Holiday Hazards

During the holidays, pets often have access to foods that they ordinarily do not. In addition, many owners are tempted to feed their pets table food. Eating these foods could cause your pet gastrointestinal upset or worse. To keep her safe, make sure your pet does not have access to chocolate, raisins, onions, coffee, yeast dough, fatty foods, or alcohol.

A number of holiday plants can be toxic to pets if ingested. Some of the more popular but potentially problematic plants include mistletoe, holly, boxberry, amaryllis, and Christmas rose. Contrary to popular belief, poinsettia, bayberry, winter begonia, and Christmas cactus plants are not toxic to pets, although they can cause vomiting or diarrhea if ingested in large quantities. If you think your pet may have ingested a poisonous plant, call your local veterinarian or emergency clinic.

Liquid potpourri, commonly used during the holidays, can cause severe burns to the mouth, eyes, and skin, particularly in cats. Ingestion occurs when a cat licks the heated liquid in simmer pots or grooms herself after walking through a spill. If your pet is a cat, it’s probably best to avoid liquid potpourri altogether.

Wishing everyone a Happy Holiday Season! See you in the New Year!!

What Happened to Pup and Kitty??

Good morning all!

I wanted to let everyone know that we have found homes for our little orphaned kitty and the stray dog that one of our technicians found. The kitten, who has been named "Meeko" has taken up residence with one of our employees. Sometimes it is just so.... hard to bottle feed and take care of these little ones and then give them up. So far Meeko is doing super. He is fitting right in with her other furry friends and getting lots of love an attention.

As for our little stray dog.... He has found his forever home with a wonderful couple in Havasu. They had a Shih Tzu whom they loved very much and had to say goodbye to about a year ago. They saw this guys picture and said "absolutely, we will give him a home if you don't find his owners." So... sometime mid-September after daunting attempts to find his owners, lots of posters hung, phone calls made, etc. he made the trip to Havasu to get to know his new family. They travel, hike and fish whenever they can and this little guy is sure to get lots of exercise, more than plenty of LOVE and seems to be fitting right in. Their beagle and he are like "old friends" and last update the cat and he were "getting to know each other." I think he just went on his first "vacation/cabin stay" away from home with the family and their beagle. They have named him "Tucker" and feel that it is a match made in heaven. I am so glad we could find this pet a super home and give them a wonderful dog to love!!

Pet Portals

Hello to everyone! We now have our Pet Portals up and running! We are very excited about this. Pet Portals are private, secure pet health websites available through our website www.chandlergilbertanimalhospital.com. Your password-secured Pet Portal provides health information that's tailored to the needs of your pet. Start managing your pet's health care online 24/7-sign up free today. Your can use your Pet Portal to request an appointment with us, request a prescription refill, ask about your pet's dietary needs or any other non-emergency question, and let us know how your pet is doing after a visit. Soon we will be offering an online pharmacy also.

This service is free of charge to clients of Chandler-Gilbert Animal Hospital who have an active e-mail address.

What else can you do with your Pet Portal?

• View pet information
• Receive important medical alerts and clinic news
• Post photos of your pets
• Create and print instructions for pet sitters or kennel staff
• Access reliable information on a wide range of pet health topics
• Print proof of vaccination for boarding
• Request e-mail reminders about when to give your pet's medication
• Shop our online store (COMING SOON!)

Don't wait, visit our website and activate your FREE Pet Portal today!!!

Heartworms in Arizona!

Happy Friday to everyone :-)





Today the company that sells Heartgard sent a representative to do a presentation in our clinic on heartworms and other parasites in Arizona. Ivermectin, the active drug in Heartgard, is used to prevent heartworms and other gastrointestinal parasites including roundworms and hookworms. During this presentation the CGAH staff learned all kinds of things about these gross parasites!





A lot of you may not know this, but many of the parasites dogs and cats get can also be passed along to humans! Young children touch everything and often play outside in yards or parks, increasing their risk. A pet with parasites may easily transfer them to children through play or even kisses!





The best way to keep our pets and families safe is to get our pets tested every year for heartworms and other parasites and to keep them on heartworm preventative all year long. The medication is convenient for owners because it is given only once a month. Not only that, but it's a chewable treat so pets love it as well! This is an easy way to keep our beloved pets healthy and safe against these microscopic monsters!

Hello to all!

Monday afternoon the Fed-Ex driver ran into our clinic holding this cute little kitten with the umbilical cord still attached and looking not more than a few hours to a day old. One of our receptionist kindly took it under her care and is currently bottle feeding it and toting to and from work and home with her to give it the attention and care he needs.

Orphaned kittens and puppies take a lot of care and attention. Kittens and puppies are abandoned for many different reasons. Some mothers will tend to leave them behind at birth if she feels she can not care for, protect or have enough milk for the entire litter. Also death or illness of the mother will cause a kitten, puppy or litter to be abandoned. It is very important to keep young kittens and puppies from becoming chilled , they generally get the heat they need from their mother. A heating pad, set on the lowest temperature, that is well covered with bedding in a small box or container of some sort tends to work well. During the first 48 hours of life, they receive antibodies from the mother's milk. This is important to their immune system. Kittens and puppies that do not receive this need to be closely watched as their immune systems may be very fragile. Bottle feeding is required for orphaned kittens and puppies for the first 4 weeks of life, after which you may start to introduce solid foods. A formula specifically for kittens and puppies should be used to ensure they get the proper nutrients, regular milk (whole, low-fat and non-fat) is not recommended. This type of formula can be found at any pet store. Sometimes you are able to find a foster mother to nurse and care for the kittens or puppies, but the orphaned kitten, puppy or litter may still need supplemental feedings and care if the foster mother has a large litter of her own to care for already. In any case with lots of tender loving care and attention this kittens or puppies can grow to be loving, healthy adults.

If you ever find an abandoned kitten, puppy or litter of either please call our office if you have any questions or concerns, need help raising them or want to find someone who will raise them. We want to do all we can to ensure the health and well being of these animals.

Thank you so much to the Fed-Ex driver who took the time out of his busy day and route to get the kitten to somewhere he knew it could be taken care of!

This adorable little male neutered Shih Tzu, black and white, would love to find his rightful owner. On Saturday, one of our technicians got home from work, pulled into the garage and got out of the car and there he was wanting some love. He is very sweet, super cute (as you can see) and well taken care of. Someone, somewhere is missing this little guy. We are doing all we can to find his owner. We have called several clinics near us to see if anyone has reported a missing dog, scoured the neighborhood he was in asking around and posted a Found add on Pets 911. He was found in the Layton Lakes Community on the corner of Queen Creek and Lindsay. For now he is comfortably hanging out with the technician at her house with her "human family" and her 3 dogs and 2 cats. The cats are not fond of him as he thinks they are play toys and loves to chase them! But everyone seems to be getting along just fine! Please, if you hear of anyone missing this sweet little guy, call us at the clinic so that we may return him to his family.

Please make sure you do all you can to ensure your pet stay safe in the confines of your home or yard. Our Arizona summer heat can be very dangerous for a dog (or cat) roaming the streets with no shelter or water after only a very short time. Every pet should be wearing a collar with some form of ID tag. The county requires all dogs be licensed, this is also a form of identification for your lost dog. Your information is linked with the license number the county provides for your dog. You can also have a microchip implanted in your pet by one of our veterinarians. This is a relatively easy procedure and as soon as registered with the microchip company can ensure the return of your lost pet. All clinics and shelters have some form of scanner that will usually read most chips.

Hoping for a Happy Reunion of this little guy with his rightful owner. We will keep you posted!

Just getting this blog going again. We have been busy learning about and loving our pet patients. Recently, we have been seeing a lot of puppies and young adult dogs with parvoenteritis. "Parvo" is preventable. Unfortunately, it is also a very serious, life-threatening disease. Left untreated, puppies with parvo only have a 50% chance of survival. Treatment increases that statistic tremendously. We are urging all our clients to come in and have their puppies vaccinated and have their records reviewed for any deficiencies in their protection. This is so vital and important to preventing illness, nothing should be left to chance.