Companion Pet Clinic Salmon Creek

Get the Facts About Pet Care by Reading Through These Helpful Articles

Just like people, dogs and cats must maintain good health in order to get lead long, happy, and productive lives. However, pets need the help of their owners to see the veterinarian, get proper nutrition, and maintain a healthy routine of physical activity. Click on the links below to learn even more about what you need to do to manage your pet’s health.

Learn even more about how pet microchipping works by reading this article.

Try out this calming pre-vet routine from the Discovery Channel to get your cat accustomed to important vet visits.

Discover why spaying and neutering are so important with this PETA article.

Read this Science Daily article to find out why early detection of osteoarthritis in dogs can lead to a better prognosis.

Check out this Cat Channel article to learn how to decipher pet food labels.

If you have further questions about pet nutrition, vaccines, or microchipping, visit Companion Pet Clinic Salmon Creek after setting up an appointment at (360) 718-9190. Our animal clinic and hospital offers pet wellness exams so you can keep your pet in good health through every stage of life.

Tips for Properly Socializing Your Puppy

Have you recently adopted a puppy? If so, it is important to make the newest member of your family feel comfortable around other dogs and people and in different environments. To keep your puppy safe as she explores new places and faces, be sure to visit your vet to get all required shots and follow these tips for socializing a curious young dog.

See the Vet for Required Shots

A puppy’s immune system is still developing during her first few months of life. While veterinary experts advise beginning socialization before a puppy has had all of her required immunizations, your puppy should receive her first round of required vaccines before beginning socialization and behavior classes, which introduce her to new dogs—and new diseases. Be sure to schedule a physical examination, vaccines, parasite testing, and deworming with your animal clinic as soon as you adopt your puppy.  

Start Socialization Early

Any new pet needs time to get used to the people, other dogs, and sights and sounds that will be a part of her new daily life. Your puppy will also have to become accustomed to physical handling, veterinarian visits, and grooming. If your dog is not yet fully vaccinated, you might consider arranging small supervised play sessions with one or two healthy adult dogs to begin socialization. Once your puppy has had proper veterinary care including full vaccinations, you might start bringing her to public places where she has the opportunity to interact with strangers and get used to the busy world around her. 

Attend Puppy Classes

A great way to help socialize your new dog is to enroll her in puppy classes. These special classes are designed for early training and will teach your pet to interact with other animals to prevent her from learning aggressive behaviors like biting or loud barking. New puppy classes also teach basic obedience skills and will help animal owners learn disciplinary techniques.

To learn more about the recommended veterinary services for a new puppy, call the compassionate and experienced team of veterinarians Vancouver’s Companion Pet Clinic Salmon Creek today at (360) 718-9190. Our pet clinic and animal hospital offers new puppy and kitten packages, microchipping, and spay and neuter services.

Companion Pet Clinic Salmon Creek Review!

The Components of a Healthy Frame for Your Pet

The shape and size of your pet’s frame is a good indicator of your pet’s overall health. As you will learn in this video with veterinarian, Dr. Karen Becker, there are four primary factors that influence the development of your dog’s or cat’s frame.

If your pet is overweight, the tendons, ligaments, muscles, and even internal organs can experience stress and serious health problems. For a healthy frame, your pet should be at the recommended weight and get enough regular aerobic exercise. Healthy joints are also important, so pets that suffer from osteoarthritis should receive proper ongoing veterinary care. Finally, trauma or injury can negatively affect your pet’s frame.

To learn more about how to keep your pet in the best physical health, call the veterinarians at Companion Pet Clinic Salmon Creek today at (360) 718-9190. Our compassionate and experienced staff will help you care for your pet like he or she is a member of your family.

How Does Microchipping Your Pet Work?

If you are like most pet owners, the idea of your dog or cat being lost, stolen, or running away is one of your greatest fears. Fortunately, new developments in veterinary technology have made it possible to safely and affordably keep track of your pet after one quick visit to your local animal clinic. Here is how microchipping can help you feel safe and secure about your pet’s whereabouts.

Tiny Transmitter

A pet microchip relies on radiofrequency identification, or RFID, technology to transmit data using radio waves. Each tiny transmitter is the size of a grain of rice and contains a biodegradable silicone microchip. Animal microchips don’t actually actively transmit information; instead, they hold the pet owner’s name, address, and other information. The RFID has no battery or internal power source and sits completely inert in a pet until it needs to be read.

Painless Procedure

Some pet owners falsely believe that the microchipping procedure can be painful or harmful, but implantation is actually no more painful than a typical vaccination shot. When you visit your animal clinic, your veterinarian will use a hypodermic needle to implant the small microchip in just a few seconds. While the procedure is simple and low-risk, it should still be performed only by a licensed veterinarian or veterinary assistant.

Easy Tracking

Once your vet has received the microchip containing a unique identification number from the manufacturer, he or she will implant it between your pet’s shoulder blades. A microchip stays in your pet’s body permanently and provides easy and effective tracking if and when your pet goes missing. Today, microchipping is an affordable option for all pet owners, and can safe you time and money—not to mention emotional stress—if your dog or cat is ever lost or stolen.

Microchipping is available for cats and dogs of all ages, so you should ask your veterinarian about this procedure during your pet’s next checkup. The caring staff at Companion Pet Clinic Salmon Creek is proud to offer Vancouver, WA residents affordable and painless pet microchipping services along with complete medical care for cats and dogs in all stages of life. To schedule an appointment at our animal clinic, call (360) 718-9190 today.