What's New at KVC

Kathy is celebrating her 10th anniversary at Kensington Vet Clinic!!!

Staff News

Welcome to Zoe, who is our new trainee nurse. Zoe has worked part time in a vet clinic before but has been keen to learn more and study for her nursing certificate. Zoe has a large family of resuce animals at home that keep her busy.

Congratulations to Kathy for passing her acupuncture course. She is now and accredited animal acupuncturist. Please check the website if you are interested in acupuncture for your animal,or just phone the clinic.

Congratulations also to Eleanor who has passed her Small Animal Medicine Membership Exams. Being a member of the Australian College of Veterinary Surgeons requires extra training in your field of interest.

We are extending our consulting hours on Wednesday with Dr Dianne Pakes from 9am to 1.30 pm for those people who would prefer to come in the middle of the day.

Clinic Specials

August is dental month. If you would like your pet to have a free dental check with our friendly nurses please phone the clinic to arrange a time. We are also happy to give advice on helping to keep your pets teeth clean

The dental month promotion reminded us to have a quick look at Squirt's teeth. We were shocked to find that he had 3 teeth that he required extractions, even though he had been eating well and showing no signs of discomfort. Squirt had resorptive lesions on his teeth, that had eroded them down to the level of the pulp cavity and must have been uncomfortable. Resportive lesions occur only in cats teeth and are caused by the body's own immune system destroying the tooth. There is no current understanding of why this happens, or why it happens only to cats and the only treatment is extraction.

New Dog Vaccination Protocols

We all agree that vaccines should be administered to all animals to protect them against life threatening disease and there are many animals that require further vaccines to help prevent diseases that are a less severe health risk.

Current scientific consensus recommends that adult dogs should be vaccinated for canine distemper virus, canine adenovirus and canine parvovirus every 3 years. Dogs living in the city or who have contact with other dogs, should also be vaccinated for parainfluenza virus and Bordetella bronchiseptica (Kennel Cough) every year. These 5 components together make up the standard C5 vaccine.

Puppies require 3 vaccines 4 weeks apart, with the final puppy vaccination at 16 weeks of age. They then require a booster 12 months later. These vaccines will be a C5, meaning that they include all the components.

WHAT THIS MEANS FOR YOUR DOG.

When you receive your reminder for your adult dog's annual health check and vaccination, your dog may only require a booster for Kennel cough. It is important to continue this yearly check up and kennel cough booster to maintain immunity against kennel cough and to identify any problems your dog may have.

Your vaccination record will be filled in and you will be reminded for the following year. Your dog will receive a c5 one year, then 2 years of a kennel cough vaccine only. This vaccination schedule will provide full coverage for kennels.

Every animal's vaccination protocol should be determined based on its individual requirements and occasionally it is in the patients best interests not to be vaccinated.

CATS

Cats require vaccines for Feline Enteritis and calicivirus and herpes virus. These vaccines have not been proven to last longer than 12 months so at present we will continue to vaccinate every year. To be allowed to board at a cattery they are required to have had a vaccine in the previous 12 months.
Depending on their lifestyle we also offer a vaccine for Feline immunodeficiency virus (FIV) which is a disease which is transmitted by fighting.