Mackinaw Veterinary Associates
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Social Distancing at the Veterinary Clinic

3/15/2020

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I wanted to put out a new blog to discuss the current Coronavirus pandemic.  More specifically,  how this may impact you as pet owner and veterinary client. 
 
First, the World Health Organization has determined that the current Coronavirus, COVID-19 is not infectious to dogs and cats.  While viruses can change and mutate, there is no evidence of risk for infection at this time. 
 
However, pets can help spread the virus if they are contaminated with infectious particles.  Just like a doorknob, pen or any other object, if your pet comes into contact with infectious particles, it can pass those along to others that touch them.  If you are having respiratory symptoms (coughing, sneezing, runny nose) try to avoid direct contact with your pets or ensure that they are being bathed frequently.  WHO states that COVID-19 may survive on surfaces for hours to several days. 
 
The State of Michigan, like many others, have declared a state of emergency and closed schools and cancelled public gatherings.  The idea behind this is to limit close human interaction and to slow or stall the spread of the illness.  While this is not intended to be a “lock yourself in your home and live off of canned soup” measure, it is meant to limit close contact where people could be swapping infectious droplets.  If you have never seen a high speed photography image of a sneeze, here is one provided by the Centers for Disease Control at the following link: https://phil.cdc.gov/details.aspx?pid=11161

 

 







Social distancing is an easy and socially responsible thing we can all do to help slow the spread of this illness.  By having fewer cases, we can reserve more medical services for those that do become infected and will be adversely affected due to age or concurrent health conditions.   Cancelling schools, concerts and sporting events is more large scale.  We can help on the smaller scale by limiting shopping trips to a single store, standing farther apart when in lines and in public, wiping down shopping cart handles and washing hands frequently.  Last, not going out if we have respiratory symptoms.  Many will get a mild form of the illness and may not even know they are sick.  However, the person they give it to may have other health issues and become seriously ill. 
 
In order to reduce the risk of transmission and infection in our veterinary clinic, we are introducing new appointment policies based on the idea of social distancing.   First and foremost, we will try to prevent having many people in the lobby all at one time. 
 
We ask that our clients bringing in pets for rehab, hydrotherapy and laser pull around to the back door and call to let us know you are here for your appointment.  We will bring you into the rehab room through the back door as soon as we are ready for your pet. 
 
We ask that our general medicine and surgery appointment park out front as usual but please call from the car to let us know you have arrived.  As soon as we have a room open for you, we will come out to get you and your pet. 
 
We ask that only one person accompany each pet for their appointment to decrease the number of people in the exam rooms.  We ask that if you are sick, please call to reschedule any routine care appointments for your pet.  If you are ill and your pet is ill or hurt and needs to be seen, please inform us of this, we can obtain history over the phone and take your pet in to be examined while you wait in your car. 
 
While this may sound overprotective, remember that you are coming in for one appointment and will interact with 2-3 people while at our clinic.  We, however will be seeing appointments all day and interacting with anywhere from 15 to 30 people on an average day.  We want to remain open and provide the best possible care for your pets during this time, but we have families also and want to limit our contact to prevent spreading anything to them. 
 
Thank you very much for your understanding and please let us know if we can answer any additional questions.  There are links below to provide more information.  The CDC and WHO pages are being updated daily.  We will continue to monitor those pages and the AVMA and if any changes arise that will affect the health of your pet, we will post to our FaceBook page at: https://www.facebook.com/mackinawvet/?ref=bookmarks
 
 
 
American Veterinary Medical Association – FAQs for Pet Owners
https://www.avma.org/sites/default/files/2020-03/covid-19-faq-pet-owners.pdf
 
Centers for Disease Control
https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-nCoV/index.html
 
World Health Organization
https://www.who.int/emergencies/diseases/novel-coronavirus-2019

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Halloween Can Be Scary for Pets Too!

10/29/2017

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This Halloween, take a minute to make sure your pets are prepared for this weird and scary holiday.  We get very excited about the costumes, decorations and trick-or-treating, but let’s take a minute to picture this from a pets perspective.
 
Some dogs and cats are very laid back and are not bothered at all by hordes of costume clad strangers coming to their home.  For most pets, the costumes and high volume of people coming up to the house can cause a lot of anxiety.

 
Costumes for Pets
Not all pets like to be dressed up, so if your pet seems stressed by the costume do not make them wear one. 

If your pets does not mind dress up, make sure that the costume fits properly, allows for normal movement and has no little parts that can be eaten by the pet.  

Costumes for People
Make sure to let your pet see and sniff your family’s costumes before you put them on.  If you have a mildly anxious pet, try to get into costume with them in the room so that they understand it is you.  Have some treats handy to turn a potentially scary experience into a positive one.

If you have a very anxious pet, consider tucking them away for the night in their crate or a bedroom where they can be undisturbed by the costumes, decorations and events of the evening. 
 
Trick-or-Treat
Place pets in a quiet room away from the front windows and door before Trick-or-Treating begins so that they do not see all the strangers coming to the house and feel the need to try to protect you and their home.

If you have a pet that stresses easily, consider sitting right by the door or on your front porch so that Trick-or-Treaters do not need to ring the doorbell, knock or enter the house.  Not hearing these things will help reduce any stress you pet may be experiencing.

If you are planning to take your pet Trick-or-Treating with you, make sure that they are comfortable with people in costume, excitement and high activity levels around them and their costume, if they will be wearing one.  Also keep an eye out that they are not getting any dropped candy from the ground or porches.  

General Tips
Make sure your pets have current ID tags on and that their microchip registration is up to date with correct phone numbers.   This is a scary night and lots of pets will get out of the house or yard.

Your Halloween candy is a big bucket of toxins for your pet.  Not only is chocolate toxic to dogs, many gums and sugar free candies contain Xylitol, which can cause liver failure in your pets.  Wrappers can also be a problem as they can create a foreign body that can cause gastro-intestinal obstruction that may require surgery.  Make sure all candy is kept out of reach or your pets.

Consider getting either a Feliway or Adaptil room diffuser to help calm anxious pets.  Set it up in the room your pet will be in during Trick-or-Treat hours or during your party.  For best results, set up earlier in the day so your pet already thinks of this as a calm area before he/she is confined there. 

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Do Not Ignore the “Little” Signs

8/27/2017

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In the veterinary world, we often see pets that have serious problems with only mild clinical signs.  “He only vomited the one time”, “She has been coughing for a month, but only when she lays on her side to sleep”, and so on. 
 
Sometimes little clinical signs are indications of mild illness, allergy or aging process.  Other times they can be warning signs for a life threatening condition.  It is often impossible to tell the difference when you are seeing these signs at home. 
 
The radiographs below show a dog that presented for a physical exam after one day of diarrhea.  I am sharing these radiographs with the owner’s permission.  This was an older dog, who was well cared for, very well loved and current on his veterinary care.  On exam, I could feel that there was a mass in his abdomen.  We took radiographs and found not one, but two HUGE masses or tumors in his abdomen.  The first picture shows the original radiograph.  The second pictures shows the radiograph with the tumors highlighted.

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This dog’s only clinical sign was a sudden onset of diarrhea, which had only been going on for one day.  Due to the size, these masses had probably been growing for some time, but finally reached the point where they were compressing the intestines and causing loose stools. 
 
All too often we see pets that have a long history of clinical signs that the pet owner has been noticing, but did not seem severe enough to warrant the trip to the vet.  All too often, this delay in diagnosis has allowed the issue to advance to the point where more drastic treatment is needed, such as major surgery or referral to specialists, or it is no longer at a stage were treatment is a good option.  The decision to delay is never made out of disregard for the pet.  Most pet owners love their pets like family members.  Postponing veterinary care is usually due to busy schedules, financial constraints or lack of understanding of health issues.
 
Our pets can have almost any medical problem that people can have, and a few more just to keep us vets on our toes.  The body is very complex and animals have an amazing capacity to compensate for illness and injury, often without showing clinical signs.  If your pet has a change in his or her usual habits, contact your veterinarian to ask their advice on whether or not the change is something that should be explored immediately, or if it can be monitored briefly and an exam set up if not resolved on its own in a reasonable time frame. 
 
We cannot always save pets with early intervention, but there is a much better chance when problems are discovered and diagnosed early on.
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Hey Doc, What should I feed my pet?

12/17/2016

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This is a question that almost every client asks at some point and I used to cringe a little every time I heard it.  Why balk at the chance to educate clients and improve the nutritional health of pets you ask?  Because no matter how careful we are as veterinarians to try and stay abreast of the commercial pet food market, it is always changing.  The food I recommend today because it has had a long, consistent history of quality ingredients will inevitably have a recall next week.  Pretty much every major company has had a recall at some point, believe me, I monitor the recall notice boards.  Not to mention that no matter what I suggest or my reasons for recommending it, clients will always believe the T.V. network chef turned pet food mogul or the stock boy at the big box pet store over their DVM with a medical degree and the best interest of their pet in mind.

I recently attended a meeting for veterinarians on a newer company that is making nutraceuticals (supplements) and pet foods and was blown away.  For those of you who have not yet gotten a chance to know me yet, I have a little skeptic streak (from my Dad) and do not, as a rule, trust advertising on face value.  I need to see the science and research and real world studies before recommending products for my patients.  But this company was something different.  First, they can track all of their ingredients to the source and provide that information to clients with a click of your mouse.  Next, they have done extensive, double-blinded studies to confirm efficacy for their nutraceuticals.
  Finally, and perhaps most importantly, they test their products for content AFTER production.  Companies that make supplements (and are regulated by FDA) are only required to report what goes into their products.  However, many of the supplement nutrients are fragile and significantly degraded during the manufacturing process.  So that bottle of 200mg blank-vitamin had to contain 200mg before it was compressed into those capsules, but is not required to test and report how much in the finished product.  More often than not over 50% can be lost during production. 
 
Complete transparency in pet food ingredient and manufacturing is amazing, especially in the age of weekly recalls.  I love that I can recommend a food that is not only completely traceable, tested post-production
for quality and content and that the company makes it so easy for pet owners to access this information.  I love that I can recommend a joint, skin or liver supplement to my clients and know that the concentration it states on the bottle is what their pet will actually get.  I have to be skeptical of new trends and fads when looking out for my patients’ health.  I am so excited to be able to recommend and offer a truly quality product that has been tested for efficacy and content.  If you are looking for a true quality food or supplement for your pet, come in to see us and we’ll help you find one appropriate for your pet’s age, lifestyle and/or medical condition. 

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Introducing the New Vet

12/14/2016

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My name is Dr. Sarah Zuker.  My first blog for MVA is to introduce myself as I recently purchased Mackinaw Veterinary Associates from Dr. Michael Scott.  I have had the pleasure of meeting some of you while working with Dr. Scott over the past two months. 
 
I was born and raised in Owosso, Michigan, and grew up in a small, family run business.
I graduated from Michigan State University with a degree in Veterinary Medicine in May of 2012.  While in vet school, I had the unique opportunity to work in MSU’s Advanced Rehabilitation Center for Animals.  I was instantly drawn to how many different ways physical rehabilitation could help pets.  I completed my rehab training concurrently with vet school and received my Certified Canine Rehabilitation Practitioner (C.C.R.P.) certificate in June of 2012.
 
After graduation, I accepted an associate position in Florida and have spent the last four years practicing veterinary medicine and physical rehabilitation in the sunshine state.  My husband and I have been keeping an eye out for the perfect practice in mid-Michigan for a few years now.  We were very excited when we first spoke with Dr. Scott and when we came up to visit Mackinaw Veterinary Associates last May. We knew we had found our home. 
 
In addition to physical rehabilitation, I have a strong interest in surgery, hospice and advanced therapies such as stem cell and immunotherapy.  I truly enjoy getting to know clients and their pets.  The best way to learn how to help owners best care for their beloved pets, and the best way to manage medical issues when they arise, is to have a good understanding of the family and the dynamic role each pet plays in that family.
 
You will likely get a chance to meet my husband Andrew, as well.  He is the practice manager at MVA and has been helping out with appointments while both Dr. Scott and I have been seeing patients.  We are both very happy to be home in mid-Michigan and to raise our daughter with her family and small town values. 
 
We look forward to meeting all of you and to help you give your pets a long, happy and healthy life.  Please feel welcome to call and schedule an appointment to meet with me and discuss how rehabilitation or newer therapies could benefit your pet. 
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Mackinaw Veterinary Associates - 4915 Mackinaw Rd.  Saginaw, MI 48603 - 989-793-8728

Locally owned and operated.

  • Home
  • ABOUT US
  • OUR SERVICES
  • Rehabilitation
  • CONTACT US
  • Blog
  • AFTER HOURS EMERGENCIES
  • HELPFUL LINKS
  • Recommended Products
  • COVID-19 Protocols