I see a lot of itchy dogs around here, so Kola’s story has always impressed me. She is a lovely black lab ( a rather nice dog, even for me), who has been plagued with skin allergies since she was about 1 year old. The doctors tried to control her itching with medication and special diet, but that never really helped. Back in 2005, the doctors decided to check her for allergies, and it turns out she was allergic to many things, including various grasses, trees, weeds and housedust. On the list was also cockroaches and cat hair! Good thing Kola’s owners didn’t have any pet insects or cats!  After finding out what Kola was allergic to, Dr. Buxton and Dr. Kates started “desensitizing” her , by giving her teeny tiny amounts of the stuff she is allergic to, every few days. It wasn’t long before Kola stopped itching completely, and her skin finally became normal. Kola is 9 years old now, has her allergy injections once a month, and is completely itch-free!

In the first few weeks of having “Phoenix”, we suspected why she had really been returned to the breeder….she had quite a few problems.  Her health conditions included puppy vaginitis, mange, and impacted anal glands.  As well as those concerns, it turned out she was not house trained and suffered from a major case of separation anxiety. She chewed everything we owned when left alone… she had to be crate trained!  With the help of some medication and surgery to have her spayed and also anal gland removal, we were able to get all of her medical conditions resolved.  Next we moved onto house and crate training. Luckily she was a quick study for both, although her anxiety chewing did not resolve for 6 years.

14 years later, I am still enjoying her company. She has come to be the best investment in time and love that I ever made. A huge learning experience for me and a companion I cannot imagine being without. Perseverance paid off and I feel blessed to have “my big, black Phoenix dog” by my side.

Story and photo supplied by our Registered Animal Health Technologist Tiffany

Twelve years ago, I was the happy owner of a 4year old naughty Tonkinese, whom I named Minnie. Minnie was a very beautiful lilac point and very sweet, but also very naughty. I was working full time and felt badly that she was left alone for so long, because she was very interactive and so I decided she needed a buddy.

A neighbour of mine was in touch with a cat rescue organization, so I told her I would be willing to adopt a male kitten. I didn’t care about breed or colour.  The rescue society had found mother cat with his 5 kittens after they had been left in an empty apartment with no food or water, after the residents moved away.  When they contacted me about adopting one of the kittens, I told the society I would not take him until he was at least 8 weeks old. What I found really amusing is that they insisted on coming to my home to ensure that it was kitten proof.  Who were they kidding!? I had lived with Minnie for 4 yrs!  When he arrived, – an 8 wk old tuxedo strolled out of his pet carrier with the attitude – “Yes! I am home“.  I made sure I was on vacation, not sure how Minnie would react to this new little kitten who I had decided to call Max. I did all the right things – separate feeding dishes – separate littler box. Max wasted no time introducing himself to Minnie – thinking she was his new Mom. She wanted nothing to do with him – hissing and rejecting his advances for 3 days. She was SO tired – I don’t think she slept for 3 days! He was so determined. Finally she realized he was here to stay and they touched noses.  A joyous moment!  Minnie gave Max a happy kittenhood and even allowed him to suckle her for a while, but they never became best buddies. Not cuddling up together, although they did play.

Max has suffered some health issues and is diabetic. He is a sweet cat – not very bright, but I love him. When we lost Minnie almost 2 yrs ago he was quite devastated. It took him some time to get over her passing, but now he is much more interactive with me – even licking my eyelids if he thinks I’ve overslept! I am thankful that he is so easy to medicate. His favourite time of day when I am home is 4:00pm when we spend an hour cuddling whilst we watch Ellen.

Story and photo submitted by our receptionist Maureen

I noticed them in reception right away because the similarity in appearance threw me off guard! Twin dogs? I knew I would have to be extra careful as they probably were twice as fast as a regular dog when it came to chasing kitty cats. Luckily, they went into an exam room shortly after arriving. It turned out that these two were in fact sister Bichon Frise’s “Kate” and “Maggie”, not twins, and today was their last annual examination with their long-time vet, Dr.Michelle Kates. They are set to move to sunny Summerland with their owners this spring you see. About a half an hour later, they both pranced out of the exam room with clean bills of health and had one last nap in the sunshine while their parents settled things with the friendly reception staff. It was a “bittersweet occasion” they told me, because they are excited to move but they will surely miss Dr.Kates very much!

Goodbye Kate & Maggie, safe travels!

On April 1^st we were just starting our day when I saw Kim come in with little Aces.  Very worried, it would seem that Aces had suddenly become very lethargic and was non-responsive.  Dr. Dana Gibson was working that day and I watched as she immediately attended to Aces, placing her on oxygen and assessing her status.   Everyone was quick to try and help her.  Aces was so cold that her temperature did not register on the thermometer!  We quickly got her on a warmer and surrounded by heating bags.  Next the girls were able to obtain blood samples and take some x-rays in hopes of finding out what was happening.  After all that the next step was to place an intravenous catheter in her tiny little leg in order to get much needed fluid in to her (which as you can imagine was very difficult on such a small patient!).   Although Aces original wounds from her leg had healed and were doing well, there was concern about perhaps another infection somewhere (possibly pneumonia or meningitis).  We continued treatment throughout the day including antibiotics and within 5 hours she had greatly improved, moving around, vocalizing and acting more her normal self….whew what a relief!  Thankfully she continued to recover and is doing very well as you can see from her photo relaxing with her best buddy Leroy.  It would seem that little Aces is really wanting to test the 9 lives theory about cats!

Well it would seem our little girl Aces is doing very well.  She is now 3 ½ weeks old and is growing quickly, almost tripling in size already!  Her wound from her leg injury has healed well and Aces has started crawling around everywhere.  She really is a trooper and is not letting anything stop her.  Next step is to start on solid foods.  Our staff member Kim has fallen in love with Aces and has been caring for her since she arrived.  Kim tells me that she is a real snuggly kitten and her purr is like a lawn mower.  Now that she is moving about Aces is starting to interact with her and her little dog Leroy.  Apparently without any help from me, she has started to become really playful, swatting and chewing on Leroy (who loves every minute of it)!  Leroy has taken on a very parental role for Aces, giving her doggie baths (yuck).  Although I am not sure the alternative is better as I saw them giving her a bath at the clinic just the other day!

With so many pet owners looking to be cautious about the foods they are feeding their pets, many are looking to raw food diets as an alternative.   At South Burnaby Veterinary Hospital we consider each pet individually and make diet recommendations based on their current health, activity and lifestyle.  However, if you are considering a raw diet we would recommend reading the following article {Click here to read article}.  With so much information about our pets in the media and on the internet, it can be overwhelming to wade through all the facts.  If you have any questions about your pet’s nutritional needs feel free to contact our office and our staff would be happy to answer them for you.

Story & Photo provided by our receptionist Dayna

“ACES” STORY

It was the end of the day and I was napping in my cubbyhole as usual, when suddenly there was a wave of excitement.  An animal lover had rescued a kitten and was looking for help.  I looked over and watched as Dr. Carter assessed the tiniest little bundle of white fluff I had ever seen. She was only hours old, weighing a mere ¼ pound and so vulnerable and helpless.  Her umbilical cord was wrapped around her back leg.  I heard Dr. Carter tell the staff that this had stopped the leg from fully forming and her prognosis was guarded.  Despite it not looking so good for this little girl, I heard all the staff agree they just had to give her a chance, something about her made them want to try.  It is what I love about my family at SBVH, they are always willing to do whatever it takes to help a pet in need.  Dr. Carter took care of little “Aces” (that is what they have named her) and they have started her on antibiotics.  Over the next few weeks I will keep you posted on how she is doing.

Elmo is a special poodle/terrier cross, who decided to live life to the fullest. Dr. Buxton told me a story from when Elmo was about 4 years old.  At that time he was diagnosed with incurable, severe kidney disease.  Dr. Buxton and all the veterinarians involved in his care expected him to live only a few months. Many years later, Elmo is still with us (and healthy), and has surprised us all many times with his incredible resilience.  Throughout the years, Elmo has suffered many common doggie issues, like skin and ear infections, umpteen bouts of diarrhea, and lameness. It is the more serious issues however, that he seems to overcome with incredible regularity.  In addition to his brush with kidney failure (by the way, he has perfect kidneys now!), he suffered a rectal tumor, which inexplicably went away on its own.  Recently he arrived on our doorstep partially paralyzed, but he obviously wasn’t yet ready for a doggie wheelchair.  He has since regained full function of his hind legs . Elmo just turned 15 years old this year and appears to be spry and healthy (he still tries to bite Dr. Buxton!).  Way to go Elmo!