We always had pets growing up, but I honestly could not tell you where a nearby veterinarian was.  I’m sure my parents never vaccinated their dogs, much less worried about preventative care.  My parents were great care givers and loved our animals, but I think it was the old school attitude that you only saw the vet to euthanize your dog.  As a young adult I adopted the same philosophy as my parents.  As we started introducing pets into our household with children I choose to become more educated on the benefits of regular veterinary care.  It wasn’t until I began working at an animal hospital that I let myself believe in the value of preventative care and saw for myself the benefits and unfortunately the downside of lack of care.  I also never thought about the financial benefit of prevenative care until we had our first doggie dental that required multiple extractions, our pocketbook was not happy! http://www.dreamstime.com/-image23515855

Zoom ahead to 2014 and I am much more proactive about having annual exams, vaccines, wellness checks and especially dentals.  I know how icky I feel when my mouth is not clean, I have a cavity or worse, I can only imagine how our little four legged friends must feel. The noticeable benefit is when they pant in my face and I don’t want to drop over from the smell, the hidden benefit is knowning I have done what I can to help extend their life and address any found issues.

In celebration of national pet dental month we want  to share a informative webpage with quick videos and information on preventative care and periodontal disease,  https://www.avma.org/Events/pethealth/Pages/February-is-National-Pet-Dental-Health-Month.aspx.  We also will be celebrating dental month with a great affordable dental cleaning special. Why not give our staff a call for me details. 

Ellen Moyer, Hospital Administrator