comprised of energy pathways or meridians, which include nerve bundles, blood vessels, and tissue. Through the use of very fine needles placed strategically into the top dermal layer, acupuncture works by stimulating the body’s natural healing and pain relief responses.

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In this world of increasingly grey areas, one thing is absolute: children adore animals. There’s nothing simpler or more meaningful than the bond between a pet and his or her young master/mistress/guardian/playmate/partner in crime.

That being said, many dynamic duos need a little help to make sure everyone remains safe. Wondering how to make the world of children and pet safety easier on the whole family? Arlington Animal Hospital is here to help!

The Cart Before the Horse

Welcoming an animal into your home has unlimited benefits. Pets tap into your child’s potential for learning trust, respect, compassion, empathy, and caring.  They can even boost his or her self-esteem. However, your child must be patient, understanding, and accommodating to the myriad needs of a new pet.

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