Wellness Care Packages for Every Stage of Your Pet's Life
Caring Hands Animal Hospital has a dedicated wellness care that provides preventative care and wellness visits for ALL pets. For your puppies and kittens to grow up healthy, they should be taken for regular visits to the vet for a thorough check-up. From their early stage to senior years, preventative care can help your fur babies live the healthiest and longest.
Individualized Medicine
Preventative care includes measures taken to prevent diseases and maintain the best health for your pets. Experienced veterinarians at Caring Hands Animal Hospital provide preventative care to the pet, based on their age, location, and lifestyle.
Read below to get an idea of what a lifetime care plan for your puppies and kittens looks like:
Puppies and kittens require specialized care during their growing-up years. So, vets recommend bringing them for check-ups around ages 8, 12, and 16 weeks. The vet conducts a comprehensive physical exam; fecal testing & parasite deworming, vaccinations, and starts flea, tick, and heartworm prevention. For more information on Puppy & Kitten Care please click here.
Vets recommend spaying or neutering dogs and cats as they reach 6 months of age. This prevents pregnancy, avoids overpopulation, and eliminates the risk of uterine and testicular cancer.
Pet parents of adult pets (ages 1 to 6 years) should prioritize their wellness visits to keep them healthy and happy. Vets recommend at least one annual visit for a comprehensive physical exam; fecal testing, vaccine boosters, and ongoing flea, tick, and heartworm preventatives.
Dental care is equally important for your little ones. In case of tartar/ gingivitis, a dental cleaning may be recommended by the vet during the physical exam.
Dental care will be discussed during each physical exam, and a dental cleaning may be recommended when tartar and/or gingivitis are noted. To learn more about keeping your fur babies' teeth and gum healthy, please Click here
Senior pets (age 7 years and above) should visit the vet twice a year for a comprehensive physical exam. The doctor will conduct a few tests including fecal testing, vaccine boosters, ongoing flea/tick/heartworm prevention, and lab work (blood and urine testing) to monitor health and check for common age-related illnesses. Learn more about Senior Care and here.
Parasite Prevention
Caring Hands Animal Hospital doctors and team recommend year-round protection against fleas, ticks, and heartworms for all pets, indoors and outdoors. Visit the Companion Animal Parasite Council Council website to learn more about parasites that affect your fur babies. Animals who spend much time indoors can also be affected by fleas and ticks as they are unknowingly carried inside by humans on their shoes and clothing. To avoid the diseases associated with these parasites, doctors recommend administering a topical or oral dose of Nexgard, Simparica, Bravecto, or other veterinarian-approved medication. Heartworms, carried by mosquitoes, infect dogs and cats, cause asthma-like symptoms, and can often be fatal. Preventing this disease requires a simple step; a monthly treatment of a liquid topical or flavored chewy treat. Depending on your pet’s specific needs, Caring Hands may recommend Interceptor, Heartgard, Revolution, or other preventative, for lifelong heartworm preventative. For more information on heartworms, we recommend the American Heartworm Society. All preventatives mentioned may be purchased through our price-competitive online pharmacy.
Microchipping
At Caring Hands Animal Hospital, we encourage all pet owners to consider microchipping as an essential part of their pet’s health and safety routine. Microchipping is a simple, safe procedure in which a tiny chip, the size of a grain of rice, is implanted under your pet's skin. This chip contains a unique identification number that can be scanned by shelters, veterinary offices, or animal rescues to help identify and return your pet to you if they get lost. The process is quick, virtually painless, and provides a permanent, unalterable form of identification.
Why Every Pet Should Be Microchipped:
- Permanent and Reliable Identification: Microchips provide a permanent form of ID that can’t be lost or tampered with, ensuring your pet is always identifiable.
- Quick, Painless Procedure: The microchip insertion is quick and involves little discomfort, similar to a routine vaccination.
- Helps in Recovery: If your pet is lost, the microchip helps shelters and vets quickly identify your pet and reunite them with you.
- Safety for Pets of All Ages: Whether your pet is a curious kitten or an adventurous adult dog, microchipping is an effective safety measure for pets of all ages.
Vaccinations
After a thorough check-up, your pet's veterinarian will determine the appropriate course of vaccinations, suited to their lifestyle. Below is a list of vaccinations available through Caring Hands Animal Hospital. Click on each one to find out more about them.
1. Rabies
Rabies, a fatal viral disease carried by wildlife and other mammals is a zoonotic disease, meaning it can be passed from animals to humans. The infected animals usually transmit this disease through their saliva when they bite or scratch.
Vaccination against rabies is required by Virginia and Maryland state law for all dogs and cats.
Symptoms:
- Fever
- Seizures
- Change in behavior (over excitability, shyness, aggression)
- Excessive salivation
- Paralysis
- Inability to swallow
The rabies vaccination is given annually to cats and dogs, initially as a 1-year vaccine, and then every 3 years to dogs.
2. Distemper (DHPP and FVRCP)
A highly contagious viral disease with no known cure and variations that can be found in dogs, cats, and ferrets is distemper. The disease is spread through coughing or sneezing, direct contact with infected bodily fluids, and indirect contact with contaminated objects.
Symptoms:
- Weight loss
- Lethargy
- Fever
- Vomiting
- Diarrhea
- Nasal discharge
The vaccines available are a combination of species-specific common viruses.
For dogs, the vaccine offers protection from intestinal viruses including Distemper, Hepatitis, Parainfluenza, and Parvovirus. For cats, the vaccine offers protection from upper respiratory viruses including Rhinotrachitis, Calicivirus, and Panleukopenia. These vaccines are often abbreviated to DHPP and FVRCP.
Distemper vaccines are given as a series to puppies and kittens, annually to young adult pets, and every 3 years in older adults and seniors.
3. Leptospirosis
Leptospirosis, often called Lepto, is a disease caused by bacteria. These bacteria live in the urine of some wild animals. Pets can get it by drinking or swimming in water that has been contaminated with pee, like in puddles or slow streams.
Your vet will discuss your pet's lifestyle to see if they could get Lepto. If there's a risk, they might suggest a vaccine to protect your pet.
Lepto can make your pet's kidneys and liver stop working properly. It's also a "zoonotic" disease, which means animals can give it to people.
Symptoms:
- Fever
- Lethargy
- Decreased appetite
- Increased thirst
- Vomiting
- Unusual amounts of urine (larger or smaller)
- Muscle and joint pain
- Bleeding or brusing
The Lepto shot is given twice at first, and then once a year for adult and older dogs.
4. Lyme Vaccine
Lyme disease can spread to both people and dogs by ticks. It's quite common in the Northern Virginia area, and your vet might suggest a Lyme vaccine for your dog depending on their lifestyle.
Ticks get the bacteria that causes Lyme disease from wild animals. When these infected ticks bite your dog and stay attached for at least 48 hours, they can pass the disease to your pet. The ticks that carry Lyme are hard to spot as they are tiny, so it's important to use tick prevention medicine and consider getting your dog vaccinated.
Unlike people, dogs usually don't get a red "bulls-eye" mark on their skin when a tick bites them. Also, many dogs don't show any signs of Lyme disease right away, or even at all. But that doesn't mean they don't have the disease.
If your dog tests positive for Lyme, vets can give them antibiotics to kill as much bacteria as possible. However, it's hard to get rid of all the bacteria completely. So, even if the medicine helps with the symptoms, a small amount of infection might stay in their body.
Signs of Lyme disease in dogs can include:
- Pain
- Limping
- Lameness
- Inappetence
- Fever
In serious cases, kidney and heart problems can also occur. However, in some cases, your pets do not show any symptoms at all.
Young puppies get the Lyme vaccine in two shots, while adult and older dogs get it once a year.
5. Bordetella
Bordetella, also called Kennel Cough, is a highly contagious disease that affects the respiratory system of dogs.
It can spread quickly when dogs are in close contact with each other, particularly in dog parks, daycare, and groomers. Besides direct contact, it also transmits through air. So it's a good idea to get your dog vaccinated.
Puppies or young dogs that haven't been vaccinated, and dogs with weak immune systems, might experience severe symptoms.
Symptoms:
- A dry, hacking cough
- “Honking” cough
- Nasal discharge
- Decrease in appetite
- Lethargy
- Fever
The Bordetella shot can be given as a regular injection or as a spray in the nose. Dogs usually need to get it every 6 to 12 months. It's a good idea to check with any place you take your dog to see if they have specific rules about this vaccine.
6. Canine Influenza
Canine Influenza was a new dog virus that was detected in 2012. It mutated from an existing virus. Because it was new, most dogs that came into contact with it would likely get sick.
A shot was made to help protect dogs from this virus. Luckily, this dog flu cannot spread to people.
Symptoms:
- Discharge from the nose or eyes
- Coughing (can be productive or non-productive)
- Labored breathing or increased rate
- Lethargy
- Vomiting
- Diarrhea
- Decrease in appetite
If you plan to take your dog to boarding, grooming, or daycare places, it's a good idea to ask them if they require this flu shot. You can also talk to your vet to check if your dog needs this vaccine based on their lifestyle.
The flu shot for dogs is given as two shots at first and then once a year for adult and older dogs.
7. Feline Leukemia
Feline Leukemia, often called FeLV, is a sickness caused by a virus that cats can pass to each other through their spit, poop, and when mother cats feed their kittens.
Kittens that are nursing, cats that live outside or are wild, and cats that live with many other cats are more likely to get this infection. Right now, there's no way to completely get rid of Feline Leukemia.
We can do a blood test here at the hospital to see if your cat has Feline Leukemia.
Some cats with FeLV might not show any signs at all. But other cats might have:
Although some cats show no symptoms at all, the common noticeable symptoms include
- Decrease in appetence
- Respiratory symptoms (coughing, sneezing, discharge from nose or eyes)
- Lethargy
- Fever
- Loss of weight
- Vomiting
- Diarrhea
- Decrease in appetence
- Respiratory symptoms (coughing, sneezing, discharge from nose or eyes)
- Lethargy
- Fever
- Loss of weight
- Vomiting
- Diarrhea
The vaccine for Feline Leukemia is given as two shots when they are kittens, and then once a year for adult and older cats.