Preventative Care

Examinations

Routine wellness examinations are an essential step to keeping your pet healthy. Our veterinary team recommends that you bring your pet in once or twice per year, depending on their age. Having these regular check-ups allows our team to catch any signs of illness, disease, or infection. The earlier we catch something, the sooner your pet can get treatment.

Even if your pet seems fine and it appears that nothing is wrong, it is still necessary that you bring them in for their check-ups. Pets (especially cats!) are masters of masking signs of disease and injury, but by simply bringing them in to be examined allows for us to detect hidden signs of illness, and carefully check and test for diseases. 

The typical wellness visit consists mainly of two parts. There is, of course, the physical examination where we inspect your pet from nose to tail and administer any tests that may be needed.

The physical examination will assess the condition of:

• Eyes, ears, and nose
• Teeth and gums
• Skin and coat
• Joints and muscles
• Abdominal region
• Weight and body composition
• Heartbeat and respiratory rate
• Temperature

The second part of the visit is the conversation we get to have with you about the behavior of your pet, sleeping patterns, eating habits, and overall lifestyle. 

During the exam, you may be asked questions such as:

• How many hours per day would you say your pet sleeps?
• Is your pet friendly towards other pets and humans?
• Does your pet have any fear or phobias? Do they ever seem to get anxious?
• What kind of food does your pet eat?
• How consistent are they with eating?
• How much physical activity is your pet getting per day?

In addition to the physical examination, veterinarians like to conduct fecal exams to test for parasites in your pet’s feces. Please bring a fresh stool sample to every check-up.

Please feel free to give us a call for any questions, concerns, or clarifications. Thank you!

Vaccinations

Vaccines serve as the #1 line of defense to safeguard your pet from infectious diseases that can be detrimental to their health and even life threatening. But not to worry, vaccines are easy to administer and keep up with if you regularly bring your pet in for their annual wellness exam.

Vaccines for pets work very similarly to how they work for humans. The vaccine exposes the body to harmless levels of a particular virus or antigen, and the immune system then builds the antibodies to safeguard your pets in case they come in contact with the real virus. Also, the more pets that are vaccinated, the fewer hosts the virus will be able to infect and the safer the overall pet community will be. 

There are also benefits for the human population. When pets are properly vaccinated, they can stay at overnight boarding facilities, use public dog parks, and their chances of passing infectious disease to a human decrease significantly. The most common infections that an unvaccinated pet can pass to their owners are leptospirosis and rabies.

There are two main types of vaccines that a pet can get, core vaccines and non-core vaccines. Core vaccines are recommended for all pets, and non-core vaccines are administered based on a pet’s lifestyle, medical conditions, exposure, and geographic location. 

Core Canine Vaccines

• Rabies Vaccination- protects against rabies, a deadly and highly infectious disease that all animals can get. This vaccine is enforced by the law in most states and is required for your pet to be admitted into any animal hospital, boarding facility, or public place.
• DA2PP- also know as canine distemper, protects against four life-threatening conditions in dogs: distemper, parainfluenza, parvovirus, and hepatitis.

Non-Core Canine Vaccines

• Bordetella vaccine- prevents against kennel cough, a brutal and highly contagious hacking cough that can last up to 6 weeks.
• Lyme vaccines- prevents tick-related illnesses.
• Leptospirosis vaccine- protects pets and humans alike from zoonotic bacterial infections that can cause vomiting and diarrhea.
• Canine Influenza (CIV) vaccine- safeguards dog’s from the canine flu. 

Core Feline Vaccines

• Rabies Vaccination- protects against rabies, a deadly and highly infectious disease that all animals can get. This vaccine is enforced by the law in most states and is required for your pet to be admitted into any animal hospital, boarding facility, or public place.
• FVRCP Vaccination- also known as feline distemper, prevents 3 big diseases in cats: panleukopenia virus, calicivirus, and rhinotracheitis.

Non-Core Feline Vaccines

• FeLV Vaccination- prevents the spread of Feline leukemia. This is recommended for cats who live with other cats.

Parasite Prevention

In North Carolina, fleas, ticks, and heartworms are present year-round and can wreak havoc on your pet's body if left untreated. The team at TotalBond Veterinary Hospital at Paw Creek believes in addressing parasites in two ways: 

1. Continuous, year-round parasite prevention medications
2. Annual parasite testing (usually done in a fecal test during your pet's wellness exam).

Even though you can see external parasites (fleas, mosquitoes, and ticks), the internal parasites (heartworm, roundworm, hookworm) are harder to identify. That's why it's important to bring your pet in once a year for a parasite test. 

If you have any questions on parasite prevention or testing, please reach out to us!

Microchipping

1 in every 3 pets in the United States is lost or stolen from their owner at some point in their life. It's a tragedy that we hope none of our patients and clients ever have to experience, which is why we at TotalBond Veterinary Hospital at Paw Creek offer microchipping.

Microchipping is a form of pet identification that is the #1 most effective method of reuniting lost or stolen pets with their owners. A small microchip is inserted just beneath the surface of your pet’s skin, typically under their shoulder blade. Whenever a pet hospital or shelter finds a lost pet, they will scan to see if the pet has a microchip. If they do have one, they will be able to retrieve the owner’s contact information from the national database and reunite the pet with its owner.

The microchipping process is simple and can be completed in just a few minutes. We typically implant the microchip while your pet is under anesthesia during its spay/neuter procedure. Once the microchip has been inserted you will be given a PIN and can go online to the national database to upload your contact information into the microchip. From then on your pet has an effective and reliable form of ID.

Should you move or change phone numbers, you can edit your information in the online national database. Also, we still highly encourage the use of collars and ID tags in addition to microchipping.

Nutrition and Weight Management

Obesity in pets is becoming a major health concern for pet owners and veterinarians alike across the U.S. In 2017 a clinical survey conducted by the Association for Pet Obesity Prevention found that an estimated 56% of canines and 60% of felines are overweight or obese in the United States. While these numbers continue to rise there are several steps you can take as a pet owner to ensure that your pet maintains healthy body weight.

Weight gain in pets can sometimes be hard to notice for owners as the process is gradual. Every day when you see your pet they will look essentially the same. In reality, he/she may slowly be gaining weight over time which can lead to serious health problems. Obese pets develop an increased risk for respiratory issues, diabetes, hypertension, bladder stones, heart disease, and many forms of cancer.

Here at TotalBond Veterinary Hospital at Paw Creek, our veterinary team is committed to keeping your pet as healthy as possible and as a result, we want to make sure that you have the resources and tools that you need to prevent obesity in your pets.

What makes a pet obese? How can I prevent obesity or help them lose weight in a healthy way?

Obesity in pets is the same as it is for humans. If the total calorie intake exceeds the calories they burn from physical activity, it will lead to weight gain over time if this happens regularly.

The two most reliable ways to control your pet’s weight are:

1. Monitoring food intake: For their eating habits, make sure your pet is eating the recommended portions for their body size and do not feed them “human food” from the dinner table. Also, keep treats to a minimum.
2. Ensuring regular exercise: Taking your pets on walks, to the dog park, or letting them go outside and play more frequently are good steps to incorporate daily activity into their lives.

And as always if you have any questions or concerns with your pet’s weight, or if you need advice on how to prevent obesity, please feel free to give us a call!