Protect Your Pet With Vaccinations and Parasite Prevention at Companion Animal Hospital
The importance of vaccinations in your pet’s health care plan cannot be understated. Modern vaccination science goes far beyond a rabies and distemper shot. Today, vaccines can protect your pet from many illnesses:
For Cats: feline leukemia, respiratory diseases, and rabies
For Dogs: canine distemper, rabies, parvovirus, respiratory diseases, kennel cough (Bordetella), leptospirosis, Lyme disease, canine influenza, and more
Which Product Is Best?
For every pet, the best product is the one that accounts for his or her lifestyle and addresses parasites common to where you live. At Companion Animal Hospital, we’re happy to discuss the pros and cons of products and are proud to offer competitive values on parasite preventives through our pharmacy.
Fleas & Ticks
Heartworms
Heartworm disease is a potentially fatal condition caused by footlong worms that live in the heart, lungs, and related blood vessels. While dogs are more prone to heartworm than cats, an effective treatment option exists for dogs. However, the same medication cannot be used in cats, making prevention crucial to felines. We generally recommend having your pet tested annually since early detection is always the best defense against infection.
Intestinal Parasites
Most intestinal parasites are not visible to the naked eye, therefore we screen for infection via microscopic analysis in our laboratory. The Companion Animal Parasite Council (CAPC) recommends fecal analyses be performed two to four times in the first year of life for puppies and kittens and one to two times per year for adults.
A number of heartworm preventives are also effective against certain intestinal parasites. Depending on the product, this may include hookworms, roundworms, whipworms, or tapeworms. However, no single treatment can eliminate every parasite, and we recommend consulting your veterinarian to determine what’s appropriate for your pet.