Hope Vets on the road- small animal veterinary call out service covering Bovingdon, Flaunden, Chorleywood, Hemel Hempstead, Sarratt, Chesham, Chipperfield and much of Hertfordshire and Buckinghamshire

LATEST NEWS


	NEW CLINIC FINALLY OPENS! After 18 months planning and hoping and a lot longer dreaming, our wonderful new clinic has finally opened. The boxes are binned and the car is taking a well deserved break, Hope Vets is off the road and now has a home. Having chosen everything down to door handles and plug sockets, we have a clinic that we are very proud of. Drop in and see us. We’ll be delighted to show off to you.

ANIMAL WELFARE ACT 2006

Is it really making a difference?

In 2006 new legislation came through in England which updated animal welfare legislation. Previous to this it was illegal to be actively cruel to any animal but now thanks to this new act, it is illegal to not provide for the welfare needs of any animal in your care. The key welfare needs of any animal are:

Animal Welfare Laws 1. The need for a suitable environment (place to live)

2. The need for a suitable diet

3. The need to exhibit normal behaviour patterns

4. The need to be housed with, or apart from, other animals (depending on the particular social needs of each species)

5. The need to be protected from pain, injury, suffering and disease

The law also increased the minimum age to 16 at which a person can buy an animal and prohibits giving animals as prizes to unaccompanied children under this age.

I am afraid that I am guilty of regarding legislation of this kind with suspicion. I always wonder what real difference it will make and how enforceable will it be. The idea is undoubtedly a good one. Anyone undertaking to care for an animal of any species should be required to provide for its particular needs and ignorance of these needs is an unacceptable excuse for neglecting them.

So, 2 years on, is the act making a difference?

Let me introduce Percy...

This is Percy when we first met him in January 2008. Percy is in the foreground, we photographed him next to a healthy Bearded Dragon for comparison.

Percy is an adult male Bearded Dragon who was seized by the RSPCA in January 2008. He was severely weak and underweight. When we first met him he could barely hold his head up and he couldn’t support his body weight on his legs. This tragic debilitation was not the result of knowing cruelty but actually the result of ignorance of how Bearded Dragons should be looked after and their particular requirements for calcium and ultraviolet light. Over the past 6 months we have been nursing Percy back to full strength and with the correct conditions and diet he is now doing extremely well.

This is Percy in his new home in July 2008, now enjoying life and thriving.

Percy’s previous owner was found guilty on July 4th, fined and banned from keeping reptiles for 5 years. This is a great victory for the new Animal Welfare Act and we are very proud to have been a part of ensuring that the law is actually making a difference to the animals it was designed to protect.

CAT OWNERS BEWARE!

Dog flea treatments containing permethrin could kill your cat!

With increasing availability of flea products in pet shops and supermarkets, pet owners are often not getting the crucial advice they need. Many flea products designed for dogs contain an insecticide called permethrin. This compound is a very safe and effective flea treatment in dogs but in cats it is highly toxic.

Toxic effects can occur not only from these products being applied to cats but can also occur from cats coming into close physical contact with treated dogs in the same household through sharing beds or grooming. Cats poisoned with permethrin most commonly suffer convulsions, twitching, tremors, drooling and a wobbly drunken gait. They may need
2-3 days of intensive veterinary treatment to recover and sadly in 10% of cases despite best efforts the cat will die.

There are many flea products on the market that are totally safe to be used in cats and these should say so clearly on the label. If in doubt, we are always happy to help. We can give advice on any product and can supply safe and effective flea preparations for your cats (and dogs).

MICROCHIPS – ONLY £20

Is your animal
microchipped?

Did you know that every year more than 300,000 treasured family pets get lost or go missing? Does your pet carry ID that can’t get lost and can’t be removed?

Microchips are tiny, about the size of a grain of rice. The chip is implanted under the skin of the scruff by an ordinary injection, then it just sits there for the whole of your pet's life providing all your contact details to anyone with a microchip reader. All vets, rescue centres and local authorities have microchip readers, and any pet that is found is checked immediately. If the animal is microchipped the owners' details can be accessed any time of day or night and the family can be reunited with their pet as soon as possible.

Microchipping is also a legal requirement for animals travelling abroad under the Pet Travel Scheme.
To book in your pet for microchipping – give us a call

Microchipping is important for reptiles too. Each year many tortoises get lost and other reptile species are commonly stollen. A microchip can ensure they are returned. Spur-thighed, Hermann's, Marginated, Kleinmann's and Pancake Tortoises all need a licence. A microchip number for all animals over 10 cm shell length (measured in a straight horizontal line) must appear on this licence (for further information contact DEFRA).

Reptile microchipping for £25 – give us a call