Healthy Pets
Q & A PREVENTATIVE MEDICINE
Can I catch any diseases from my pets?
What should my pet be eating?
Is my pet doing well? By having your veterinarian perform careful physical examinations, at regular intervals, you will optimize the chances that any problems with your pet that you might be unaware of will be discovered by your veterinarian.
Do I need to take my pet to the vet every year? At least! An annual exam is equivalent to our seeing a doctor every five to seven years. An exam every six months is like a human seeing a doctor for a check-up only every 2.5 to 3.5 years. In order to prescribe medicines and preventatives for your pet, an annual exam is needed (ex: ongoing medications, heartworm preventatives, etc).
Why does my pet need a Wellness Exam? Our animals live shorter lives than we do, unfortunately, so more frequent veterinarian visits are needed even for apparently healthy pets. An exam every six months can help detect problems earlier when a more likely successful intervention can be carried out. Additional bloodwork can also identify problems earlier and provide a good baseline for future comparison.
Does a healthy pet need anything other than a physical exam?
Vaccinations are needed, just as in humans, to protect your pet from some serious and even fatal diseases.
Are Vaccines Safe?
Cross Creek Animal Clinic is dedicated to using the safest, most effective vaccine products and strategies to give your pet immunity from disease, while minimizing side effects. These products are discussed in more detail in the cat and dog individual sections of this website.
- What vaccines does my dog need?
- A yearly (or tri-yearly) Rabies vaccine is required by law in the State of Florida and protects your pet from the fatal disease.
- Distemper and Parvovirus are fatal diseases that can be transmitted even without direct contact with a sick dog. Parvovirus should be considered to be everywhere in the environment, as it is a hardy, long-lived virus. Unvaccinated puppies are the most likely to contract parvovirus.
- Bordetella (also known as kennel cough) is most likely to occur in unvaccinated dogs who are in close proximity with sick dogs or healthy dogs who are shedding the bacteria. (Situations to be aware of include boarding, visiting crowded dog parks, and visiting the groomer.)
- Leptospirosis is a potentially fatal bacterial disease that is spread by rodent and wildlife urine. The vaccination is recommended if your dog's lifestyle includes walking on trails, visiting the woods, hunting, playing in dog parks, camping, or even your backyard if wildlife frequently visit it.
What vaccines does my cat need?
- A yearly (or tri-yearly) Rabies vaccine is required by law in the State of Florida and protects your pet from the fatal disease.
- The FVRCP (Feline Viral Rhinotracheitis, Calicivirus and Panleukopenia) protects your cat from three diseases.
- The FeLv vaccine is generally recommended for cats that go outdoors or cats that might be exposed to potentially infected cats indoors. Cats under one-year of age are the most susceptible to contracting Feline Leukemia Virus if exposed and therefore are the most important to vaccinate with the FeLv vaccine.
- Can I catch any diseases from my pet? A disease caught by a human from an animal is called a Zoonotic Disease. Important zoonotic diseases of concern are:
- Rabies is an awful, often fatal disease, that can most often be contracted by unvaccinated pets from encounters with raccoons, foxes, bats, and skunks.
- Leptospirosis is a bacterial disease transmitted by contact with urine from infected animals, most often raccoons and deer. Infected dogs can also shed the bacteria in their own urine which is then potentially infectious to you. Vaccinating your dog and your cat for rabies and dogs for lepto, protects both your pet and you from getting these diseases.
- Roundworm eggs are most frequently found in the feces of puppies and older dogs who have never been properly dewormed. Serious disease can occur if humans, especially children, ingest roundworm eggs. It is therefore especially important to fully deworm any new canine arrivals into households which have young children. Young children should not be allowed to intermingle with litters of puppies who have not been thoroughly dewormed and bathed. Adult dogs who have been dewormed are unlikely to shed roundworms in their feces but this is not impossible, especially if a female adult becomes pregnant. Keep in mind that the occurrence of roundworms in adult dogs may differ in various geographic locations.
- Hookworm larvae can penetrate human skin and create localized inflammation (cutaneous larval migrans). The most common situation for this occurrence would be children playing in sandboxes in which outdoor cats may have defecated. Hookworm larvae contaminate the outdoor environment throughout the southeastern United States and penetrate the skin of both dogs and cats.
- Giardia is a protozoal disease that affects the GI tract of cats and dogs. If your cat or dog contracts giardia and is shedding the organism in their feces, you are at risk of contracting it from your pet.
- Toxoplasmosis is a parasitic disease that is occasionally transmitted via cat feces, but more commonly through poorly cooked meat or handling contaminated soil. Though the chance of a house cat carrying and shedding toxo is generally low, it is nevertheless advisable for pregnant women to avoid contact with their cat's feces or at least take proper precautions. It would also follow that pregnant women who work with soil should take precautions as well. Finally, pregnant women should be sure meat products are fully cooked before eating them.
What should my pet be eating?
A well-thought-out diet takes into account the natural history of the breed and the individual animal's particular constitution. Other than taking the time to properly prepare food for our pets that provides the proper nutrients, selecting the best, affordable diet and offering some supplementary foods is the best option. High quality canned food is often a better choice than dry. Dry diets can be supplemented with canned food, canned fish (wild-caught salmon) or a selection of crock-potted meats/root vegetables/greens and spices/herbs. The website BalanceIt.com gives detailed information on making your own pet food properly. We are happy to provide advice as to the best dietary selection for your pet.
Does my pet need heartworm prevention?
Dogs and cats can both get heartworms from infected mosquitos. Heartworm disease is fatal without intervention, yet it is preventable. With our warm climate in Florida, heartworm prevention should be administered monthly, year-round. Many preventatives also provide control of the most common intestinal worms. Various heartworm preventatives, including an injectable, semi-annual product, are available in the clinic. VetSource is partnered with the actual manufacturers and genuine-article oral products can be obtained through this online pharmacy as well.