Managing obesity in dogs and cats

We all know that through the winter months it can be hard keeping the weight off, the same goes for our furry companions. Obesity in dogs and cats is one of the most common conditions presented in veterinary practices all over the country. However, with the right support from your veterinary team and the right diet, obesity can be managed and even prevented for those predisposed.

Weight clinics are a fantastic way to support healthy weight loss for your pet, carried out by our team of Registered Veterinary Nurses. When starting your pet’s weight loss journey it is ideal that they are weighed and measured fortnightly and when we see the numbers going down we can reduce this to monthly.

Alongside weight clinics, a weight specific diet can really aid in success. At Station House Vets we are strong advocates for Hill’s Canine Metabolic food. It is a complete diet clinically proven to help reduce weight and manage your pet’s appetite.

I am lucky enough to have helped many pets get back into shape and one particular labrador, Bonnie has to be one of my proudest achievements yet. Bonnie, like many dogs suffers from canine arthritis and prior to weight loss struggled with her mobility. Reduced mobility and weight gain go hand in hand, Hill’s offer a Metabolic and Mobility diet with ingredients designed to reduce joint inflammation. With a combination of veterinary treatment, a tailored diet plan and super star owners, Bonnie managed to lose over 8kg and was nominated for Hill’s Pet Slimmer of the Year Award 2022.

Veterinary staff are also not immune to overweight pets. Since having my dog Pudding neutered he started to live up to his name. I was definitely in denial for a while but soon noticed, after his help cleaning up my children’s tea, he was overweight and something had to be done. Neutered specific foods can be a great compromise for pets verging on obesity as they have reduced calories whilst also being a tasty complete diet.

Life gets busy sometimes and it really can be hard thinking about our own diet let alone our pets. Rest assured we are here to support you. Spoiling our pets with treats is lovely but the kindest thing we really can do for them is to keep them healthy and weight management is a great place to start!

Written by Lauren Holmes, our RVN

To book an appointment with one of our nurses to start your pet on their weight management journey, give us a call on 01653 618303.

Managing gut upset in horses

Following on from our post about managing horses change of routine at this time of year, we’d like to introduce you to two products to help deal with and manage equine gut upsets.

Profix ADVANCED

This is a prebiotic and probiotic paste, used as the initial action product for cases of gut upset for all ages of horses. With the binders and the electrolytes included in this product, this is one of the most comprehensive products available, providing a highly concentrated multi-action support for maintaining healthy digestive systems.

It comes in a 30ml syringe, with a dosage rate of 5ml for a foal or 10ml for a horse.

Profix+BIND

This is a sachet format probiotic powder, with Pectizone included. This product acts as a maintenance preventative product once the horse has recovered from the gut upset – ensuring a healthy gastric system moving forward

Sachet format, with the dosage rate of 1 sachet per day.

If your horse is experiencing digestive upset, or you’d like to know more about these products, speak to our  Team on 01653 618303 or email us at prescriptions@stationhousevets.co.uk

Equine gastroscopy clinics

As change in routine can cause stress in our horses, particularly at this time of year, you may be interested in finding out more about our equine gastroscopy clinics. We run them all year round, and offer a reduced rate for a clinic.

If you’re concerned about any change in behaviour in your horses as we head into the winter season, don’t hesitate to call and have a chat to our equine team on 01653 618303

Managing our horses change of routine

As we head into Autumn and Winter we need to be mindful of the change of routine that this change of season brings.

Winter worming

We would always strongly recommend a targeted worming program, meaning we wouldn’t recommend just to worm your horse/pony without the need to. Those of you already on our plan may still have one more worm egg count and a tapeworm test before the end of the year. We offer worm egg counts, tapeworm saliva tests and blood tests for redworms.  Find out more about our Worm Egg Count plans.

Mud fever

Another top topic for this time of year can be mud fever.  Those of you with horses who have it know how difficult/frustrating it is to treat and manage. There are many ways to treat it but most importantly we would recommend that you are checking the skin/legs of your animals at least once a day to look for sores/cuts/swelling so that any management or treatment required can begin as soon as possible.

Increased time in the stable

More time stabled can bring its own challenges. Any change in routine needs to be done as gradually as possible to help prevent episodes of colic. However, if your horse does have to stay in longer than usual then we recommend dampening your horse/pony’s feed more then usual and encourage drinking. This may include providing a plain bucket of water and a second bucket of water sweetened with apple juice or orange juice or sugar beet water. Signs of colic include inappetence, flank watching, kicking at the belly, lying down and rolling. If you are concerned that your horse/pony maybe colicing it is advised to ring the practice straight away.

Rugs

Below is a guideline of how and when to rug horses depending on if they are clipped or unclipped, and the outside overnight temperatures. Over rugging can be quite common, so we recommend using this as a guide.

Equine gastroscopy clinics

As change in routine can cause stress in our horses, particularly at this time of year, you may be interested in finding out more about our equine gastroscopy clinics. We run them all year round, and offer a reduced rate for a clinic.

If you’re concerned about any change in behaviour in your horses as we head into the winter season, don’t hesitate to call and have a chat to our equine team on 01653 618303

Avian influenza outbreak