Category Archives: New Puppy Care

Why Vaccines?
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If you’ve brought home a new pet, it is important to make sure it receives the proper vaccines to be protected against certain diseases.

Vaccines have been used for decades to prevent illnesses that are deadly and/or difficult to treat.  A new puppy or kitten needs several series of vaccines to ensure full protection.  Most veterinarians try to start this series at around 8-10 weeks of age.

The American Veterinary Medical Association (AVMA) has a very good summary of vaccine information at this link:
http://www.avma.org/issues/vaccination/default.asp

Body Condition Score
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Many of you have asked the question:  “Is my pet fat?”  Veterinarians answer that question using a combination of observations, but a major assessment tool used is Body Condition Score.  While monitoring a pets weight is an important step in keeping them healthy, Body Condition Score is a more inclusive assessment that grades an animal on a spectrum from unhealthily thin, to ‘just right’, to unhealthily fat.