issue making great health care easy

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1 issue 34 making great health care easy e life of A day in th red rse e t s i g e R A rinary Nu Vete Save & keep money healthy your pets &h with ou appy r spe season cial al offer s

2 Welcome to the latest issue of Paws - Ark House Vets quarterly magazine Now that spring is on the way and the weather is finally warming up we re starting to see an increase in flea activity. We always recommend maintaining a regular regime of flea treatment with all your pets, and the good news is that once again throughout April we re offering 25% off all flea treatments. You might also like to know that members of our Paws Club receive all recommended parasite treatments free, so if your cat, dog or rabbit isn t already a member, you re missing out! Find out more at Friends of Ark House Vets will be only too familiar with our amazing team of nurses, who do a fantastic job providing excellent care for you and your pets. There s so much variety and responsibility as a nurse, and so we thought you might like to see what a typical day in the life of an RVN looks like - we think you ll be surprised at just how much they do! Our Vets, Veterinary Nurses and customer care teams provide a professional and friendly service, with the welfare of your pet our top priority. We all have pets, and so we understand the highs and lows of owning a pet, that s why we work hard to provide comprehensive care and a superior service that offers real value for money. If you re not already a member of our Paws Club, why not check out the many benefits on page 7 - you could save as much as 70 each year on his / her preventative health care! We hope to see you very soon, either in the practice or on our Facebook page, With very best wishes from Kate Semple and the Ark House Vets team Here for you, whenever you need us We continue to work hard to ensure that we are able to see your pet quickly when needed, so we offer long opening hours and a comprehensive emergency service. Our opening hours are currently: 8.00am pm Monday to Friday & 8.30am pm on Saturdays, whilst our emergency service operates 24 hours a day, 365 days a year 2

3 Practice Mews Once again, there s a lot to tell you: Becca We re really pleased to report that this lucky mum and all four of her kittens, recently rescued by team members from under the floor of a neighbouring business, have each got lovely new furever homes. Thanks so much for all the kind comments and support our team received. Congratulations to Student Vet Nurse Becca who passed her Part 2 exams with the highest mark in her year. What an amazing achievement we are all so proud of you! The Ark House team never stop learning - in recent weeks they have been brushing up on knowledge and skills in nutrition, behaviour, heart disease and Rescue Team intestinal disease. Vet Jo also attended the British Small Animal Veterinary Congress for a full three days of learning. Katie It s Katie s Final Term (our Nursing degree student), she will soon be heading back to university after a year spent here on placement we wish her lots of luck in the future. EMERGENCY SERVICE Because we use dedicated emergency services to give your pet the best care when we re not open we are able to provide emergency clinics in 4 locations to suit your needs. In an emergency call our normal number You will be given a choice of four clinics who can help. We will connect your call to them directly. Vets Now Milton Keynes, Vets Now Luton, Beds Vets Barton, Vets Now Hemel Hempstead All of these clinics through any notes to us at 7am each morning so we will always know what may have happened if you need to visit them. 3

4 At Ark House we re here to help at every stage of your pet s life, and we know that in the early days you might need a little more help and advice than usual! FREE health checks - Is your puppy, kitten or rabbit less than 8 weeks old? They might be too young for his or her vaccinations, but we d love to see them anyway! Bring your newest family member along for a FREE veterinary health check and plenty of advice our friendly team are always on hand with handy tips to help settle your new pet into the family and keep them happy and healthy! Simply call reception on to arrange a convenient time to drop by. Online advice You ll find lots of help and advice for your new pet on our website, You can download a simple check list with tips, ideas and a list of key health care needs for your new bundle of joy! Also see details of our FIRST STEPS packages on page 9, we can help you to get your furry friend on the right track, right at the beginning, and will save you money in the process! 4

5 A day in the life of a Registered Veterinary Nurse As a progressive practice, committed to delivering high quality care for our clients and their pets, Ark House Vets has an experienced team of vets and nurses with complementary skills and areas of interests. We are proud to be a Veterinary Nurse Training Practice, which means that we are accredited by the Royal College of Veterinary Surgeons to coach and develop nurses as they progress towards full registration as an RVN. Our RVN team wear a dark green uniform, whereas student Veterinary Nurses in training are identifiable by their pale green striped tunics. You will have seen our fabulous nurses working across the practice, and whilst there s no such thing as an average day in veterinary practice, we thought we d give you an idea of all the things your RVNs do in a day: 8am Arrive at Ark House and help clerk in all the pets arriving for procedures today. Some are a little nervous so I make sure I ve got extra cuddles for them! 9am The operating list for the day starts, and I am assisting the vet with two spays and an emergency procedure for a cat that has had a road accident. I assist the vet in monitoring the animals during anaesthesia, to ensure there are no adverse effects or sudden changes. 11am It s time for Puppy Playgroup - one of the most enjoyable times of the week with all those cute bundles of fun to squeeze! Midday Grab a quick sandwich whilst collecting all the paperwork for this afternoon s clinic. 1pm Ward rounds with vets and other nurses - sharing information about our inpatients, assessing and planning their ongoing care. 2pm Today in a dental clinic there are several patients in for routine checks. I show one owner how to clean her cat s teeth at home and talk to another about the role that diet plays in good oral care. At Ark House the nurses run a number of clinics through the week, including juniors, seniors, dental, diabetic, kidney and weight watcher clinics. 4pm An hour of appointments for patients needing nail clips and post-op checks. 5pm Time to start discharging the day s in-patients. Spend time with the owner whose cat had his emergency operation today, reassuring her and discussing aftercare arrangements. This is one of the most rewarding parts of the job, seeing animals that have come to us in pain returning home feeling brighter and doing well. Help the other nurses and animal care assistants clean down the kennels and file all the paperwork for today s cases. 5.30pm Head home, tired but happy and looking forward to doing it all again tomorrow! You can meet all our RVNs and student nurses online at 5

6 making great health care easy Here at Ark House Vets, our aim is always to provide the best possible care for your pets, and a friendly, professional service for you. We understand that juggling work and family commitments, alongside budgeting for all the many demands on the household purse can be challenging, so we always try to make things as easy as possible when it comes to taking care of the pets in your life. Two great examples of this pledge in action are: Online booking Did you know that you can now book many appointments online through our live booking system at Here s how it works: You can book separate appointments for up to three pets at a time. First Puppy and Kitten vaccines (20 minutes) can be booked online. If you are booking an appointment for a new adult pet or are new to us we would like to see you for a longer appointment. Please either call our friendly team on or book two adjacent appointments. Prescription checks can be booked online. If your pet is due a blood test, please choose the WITH BLOOD TEST option as this will book you a longer appointment. Longer appointments (such as Seniors, Juniors, Arthritis Clinic) need to be booked by phone - please call us on If your pet needs to come in for an operation or a procedure, please call the surgery on we cannot book operations online at this time. 6 If you haven t been to us before, please do register your pet too so that we have your details - you can do this online!

7 Paws Club We all know that prevention is better than cure, although when essential treatments and vaccinations are due at once, the cost can be significant. That s why we created the Ark House Paws Club: helping keep your pets in the best of health whilst also keeping costs manageable. So it s better for your pet, and better for you. Paws Club members receive a huge range of benefits through the year: A year s supply of flea treatments and wormers (dispensed quarterly or every 6 months) Preventative treatment for Fly strike (rabbits) Vaccinations and boosters o For dogs: Distemper, Hepatitis, Parvovirus, Parainfluenza and Leptospirosis o For cats: Flu, Enteritis and Leukaemia o For Rabbits: Myxomatosis and Viral Haemorrhagic Disease 1 (classic) Annual vaccination and clinical examination with a Vet, maintaining good general health and highlighting any problems early Six Month clinical examination with a vet OR a Consultation with a Vet when your pet is unwell Specialist dietary advice Convenient monthly payments by Direct Debit A fantastic 10% discount* on all other products and services at Ark House Vets Monthly membership starts at just 11 for rabbits, 13 for small dogs and 14 for cats, unlocking annual savings of up to 70 on the equivalent cost of annual recommended preventative care. Pick up an application form in the practice, or print one off our website where you will also find more details of all the advantages of Paws Club membership. the smart way to keep your pet & your purse healthy in 2018 and beyond... 7

8 With the weather finally warming up, the flowers and trees aren t the only things springing back to life! Whilst fleas are present all year round (thanks in no small part to our warm homes with their central heating and effective insulation), warmer environmental temperatures certainly encourage the laying and hatching of eggs. signs ur pets for any a close eye on yo It pays to keep e: n includ oblem - these ca all of a possible pr coat, seen as sm s t pe ur yo in s ng pi Flea drop ecks brown / black sp t or his eggs on your pe ite wh l al Visible sm favourite spots /her bedding or atitis at the skin Allergic derm licking or biting, ng hi tc ra sc Excessive bald spots Hair loss and Scabs Pale gums t s poo creted in your pe Tapeworms ex ) ermediate host (fleas are an int How often should I treat for fleas? We recommend applying a spot-on treatment once a month to kill any fleas present and help prevent more surviving after hatching from pupae. It is so important to apply flea treatment monthly, even if you can t see any - just one flea can lay 200 eggs in 24 hours and so it s easy to see how an infestation can quickly take hold. Should I treat for fleas all year round? Yes! Modern homes provide the perfect breeding ground for fleas and other parasites. Fitted carpets and central heating offer an ideal environment for them to thrive, so it s vital to apply flea treatment to all your pets once a month. If your cat or dog does pick up fleas, you ll need to apply a special spray (available at the practice) to your home in order to kill any fleas and eggs that may be present - immature fleas can live for up to a year away from the host animal! 8 Unfortunately fleas are likely to feature in almost every pet s life at some point or other, and at Ark House Vets we believe in establishing a regular preventative care routine early on. As well as being unpleasant and spreading tapeworm, fleas can cause severe anaemia in young animals, as well as allergies and skin disease in adults. They breed rapidly and therefore in order to ensure your home remains free from fleas, you must control them both on your pets and in the environment. We recommend that cats and dogs should be treated monthly for fleas throughout their lives, and our nurses are happy to advise you on the various types of products available to help you choose the one that s right for your pet. As always, should you have any questions at all about fleas, or need advice on any aspect of your pet s care, our wonderful team of vets and nurses are only a phone call away.

9 FIRST STEPS for your puppy, kitten or bunny Getting a new bundle of fun is so exciting and just as you want to do what s best for your little one, so do we! Our new FIRST STEPS packages help you to get your furry friend on the right track, right at the beginning, and will save you money in the process! PUPPY FIRST STEPS includes: Vaccination course Flea treatment Worming treatment Kong toy and training treats Health check at 7 months Advice, vouchers and recommendations plus a gorgeous bandana And with all this for just 50 ( 60 with microchip), you ll enjoy savings of more than 20 too! GET THE BEST FOR YOUR NEW FAMILY MEMBER - POP IN TO SEE US KITTEN FIRST STEPS includes: Vaccination course Flea treatment Worming treatment Microchip Miaowing Heads kitten food Health check at 6 months Advice, vouchers, recommendations plus a fabulous cat toy And with all this for just 60, you ll also enjoy savings of 29! BABY BUNNY FIRST STEPS includes: Vaccination against Myxomatosis and RHD1 Vaccination against new variant RHD2 Supa Rabbit Excel 2kg Health Check at 6 months old Advice, vouchers and recommendations! And with all this for 45, you ll also be saving 10! You ll find all the special offers and unique benefits on our website as well as lots more advice and information on new puppies and kittens

10 Save money and keep your pets healthy and happy with our special seasonal offers Although fleas can live all year round in centrally heated homes, as the weather warms up the life cycle becomes shorter so there are more and more of the little horrors around. Fleas feed by sucking blood from dogs, cats and rabbits and also spread tapeworm. Their saliva often causes irritation and some animals can develop serious skin disease. Effective treatment will treat and continue to prevent further infestation until the next treatment is due, that s why short acting treatment like shampoos and powders rarely work. 25% off all flea treatments during APRIL Using your preferred flea treatment regularly will prevent you and your pets from being bitten, and with our voucher you ll save % on all flea treatments this APRIL 25 sty during May Vaccination amne al) diseases us (and potentially fat highly infectio nt, There are a number of e no effective treatme ny of these diseases hav Ma t. pe r. you die ect n aff ca n m ca that tch the young animals that ca and in extreme cases, of protection in the form ple sim your conditions there is a se tore the res of to e ny tim ma al for, ide However, and so now is the ers ost bo al nu an r s. ula ase ious infectious dise vaccination and reg st some of the most ser pet s protection again on course ering 10 off a vaccinati off are we y Ma t ou gh Throu for cats, rabbits & dogs. ointment, r app cial offer, and to book you To take advantage of this spe just call 01 During June With the long evenings and warm weather, chances are that your cat may now be spending even more time than usual outside. A study in Australia, where pet cats were fitted with GPS trackers on their collars, found that roaming a territory with a diameter of up to 3kms is not unusual for cats! Unfortunately this may put cats at increased risk of becoming lost, injured or inadvertently locked in sheds and garages in unfamiliar locations, which is where a microchip can vastly improve the chances of missing cats being reunited with their worried families. pay for peace of mindg, June? 10 is a small price tospe cial microchip offer durin ge of our so why not take advanta 10 To book your cat in for this quick and painless procedure, just call

11 Bring your rabbit to see us for their FREE HEALTH CHECK Need h chewing elp with? bit jumping ing? And the? rest! These behaviours are really common and part of your puppy's normal development but can be hard to cope with at home. Let us help you manage this behaviour in a positive way. Call us on We always like to welcome new faces to Ark House, so when you recommend a friend, we ll give you both a 10 voucher to spend in the practice! Once your friend registers with us, we ll give you a 10 voucher & they will also receive the same discount off their first transaction. Ask at reception for further details, or your friend can fill in their details quickly and simply online at mentioning your name on the registration form. *Refers to vouchers for 10 off when you spend 40 or more on professional services. Not to be used in conjunction with any other offer. Visit our website for full terms and conditions. 11

12 issue 34 Surgery hours Monday to Friday Saturday 8.00am pm 8.30am pm 22 Hockliffe Street, Leighton Buzzard, Bedfordshire, LU7 1HJ Tel: Fax: enquiries@arkhousevets.co.uk Out of hours emergencies In an emergency call our normal number You will be given a choice of four clinics who can help. We will connect your call to them directly. Vets Now Milton Keynes Vets Now Luton Beds Vets Barton Vets Now Hemel Hempstead All of these clinics through any notes to us at 7am each morning so we will always know what may have happened if you need to visit them. Designed and produced by Onswitch Limited