One of the best ways to help your pet live a long and happy life is regular routine care.
We provide a broad range of preventive care services, including microchips, vaccines, routine lab work, and annual exams. Regular exams and check-ups will keep your pet happy and healthy. Annual exams will allow us to catch dental issues, address any systemic diseases like liver or kidney disease, find ear infections, and spot any other potential health issue. When you are in for your annual exam, we will also discuss heartworm testing and preventives and flea and tick preventives.
Puppies and Kittens
When a new puppy or kitten joins your home, we typically want you to bring them in when they are 6-8 weeks old. The exact timing for when you will want to come in can be dependent on the breed. Puppies and kittens both need a series of important vaccines to stay healthy, and we can work with you to develop a personalized vaccine schedule for your pet.
The recommended age for spaying and neutering depends on a variety of things, including the breed of your animal. There are many great reasons to have your pet spayed or neutered, like:
- Decreased risk of cancer
- Less infections
- Can help with behaviors like marking and aggression, especially in males
- Helps minimize the homeless pet population
Please call us and ask us about our next Spay and Neuter clinic for cats.
Senior Pet Care
Being considered a senior pet really varies in age based on breed. Your veterinarian will give you a better idea of when your pet reaches senior years after an evaluation. Our senior pets sometimes need a little more tender, loving care, but getting older itself is not a disease. We will work with you and your senior pet to let you know if you can continue to come in once a year or if we need to see you a little more often. With older animals, we will typically recommend blood panels each time we see your pet to keep an eye on any conditions that might crop up.
Allergies & Dermatology
One of the most common issues we see at Oak Valley Animal Health is pets dealing with itchiness and allergies. Allergies and dermatology issues can have all kinds of symptoms. Here are some warning signs you can watch for:
- Itchiness
- Redness on the skin
- Hair loss from itching
- Thickening skin
- Licking of feet
Allergies can be caused by a variety of things, including food allergies and sensitivities or environmental allergens like mold, pollen or dust. Just like with humans, sometimes allergies can be seasonal, depending on what is in the air.
In addition to allergies, itchiness can also be caused by fleas and ticks, and even parasites. It is important to schedule a veterinary visit so we can assess the situation, determine the cause and get your pet on the right path towards healing. We will work hard to address and treat the source of itchiness so your pet can be happy and healthy.
Often we think of allergies as a problem with dogs, but did you know that cats can suffer from allergies, too? Cats can have some of the same symptoms, but might also have sneezing, coughing, or wheezing, and diarrhea, vomiting, gas, and bloating. Let us know what your cat is experiencing and we can help address possible allergy issues.
If you think your pet might be suffering from allergies, please call us or fill out an appointment request form. Oak Valley Animal Health is here to help you stop allergies before they cause too much discomfort.
If it's time to schedule a wellness exam for your pet, please call us or fill out an appointment request form.